August 19, 2025 • 40 mins
#588 In this episode of the podcast, I share a personal, behind-the-scenes look at what’s been happening in my photographic life, focusing on one of the most common dilemmas photographers face: Should you repair a broken camera or upgrade to a newer model? After my Fujifilm X Pro 2 suddenly died while on a shoot, I walk listeners through the emotional and practical decision to spend $400 on repairs rather than buying a new camera. I talk candidly about why this choice isn’t just about saving money—it’s about honoring the sentimental attachment to a workhorse camera and making smart, needs-based decisions rather than getting distracted by shiny new gear.
KEY TOPICS COVERED
- Repairing vs. Upgrading Your Camera - Raymond breaks down when it makes sense to repair a camera versus upgrading, suggesting repairs are usually worth it if they cost less than 30–40% of a new camera’s price, especially when the current camera still meets your needs. He also touches on the sentimental value attached to long-serving equipment.
- The Role and Impact of Upgrading Gear - He examines whether new features truly benefit your workflow or if upgrades are driven by boredom or “shiny object syndrome.” Real improvements, he argues, should address specific workflow issues or unlock new creative possibilities.
- Creative Inspiration and Intentional Projects - Raymond describes how long-term, theme-driven personal projects—like documenting the Indiana State Fair—offer structure and cultivate deeper creativity. He shares techniques for using constraints to generate focus and learning.
IMPORTANT DEFINITIONS & CONCEPTS
- Repair/Upgrade Threshold: The decision guiding whether to repair gear based on whether costs are less than 30–40% of replacement value, contextualized in terms of need, features, and sentimental value.
- Creative Constraints: Deliberately limiting yourself to a theme, technique, or subject to focus your creative energy, avoid overwhelm, and produce more meaningful work.
DISCUSSION & REFLECTION QUESTIONS
- What has influenced your past decisions to repair or upgrade camera gear? How did those choices affect your creativity and output?
- How can creative constraints or themed projects deepen your photography and help you grow as an artist?
- In your own workflow, are there features you genuinely need in new gear, or are you tempted by upgrades for other reasons?
- How does stepping away from work to seek inspiration impact your creative process?
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- Join the free Beginner Photography Podcast Community at https://beginnerphotopod.com/group
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Thanks for listening & keep shooting!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Raymond Hatfield (00:01):
If you're in my situation and maybe your
camera died, that's why you'rethinking about upgrading.
I would say that if the repaircost is less than 30 to 40% of
buying it new, and your currentcamera meets all of your needs,
then yeah, I would just repairit.
If upgrading would give youfeatures that you would actually
use or would make your workflowmuch more efficient and they're
(00:26):
not just like, well that wouldbe nice type of thing, then
yeah, it might be worth it to,to upgrade.
Hey, welcome to the Beginner ofPhotography podcast, brought to
you by Cloud Spot, the best wayto deliver and sell your photos
online.
I'm your host, Raymond Hatfield,and today I want to chat about a
few things.
(00:47):
I thought that I would have abit more of a candid discussion
about all of the photographythings that are going on in my
life.
Today.
So today we're gonna talk about,how to know when it's worth
repairing a camera versusupgrading your camera.
Why my new camera is gonna helpme to be a better photographer
(01:07):
and why if you upgrade, it mightnot help you.
Why the passage of time is whatexcites me most about my most
current photo project and alsowhy it's so important to, give
yourself some, creativeinspiration and walk away from
work from time to time.
(01:28):
So first, let me start off byjust saying that, my beloved
Fuji Film Ex Pro two.
He died.
So I was out, shooting, I wasshooting a scene of some food
for work.
We were just showing off somefood, right?
So I was taking photos and I wasprobably, I don't know, 20 or 30
photos in, and the screen justflashed black and red, and then
(01:51):
it just turned off.
It just turned off.
So I knew that I had likecharged the battery, before
shooting.
So I tried to turn it back onand again, EVF flashed black and
then red and then it didn't turnback on and it was like, like
the camera had this like miniheart attack.
It was, horrible to watch it.
(02:12):
I knew something was wrong andit wasn't just A dead battery.
because again, I knew that Icharged the battery before I had
started shooting.
So anyway, I turned off thecamera, put it back in my bag,
and then when I had got home, Irecharged that battery and sure
enough it said that it was like,80% or whatever.
(02:34):
I even tried another battery.
And, when I tried to turn itback on, that didn't work.
I, searched the internet tofigure out like what can I do,
what am I doing wrong?
And it suggested taking out bothmemory cards and removing the
lens, and then trying again.
So I did that and it stilldidn't work, so it's dead dead.
(02:55):
And that means that the fate ofmy favorite camera is up in the
air because, I wanna replace itwhether it means getting it
repaired or getting a newcamera.
I don't really want to get a newcamera.
I would rather just repair it.
And interestingly enough, whenit did die, die, I just had
looked, at what the price ofanother ex PRO two would cost.
And, I looked it up.
(03:17):
Back when, I bought my experttwo, it was in, June of 2017.
and this is my second experttwo, my first expert two I
bought in August of 2016, andthen sold it when I had, quote
unquote upgraded to the XT threefor shooting weddings, which I
immediately regretted real baddecision.
Was not happy with that.
(03:38):
I just liked the style.
I like the flow of shooting withthe X PRO two more than the XT
three.
Not that the XT three is a badcamera.
It's a really good camera.
I just liked the X PRO twobetter.
But anyway, so my current X PROtwo, the one that I bought in
June of 2017, I bought it for$1,149, and here in 2025.
(04:02):
They're still selling for over athousand dollars, which to me
like that's nuts.
That is nuts because likedigital cameras don't hold onto
their value very well becausenew technology, comes very
quickly.
And for comparison, the Canonfive D Mark four, which also
came out in 2016, and retailedfor$3,500 is now selling for
(04:25):
less than the price of an X Protwo.
Anyway.
Point is, the camera's not soold that it's cheap enough to
just, buy a new one.
And that means that I'mcurrently in the process of
packing it up, to send out forrepair, and, without seeing the
(04:47):
camera or, but just having heardof the issue that I just
described to you.
The estimate is about$400 and Ithink that's gonna be the best
option.
I'm definitely gonna pay itbecause I think, one, I love the
camera, but two, you can't buyanother camera of the same
caliber or build quality of theex Pro two for that price.
(05:11):
You can't buy another camerathat's comparable for$400.
So it's like, do I buy a lessercamera that you know I can get
for$400 or do I spend a lot morethan$400 to get a newer camera?
And it's like that camera was,my second body at weddings for
five years.
So I feel like$400 is aperfectly acceptable, just
(05:31):
maintenance cost or price forthe amount of work that it's
been through.
But I did think about upgrading.
to the X PRO three, again, samerange finder style that I love
so, so much.
And the X PRO three came out inNovember of 2019.
So it is a newer camera, it hasnewer technology.
it has a newer, cameraprocessor, newer sensor as well,
(05:54):
but I'm not gonna do it.
And let's, let's go ahead andtalk about, maybe acceptable
reasons to upgrade a camerabecause that's something that
I'm sure many of you arethinking of or have done before.
And I think first things firstis that like, upgrade whenever
you want.
Honestly, like, it's your money.
I'm not gonna tell you that youeither should or shouldn't
upgrade your camera.
(06:14):
because everybody's shootingstyle is a little bit different.
The subject matter is differentfor everybody as well.
But since the show is called theBeginner Photography Podcast.
While many of you have been,with me listening for years, I
know that there's still a lot ofyou who are new to photography
and are shooting withentry-level cameras and are
considering upgrading.
(06:35):
So let me kind of break down,for you why you might want to
upgrade a camera and whatfeatures to look for and
whatnot.
But first to be a camera, to bea camera, you must be able to
simply control light and recordan image.
That's it.
If you can do those two things,you're a camera.
(06:57):
So both the 44,000 medium formatHasselblad camera and the 50
cent pinhole soda can with alight sensitive piece of paper
inside are, they're bothcameras.
They're both cameras.
And funny enough, actually, thelight sensitive paper inside of
(07:20):
a soda can, would actually bemuch larger than the medium
format sensor of a hassle blend.
