Been having a think...

Nikon_Nick

Nikon_Nick

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Firstly, apologies if this is in the wrong section. I wasnt really sure where to put it. Ive put this here and not in the classifieds as im really not sure exactly what I want to do :bang:

I have a very small photography business that I run at the weekends, but im a little confused as to the direction id like to go in (yes, I jumped in too quickly). I dont have a speciality as such, and I get pulled in lots of different directions. I believe it is because of this that my photography is actually suffering.

My current kit comprises of a Nikon D700, a Sigma 70-200 f2.8, a Nikkor 50mm f1.8, a Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 AFS G-ED and various accessories.

Im considering swapping/selling my 24-70 and probably my battery grip for a nice set of primes in an attempt to kind of reinvent myself in a photographic sense. I plan to dedicate more time to photography 'for me' rather than trying to grab the odd bit of business where I can. Hopefully, in a couple of years, I plan to have found my niche which I will then be able to work a business around.

Im guess im just looking for the general thoughts/opinions of others and thought that this would be the best place to seek said thoughts/opinions :thinking:

As you can tell, im very confused, so apologies for rambling!

Cheers

Nick
 
Since you're looking at getting more primes, the obvious question is, do you use the 50mm a lot?
 
I had a similar issue. I closed down and took stock of what I enjoyed doing. I tried some light painting, landscapes, macro all sorts I sold all my gear and bought a compact.

It was for me, the best thing I ever did. I now enjoy my photography and know where I want to specialise and what I am good at. Now I know what equipment I need in the future rather than going off on a whim.

Keep it simple, be true to yourself and enjoy it. Spend some time not shooting and properly research photos you like and saving the ones you like as favourites and then match up with what you are capable of achieving or can learn to do. You should start to see a theme emerging which might help with your direction...

Don't buy any new kit until you know where you are heading...
 
Ferj said:
I had a similar issue. I closed down and took stock of what I enjoyed doing. I tried some light painting, landscapes, macro all sorts I sold all my gear and bought a compact.

It was for me, the best thing I ever did. I now enjoy my photography and know where I want to specialise and what I am good at. Now I know what equipment I need in the future rather than going off on a whim.

Keep it simple, be true to yourself and enjoy it. Spend some time not shooting and properly research photos you like and saving the ones you like as favourites and then match up with what you are capable of achieving or can learn to do. You should start to see a theme emerging which might help with your direction...

Don't buy any new kit until you know where you are heading...
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Thanks. Keeping it simple is certainly the idea :thumbs: The idea for the primes was to get back to basics with everything. Mentality AND equipment.

Cheers
 
I think a lot of people are guilty - myself included - of seeing our photographic salvation in new kit. You obviously have a pro quality set up so I would take the advice of the posters and just take a step back.
 
Difficult to explain, but im really not trying to seek solace in new kit. Id be selling the 24-70 and using primes instead. I need to rekindle my photographic passion, and for me, I think that means going back to how I started with my father 25 years ago.

I can see how may sound like I just want new kit, but it really isnt that.
 
Set yourself some photographic goals Nick, Make sure you write them down and give yourself a time frame to get them done...In the meantime write a journal of what you have been doing to achieve the goals...It will focus you on where your shortcomings are and also your strengths and weaknesses.

Might be worth challenging yourself in selecting a genre that you are not familiar with...

Keep a thread running with your progress so others can give you support and encouragement.

Remember you have to write it down and you have to have a definite goal !

Good Luck
 
Nick I can sympathise with your situation as I have been there myself. About 5 years ago I made some money from sports photography. Not much money but enough to keep me in beer and the odd trip (I was early 20s and living at home so money wasn't such an issue). I then went to uni and sold off all my gear.
I then had a series of compact and M4/3 cameras that I really really liked. The two main reasons where the portability and the fact that they were not "pro" level gear so I didn't feel a kind of pressure to "get the shot" as it were. Basically it put the fun back into photography.
I have just recently tried to restart a sports photography business and bought a load of very expensive gear. I love my new gear but the world of professional photography is not what I experienced before. I'm fast coming to the conclusion that it's just too hard to make it work and that frankly a lot of aspects of the industry are totally at odds with what I want out of life and work. I have been looking around for other work.

