Many of us like books– but why? What use do books have, and why invest in photography books, instead of buying photography equipment and gear?

buy books not gear

So first of all, buying equipment and gear in photography isn’t bad. We need equipment, cameras, and gear to of course, make photos!

Martin Parr at home, where he houses some of his 12,000+ photo books

The problem is when we think that buying new camera equipment will respark your passion for photography, and help you make better photos.

Bruce Davidson's 5-book compilation of his Black + White bodies of work. Many of these books are collector's items and out-of-print. So although the collection is expensive, you are still saving money on some books like East 100th street (which is selling for around $1000 on the second-hand market)

The truth is, the best way to respark your passion for photography is finding inspiration from great photographers! This is why I think as a photographer, the best bang for the buck return on your monetary investment are photography books; whether instructional or educational photo books, art photo books, or any books in general! (self-help books, philosophy books, literature, nonfiction, fiction, etc).

Subway, by Bruce Davidson. One of my favorite color photography books and a must-have in your library.

In other words, anything that can inspire you to make more art is a good investment!

Consider that a new digital camera is let’s say, around $1,000 USD. If a photobook is around $20-50 dollars, you can buy 20-50 really nice photo books to keep you inspired! That’s like a book every month for 2-4 years! You’ll never run out of inspiration!

buy books not gear

If you can’t afford photo books, go to the Magnumphotos.com website for inspiration, or learn from all the masters from learn from the masters series >

Just as encouragement, don’t get suckered by camera companies, camera websites and blogs (that try to make lots of money from affiliate referrals). It’s in their best interest to keep you perpetually dissatisfied with your camera gear, so you keep buying more camera gear.