But anyway, what's thedifference between them?
Right?
The difference between these twothings is build quality and
features.
The Hasselblad, one of thefeatures is an interchangeable
lens, like wow, that's great.
The has bla can also record incolor.
Anyway, entry level cameras,they can control light.
(07:44):
It's the build quality and thefeatures that are typically
pretty minimal.
So oftentimes entry levelcameras are.
They're mostly made out ofplastic, and sometimes that
includes the lens as well.
And these features are held backfrom the professional models
because most beginners are justlearning how to use their
(08:06):
camera.
They don't need many of theextras that the pros use, so
they remove them or hold themback to make entry-level cameras
a cheaper and more affordableoption.
more easily accessible to getinto the hobby of photography
right.
Now this does not mean thatentry-level cameras take bad
(08:30):
photos.
Maybe you've heard me say that abrand new flagship camera does
not mean that you are gonnastart taking better photos.
What this means for entry levelcameras is just that the tool
itself is limited in additionalcapabilities that maybe just
professionals would use.
(08:51):
So when you upgrade from anentry level camera to pro gear,
it's a big jump, right?
However, once you have aprofessional series camera, like
the ex Pro two.
You have the things likefantastic build quality.
the x pro two is built like atank.
(09:12):
Seriously.
It is, I mean, rock solid.
it's also weather sealed, andyou have all the, great features
like.
great auto focus, better thanentry-level cameras for sure.
You have dual card slots forsecurity and recording your
image to both places, and morelike customizable buttons as
well to make the camera yourown.
And, I think that's about it.
(09:35):
So after nine years of owningthe x pro two.
A number of advancements havehappened in the world of
photography.
Yes, there is better auto focusnow and yes, there is higher
resolution sensors, things likeInBody image stabilization as
well.
But other than that, there'sreally nothing that would truly
(09:59):
benefit me and my style ofphotography.
And honestly, I've never had amoment where I thought to myself
like, man, I really wish that Ihad more than 24 megapixels
here.
I've never ever thought that,ever.
So, I kind of don't even reallycare that much, that there's
(10:20):
higher resolution sensorseither.
so the upgrade, right, theupgrade would cost me, between
1500 and$2,000 just for slightlyupgraded features that I would
use, and other features that I,I would not use.
So to me, I just, I don't seethe point.
the x pro two still fits myneeds in photography.
(10:42):
My workflow in photography, mystyle of photography.
Perfect.
It's a great camera.
Upgrading isn't solving anyproblems that I have with my
photography, and it wouldn't bemaking the process of shooting
any easier either.
So if I did upgrade, it wouldsimply simply be because I'm
(11:05):
bored, I guess, you know?
Because I would have reached thelimits of my camera, the x pro
two, and.
I haven't, I don't think that Ihave reached the limits of the x
pro two.
It's still, I mean, just keepsgoing and like going really well
nine years later.
Like I said, it's a greatcamera, but again, I'm not
(11:26):
shooting the Olympics.
You know where I need peak autofocus speed.
I'm not shooting massive fashioncampaigns that need 50 plus
megapixels.
I'm not shooting video or inextreme low light to really
benefit from in body imagestabilization either, except for
(11:48):
maybe like three or four photosa month.
Like I could see how it would behelpful, but like not$2,000
worth of helpful.
Now those would all be likemassive upgrades over an entry
level camera.
So I'm not saying that, anupgraded camera or that brand
new cameras today aren't worthit.
That would be a huge upgrade.
But when you're coming from apro level body, albeit not a
(12:11):
current one, right?
Came out nine years ago, goingto another pro-level body, isn't
that big of an upgrade.
It's more of just like qualityof life improvements.
And again, it's your money.
If you think that those qualityof life improvements are worth
it, then buy the camera.
Who am I to tell you what to do?
(12:33):
But it did make me ask myself,well then what would it take for
me to justify upgrading mycamera, my And I think for me,
maybe it's'cause I'm gettingolder or maybe it's because I've
just experienced cameras likethis as well.
I would love a larger and ahigher resolution viewfinder.
(12:54):
That would be fantastic.
Now that I'm getting older, myeyes are not what they once
were.
It's just nice to have a largerscreen.
And then also I would love forit.
And I'm assuming that we'retalking about like an X Pro four
here, right?
Like what would be the nextcamera that would come out that
would make me upgrade?
It would also need the tiltyscreen from the X 100 V or the X
(13:17):
106 series, just to make iteasier to change my compositions
from time to time.
Shoot more on my kids' eyelevel.
And yeah, I mean, I would assumealso that it would have the
things like InBody imagestabilization and faster auto
focus as well.
So like, that would be great.
but the main things would be alarger viewfinder and a true,
(13:39):
tilty screen.
But because that's not availableright now, it's not an option.
That's why I have simply decidedto repair my 9-year-old camera
rather than upgrade it.
So do me a favor and cross yourfingers that it goes well
because I dunno why, but like,I'm nervous about it, like going
(14:01):
into surgery, nervous, like, oh,I'm sure it'll be okay, but what
if it's not, you know, like theweird things like that.
which is crazy'cause like it'sjust a camera.
It's just a camera.
It's up.
A piece of, metal and glass andplastic essentially.
But there is a sentimentalaspect to the camera that it's
been with me for a long time.
I've created some of my favoriteimages with the camera and I
(14:23):
just, I just love it and I wantto keep it.
And I wanted to keep working.
So to make this more concretefor you because again, maybe you
are deciding whether you shouldupgrade or, get a new camera.
I would say, if you're in mysituation and maybe your camera
died, that's why you're thinkingabout upgrading.
(14:44):
I would say that if the repaircost is less than 30 to 40% of
buying it new, and your currentcamera meets all of your needs,
then yeah, I would just repairit.
If upgrading would give youfeatures that you would actually
use or would make your workflowmuch more efficient and they're
(15:06):
not just like, well that wouldbe nice type of thing, then
yeah, it might be worth it to,to upgrade.
And if the camera has asentimental value to you, then
sometimes it's worth more thanthe specs on the paper.
And I would, I would try torepair it.
'cause that's, that's what I'mgoing through.
And this is a perfect time tobring up that on a completely
(15:30):
unrelated note, I bought a newcamera last week.
That sounds so dumb.
But hear me out.
Okay.
So when I first got started inphotography, it was with my,
dad's Pentax, K 1000 filmcamera.
it's a fully manual film camera.
It doesn't even requirebatteries to operate.
(15:51):
Well, there's a light meterbuilt inside of it and it broke
a few years ago, and I guessthis is a pretty common thing
for the K one thousands, butit's not an easy thing, or cheap
to get fixed.
So I have just been using my ownpocket light meter when I go out
to shoot which has been fine,but unfortunately I like film to
(16:12):
be more like casual vignettes oflife than works of art.
So having to carry a whole likespot meter with me every time I
go out and shoot with this K1000 really will get in the way
of a good time real quick, realquick.
Because it's not small enough tofit into your pocket.
(16:32):
You kinda have to wear it aroundyour neck along with the camera.
And then these things are kindalike jumbling around.
You can get like a pouch thatyou can connect to your belt for
it, but then have to plan thatyou're going out to do these
things.
You can't just like have it withyou all the time anyway, so
point is I wanted to get a, I'vebeen for a while wanting to get
a film camera that is a bit moremodern.
Something with, let's just say abuilt-in light meter and auto
(16:57):
focus would be cool too.
And, Canon has been making filmcameras, or, well, they've been
making'em for a long time, butthey were building them still
into the early two thousands.
So, I mean, today you can getlike a really good quality film
camera for relatively cheapbecause the demand is not super
high.
(17:17):
And because I still have oneCanon lens, the trusty Nifty 50.
Why?
I am not sure.
I don't know why I didn't sellit, but I didn't.
So I thought, well, I better golooking for a Canon film camera.
And I settled on the Canon EOS55, which I did not know this
(17:38):
until after I purchased it, butit is a Japan only model.
It was only released in Japan.
So there's a few features on itthat are interesting, including
the back.
