A camping neighbor enjoys walking his Australian shepherd with Coffee Girl. He asked if I was interested in photography. That was a simple yes/no question, but I had trouble with it.
When I started living in this RV park two years ago I was delighted to have a large field to run my dogs in. But as a former full-time traveler, it seemed boring and unnatural to do anything twice. To put my mind at rest I decided to bring the digital Brownie along and put more effort into looking at the small things that the change of seasons brings along. It has been a successful project.
The neighbor offered to let me borrow his digital SLR Canon camera. He showed me a whole bag of lenses and equipment and a tripod. What if I dropped this camera! As impressive as this was on one level, it was repulsive too. When he tugged on the zippers of the side-pouches, I cringed. Using impedimenta like this would completely change the outdoor experience for me. It would be great for setting up near a bird nest or something stationary like that, but that wasn't my style.
I was trying, but probably failing, to keep an open mind about the DSLR. All of my life I have rolled my eyes at equipment weenies, be they camera snobs, gearheads, computer geeks, audiophiles, etc. What all these people have in common is the psychological need to squander unconscionable sums of money on gadgets, which are really just toys, status symbols, or objects of idolatry to them. They aren't really interested in using these toys for anything.
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