"You must have a great Camera" words often heard after introducing non-photographers to image archives or examples of past works. I also hear the frustration in some people, "Man, I wish my camera could do that". Feature sets aside, a camera is a camera is a camera. It comes down to the user at the end of the day. With all the hype of the latest cameras hitting the streets rushing out, slamming down $4k for the Canon EOS R5 isn't going to magically turn you into the next Ansel Adams. Only you can do that. And in order to do that you have to step away from your comfort zone.

"You can only discover new Oceans if you're willing to lose site of the shore". Andre Gide

When teaching folks on workshops, especially if it's an introductory session to familiarize someone new to photography I cannot enforce the notion that a camera is just a tool for your creativity. There are no set rules when it comes to art as art, as the saying goes, is subjective. It's all about how you visualize the scene or subject you're capturing. To that extent don't be afraid to step out of your comfort zone. Unless you're manipulating the camera with a sledge hammer you're not going to break it. An entry level camera is just that. A tool that permits you to push the boundaries of the photographic process in order to see what happens when you flick that switch, spin that creative dial, speed up or slow down a shutter, open or close an aperture, and so on.

Photography is above all, everything about you as a photographer. You should never take a photograph in the hope that it pleases others. What's the point of that in a creative process? Great photographers are those who arrive at mastering a process that defines their aesthetic interpretation of their subject. The audience comes from those who see and appreciate the vision and process projected by the photographer. The same goes for commercial photographers. A client comes to you because they like the way in which you shoot and edit your work. They feel that above all other photographers your style best suits the aesthetic to promote their brand.

To push that envelope you have to be prepared to fail, to take it on the chin. There will always be negatives, those who ridicule and put down your efforts. Folks like that are a dime a dozen, invariably failures in their own right who lack the strength of character to take the photographic process on, and win.

So go for it, push off from that safety zone and lose yourself in the Ocean of imaging possibilities. Sink or swim.

"Your first 10,000 photographs, are your worst"

Henri Cartier-Bresson