There is a, I don't know if it'sa warning, but it's some sort of
sticker and it's all inJapanese, and I have no idea
what it says, but it still takesphotos.
that's all that I needed to do.
(17:58):
Anyway, in America, the versionthat was released, which is
similar is called the Canon ELANtwo ELAN two, and this is like,
it's a mid-range camera, so itwasn't an entry level rebel
series camera and it wasn't aprofessional level, like the in
one series camera, justmid-range, and everything that I
(18:20):
could find online about thecamera said it had great auto
focus.
The build quality was good.
and it also had features like,being able to shoot double
exposures.
And I found one on, Facebookmarketplace for just 50 bucks
and I went to go look at it andI mean, it is an immaculate
condition truly, like I'mshocked that anything of this
(18:43):
age looks this good.
It's just cool to look at.
So anyway, I bought it 50 bucks.
And, for 50 bucks you'reimmediately shooting full frame
on, you know, you can useprofessional series lenses as
well.
So like you can create somereally great images because it's
on film.
And after shooting for a fewdays, like sure enough, auto
focus is quick.
(19:04):
It's got a good working lightmeter, and everything sounds
like it's working perfectlyinside the camera.
When you're shooting with it, itadvances the film, it
automatically rewinds the film,things like that.
So just a lot of quality of lifeimprovements over the K 1000 and
it's only 50 bucks, so I've putthree rolls through it.
(19:26):
And I sent those out today to bedeveloped, so I'll let you know
how those turn out when I getthem back.
Here's the thing though.
It's not a camera to replaceanything that I have, right?
Like it's not gonna replace thex pro two, but I've been wanting
to shoot more film for a numberof reasons.
One.
(19:47):
Just being, its tangiblequality.
I love that there's a chemicalreaction with the light around
us that happens onto this pieceof film, creating something,
marking it forever, essentially.
As almost like a stamp that youwere there and this thing
(20:13):
happened.
I like that a lot.
As we move more into a worldwhere AI is, just in more places
in our life, I like havingsomething that is a lot more
manual and tangible.
And there's also just thisgreater sense of accomplishment
when you capture a really goodexposure on film, more so than
(20:34):
when you capture a really goodexposure on digital.
I also like how I'm not selfcritiquing myself or editing the
photos that I'm taking while.
I'm shooting right when I'mshooting with my x pro.
I'll be out there taking photos,but if there's, if I'm
questionable about a photo,I'll, do a playback.
(20:55):
I'll look at how it turned outand then make adjustments from
there if needed.
but you can't do that on film.
So I'm just out there in theworld paying attention to
everything that is going aroundme, going on around me, and
hoping to.
capture something interestingand that's something.
It's something that every time Ihave shot film in the past and I
(21:19):
start to get into that mindset,it then transfers over into my
digital photography, meaning Ipay attention to light
differently.
I wait longer for the moment,like I choose the moment in my
head, like I know what I want tosee, so I wait longer for the
moment rather than just shootingthrough something and then just
(21:40):
picking out the best shot later.
So I feel more intentional inboth, what and how I'm shooting.
And I think that the more timewe can be present and fully
aware of what we're doing whencreating something, be it a
photograph, be it a newworkbench, be it you know, just
(22:02):
planting flowers in the garden,whatever it is.
The more we can do that and befully present and aware of
what's going on, the betterbecause those are the things
that make you feel alive.
At least they make me feelalive.
They are the small joys in lifethat bring a feeling of
accomplishment and pride.
Every time I use my workbench inthe garage that I built myself.
(22:24):
It feels better than when I wasusing the workbench that I just
bought at, Lowe's a number ofyears ago.
There's a level of, of pride inthat when you're able to use
something that you created andyou're proud of it.
But going back to talking aboutfilm, I would love and my goal
is to eventually buy a Fujifilm, GW six 90 for a photo
(22:48):
project that I have in mind allabout Texas, but I thought maybe
I should hone in my lightreading and, decision making
skills as far as controlling itwith a 35 millimeter camera
because it's well, because it'scheaper to make mistakes on if
you mess it up with the, GW six90, I think you only get 11
(23:11):
shots per roll of medium format.
So yeah, if you make a mistake,it's a lot more costly for sure.
So we'll see.
But that'll be a few years off.
But speaking of photo projects,I am actually working on a
project right now that iscentered around the Indiana
State Fair.
Maybe you've heard me talk aboutthis before, but I have this
(23:33):
photo project.
It's very large.
I'm still trying to figure outexactly what to focus on with
it, but it's, I call it a loveletter to Indiana, which is just
me taking photos of things thatuniquely say Indiana, because
just visually and culturally,Indiana's a very different state
than California where I grew up.
(23:54):
So I see all these things In alight that just says, Hey, this
is Indiana, it's those thingsthat I want to capture within a,
a photo story.
So the state fair, well, growingup in California, I had went to
the state fair like once and itreally just wasn't like as big
of a deal as it is here inIndiana where people like go
(24:16):
knock and futs for it, and allthe things surrounding it too.
People love the state fair.
From the food to the animals, tothe rides, the vendors like all
of it.
People love it, and I love ittoo.
So since the x pro two just diedon me, and I just got this new
(24:36):
Canon EOS 55, I thought, well,that's gonna be on my camera of
choice for this year's statefair.
And I've been going for threeyears to the state fair
specifically to photograph it.
The first time I went again,specifically to photograph it,
not like with a family oranything like that.
it was a few years ago and Ifocused on light and place.
(25:00):
And it was just trying to makephotos that said, Hey, this is
the fair.
But like, they weren't really,they didn't go deep or anything.
It was just kind of snapshots,wannabe hero shots, I suppose.
but while I was shooting, I keptnoticing how much people loved
eating those giant ears of, ofroasted corn.
(25:23):
I had taken a few photos ofpeople with like, you know,
chomping down on this corn, butit was getting late, so like I
didn't take many.
The next year I went back, Ithought, I'm.
We're gonna focus on people andtheir relationship with corn at
the state fair because outsideof the Indy 500, Indiana is
known for, its corn.
(25:44):
So it felt like a good match forthis Indiana photo project,
right?
Well, this year I went and Ifocused bit less on people and
more so on like environmentalimages and what it feels like to
be on the fair.
I think part of that, my gameplan kind of changed because I
was still trying to figure outjust how this camera works in
(26:08):
regards to auto focus.
How can I trust it?
In what situations is it gonnafail me?
Things like that.
And even though like it's prettyquick auto focus for a film
camera, it's still really slowcompared to today's modern
standards.
So it was just trying to likefeel it out and it felt like the
right thing to do was just tofocus on the environmental shots
of the fair rather than focusingon people.
(26:31):
But anyway, it was much, muchtougher than I expected.
And again, I think not only wasI trying to figure out the
camera, it was also, shooting iton film is a different
experience because there were afew photos that I really wanted
to look at to make sure that Inailed the exposure.
There's a silhouette of a horse.
(26:52):
That I, again, really wanted tomake sure that I, I nailed that
exposure.
there was a shot where depth offield was really important,
where I had, a few stalks ofcorn in the foreground and then
somebody in the backgroundplaying corn hole.
Right.
And I thought it would be niceto have that depth of field
there, but I couldn't check it.
So I am not sure how those aregonna turn out.
(27:13):
But we'll find out.
We'll find out.
Right.
And, I'm not sure if you do thistoo, but I find having
constraints makes me a moreproductive photographer.
And what I mean by that is like,if I went to the fair with the
goal of capturing the fair,well, it's like there's so much
going on all the time that Iwould just be focused on surface
(27:38):
level photos, right?
Elevated snapshots, like nothingmeaningful, or important.
It's nothing that anybody elsewouldn't capture, right?
it's nothing more than thatbecause you're just walking
around and you're justphotographing what you see, kind
of stream of consciousness typestuff.
And that's because you're notspending, any time observing the
(28:01):
space as far as like, what'sactually happening.
So, just yesterday, well, lemmeget back to this.
Because of that, I give myselfconstraints, right?
It's these themes, so that whenI do go to the fair, I know
exactly what to look for.
I'll look for a sign that says.
Fresh roasted corn.
I'll look for people, buyingcorn, right?
transfer from vendor to theperson.
