Digital BW, The Print

>
>Bill,
>
>The reason for technical refinement is to make work easier and more
>predictable rather than a goal in itself. Production workers can't afford to
>waste time and materials so have to keep improving equipment and methods.
>Generally the person who doesn't make a living at the craft can be more
>creative and form an acceptable level of refinmnet that fits the work. It's
>the equipment freaks that drive me buggy. :-)
>
>AZ
>
>Maker of Lookaround panoramic camera.
>
>http://lookaroundcam.com/
>          or
>keyword.com lookaround
>

Alan, I wouldn't disagree with anything you've said.  I have 
constantly strived for technical refinement in the 22 years I have 
worked as a professional photographer. It is an absolute necessity. 
However, for the past 16 years I also taught classes, part-time, at 
some local colleges...mostly black and white but for the past three 
years, strictly digital imaging.  My observation is that there are 
two types of photographers that  come into classes.  People driven by 
the technology and the equipment and people driven by an emotional 
response and the desire to creatively find something unique in the 
world around them that they wish to share.  I describe it as sort of 
left brain and right brain approaches.  I always took it as my 
personal challenge to get the right brain crowd to clean up their act 
and learn something about the technology so they can be even more 
creative and experimental.  With the left brain crowd I attempted to 
loosen them up a bit ...trying to get them to let go of the technical 
security blankets by jumping off the cliff occasionally and trying to 
fly by the seat of their pants... letting their intuition be their 
guide.  It is obvious that I feel that a you need both aspects to be 
a good photographer/artist. As to equipment, though I certainly 
appreciate well made equipment, I also realize that some of my best 
students took photos with a 30 year old used Canon AE-1 while some of 
the people who walked into class with a Nikon F-4 or F-5 spent most 
of the class trying to figure out how to use those complex pieces of 
equipment.

Thanks for giving me a chance to add a few words to my original post.

Billl
-- 

b i l l  a g e e  s t u d i o
c a p i s t r a n o  b e a c h  c a l i f o r n i a

billagee@...
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