In any hobby, there are those that are well along the way, those still finding their feet and those now starting out…
Plane spotting (as us non hip and trendy types call it ) or togging is no different, there are those that have had the opportunity for years to be able to stand at the fence line at various locales, absorb the history and heritage of the bases and airports, generally have a finger on the pulse… those that have stumbled across the fascination of watching chunks of metal claw their way skyward, screaming and defying logic… and there are those that have just gone out for the day had a nice time and returned not fully knowing what’s made them get up before the sun is up ( at least in the winter months) but they know they had a good time last time…
At any point in any of those instances, it is likely photos have been shot to record the moment or just as a reference of how cool it was…is!
And there starts the addiction….. you don’t know it… you may not even acknowledge it (yet) but the addiction for better gear is already spreading through you, like a craving that can’t be soothed and an itch that can’t be scratched…look out here comes phase 1
Everybody starts somewhere… its that small step, the first in a journey of discovery, whatever you want to call it, you have some gear, be it a phone camera, a bridge camera, a hand me down dslr from the old dears.. or a second hand lump you bought from Facebook years ago and finally figured out why.
You set off full of beans, anticipation and hope that you will be able to get a shot like you saw on instagram or Facebook etc, emulate and capture the essence of what’s dragged you there.. and then reality comes and kicks you in whatever area of your body you identify that hurts…your pictures suck!
This starts phase 2 of becoming a geardo
You’ve returned back to home base, you’ve had a great day, chatted with like minded souls at the fence hopefully,( although some of us are a bit closed off at times ) your ready to relive those moments of lift off, return to terra firmer and all other things that made you mash the shutter button, only to be a little deflated at the fruits of your labour when you see what others post on social media.
This isn’t something to be disheartened about, moreover an opportunity to learn and progress. Now is the time to pour over YouTube videos from those that offer them and soak up any and all info, and even take notes!!
I have watched countless hours of tutorials and how to videos some on repeat and scribbled countless illegible notes that would make a doctors prescription look like neat schoolwork…the info is out there you just need to become a sponge for things like the exposure triangle for starters…
The overriding desire and reaction will be ” I need better equipment”…and so you hurtle into the inevitable black hole that is gear,
ALL the gear NO idea.
This can be applied through any and many aspects of not jut hobbies but careers, I focused on my job as a chef in the last entry of this “blog” and knives are a hot topic continuously…
Japanese folded Damascus steel, carbon steel, high tempered stainless steel the list is endless, BUT the much overlooked crumb of wisdom is that knives don’t make a chef…its the passion and knowledge to be able to see, create and produce a dish that makes it, and this in a similar way can be applied in “togging”
Phase 3
You can have all the Gucci equipment you can afford, if you haven’t got a clue how to use it, you won’t take those shots you crave… if the glove doesn’t fit you’re full of sh1t basically….
I cannot really sit here on my egg crate high and mighty without admitting I have been on this path, I am one of the folks that turned up, came away, bought more gear, in the hope it would help me produce the shots I felt I was capable of taking… even as I type this I am looking at lenses and camera bodies from past purchases…
That’s ok… isn’t it?
Ultimately, buying gear gives me / us the capability to produce a picture…it doesn’t give us the ability to know how to, and that comes from using what you have and understanding the limits of the gear.
Phase 4… The awakening..
Knowing how to produce the best that your gear can offer you is going to put you on a better road to success with any future purchases, there are toggers I meet at the fence, with a relatively happy go lucky set up that take incredible shots, because they know what their equipment can produce and how to get those results seemingly in any weather…mention a new lens about to be released or a new camera body capable of x,y,z and they will scoff at it and the countless puppets that go and buy it ( again, I step off my egg crate ).
Knowledge and understanding the finer details of photography, is the one piece of gear everyone should strive to attain…
Below are a few of the YouTube channels I have gleaned useful snippets of info from.
Catch you soon folks !