(28:23):
I'll look for people puttingsalt on their corn.
I'll look for people eating theears of corn.
I'll look for stalks of corn.
I'll look for, compositionalelements that help me to say
corn more, right?
And I can hone in on one or twoof those things and go deeper
rather than just, oh, I'm justgonna go and capture just some
(28:43):
random photos.
You know what I mean?
And I only go to the fair likeonce a year specifically to do
this.
So only once a year or I focuson capturing one element of the
fair every year.
Right.
And because of that, I have, andevery time I go to the fair, I
get ideas for more things tofocus on as well.
And they kind of become morefocused and more focused.
(29:07):
So one of the things is justlike, the unique foods of the
fair, but I think that's kindalike every fair in America,
right?
They're always gonna havesomething like some interesting
food thing.
for us this year, it was likepickle pizza.
We had a key lime, milkshake.
There was They called it a dirtydancing egg roll.
I'm not sure what was in it, butI think it was like a Philly
cheese steak in an egg roll.
(29:29):
Anyway, point is like uniquefoods to the fair.
Right?
That's one.
I want to capture things likelove at the fair, so.
those images could be holdinghands.
Somebody winning a giant stuffedbear, a couple sharing a dull
whip together.
Just images that say like, lovefair dating, something like
that.
Right.
that's interesting to me.
(29:49):
Also like the workers of thefair.
So many food vendors, right?
They have great attitude.
They can be expressive.
Sometimes they're also hot, andbored depending on the type of
day it is.
There's the crew that help makethe fair.
possible from people, sweepingup trash to transporting things
(30:11):
from one place to another.
then there's also, and I don'tknow if there's a big thing at
all the state fairs, but likethe state troopers are a big
deal at the Indiana State Fair.
They got several booths.
they bring out their, like,retro charger or whatever it is,
and, you see them all over theplace.
So, capturing them as well.
And those would be more likeenvironmental, like camera aware
(30:34):
environmental portraits.
I would tell them what I'm doingand asked to take their photo,
but then you can also blendthese things together as well.
Like yesterday, while I was atthe fair, I saw a group of,
state troopers all in like thishalf huddle in the shade, all,
eating like this barbecue, porksandwich or something like that.
Like they were just havinglunch.
(30:54):
Like they were just beingregular people because a lot of
people go to the fair for foodand they were just being like
regular people.
They weren't in the, stiff,state trooper, not attire,
what's the word I'm looking for?
Like they weren't putting onthis facade that they were the
state trooper.
They were like in that moment,Hey, I'm just a regular person
who's in my state trooperuniform.
(31:15):
And so it's like things likethat that, and no, I didn't
capture a photo of it.
I should have, but like I walkedpast him and was like, oh man,
that would've been a great shot.
Anyway, it's like things likethat that I want to capture
things like just silhouettes.
But also like the fair firstthing in the morning, People
setting up for the day, peoplegetting ready, people checking
rides, people enjoying the calm,quiet of the fair before it gets
(31:37):
busy.
And then you contrast that withthe fair late at night on a
Friday or a Saturday eveningwhere there's a billion people
and everybody's busy and it'sagain, going crazy.
They also have these tractorsthat act as like trams and they
go all around the state fair ina giant loop, right?
They stop, let people off,people can get on.
(31:58):
Mostly people just go and likesit on it and it gives them, a
good idea of the fair and what'sgoing on and whatnot.
But yesterday I sat on it to goto the other side of the fair
and it was just interesting tojust like.
It was like the state fair waslike moving around me rather
than me moving through the fair.
So I stayed on it for like twoor three laps, just watching
(32:22):
people because it was constantlychanging.
And I thought, oh, that might beinteresting.
Like a view from the fair, aview of the fair and the people
of the fair just from the tram.
Anyway, point is, there's a lotof room to grow into this
project and it's a verylong-term project.
I mean, I just shared with youlike the next six years of ideas
(32:44):
that I have, And who knows,maybe next year I'll host like a
photo meetup at the fair.
That could be fun, that could bereal fun actually.
But I shot two and a half rolls,yesterday, and I'm excited to
see the film scans when theycome out, and I'll be sure to
share them with you as well.
Unless, of course they all comeback, totally under or
overexposed and are unusable.
(33:05):
But if that happens, I'll justclaim that it was some sort of
error with the developer andthat, I probably did a perfect
job, but it was definitely theirfault.
I'm just kidding.
But, like I said, when I getthose photos, I will be sure to
share them with you.
And, I actually, almost.
I skipped to go into the fairthis year too.
We had plans to go last weekendand then.
(33:26):
we just didn't, it was kind ofhot and then, life gets in the
way.
it's not that I didn't want togo to the fair.
It was almost like I just feltlike I couldn't make time to do.
So July was an extremely busymonth for our family.
Literally every weekend wasaccounted for.
We had softball travel.
We were gone for five days.
we went to an air show inWisconsin for my son that took a
(33:49):
number of days for travel and,to spend there.
We had a family reunion plannedin Alaska, so that was an entire
week.
My buddy from Texas came up andhe had a film that was
premiering in, our local filmfestival.
So I went there with him aswell.
And I'm not complaining, I'm notcomplaining at all.
Like it was a fantastic month,but, in that month I recorded no
(34:10):
new episodes.
so, podcasts have deadlines,right?
These come out every Tuesday.
Rewind episodes come out everyThursday, and deadlines are
important, so I do my best tostick to them.
But I almost said, I can't go tothe fair today and shoot because
I need to record a podcastepisode.
This podcast episode.
(34:32):
But here's the thing.
When I go out and when I shoot,that is when I find new ideas.
That's when I find new stories.
That's when I come up with newlessons to bring to you here on
the podcast.
And without that, it's like I'mrunning on empty.
And while it's possible to justphone it in, that's not right to
(34:59):
do to you.
You deserve better than that.
So I went and I shot yesterday,all day at the fair.
I was there for five hours.
I walked more than five miles.
It was crazy.
Valerie Chardon was right, likeget yourself a good pair of
shoes if you're gonna be astreet photographer.
But this morning, when.
(35:20):
I sat down on my computer, Ijust hit record essentially, and
here I am, just flowing.
I wrote out a few topics that Iwanted to cover, and, aside from
that, it's just coming out andit's coming out a whole lot
easier than what it would haveif I stayed home yesterday to
get the episode released to tryto manufacture something.
And that's kind of howcreativity works, right?
Like you can't keep pouring outof a cup without refilling it.
(35:44):
You have to step away from thedesk and put yourself, out there
on like, on a path ofinspiration.
So for me, that was wanderingthrough the fair looking for
people, eating corn.
But for you, it could just bewalking around.
Maybe it's in your neighborhoodin the evening, or, going on a
(36:05):
day trip to a little town orcity near you that maybe you've
never been to.
And it's just a stop in the roadjust for you to walk around with
your camera and watch thechanging light.
So, I guess all of that to sayif you've been feeling stuck, if
you've been feeling uninspired.
It might not be because of lackof gear.
(36:26):
YouTube is really good at makingyou think that.
It could just be that you have alack of creative input, and
that's free.
So it's okay to give yourselfpermission to refill your cup
because you'll be a better and ahappier version of yourself when
you do so.
So what did we learn today?
(36:47):
Well, hopefully a few things.
I think first and foremost, Iwant you to realize that I guess
your gear choice should serveyour photography rather than the
other way around, right?
Just as an example, I've alwayswanted a, like a M six forever,
but they're so expensive and Iknow that if I were to get one,
(37:11):
it would just simply be the mostbeautiful thing on my shelf.
And nothing more than that.
I wouldn't shoot with it muchcause I'd be scared that I would
break it.
So because of that, I don't buyit.
I like to use my cameras a lot.
We also learned the, the featureto cost ratio when upgrading
cameras.
Like if you're not happy withyour images right now, rarely
will a new camera help you totake better photos.
(37:36):
But if it will solve problemsthat you have when capturing
images, then it might be worth aprice.
But before you upgrade.
I encourage you to really,really, really use your camera.
like try to push its boundaries,take it to its full potential so
that you know exactly what a newcamera will allow you to do
(37:56):
better.
