Reflection from PHOTO JOURNAL. Reflect what you love about your camera, and use this knowledge to empower you to keep making new and epic photos.

Image from PHOTO JOURNAL Mobile EDITION:

Why love your camera?

I think there needs to be a loving connection between you and your camera. Why? If you don’t love your camera, you’re always going to be looking for other cameras, and the less creatively productive you will be as a photographer.

I don’t love many devices or tools or things, but I would say I love the RICOH GR II (and building new love) for the RICOH GR III.

Building love takes time

I don’t admit a camera into my life easily. Building a loving connection with your camera takes time and trust. Also, it means to ruthlessly test a camera by yourself and judge for yourself whether the camera is right or wrong for you. Never trust the reviews of others; always test and review a camera by yourself, to decide whether it gets well with you, and whether the camera is a good complement to you or not.

Do you love yourself?

Ultimately it isn’t about loving the camera — it is loving yourself. Do you love how you make photos? Do you love your style and approach to photography? Do you love your own photos and aesthetic?

You’re the end goal

Your creative productivity and prolific nature is the goal. Which means, you’re 10000x more important than the camera you use.

For myself, this is what I prefer:

1. Light weight living, ability to make art anywhere I go. Thus essential for camera to be small, and lightweight (feel no weight when it is on my neck, ERIC KIM NECK STRAP MARK II).
2. Simplicity of art creation process (Why I prefer JPEG, and shooting in P—program mode).
3. Value: I don’t like spending much money on a camera. I’d prefer to feel like I got a great “deal”. RICOH GR II ($550) and RICOH GR III ($890) as the best “bang for the buck” cameras thus far. The amount of quality you get for the price is phenomenal.

Thus it seems to first determine your personal lifestyle, your personal photo art philosophy, your living philosophy, and your personal preferences, then figure out the camera which best suits your needs.

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New ways of photographing

One thing I love about the new RICOH GR III: the new 21mm adapter. It has opened a brand new perspective and way of me seeing the world, and after shooting with 21mm, shooting even 28mm feels too restrictive.

For example when shooting from a low angle, it makes your subjects look even more dynamic, with more force, and more visual energy.

Shooting in tight quarters

Another thing I love about 21mm— ability to shoot in very tight and cramped quarters. Like inside an arcade game:

I love being able to feel more open, free, and to challenge myself more in photography. Also, the more simple the photographic process is for me (simpler workflow), the happier and more photographically productive I am!

Keep experimenting until it is 85% good enough

There is no perfect camera, but this is my personal bar:

If the camera is 85% “good enough” for your needs, it is the perfect and ideal camera for you.

This is called “satisficing”(suffice + satisfy). There will never be a perfect camera, and that’s part of the game. Keep experimenting with different cameras and tools until you discover something which is 85% good enough in your eyes.

How can you quantify 85%? For me, it is: “very good, not perfect, but I still really like it”. Then as time goes on, you become to love it for all the goods and the flaws.

For example the RICOH GR II has a lot of flaws (slower autofocus, slower buffering of images), but I learned to love the flash, and beautiful monochrome images it made with RAW+ERIC KIM PRESETS.

Conclusion: Fall more in love with yourself and your photography

Focus on your artistic thriving. It’s a fun game, self directed, and meaningful for you.

Never stop shooting. Keep the camera simple, and create lots of images. Never stop!

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