I'm not sure how that all helps you other that to tell you you are not alone in your thinking. The desire to turn photography into a business can often take all the fun out of photography that led you to enjoy it in the first place.

I'm not entirely sure buying some new primes would necessarily magically rekindle your passion.

If I was you I might be tempted to buy a M4/3 camera and some primes for that, then put the extra spare cash into a trip away to somewhere good for photography and see if you can re-inspire yourself that way.
 
EMA747 said:
Nick I can sympathise with your situation as I have been there myself. About 5 years ago I made some money from sports photography. Not much money but enough to keep me in beer and the odd trip (I was early 20s and living at home so money wasn't such an issue). I then went to uni and sold off all my gear.
I then had a series of compact and M4/3 cameras that I really really liked. The two main reasons where the portability and the fact that they were not "pro" level gear so I didn't feel a kind of pressure to "get the shot" as it were. Basically it put the fun back into photography.
I have just recently tried to restart a sports photography business and bought a load of very expensive gear. I love my new gear but the world of professional photography is not what I experienced before. I'm fast coming to the conclusion that it's just too hard to make it work and that frankly a lot of aspects of the industry are totally at odds with what I want out of life and work. I have been looking around for other work.

I'm not sure how that all helps you other that to tell you you are not alone in your thinking. The desire to turn photography into a business can often take all the fun out of photography that led you to enjoy it in the first place.

I'm not entirely sure buying some new primes would necessarily magically rekindle your passion.

If I was you I might be tempted to buy a M4/3 camera and some primes for that, then put the extra spare cash into a trip away to somewhere good for photography and see if you can re-inspire yourself that way.
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^^^ this. Happens all the time, and buying new kit is not the answer.

If you shoot to get paid, the reward is money. It's work.
 
Thanks all for your replies, but I don't want people getting hung up on the new kit thing.

Maybe I'm not explaining myself very well. I'm not thinking that if I buy new kit it will solve all my problems. I'm not that stupid.

It's what the primes represent more than anything. 25 years ago when I first went out with my Dad and his cameras, he/we only ever used prime lenses, and that is how I learnt photography. I've had the convenience of zooms for quite some time now, but my thinking was based around getting back to where I started and falling in love with it all again.

Does that make any sense at all? Trust me, I'm not after new kit for the sake of new kit. To be honest, it would probably only be second hand stuff anyway...
 
Nikon_Nick said:
Thanks all for your replies, but I don't want people getting hung up on the new kit thing.

Maybe I'm not explaining myself very well. I'm not thinking that if I buy new kit it will solve all my problems. I'm not that stupid.

It's what the primes represent more than anything. 25 years ago when I first went out with my Dad and his cameras, he/we only ever used prime lenses, and that is how I learnt photography. I've had the convenience of zooms for quite some time now, but my thinking was based around getting back to where I started and falling in love with it all again.

Does that make any sense at all? Trust me, I'm not after new kit for the sake of new kit. To be honest, it would probably only be second hand stuff anyway...
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I get it... the OP doesn't want new kit as such, but wants to go back to his photography roots - where zoom lenses were not part of the story, therefore the photographer had to make his own composition, rather than turning a ring/push pulling a lens to crop something out, or get more in. It makes you think more - move more, which means you'll get different perspectives that you may not have seen if you stand in one spot and zoom in/out.

One thing that I have tried to do recently is turning off auto review - and not looking back through images directly after I've shot them. (Unless they are important, like family shots where we don't see them very often - I want to make sure those are good).

You could also try getting very small memory cards, so you're not just firing off a bunch of shots only to delete them when you get home, it makes you think about each and every image before you press the shutter. Just like the film days. :)
 
Thanks Spencer. Small memory cards and no auto preview huh? Not a bad shout.