And lastly, we also learned thatconstraints are the key to,
well, my creativity.
One reason why people lovephotography so much is that it
shows them exactly what to lookat.
It's constraining the viewer'sviewpoint of the world around
them, right?
When you're walking around, youcan look anywhere.
(38:17):
You can get closer, you can getfurther away.
Your attention can go to amillion different places.
But when we, as a photographer,show somebody like, no, no, no,
no, no.
Look at this, that constraintcan create more beauty for
something.
So having constraints whenshooting can do the same thing
for your brain, rather than yourbrain looking around and trying
(38:40):
to figure out everything.
Having a photo theme says, no,no, no, no, no.
Just look for this to your brainand because of that, you will be
able to hone in on, on thosethings whole lot easier, and
you're gonna be a much moreproductive at capturing those
(39:03):
images.
So those are, my three biggesttakeaways there.
I would love to know what yoursis.
Feel free to join us in theBeginner Photography podcast
community, which you can joinfor free of course, by heading
over to beginner photopod.com/group.
That is it for today.
Until next week.
Remember, the more that youshoot today, the better of a
photographer you will betomorrow.
If you're in my situation and maybe your
camera died, that's why you'rethinking about upgrading.
I would say that if the repaircost is less than 30 to 40% of
buying it new, and your currentcamera meets all of your needs,
then yeah, I would just repairit.
If upgrading would give youfeatures that you would actually
use or would make your workflowmuch more efficient and they're
(00:26):
not just like, well that wouldbe nice type of thing, then
yeah, it might be worth it to,to upgrade.
Hey, welcome to the Beginner ofPhotography podcast, brought to
you by Cloud Spot, the best wayto deliver and sell your photos
online.
I'm your host, Raymond Hatfield,and today I want to chat about a
few things.
(00:47):
I thought that I would have abit more of a candid discussion
about all of the photographythings that are going on in my
life.
Today.
So today we're gonna talk about,how to know when it's worth
repairing a camera versusupgrading your camera.
Why my new camera is gonna helpme to be a better photographer
(01:07):
and why if you upgrade, it mightnot help you.
Why the passage of time is whatexcites me most about my most
current photo project and alsowhy it's so important to, give
yourself some, creativeinspiration and walk away from
work from time to time.
(01:28):
So first, let me start off byjust saying that, my beloved
Fuji Film Ex Pro two.
He died.
So I was out, shooting, I wasshooting a scene of some food
for work.
We were just showing off somefood, right?
So I was taking photos and I wasprobably, I don't know, 20 or 30
photos in, and the screen justflashed black and red, and then
(01:51):
it just turned off.
It just turned off.
So I knew that I had likecharged the battery, before
shooting.
So I tried to turn it back onand again, EVF flashed black and
then red and then it didn't turnback on and it was like, like
the camera had this like miniheart attack.
It was, horrible to watch it.
(02:12):
I knew something was wrong andit wasn't just A dead battery.
because again, I knew that Icharged the battery before I had
started shooting.
So anyway, I turned off thecamera, put it back in my bag,
and then when I had got home, Irecharged that battery and sure
enough it said that it was like,80% or whatever.
(02:34):
I even tried another battery.
And, when I tried to turn itback on, that didn't work.
I, searched the internet tofigure out like what can I do,
what am I doing wrong?
And it suggested taking out bothmemory cards and removing the
lens, and then trying again.
So I did that and it stilldidn't work, so it's dead dead.
(02:55):
And that means that the fate ofmy favorite camera is up in the
air because, I wanna replace itwhether it means getting it
repaired or getting a newcamera.
I don't really want to get a newcamera.
I would rather just repair it.
And interestingly enough, whenit did die, die, I just had
looked, at what the price ofanother ex PRO two would cost.
And, I looked it up.
(03:17):
Back when, I bought my experttwo, it was in, June of 2017.
and this is my second experttwo, my first expert two I
bought in August of 2016, andthen sold it when I had, quote
unquote upgraded to the XT threefor shooting weddings, which I
immediately regretted real baddecision.
Was not happy with that.
(03:38):
I just liked the style.
I like the flow of shooting withthe X PRO two more than the XT
three.
Not that the XT three is a badcamera.
It's a really good camera.
I just liked the X PRO twobetter.
But anyway, so my current X PROtwo, the one that I bought in
June of 2017, I bought it for$1,149, and here in 2025.
(04:02):
They're still selling for over athousand dollars, which to me
like that's nuts.
That is nuts because likedigital cameras don't hold onto
their value very well becausenew technology, comes very
quickly.
And for comparison, the Canonfive D Mark four, which also
came out in 2016, and retailedfor$3,500 is now selling for
(04:25):
less than the price of an X Protwo.
Anyway.
Point is, the camera's not soold that it's cheap enough to
just, buy a new one.
And that means that I'mcurrently in the process of
packing it up, to send out forrepair, and, without seeing the
(04:47):
camera or, but just having heardof the issue that I just
described to you.
The estimate is about$400 and Ithink that's gonna be the best
option.
I'm definitely gonna pay itbecause I think, one, I love the
camera, but two, you can't buyanother camera of the same
caliber or build quality of theex Pro two for that price.
(05:11):
You can't buy another camerathat's comparable for$400.
So it's like, do I buy a lessercamera that you know I can get
for$400 or do I spend a lot morethan$400 to get a newer camera?
And it's like that camera was,my second body at weddings for
five years.
So I feel like$400 is aperfectly acceptable, just
(05:31):
maintenance cost or price forthe amount of work that it's
been through.
But I did think about upgrading.
to the X PRO three, again, samerange finder style that I love
so, so much.
And the X PRO three came out inNovember of 2019.
So it is a newer camera, it hasnewer technology.
it has a newer, cameraprocessor, newer sensor as well,
(05:54):
but I'm not gonna do it.
And let's, let's go ahead andtalk about, maybe acceptable
reasons to upgrade a camerabecause that's something that
I'm sure many of you arethinking of or have done before.
And I think first things firstis that like, upgrade whenever
you want.
Honestly, like, it's your money.
I'm not gonna tell you that youeither should or shouldn't
upgrade your camera.
(06:14):
because everybody's shootingstyle is a little bit different.
The subject matter is differentfor everybody as well.
But since the show is called theBeginner Photography Podcast.
While many of you have been,with me listening for years, I
know that there's still a lot ofyou who are new to photography
and are shooting withentry-level cameras and are
considering upgrading.
(06:35):
So let me kind of break down,for you why you might want to
upgrade a camera and whatfeatures to look for and
whatnot.
But first to be a camera, to bea camera, you must be able to
simply control light and recordan image.
That's it.
If you can do those two things,you're a camera.
(06:57):
So both the 44,000 medium formatHasselblad camera and the 50
cent pinhole soda can with alight sensitive piece of paper
inside are, they're bothcameras.
They're both cameras.
And funny enough, actually, thelight sensitive paper inside of
(07:20):
a soda can, would actually bemuch larger than the medium
format sensor of a hassle blend.
But anyway, what's thedifference between them?
Right?
The difference between these twothings is build quality and
features.
The Hasselblad, one of thefeatures is an interchangeable
lens, like wow, that's great.
The has bla can also record incolor.
Anyway, entry level cameras,they can control light.
(07:44):
It's the build quality and thefeatures that are typically
pretty minimal.
So oftentimes entry levelcameras are.
They're mostly made out ofplastic, and sometimes that
includes the lens as well.
And these features are held backfrom the professional models
because most beginners are justlearning how to use their
(08:06):
camera.
They don't need many of theextras that the pros use, so
they remove them or hold themback to make entry-level cameras
a cheaper and more affordableoption.
more easily accessible to getinto the hobby of photography
right.
Now this does not mean thatentry-level cameras take bad
(08:30):
photos.
Maybe you've heard me say that abrand new flagship camera does
not mean that you are gonnastart taking better photos.
What this means for entry levelcameras is just that the tool
itself is limited in additionalcapabilities that maybe just
professionals would use.
(08:51):
So when you upgrade from anentry level camera to pro gear,
it's a big jump, right?
