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Bill Pierce

Bill Pierce

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I like cameras. I understand just enough of how they work that I also admire them. Consequently, I have too many cameras but am unable to part with them. They are my coworkers, my friends. We’ve had adventures together.

I don’t think I’m a collector. I’m a photographer, I think. But still I want more technically proficient friends, coworkers with more megapixels and improved auto focus - but not at the price of selling out friends who shared adventures and explored new worlds.

Do you think old friends would be happy sitting on the shelves of a camera store even if it was the same shelves they spent time on before we met? I have a feeling I’m not the only person who faces this problem. What would you do? Your thoughts?
 
I try not to anthropomorphize my gear so that I don't feel bad about trading or selling some of it, or even giving it away. I did at one time think of myself as a photographer with a lot of favorites for cameras, but soon realized I was just collecting them more than anything else. You figure that one out when you start buying cameras that you have no intention of ever using. Like the huge twin lens 70mm long roll monster I got just because it looks cool, and the owner wasn't asking too much for it. But now it's taking up too much space, like most of the other collection.

PF
 
While I like cameras, I do not anthropomorphize them. They are mechanical tools (I rarely touch my digital cameras these days) that I use to take photographs. Nothing more. If one of my cameras, for whatever reason, ceases to bring me pleasure in the pursuit of photographs I move it on to somebody who will enjoy it as much as I once did. I care about how members of my family feel, how my friends feel, and often how complete strangers feel. I even think about how my Husky feels. I no more worry about how my cameras feel than I worry about a coffee pot that I have thrown out feels. Inanimate objects don't have feelings. They don't respond to my sadness, anger, or joy. They can't. So no, they are not friends, just tools.
 
It’s extremely hard for me to sell anything that has worked well for me. Although I don’t anthropomorphise my cameras, I do associate each one with places and memories. Rather than sell, I keep what I have. It may not be used as much, but I enjoy having it.
 
I already have hoarding tendencies and have spent the last 4+ years decluttering in fits and starts. My collection (listed in my signature) is probably modest compared to some of you, but I think I want to spend a year or two with my two fixed lens rangefinders and decide which one I like better and let the other go.
 
Well, Bill, I definitely have emotional attachments to certain cameras, such that it's hard to imagine parting with them, or I would give them away rather than sell them.

- Murray
 
Digital cameras in general: No, hanging onto disused items isn't an appealing option, best to sell while demand is there and resale prices are high. Had I kept items like my Leica M8 and M9, who knows if they'd even be functional today?

I do have a film camera collection, but my emphasis is on lower-cost items with emotional appeal, but not too many at any one time. But not so much of the trendier stuff - I don't care to pay the prices, and if I see resale prices of items that I already own reaching delirious heights, I take it as a sign that it's time for me to start selling!
 
Cameras as friends? I can grasp the concept. As a mechanical engineer, I can become fond of an interesting device. I do "anthropomorphize" the people involved in the item's design and manufacture. A matter of respect for the process and effort, I think. I show respect for the gear by using it, and using it with care, and arranging service as needed. I don't have any problem donating or selling stuff on, however, if I'm not using it.
 
I feel sympathies to the animists who believe that every object has a kind of soul or spirit. My motto ever since I was young was, 'look after your things and your things will look after you'. My many books and magazines are almost as good as they were on the shelf at the bookstore, natural aging notwithstanding. 'Miss 9' is my favourite camera and gets a little kiss when no one is looking, I'm only able to say through the anonymity of the internet. So my cameras are friends and family, especially if they have been with me through significant events or travels. And no, they wouldn't be happy on the shelf of a shop because I treat them better than anyone except for a collector. A buyer of my 5D Mark II is likely to be a hobbyist or low budget pro who is likely to beat the heck out of it, considering that it is secondhand and would cost only a few hundred dollars.

Lenses are a slightly different matter, despite people saying to date the body but marry the lens. Lenses which have outlived their usefulness or have been superseded by a better lens have been sold or traded in for more desired gear, although even then, I've only done this twice.
 
I pretty much hang on to things. I have a visceral and intuitive approach when buying things (besides doing objective research) and the feeling I have of admiring and possessing fine equipment gives me a more nostalgic feeling; and as long as I get that, they are staying.

I don't personify them however. And, I don't name them either. :)

I remember a past member on the forums who named his M6 "bubbles" because of the zinc oxidation issues that some were prone to.
 
This is a sad, sad, story

I must admit, I had feelings for my Sigma SD1 Merrill. We’d been through a lot together. I never gave it a name, although I sometimes referred to it as a bowling ball due to its size and weight; especially when the 24-70mm f2.8 lens was attached. I never had any thoughts of selling it - hell, that would be like selling “Old Yeller” Such things are never done! Never! But, I did sell it. Sad, but true. Sold it and all my Sigma SA mount lenses with it. Why did I do this?

There was a new dog in town. The Fujifilm GFX 50R. And, this dog costs money… a lot of money! So, I sold my old friend; I sold a few of my old friends… Makes me wonder, what kind of a friend I am?

Shamefully I’ve already bonded with the GFX 50R. We're happy together. The Sigma SD1 Merrill is now a faded memory.

