The best camera is not the one in your pocket, nor the one you have with you, nor whatever else people may claim of a similar nature.

Why do I feel this way?

Well, let me share with you a little scenario I found myself in, earlier this week. A scenario that made me reconsider the stand I’ve always had regarding DSLR Cameras.

It all started a week ago, I suppose, when I happen upon some bird photos on the web by one of the famous designers on my Bēhance Timeline. I found the photos to be quite striking, each more beautiful than the other. So much so, that they kind of pricked my curiosity, nudging me(so to speak), coercing me to try and find out why.
After reviewing several of them, I realised that a sense of commonality existed among these images: Isolation.
See, what all these images had in common was a resemblance in how everything else in the pictures sort of faded away. Other than the bird in focus, the rest of the image(or backdrop, as some might call it) gradually blurred away.

At first, I ignored this finding, with a simple nod to myself for having made such a Nobel-deserving discovery. Once in a while, I may have mused about how this may save the world from the sea of shamelessly ill-taken selfies flooding our websphere today. Other than that, it was all but forgotten.
Until earlier this week, when I tried to replicate this effect using the so-called ‘camera in my pocket’: my iPhone.

I had just seen a beautiful bird, perched up on a twig, hanging so innocently, unsuspecting of the shot I was about to take, and I guess, terribly unaware of it’s right to privacy against such unauthorised acts of espionage.

Oh, I could see it then: my first beautiful photo.

I had it, at the back of my eyelids, every pixel, bright, colourful, effortlessly deserving of the Retina display fitted on all new Macbooks; a photo that would mesmerise whoever’s face laid eyes on it.

Alas! The iPhone couldn’t manage. I pleaded with it, fiddled with it’s controls, sang unheard-of ululations to it, wrote a letter to the late Steve Jobs, almost pulled out my beard, and after all that? The creature flew away, with smile traced upon it’s beak, mocking my futility, having seen its fair share of comedy for the day.

To cut a long story short, the iPhone couldn’t take the shot.

Now, in all fairness, I admit, I could have taken the shot ‘normally’, uploaded it to the mac, and with a bit of retouching, achieved the same effect on photoshop, but I can put my grandma on Mars (with photoshop), so what’s the point?

The solution, in my opinion, is to use a DSLR Camera. No, I don’t know what the acronym stands for, and it doesn’t really matter. Why? Because it can take the damn shot! That’s why!

Of course, it’s common knowledge that DSLR’s are a tad more expensive than ordinary cameras, and they’re purportedly harder to maintain, but for the control they give you over important aspects (such as depth of field) makes them totally worth it!

A couple of lads(mostly motorsport/rally pals), after suggesting to them such a solution, often ask “How about a GoPro instead?” And it seems like a valid query.
But as much as I’ve been eyeing the GoPro Hero 3 for a while now, and choosing between it and a DSLR has put me in a bit of a pickle, the answer is still NO. A strong resounding NO.
Why? Because, like everything else ever made, each camera suits a particular purpose.

While the GoPro may capture high-quality videos and excellent HD photos, it still doesn’t give you as much control over the depth of field and grain refinement as a DSLR.

If you’re a motorcyclist or an athlete or rally driver, this may be a viable option, but if you need zoom, and the ability to see photos as you take them, without any extra hustle or baggage, then the DSLR is more suited for you.

So, bottom line : Get a DSLR.
1. Because it’s awesome, and totally worth it.
2. And maybe, because this post was more of a way for me to convince myself, rather than just have a first post on Medium.

Let me know your thoughts on the matter by simply clicking the little + icon that pops up on the side of each paragraph on the right.