Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/07/03
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]>>>From: Charles Dunlap <cdunlap@es.UCSC.EDU> > >>Since having the M I've realized what a disservice the auto-SLRs have done > >>to amateur photographers >it strikes me that many of you are looking for external reasons for personal >"failings". the disservice is done by the individual, not the equipment they >use. I think we agree. The crux of my point (as well as others') is that the automation which is heavily marketed to beginners is getting in the way of learning. The photographer is ultimately responsible no matter what equipment he's using. The auto cameras, however, inhibited me from learning by 1) sucking me into using the automation far too frequently and therefore removing me from decisions that I should be learning how to make and 2) by adding a layer of complexity on top of the fundamental photographic decisions that I should have been paying attention to. Sure, deciding to use that camera and not forcing myself to keep it in manual mode were all ultimately my fault. The equipment would have done what I asked it (with the exception of the limitation of the lenses). But all of that is hindsight. My point is that if I'd never had an M I wouldn't have seen that any of this was true. - -Charlie