Why camera gear matters. A Lot.

One of the most enduring discussion topics among photographers (amateur, professional and everything in between) is gear, be it camera body, lens, tripod or whatever. Do you need it, is it heavy, how many pixels does it have, is it “professional” or “amateur”, are kit lenses terrible and so on and so on. Scores of reviews and guides infest the interwebs with detailed breakdowns of the most minute pixel physics and obscure menu items. Ground rules of these reviews: if a camera body needs its own mortgage, its decent and if a lens is a little larger than the the FedEx truck it came in, acceptable. Also, the difference between 5.5 frames per second and 6 is absolutely worth dipping into the kids’ college fund.

And then, inevitably, an authority figure interrupts the techno babble and wisely states that gear doesn’t matter at all, it’s all in the eye, brain and attitude of the photographer. This sage then produces an over-processed shot from a New York “street walk” that he took with a $20 camera as proof that gear really doesn’t matter. No need to spend money, a disposable camera is just fine. Other pundits without authority simply borrow it and misquote one of the most amazingly technical photographers of history:

“The single most important component of a camera is the twelve inches behind it.” — Ansel Adams

No, Ansel did not say that camera gear doesn’t matter. In fact, he famously used a donkey to carry his equipment into the backcountry and spent weeks, months in the darkroom. He simply stressed the…