However, once you have aprofessional series camera, like
the ex Pro two.
You have the things likefantastic build quality.
the x pro two is built like atank.
(09:12):
Seriously.
It is, I mean, rock solid.
it's also weather sealed, andyou have all the, great features
like.
great auto focus, better thanentry-level cameras for sure.
You have dual card slots forsecurity and recording your
image to both places, and morelike customizable buttons as
well to make the camera yourown.
And, I think that's about it.
(09:35):
So after nine years of owningthe x pro two.
A number of advancements havehappened in the world of
photography.
Yes, there is better auto focusnow and yes, there is higher
resolution sensors, things likeInBody image stabilization as
well.
But other than that, there'sreally nothing that would truly
(09:59):
benefit me and my style ofphotography.
And honestly, I've never had amoment where I thought to myself
like, man, I really wish that Ihad more than 24 megapixels
here.
I've never ever thought that,ever.
So, I kind of don't even reallycare that much, that there's
(10:20):
higher resolution sensorseither.
so the upgrade, right, theupgrade would cost me, between
1500 and$2,000 just for slightlyupgraded features that I would
use, and other features that I,I would not use.
So to me, I just, I don't seethe point.
the x pro two still fits myneeds in photography.
(10:42):
My workflow in photography, mystyle of photography.
Perfect.
It's a great camera.
Upgrading isn't solving anyproblems that I have with my
photography, and it wouldn't bemaking the process of shooting
any easier either.
So if I did upgrade, it wouldsimply simply be because I'm
(11:05):
bored, I guess, you know?
Because I would have reached thelimits of my camera, the x pro
two, and.
I haven't, I don't think that Ihave reached the limits of the x
pro two.
It's still, I mean, just keepsgoing and like going really well
nine years later.
Like I said, it's a greatcamera, but again, I'm not
(11:26):
shooting the Olympics.
You know where I need peak autofocus speed.
I'm not shooting massive fashioncampaigns that need 50 plus
megapixels.
I'm not shooting video or inextreme low light to really
benefit from in body imagestabilization either, except for
(11:48):
maybe like three or four photosa month.
Like I could see how it would behelpful, but like not$2,000
worth of helpful.
Now those would all be likemassive upgrades over an entry
level camera.
So I'm not saying that, anupgraded camera or that brand
new cameras today aren't worthit.
That would be a huge upgrade.
But when you're coming from apro level body, albeit not a
(12:11):
current one, right?
Came out nine years ago, goingto another pro-level body, isn't
that big of an upgrade.
It's more of just like qualityof life improvements.
And again, it's your money.
If you think that those qualityof life improvements are worth
it, then buy the camera.
Who am I to tell you what to do?
(12:33):
But it did make me ask myself,well then what would it take for
me to justify upgrading mycamera, my And I think for me,
maybe it's'cause I'm gettingolder or maybe it's because I've
just experienced cameras likethis as well.
I would love a larger and ahigher resolution viewfinder.
(12:54):
That would be fantastic.
Now that I'm getting older, myeyes are not what they once
were.
It's just nice to have a largerscreen.
And then also I would love forit.
And I'm assuming that we'retalking about like an X Pro four
here, right?
Like what would be the nextcamera that would come out that
would make me upgrade?
It would also need the tiltyscreen from the X 100 V or the X
(13:17):
106 series, just to make iteasier to change my compositions
from time to time.
Shoot more on my kids' eyelevel.
And yeah, I mean, I would assumealso that it would have the
things like InBody imagestabilization and faster auto
focus as well.
So like, that would be great.
but the main things would be alarger viewfinder and a true,
(13:39):
tilty screen.
But because that's not availableright now, it's not an option.
That's why I have simply decidedto repair my 9-year-old camera
rather than upgrade it.
So do me a favor and cross yourfingers that it goes well
because I dunno why, but like,I'm nervous about it, like going
(14:01):
into surgery, nervous, like, oh,I'm sure it'll be okay, but what
if it's not, you know, like theweird things like that.
which is crazy'cause like it'sjust a camera.
It's just a camera.
It's up.
A piece of, metal and glass andplastic essentially.
But there is a sentimentalaspect to the camera that it's
been with me for a long time.
I've created some of my favoriteimages with the camera and I
(14:23):
just, I just love it and I wantto keep it.
And I wanted to keep working.
So to make this more concretefor you because again, maybe you
are deciding whether you shouldupgrade or, get a new camera.
I would say, if you're in mysituation and maybe your camera
died, that's why you're thinkingabout upgrading.
(14:44):
I would say that if the repaircost is less than 30 to 40% of
buying it new, and your currentcamera meets all of your needs,
then yeah, I would just repairit.
If upgrading would give youfeatures that you would actually
use or would make your workflowmuch more efficient and they're
(15:06):
not just like, well that wouldbe nice type of thing, then
yeah, it might be worth it to,to upgrade.
And if the camera has asentimental value to you, then
sometimes it's worth more thanthe specs on the paper.
And I would, I would try torepair it.
'cause that's, that's what I'mgoing through.
And this is a perfect time tobring up that on a completely
(15:30):
unrelated note, I bought a newcamera last week.
That sounds so dumb.
But hear me out.
Okay.
So when I first got started inphotography, it was with my,
dad's Pentax, K 1000 filmcamera.
it's a fully manual film camera.
It doesn't even requirebatteries to operate.
(15:51):
Well, there's a light meterbuilt inside of it and it broke
a few years ago, and I guessthis is a pretty common thing
for the K one thousands, butit's not an easy thing, or cheap
to get fixed.
So I have just been using my ownpocket light meter when I go out
to shoot which has been fine,but unfortunately I like film to
(16:12):
be more like casual vignettes oflife than works of art.
So having to carry a whole likespot meter with me every time I
go out and shoot with this K1000 really will get in the way
of a good time real quick, realquick.
Because it's not small enough tofit into your pocket.
(16:32):
You kinda have to wear it aroundyour neck along with the camera.
And then these things are kindalike jumbling around.
You can get like a pouch thatyou can connect to your belt for
it, but then have to plan thatyou're going out to do these
things.
You can't just like have it withyou all the time anyway, so
point is I wanted to get a, I'vebeen for a while wanting to get
a film camera that is a bit moremodern.
Something with, let's just say abuilt-in light meter and auto
(16:57):
focus would be cool too.
And, Canon has been making filmcameras, or, well, they've been
making'em for a long time, butthey were building them still
into the early two thousands.
So, I mean, today you can getlike a really good quality film
camera for relatively cheapbecause the demand is not super
high.
(17:17):
And because I still have oneCanon lens, the trusty Nifty 50.
Why?
I am not sure.
I don't know why I didn't sellit, but I didn't.
So I thought, well, I better golooking for a Canon film camera.
And I settled on the Canon EOS55, which I did not know this
(17:38):
until after I purchased it, butit is a Japan only model.
It was only released in Japan.
So there's a few features on itthat are interesting, including
the back.
There is a, I don't know if it'sa warning, but it's some sort of
sticker and it's all inJapanese, and I have no idea
what it says, but it still takesphotos.
that's all that I needed to do.
(17:58):
Anyway, in America, the versionthat was released, which is
similar is called the Canon ELANtwo ELAN two, and this is like,
it's a mid-range camera, so itwasn't an entry level rebel
series camera and it wasn't aprofessional level, like the in
one series camera, justmid-range, and everything that I
(18:20):
could find online about thecamera said it had great auto
focus.
The build quality was good.
and it also had features like,being able to shoot double
exposures.
And I found one on, Facebookmarketplace for just 50 bucks
and I went to go look at it andI mean, it is an immaculate
condition truly, like I'mshocked that anything of this
(18:43):
age looks this good.
It's just cool to look at.
So anyway, I bought it 50 bucks.
And, for 50 bucks you'reimmediately shooting full frame
on, you know, you can useprofessional series lenses as
well.
So like you can create somereally great images because it's
on film.
And after shooting for a fewdays, like sure enough, auto
focus is quick.
(19:04):
It's got a good working lightmeter, and everything sounds
like it's working perfectlyinside the camera.
When you're shooting with it, itadvances the film, it
automatically rewinds the film,things like that.
