My honest appraisal:
Podcast
What I wish I knew
My unrealistic expectation:
If I bought a Leica M rangefinder camera, it will make me a ‘better’ photographer (less fear, less hesitation) and more motivation and inspiration to shoot street photography.
But this is not the case. Leica M rangefinder camera as a more design object, a design fetish object.
Owning a Leica M Rangefinder camera is like owning a Rolex Watch
Why buy a Rolex if you can buy a Casio G Shock watch that does the same exact thing (tell time)? For the aesthetic.
Why own a Leica M rangefinder camera (the only camera I consider a ‘real’ Leica)? For the aesthetic. It is like having a really luxurious necklace, but it happens to shoot photos.
Will it make me more inspired?
No. Same as buying a new Lamborghini will not make you more inspired or happy. The Lamborghini, the Yeezy Sneakers, the fancy watches, etc — all as a design fetish thing. And even if you got the perfect design (iPhone Pro 11), you will not be ‘happy’. We quickly bore of aesthetics. No matter how beautiful your partner, no matter how beautiful your home, your clothes, things, tools, etc… you will sooner or later ‘hedonic adaptation’ to it.
What do you really want from photography?
I think what we *really* want out of photography is creative and artistic flourishing. RICOH GR III is currently the best camera for that.
What is currently the best inter-changeable mirrorless camera for photography/street photography?
Probably the Fujifilm X-Pro 3. I also prefer it over the X100-camera (the X100 tries too hard to be a Leica M rangefinder clone), but the XPRO3 with the no LCD screen (visible) is much more ambitious and interesting.
Just experiment for yourself
I think most people who desire a Leica M camera actually wants to just become Henri Cartier-Bresson. But truth be told, if Henri were alive today, he probably would just shoot with a RICOH GR III (the smallest, most low-key, most unobtrusive camera).
Takeaway point:
- Buy Leica M rangefinder camera as a design object (the most beautiful camera ever made, especially the Leica MP film camera).
- If you want the best camera for street photography, get RICOH GR III x ERIC KIM WRIST STRAP or ERIC KIM NECK STRAP.
- If you want the best inter-changeable lens camera, get Fujifilm X-Pro 3 and Fujifilm 23 f2 lens.
EQUIPMENT by KIM
There is no “perfect” camera. Don’t fall into GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome) and falsely believe that buying a new camera will make you a better photographer.
If you’re not feeling inspired in your photography, I recommend you to buy books, not gear. Also check out these 75+ Inspirational Photo Books You Gotta Buy. You can also download my free books.
Equipment Articles >
- Fujifilm X-PRO 3 over Leica M10
- Equipment Creep
- Once You Got Perfect, Then What?
- WHY I LOVE RICOH GR III
- One-Handed Photography
- Why Rangefinders Are Overrated
- WHY YOU MUST BUY RICOH GR III
- The Best Equipment is The Equipment You Already Have
- The Best Camera is the One You Shoot with the Most
- Why RICOH GR III is the Best Camera
- Use and Abuse Your Gear!
- RICOH is the new LEICA
- In Praise of Banging around Your Camera
- Electric Cameras
- Why the RICOH GR III is Better than the Leica Q2
- Buy a new Ricoh GR III, not a New iPhone
- The Best Headphones are In-Ear Monitors
- Are Point-and-Shoot Cameras the Best Cameras?
- Gear Adaptation Syndrome
- Satisfice
- What is the Benefit of “Standalone” Digital Cameras?
- All Cameras are Good Cameras
- Why The Future of Photography is Software
- RICOH MAFIA
- Use and Abuse Your Gear!
- Why RICOH GR II is the Best Street Photography Camera
- The Best Photography/Vlogging Equipment Setup
- My Favorite Travel Street Photography Equipment
- Zen Body-Hand-Mind Connection with the Camera
- Why It Doesn’t Matter What Camera You Shoot With
- What is the Best Camera and Lenses for Street Photography?
- The Best Travel Street Photography Equipment 2018
- 6 Lessons I’ve Learned After Shooting All the Expensive Cameras
- How to Make Good Photos on a Shitty Camera
- Why I Shoot With One Camera and One Lens
- My Travel Equipment, Winter 2017
- What is the Perfect Camera For You?