What you have said is correct. I want to actually make my pictures again :0)
 
Nikon_Nick said:
Thanks Spencer. Small memory cards and no auto preview huh? Not a bad shout.

What you have said is correct. I want to actually make my pictures again :0)
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Depending on your situation - I would say keep the zooms if you can, just don't take them out with you. There are going to be times when you need them - and maybe (especially if you're charging at weekends etc.) you'll regret selling them...
 
What I meant by saying primes won't magically rekindle your passion is that they are a tool the same as a zoom. I know what you mean about going "back to basics" but it's your "vision" and your "passion" that make the image not the lens.

If it's anything like me I now feel the need to take the "money shot" rather than the image I want to take. I think that's part of what can kill the passion. If I go back and look at the images in my Lightroom library and see which I like the most then I see a pattern. It's a pattern in what I shoot rather than how. In other words a different set of lenses wouldn't help or hinder me it would just be a change. I'm not saying it's the same for you but it's maybe something to think about.

I don't want to sound patronising at all but when I started out I didn't really know what a prime and a zoom were if I'm honest. I just shot the scene as I wanted rather than getting hung up on the technicalities. I feel it's once you experience these different lenses you start to think you need them. I'm sure a lot of us have gone bog standard zoom to good quality zoom to primes then I'm sure some have thought about a TS lens. Of course these lenses are good and desirable but they are only part of our photography.

I remember David Duchemin saying something along the lines of if he had starting out now he would spend £1000 on gear and £4000 on travelling to take some stunning photos rather than £5000 on a pro body and some lenses and be stuck at home. I totally see what he means.
 
How do you think primes will help? Just wondering here .. It'll just mean more switching lenses than anything else. I haven't touched my 50mm since buying the 24-70, it's just so good. It'd be same if I had a 35mm, and even maybe 85mm ... I don't see primes as being much better to be honest. Sure, they're great in low light, and can offer better 'bokeh' - but that's if you're shooting out doors mostly. Sounds like you're after more a solid studio set up? The 24-70 is a beast, combined with good lighting even greater.
 
EMA747 said:
What I meant by saying primes won't magically rekindle your passion is that they are a tool the same as a zoom. I know what you mean about going "back to basics" but it's your "vision" and your "passion" that make the image not the lens.

If it's anything like me I now feel the need to take the "money shot" rather than the image I want to take. I think that's part of what can kill the passion. If I go back and look at the images in my Lightroom library and see which I like the most then I see a pattern. It's a pattern in what I shoot rather than how. In other words a different set of lenses wouldn't help or hinder me it would just be a change. I'm not saying it's the same for you but it's maybe something to think about.

I don't want to sound patronising at all but when I started out I didn't really know what a prime and a zoom were if I'm honest. I just shot the scene as I wanted rather than getting hung up on the technicalities. I feel it's once you experience these different lenses you start to think you need them. I'm sure a lot of us have gone bog standard zoom to good quality zoom to primes then I'm sure some have thought about a TS lens. Of course these lenses are good and desirable but they are only part of our photography.

I remember David Duchemin saying something along the lines of if he had starting out now he would spend £1000 on gear and £4000 on travelling to take some stunning photos rather than £5000 on a pro body and some lenses and be stuck at home. I totally see what he means.
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Thanks Andy. I actually feel at the moment that I do want the image, and not necessarily the shot that will make me money. I don't particularly want business at the moment, just to love my photography again. My thinking on the equipment change, was that my mentality would change if I went back to how I started. I'm getting the impression that my thinking is seriously flawed :0)
 
Cagey75 said:
How do you think primes will help? Just wondering here .. It'll just mean more switching lenses than anything else. I haven't touched my 50mm since buying the 24-70, it's just so good. It'd be same if I had a 35mm, and even maybe 85mm ... I don't see primes as being much better to be honest. Sure, they're great in low light, and can offer better 'bokeh' - but that's if you're shooting out doors mostly. Sounds like you're after more a solid studio set up? The 24-70 is a beast, combined with good lighting even greater.
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Thanks for posting, but I think I've explained my reason behind the primes, so having to change lenses more often is not even an issue. Im not looking for a studio set up either to be honest. I'm actually considering taking a major step backwards, and shutting the doors on my business (I don't have a business premises, but you get what I mean), and starting again for myself. Maybe in a couple of years of shooting just for me, I will start up again with a fresh direction.
 
