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What photography gear should you buy?

What photography gear should you buy?

A fully comprehensive video spelling out in detail exactly what photography gear you should buy, and the order in which you should buy it in, whether you're a beginner or expert. Click to read more and watch the full video!

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Beginners Tip: SIZE DOESN'T MATTER

Photo from WeTravelAndBlog.com  

Photo from WeTravelAndBlog.com  

No, I'm not talking about what you think I'm talking about...

I won't ever claim to know everything. I will never say I have all the answers. Especially now. I'm still a college student.  I haven't seen it all or been everywhere. Time-wise, I'm still a beginning photographer.  I haven't gone through the ropes like long-term pros have. I am new to this business and I am trying to find my spot.

That being said, I know exactly what it's like to be an envious photographer. I know what it's like to be intimidated by the pros sitting next to you with the 7D Mark IIs and the 400mm lenses and the fancy light meters and multiple bodies for different situations and blah, blah, blah. It's scary. You wonder how you will ever get to that point. Here is what I have to tell you:

You may already be there... Just look at your photos!

The saying "size doesn't matter" perfectly applies to photography. I am a broke college student, so I shoot with a T3i, a kit 18-50mm, a 200mm, and a 80mm 1.8. That is a cheap setup, and besides maybe the 80mm, you won't see many "pros" using this equipment. And I won't lie, when I am sitting on the floor of the basketball games and I see the guy next to me with three bodies and even more lenses getting every shot, I get jealous and intimidated. 

Until I edit my photos. When I slide that SD card into my computer and see the quality of photos I have, I forget about my cheap setup. I couldn't care less about how expensive or large my glass, because my photos look badass! (Heehee, rhyme) Then I compare my photos, the photos taken by the college student looking to make a quick buck, with the professional's photos who does this as a career, and sometimes I can't tell the difference. Just take a look at the pics on this site. All of them are with the simplest of equipment.

Size doesn't matter guys. No matter how big, expensive, or plentiful the bodies and lenses, none of that matters unless they are in hands that know how to use them. I know it seems like photo equipment becomes more and more advanced every day, but the quality of the final images haven't changed much since cameras were invented. I've seen photographer show up to events with old film cameras with no digital screen and end up with beautiful results.  

That being said, one day you and I will have that equipment. Once this becomes our career, we will be able to afford those trade-ins for the big-boy stuff. And we will do that not because it will make us better photographers, but because it will make our work easier. Sure the results of an old film camera and a 7D Mark II can take similar pictures, but one is much more advanced than the other. 10 fps, 50,000 ISO, highly advanced auto focus features, multiple tabs of menu options, high quality digital display screens, horizontal and vertical grips; all that makes it easier to take the photo, but does nothing to the final quality.

So embrace your small bodies and dinky lenses. Use the hell out of them and smile when you see the results. Focus more on improving your compositions and capturing the moment than saving for a $2,000 lens. Keep your head up and shoot with confidence next to the pros, because, believe it or not, one day they were in your shoes.

SIZE DOESN'T MATTER

~Connor

^^^All photos above taken with Canon T3i and kit lenses^^^