I’m no good. I'm a bad camera owner. If by chance you should ever meet my old friend Merrill, tell him I said hello.
Cue the music “The way we were”...

Memories may be beautiful and yet
What's too painful to remember
We simply choose to forget

All the best,
Mike

P.S. :p
 
When you invest part of your life into a piece of hardware (or software) you feel a connection. My most used software development tool is from 1994. It works, and is not capable of producing a problem that I cannot fix. Too funny- I can produce a lot of problems for software development tools when writing Code. Once got "non-existent error diagnostic #511" from the compiler of an $8M supercomputer. I knew that machine inside-out, knew the internal CPU paths for optimizing code. When they shut it down wrote and ran a program that filled it's memory with "Goodbye".

I feel that way about some of the lenses that I rebuild. Don't have to sell them, don't need the money, they don't take up too much space. When I do sell one, it's to put them in the hands of someone else that will appreciate them.
 
Bill Pierce said:
Do you think old friends would be happy sitting on the shelves of a camera store even if it was the same shelves they spent time on before we met? I have a feeling I’m not the only person who faces this problem. What would you do? Your thoughts?
Click to expand...
First, I don't think that it is a problem, unless feel it is a problem - but I understand what you're thinking.

I have made a few personal rules for similar dilemmas:

Rule number one: I don't sell any camera or lens that I like for any reason. Past experiences has taught me that I will regret it.

Second rule is that if I don't use the camera for at least two films a year, then I don't like it enough for rule no. one to apply.
Cameras exist to be used and I literally routinely scan through my collection (which counts around 20 film cameras) to make sure they all see some useage. This rule also implies that the camera must be repaired if defective, or it must go.

Third rule. Rule no. 2 doesn't apply to lenses. If I like it, I keep it no matter what!

Only exception from these rules is my first camera, a Ricoh 500G which I don't use but will never part with.

Digital cameras and associated lenses don't fit into this rule setup - they don't have souls.
 
I am ok with the past being the past as long as I feel I am using a better tool for what I want to accomplish at the moment. I sell whatever is not being used. Do I miss some? Yes. However, I always ask myself if you rebuy, will you use it more than what you already have? If the answer is no, I move on and live off of the memories. I am the happiest I have ever been equipment wise.
 
Nitroplait said:
Digital cameras and associated lenses don't fit into this rule setup - they don't have souls.
Click to expand...

I spent the 1980s working on Digital Imagers...
Kodak made the very first Infrared Camera in the DCS series for me. Close to 30 years ago.
 
Sonnar Brian said:
I spent the 1980s working on Digital Imagers...
Kodak made the very first Infrared Camera in the DCS series for me. Close to 30 years ago.
Click to expand...

Didn't mean to imply that they weren't created with as much human effort and ingenuity as film cameras. They just don't speak to me on the same emotional level :)
I liked my Panasonic Lumix 20mm 1.7 very much, but don't feel the slightest remorse that I sold it, whereas I kick myself over almost every single nikkor, takumar, CV or leica lens I have sold - even those focal lengths I re-purchased.
 
I still have the first Nikon I ever bought new. An F2, purchased in 1974. Prior to this camera I only had second hand F and FTns. Still love that F2 but it hasn't seen a roll of film in over 20 years. I'll keep it.

While I do need to de-clutter my gear, I have difficulty getting rid of stuff. I'll never use the Olympus and Canon digital gear I have but it served me well when I used it and I still have some affection for it. When I got into Fujis, I went on a lens buying spree. The lenses are all excellent but I only use 3-4 of them so I really need to dump the rest. Hard to let go. I love the old Nikon DSLRs and I still use them. Not a great deal but I like the look of the photos that come out of the D200, D2Xs, D300, etc. And I continue to use the old full-frame models on a daily basis. Somebody sprinkled magic fairy dust on those sensors.

Sometimes you gotta say goodbye to some of your friends. I'm now digging through my unused items and deciding what I can sell and not regret too much. But I have several BFFs here that I will hold dear forever.
 
The only cameras I really can't sell or give away are those which come to me from relatives.
They are mostly film, with only one digital, which I choose wisely, at least for me. No interest to sell my working M-E 220.
 
I rarely sell anything photographic, just ask my wife. Right now my camera cabinet is as full as it's ever been and almost to capacity too. The cameras and gear I keep all have a purpose or meaning to me. I hope some day they'll have the same meaning for my grandkids. The older I get the less I think that is likely to happen though. Technology is moving too fast these days and if everything doesn't come to a screeching halt in the near future, all my 'stuff' will be but ancient historical artifacts.
 
Like I'm sure most of you here, I've had many many cameras over the years. Not sure that I'd call any of them 'friends' as such, and honestly I can't think of too many cameras that I've held onto for a very long time (right now I can only think of two -- a Leica III that I had for almost 30 years and an ELCAN Leica M2 that I had for about 25 years). I've bought and sold over the years, so it's really no big deal one way or the other, though there are a few cameras in my past that I've regretted selling, in particular a sizable Contaflex TLR kit.

Right now the only cameras I wouldn't sell are my Ermanoxes -- I've had them both completely overhauled and they're now in regular use. I don't think I'd want to go through the trouble and expense of doing that again. But never say never.
 
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