So just a lot of quality of lifeimprovements over the K 1000 and
it's only 50 bucks, so I've putthree rolls through it.
(19:26):
And I sent those out today to bedeveloped, so I'll let you know
how those turn out when I getthem back.
Here's the thing though.
It's not a camera to replaceanything that I have, right?
Like it's not gonna replace thex pro two, but I've been wanting
to shoot more film for a numberof reasons.
One.
(19:47):
Just being, its tangiblequality.
I love that there's a chemicalreaction with the light around
us that happens onto this pieceof film, creating something,
marking it forever, essentially.
As almost like a stamp that youwere there and this thing
(20:13):
happened.
I like that a lot.
As we move more into a worldwhere AI is, just in more places
in our life, I like havingsomething that is a lot more
manual and tangible.
And there's also just thisgreater sense of accomplishment
when you capture a really goodexposure on film, more so than
(20:34):
when you capture a really goodexposure on digital.
I also like how I'm not selfcritiquing myself or editing the
photos that I'm taking while.
I'm shooting right when I'mshooting with my x pro.
I'll be out there taking photos,but if there's, if I'm
questionable about a photo,I'll, do a playback.
(20:55):
I'll look at how it turned outand then make adjustments from
there if needed.
but you can't do that on film.
So I'm just out there in theworld paying attention to
everything that is going aroundme, going on around me, and
hoping to.
capture something interestingand that's something.
It's something that every time Ihave shot film in the past and I
(21:19):
start to get into that mindset,it then transfers over into my
digital photography, meaning Ipay attention to light
differently.
I wait longer for the moment,like I choose the moment in my
head, like I know what I want tosee, so I wait longer for the
moment rather than just shootingthrough something and then just
(21:40):
picking out the best shot later.
So I feel more intentional inboth, what and how I'm shooting.
And I think that the more timewe can be present and fully
aware of what we're doing whencreating something, be it a
photograph, be it a newworkbench, be it you know, just
(22:02):
planting flowers in the garden,whatever it is.
The more we can do that and befully present and aware of
what's going on, the betterbecause those are the things
that make you feel alive.
At least they make me feelalive.
They are the small joys in lifethat bring a feeling of
accomplishment and pride.
Every time I use my workbench inthe garage that I built myself.
(22:24):
It feels better than when I wasusing the workbench that I just
bought at, Lowe's a number ofyears ago.
There's a level of, of pride inthat when you're able to use
something that you created andyou're proud of it.
But going back to talking aboutfilm, I would love and my goal
is to eventually buy a Fujifilm, GW six 90 for a photo
(22:48):
project that I have in mind allabout Texas, but I thought maybe
I should hone in my lightreading and, decision making
skills as far as controlling itwith a 35 millimeter camera
because it's well, because it'scheaper to make mistakes on if
you mess it up with the, GW six90, I think you only get 11
(23:11):
shots per roll of medium format.
So yeah, if you make a mistake,it's a lot more costly for sure.
So we'll see.
But that'll be a few years off.
But speaking of photo projects,I am actually working on a
project right now that iscentered around the Indiana
State Fair.
Maybe you've heard me talk aboutthis before, but I have this
(23:33):
photo project.
It's very large.
I'm still trying to figure outexactly what to focus on with
it, but it's, I call it a loveletter to Indiana, which is just
me taking photos of things thatuniquely say Indiana, because
just visually and culturally,Indiana's a very different state
than California where I grew up.
(23:54):
So I see all these things In alight that just says, Hey, this
is Indiana, it's those thingsthat I want to capture within a,
a photo story.
So the state fair, well, growingup in California, I had went to
the state fair like once and itreally just wasn't like as big
of a deal as it is here inIndiana where people like go
(24:16):
knock and futs for it, and allthe things surrounding it too.
People love the state fair.
From the food to the animals, tothe rides, the vendors like all
of it.
People love it, and I love ittoo.
So since the x pro two just diedon me, and I just got this new
(24:36):
Canon EOS 55, I thought, well,that's gonna be on my camera of
choice for this year's statefair.
And I've been going for threeyears to the state fair
specifically to photograph it.
The first time I went again,specifically to photograph it,
not like with a family oranything like that.
it was a few years ago and Ifocused on light and place.
(25:00):
And it was just trying to makephotos that said, Hey, this is
the fair.
But like, they weren't really,they didn't go deep or anything.
It was just kind of snapshots,wannabe hero shots, I suppose.
but while I was shooting, I keptnoticing how much people loved
eating those giant ears of, ofroasted corn.
(25:23):
I had taken a few photos ofpeople with like, you know,
chomping down on this corn, butit was getting late, so like I
didn't take many.
The next year I went back, Ithought, I'm.
We're gonna focus on people andtheir relationship with corn at
the state fair because outsideof the Indy 500, Indiana is
known for, its corn.
(25:44):
So it felt like a good match forthis Indiana photo project,
right?
Well, this year I went and Ifocused bit less on people and
more so on like environmentalimages and what it feels like to
be on the fair.
I think part of that, my gameplan kind of changed because I
was still trying to figure outjust how this camera works in
(26:08):
regards to auto focus.
How can I trust it?
In what situations is it gonnafail me?
Things like that.
And even though like it's prettyquick auto focus for a film
camera, it's still really slowcompared to today's modern
standards.
So it was just trying to likefeel it out and it felt like the
right thing to do was just tofocus on the environmental shots
of the fair rather than focusingon people.
(26:31):
But anyway, it was much, muchtougher than I expected.
And again, I think not only wasI trying to figure out the
camera, it was also, shooting iton film is a different
experience because there were afew photos that I really wanted
to look at to make sure that Inailed the exposure.
There's a silhouette of a horse.
(26:52):
That I, again, really wanted tomake sure that I, I nailed that
exposure.
there was a shot where depth offield was really important,
where I had, a few stalks ofcorn in the foreground and then
somebody in the backgroundplaying corn hole.
Right.
And I thought it would be niceto have that depth of field
there, but I couldn't check it.
So I am not sure how those aregonna turn out.
(27:13):
But we'll find out.
We'll find out.
Right.
And, I'm not sure if you do thistoo, but I find having
constraints makes me a moreproductive photographer.
And what I mean by that is like,if I went to the fair with the
goal of capturing the fair,well, it's like there's so much
going on all the time that Iwould just be focused on surface
(27:38):
level photos, right?
Elevated snapshots, like nothingmeaningful, or important.
It's nothing that anybody elsewouldn't capture, right?
it's nothing more than thatbecause you're just walking
around and you're justphotographing what you see, kind
of stream of consciousness typestuff.
And that's because you're notspending, any time observing the
(28:01):
space as far as like, what'sactually happening.
So, just yesterday, well, lemmeget back to this.
Because of that, I give myselfconstraints, right?
It's these themes, so that whenI do go to the fair, I know
exactly what to look for.
I'll look for a sign that says.
Fresh roasted corn.
I'll look for people, buyingcorn, right?
transfer from vendor to theperson.
(28:23):
I'll look for people puttingsalt on their corn.
I'll look for people eating theears of corn.
I'll look for stalks of corn.
I'll look for, compositionalelements that help me to say
corn more, right?
And I can hone in on one or twoof those things and go deeper
rather than just, oh, I'm justgonna go and capture just some
(28:43):
random photos.
You know what I mean?
And I only go to the fair likeonce a year specifically to do
this.
So only once a year or I focuson capturing one element of the
fair every year.
Right.
And because of that, I have, andevery time I go to the fair, I
get ideas for more things tofocus on as well.
And they kind of become morefocused and more focused.
(29:07):
So one of the things is justlike, the unique foods of the
fair, but I think that's kindalike every fair in America,
right?
They're always gonna havesomething like some interesting
food thing.
for us this year, it was likepickle pizza.
We had a key lime, milkshake.
There was They called it a dirtydancing egg roll.
I'm not sure what was in it, butI think it was like a Philly
cheese steak in an egg roll.
(29:29):
Anyway, point is like uniquefoods to the fair.
Right?
That's one.
I want to capture things likelove at the fair, so.
those images could be holdinghands.
