[OM] Re: Digital, digital, Part 2 (Long, really long)

[Doug]

On Thursday April 14 2005 2:12 pm, you wrote:


I think Walt has many valid points. I've always felt that just because some 
process is new doesn't automatically make it better for every purpose. On the 
other hand just because something has always been done someway does that make 
it perfect either. 

In many fields of work, from carpentery to art to photography there has been 
much outstanding work done with "traditional" tools and methods. Many a fine 
house was built with hand tools as there are many fine houses built with the 
latest of power tools. Buying yourself the lastest camera or accessory isn't 
going to make you a better photographer unless you have a clear picture of 
what you are trying to do. For some people the difference in the process 
between film and digital makes then better photographers because the digital 
work flow makes more sense to them, for others like Walt is is just the 
opposite. 

The reasons I haven't gone digital are:

1) It's still too expensive. I've got a couple of thousand dollars in the OM 
system which I couldn't begin to duplicate in a digital system. When you 
factor in how fast these cameras seem to become obsolete I just can't justify 
buying one until the market stabilizes. 

2) I've picked up both a Can*n rebel and a Nik*on D-70 in one of the big box 
stores. I don't like the bulk of them and I don't like the huge grip they put 
on right side of the camera. It forces me to try to hold the camera in a 
totally unnatural way for me. I can carry one of the OM bodies all day 
without my hands hurting. I held one of these cameras for just a few minutes 
in a store just playing around with it and I could tell my hands didn't like 
holding it at all. 

3) Without making a great effort to learn all the buttons it seems to me that 
there is way too much going on in these cameras for most of it to become 
second nature unless I used the camera everyday. I could see me getting busy 
and not using the camera much for a couple of months. Would this mean that 
I'd have to go back and dig through the manual again to get myself 
reoriented? It's not that I'm computer phobic or computer challenged. I use a 
computer everyday at work and home. It may be me but so much of these things 
have icons that I'm always stopping to figure out. Does the tree icon mean 
shade or some kind of setting to take nature pictures? 

These are just my thoughts. I'm not trying to convince anyone that either film 
or digital is the way to go. Each of us has to weigh all the factors, one of 
which is our personality and make the decision for themself. For me the 
balance is still on film. After all I haven't even scratched the surface of 
what there is to know about photography whether it is film or digital. For me 
I suspect that I'll always remain a person who uses both film and digital. 
-Doug 



==============================================
List usage info:     http://www.zuikoholic.com
List nannies:        olympusadmin@xxxxxxxxxx
==============================================