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I still think you should keep the 24-70. Unless weight is a major issue? It's just so versatile, and sharp - it's a match for any prime outside the wider aperture aspect. But, it is an expensive lens to keep around if not using it. You could get a few primes for the price. Sigma have a new 35mm 1.4, and from what I hear, it's pretty special.
 
Cheers. Yeah I realise it seems odd thinking about getting rid of such a quality lens ;0) I'll be honest, I'm actually trying to shake the urge to get rid of it. I worked bloody hard to be able to afford it....

I just absolutely love using primes...can't help it lol.
 
Nikon_Nick said:
Thanks Spencer. Small memory cards and no auto preview huh? Not a bad shout.

What you have said is correct. I want to actually make my pictures again :0)
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You're shooting commercially, use whatever cost effective technology as you can to gain an advantage.

Your equipment and process needs to be streamlined to make your business work.

Why handicap yourself deliberately in the name of art?
 
desantnik said:
You're shooting commercially, use whatever cost effective technology as you can to gain an advantage.

Your equipment and process needs to be streamlined to make your business work.

Why handicap yourself deliberately in the name of art?
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Hi Kim, thanks, but part of the point in doing this is because I am going to close my business for a couple of years. It's only very small, so im no kissing goodbye to work. My photography will be for me.
 
Nikon_Nick said:
Thanks Andy. I actually feel at the moment that I do want the image, and not necessarily the shot that will make me money. I don't particularly want business at the moment, just to love my photography again. My thinking on the equipment change, was that my mentality would change if I went back to how I started. I'm getting the impression that my thinking is seriously flawed :0)
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I don't think your think is flawed. Have you thought about getting an adaptor ring and some MF primes? For me Panasonic GF2 I have a £5 adaptor ring and some really nice Olympus primes that my Dad gave me. You can get really nice MF primes used for £20-£100. They are slightly fiddly to use with MF only but unless you want to shoot fast moving things it's not much of an issue once you get used to it.
Might be worth a thought for a relatively cheap solution. :shrug:
 
Why don't you go out with just your 50mm, just to see how you got on. Set yourself a project something like 50 photos 1 a day for 50 days using a 50mm or something like that.

Though I would think long and hard over getting rid of your 24-70 maybe the sigma should go
 
Follow your instincts And what you feel is right, by the sound of it you pretty much know what you feel you should do and lets face it gut instinct is usually right, :)
 
EMA747 said:
I don't think your think is flawed. Have you thought about getting an adaptor ring and some MF primes? For me Panasonic GF2 I have a £5 adaptor ring and some really nice Olympus primes that my Dad gave me. You can get really nice MF primes used for £20-£100. They are slightly fiddly to use with MF only but unless you want to shoot fast moving things it's not much of an issue once you get used to it.
Might be worth a thought for a relatively cheap solution. :shrug:
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Good shout, cheers. I think my dad still has some old Olympus primes :thinking: I might see if they need liberating :D
 
clicktheshutter said:
Why don't you go out with just your 50mm, just to see how you got on. Set yourself a project something like 50 photos 1 a day for 50 days using a 50mm or something like that.

Though I would think long and hard over getting rid of your 24-70 maybe the sigma should go
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I actually did this yesterday. I have to say....I loved it...just as I knew I would. Thanks for the suggestion for the project. Ive tried doing this before but find it all a bit forced to be honest.
 
Cg_Girl said:
Follow your instincts And what you feel is right, by the sound of it you pretty much know what you feel you should do and lets face it gut instinct is usually right, :)
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Thanks :thumbs:
 
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