Somebody winning a giant stuffedbear, a couple sharing a dull
whip together.
Just images that say like, lovefair dating, something like
that.
Right.
that's interesting to me.
(29:49):
Also like the workers of thefair.
So many food vendors, right?
They have great attitude.
They can be expressive.
Sometimes they're also hot, andbored depending on the type of
day it is.
There's the crew that help makethe fair.
possible from people, sweepingup trash to transporting things
(30:11):
from one place to another.
then there's also, and I don'tknow if there's a big thing at
all the state fairs, but likethe state troopers are a big
deal at the Indiana State Fair.
They got several booths.
they bring out their, like,retro charger or whatever it is,
and, you see them all over theplace.
So, capturing them as well.
And those would be more likeenvironmental, like camera aware
(30:34):
environmental portraits.
I would tell them what I'm doingand asked to take their photo,
but then you can also blendthese things together as well.
Like yesterday, while I was atthe fair, I saw a group of,
state troopers all in like thishalf huddle in the shade, all,
eating like this barbecue, porksandwich or something like that.
Like they were just havinglunch.
(30:54):
Like they were just beingregular people because a lot of
people go to the fair for foodand they were just being like
regular people.
They weren't in the, stiff,state trooper, not attire,
what's the word I'm looking for?
Like they weren't putting onthis facade that they were the
state trooper.
They were like in that moment,Hey, I'm just a regular person
who's in my state trooperuniform.
(31:15):
And so it's like things likethat that, and no, I didn't
capture a photo of it.
I should have, but like I walkedpast him and was like, oh man,
that would've been a great shot.
Anyway, it's like things likethat that I want to capture
things like just silhouettes.
But also like the fair firstthing in the morning, People
setting up for the day, peoplegetting ready, people checking
rides, people enjoying the calm,quiet of the fair before it gets
(31:37):
busy.
And then you contrast that withthe fair late at night on a
Friday or a Saturday eveningwhere there's a billion people
and everybody's busy and it'sagain, going crazy.
They also have these tractorsthat act as like trams and they
go all around the state fair ina giant loop, right?
They stop, let people off,people can get on.
(31:58):
Mostly people just go and likesit on it and it gives them, a
good idea of the fair and what'sgoing on and whatnot.
But yesterday I sat on it to goto the other side of the fair
and it was just interesting tojust like.
It was like the state fair waslike moving around me rather
than me moving through the fair.
So I stayed on it for like twoor three laps, just watching
(32:22):
people because it was constantlychanging.
And I thought, oh, that might beinteresting.
Like a view from the fair, aview of the fair and the people
of the fair just from the tram.
Anyway, point is, there's a lotof room to grow into this
project and it's a verylong-term project.
I mean, I just shared with youlike the next six years of ideas
(32:44):
that I have, And who knows,maybe next year I'll host like a
photo meetup at the fair.
That could be fun, that could bereal fun actually.
But I shot two and a half rolls,yesterday, and I'm excited to
see the film scans when theycome out, and I'll be sure to
share them with you as well.
Unless, of course they all comeback, totally under or
overexposed and are unusable.
(33:05):
But if that happens, I'll justclaim that it was some sort of
error with the developer andthat, I probably did a perfect
job, but it was definitely theirfault.
I'm just kidding.
But, like I said, when I getthose photos, I will be sure to
share them with you.
And, I actually, almost.
I skipped to go into the fairthis year too.
We had plans to go last weekendand then.
(33:26):
we just didn't, it was kind ofhot and then, life gets in the
way.
it's not that I didn't want togo to the fair.
It was almost like I just feltlike I couldn't make time to do.
So July was an extremely busymonth for our family.
Literally every weekend wasaccounted for.
We had softball travel.
We were gone for five days.
we went to an air show inWisconsin for my son that took a
(33:49):
number of days for travel and,to spend there.
We had a family reunion plannedin Alaska, so that was an entire
week.
My buddy from Texas came up andhe had a film that was
premiering in, our local filmfestival.
So I went there with him aswell.
And I'm not complaining, I'm notcomplaining at all.
Like it was a fantastic month,but, in that month I recorded no
(34:10):
new episodes.
so, podcasts have deadlines,right?
These come out every Tuesday.
Rewind episodes come out everyThursday, and deadlines are
important, so I do my best tostick to them.
But I almost said, I can't go tothe fair today and shoot because
I need to record a podcastepisode.
This podcast episode.
(34:32):
But here's the thing.
When I go out and when I shoot,that is when I find new ideas.
That's when I find new stories.
That's when I come up with newlessons to bring to you here on
the podcast.
And without that, it's like I'mrunning on empty.
And while it's possible to justphone it in, that's not right to
(34:59):
do to you.
You deserve better than that.
So I went and I shot yesterday,all day at the fair.
I was there for five hours.
I walked more than five miles.
It was crazy.
Valerie Chardon was right, likeget yourself a good pair of
shoes if you're gonna be astreet photographer.
But this morning, when.
(35:20):
I sat down on my computer, Ijust hit record essentially, and
here I am, just flowing.
I wrote out a few topics that Iwanted to cover, and, aside from
that, it's just coming out andit's coming out a whole lot
easier than what it would haveif I stayed home yesterday to
get the episode released to tryto manufacture something.
And that's kind of howcreativity works, right?
Like you can't keep pouring outof a cup without refilling it.
(35:44):
You have to step away from thedesk and put yourself, out there
on like, on a path ofinspiration.
So for me, that was wanderingthrough the fair looking for
people, eating corn.
But for you, it could just bewalking around.
Maybe it's in your neighborhoodin the evening, or, going on a
(36:05):
day trip to a little town orcity near you that maybe you've
never been to.
And it's just a stop in the roadjust for you to walk around with
your camera and watch thechanging light.
So, I guess all of that to sayif you've been feeling stuck, if
you've been feeling uninspired.
It might not be because of lackof gear.
(36:26):
YouTube is really good at makingyou think that.
It could just be that you have alack of creative input, and
that's free.
So it's okay to give yourselfpermission to refill your cup
because you'll be a better and ahappier version of yourself when
you do so.
So what did we learn today?
(36:47):
Well, hopefully a few things.
I think first and foremost, Iwant you to realize that I guess
your gear choice should serveyour photography rather than the
other way around, right?
Just as an example, I've alwayswanted a, like a M six forever,
but they're so expensive and Iknow that if I were to get one,
(37:11):
it would just simply be the mostbeautiful thing on my shelf.
And nothing more than that.
I wouldn't shoot with it muchcause I'd be scared that I would
break it.
So because of that, I don't buyit.
I like to use my cameras a lot.
We also learned the, the featureto cost ratio when upgrading
cameras.
Like if you're not happy withyour images right now, rarely
will a new camera help you totake better photos.
(37:36):
But if it will solve problemsthat you have when capturing
images, then it might be worth aprice.
But before you upgrade.
I encourage you to really,really, really use your camera.
like try to push its boundaries,take it to its full potential so
that you know exactly what a newcamera will allow you to do
(37:56):
better.
And lastly, we also learned thatconstraints are the key to,
well, my creativity.
One reason why people lovephotography so much is that it
shows them exactly what to lookat.
It's constraining the viewer'sviewpoint of the world around
them, right?
When you're walking around, youcan look anywhere.
(38:17):
You can get closer, you can getfurther away.
Your attention can go to amillion different places.
But when we, as a photographer,show somebody like, no, no, no,
no, no.
Look at this, that constraintcan create more beauty for
something.
So having constraints whenshooting can do the same thing
for your brain, rather than yourbrain looking around and trying
(38:40):
to figure out everything.
Having a photo theme says, no,no, no, no, no.
Just look for this to your brainand because of that, you will be
able to hone in on, on thosethings whole lot easier, and
you're gonna be a much moreproductive at capturing those
(39:03):
images.
So those are, my three biggesttakeaways there.
I would love to know what yoursis.
Feel free to join us in theBeginner Photography podcast
community, which you can joinfor free of course, by heading
over to beginner photopod.com/group.
That is it for today.
Until next week.
Remember, the more that youshoot today, the better of a
photographer you will betomorrow.
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