- What to Consider When Buying a Camera
Digital Medium Format Photography
- Why Digital Medium Format is a Game-Changer for Color Photography
- The Upsides and Downsides of Digital Medium Format Photography
- Fujifilm GFX 50R and 45mm f/2.8 Lens First-Impressions Review
- Review of the Pentax 645Z and Digital Medium Format Photography
- 7 Reasons Why I Love Digital Medium-Format Photography
- My Experience Shooting Digital Medium Format in Street Photography
- My Experience Shooting my Friend’s Wedding on Digital Medium Format
- Why Digital Medium Format is the Future of Photography
- Is Digital Medium Format Worth It?
- 7 Lessons I’ve Learned Shooting Fashion For the First time on Digital Medium Format (PENTAX 645Z)
Smartphone Photography >
- The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Smartphone Photography
- Benefits of Shooting Street Photography With a Smartphone
- In Street Photography, The Smaller the Camera, the Better
Film Photography 101 >
- Film Street Photography Manual
- What I Learned Shooting 100 Rolls of Black and White Film
- What I Learned Processing 164 Rolls of Film
My favorite camera: RICOH GR III
Currently my favorite camera is the RICOH GR III:
- Why the RICOH GR III is the Best Travel Photography Camera
- Why the RICOH GR III is Better than the Leica Q2
- Why the RICOH GR III is the Best Street Photography Camera
- The RICOH GR III (3) is the Best Camera Ever Made.
Best Equipment by ERIC KIM
This is a list of my personal favorite equipment in photography, computers, and life:
Of course, this list probably won’t apply to you — but this is advice I would give myself (if I needed to buy stuff):
Film cameras
If you’re new to shooting film, pick up a copy of FILM NOTES.
Best film rangefinder
Leica MP + Leica 35mm f/2 Summicron Lens
Best affordable film rangefinder
Leica M6 + Voigtlander 35mm f/2.5 Lens
Best compact film camera
Contax T3
Best medium-format film camera
Hasselblad 500-series
Best black and white film
Kodak Tri-X 400 (pushed to 1600): $5
Best color film
Best film scanner
For medium-format/35mm: Epson v800: $800
For 35mm: Plustek OpticFilm 8100: $270
Camera accessories
Best camera shoulder bag
Best camera backpack
Fits 13” Laptop and Camera: Thinktank Perception 15 (black): $120
Best photography neck strap
Best photography wrist strap
Best photography inspiration website
Best photography news blog
Best photography software
Adobe Lightroom
Best video editing software
iMovie (free) or Final Cut Pro X ($300)
Books
Best educational photography book
Best black-and-white photography art book
Best color photography art book
“The Suffering of Light” by Alex Webb
Best photography handbook
Best philosophy book
On the Shortness of Life – Seneca ($8) // 10 Lessons Seneca Has Taught Me.
Best digital tools
Best laptop
Maxed-out 13” MacBook Pro (Refurbished)
Best phone
The smallest iPhone available (currently iPhone Mini)
Best Mac Apps
Best writing app
IA Writer (for writing)
Best screen recorder
Camtasia
Best image resizer
JPEGmini Pro
Audio
Best earbuds
In-ear monitors
Apparel
Best underwear
ExOfficio Men Boxer Brief (black): $26
Best T-shirt
Outlier NYC Merino Wool T-Shirt
Best socks
Outlier NYC Black Merino Wool Socks
Best pants
Merino Wool Leggings (black)
Best glasses
Finance
Best bank
Chase
Best entrepreneurial tools
Best blogging platform
Best paid online services
Best cloud storage
Dropbox (Pro)
Diet & Nutrition
Food
Intermittent fasting — with one big meal a day (only dinner)
Workout
Deadlifts (one rep max) + squats + dumbbell press + chin-ups + pushups
Conclusion
Of course this is just a list of stuff that work for me. It probably won’t work for you.
But I got inspired to make this list– because it took me about 10 years to figure out the best equipment for me. And this works for me, and I hope it can help simplify your purchasing decisions (at least in photography and some other details).
I’ll continue to do articles and videos related to equipment– because I do believe (up to a certain degree) having the ‘right’ equipment in life makes life easier. But the problem is falling victim to GAS (gear acquisition syndrome) where we are buying stuff for the sake of it (has happened to me).
If you already have a bunch of equipment that works for you– stick with it. But if you need some help, I hope this list helped you.
Always,
Eric