So my first camera was given to me by my grandad (Poppa) when I was around 15. It was the Pentax ME. At that time I really didn't understand exposure and as such a lot of my photos were never really exposed well, but also, at the time, I really didn't care; I was walking around vintage sports car shows with Poppa capturing memories of his stories about this straight-16 cylinder aero engined Delage, or, one of my personal favourites, the 4 litre V twin GN.
At that moment in time that camera could have been a 1930's bellow camera for all I cared, as it was all about capturing a memory of my childhood. This simple form of capturing photos rapidly vanishes when an understanding of exposure and composition come into play and we start being more critical of our equipment than of taking the photos themselves.
I was completely guilty of that two months after I revisited the SLR fraternity last May. I brought myself, after a lot of trailing and hands on testing at my local camera shop, a Nikon D3100. I won't go into why Nikon over Canon and Sony here, but suffice to say as with a lot of others who have had to make the same choice, the Nikon felt way better in my hands. Six months and over 5,000 photos down the line and I found myself criticising the cameras ability, particularly in low light, and dreaming of the 'next' model. For two months every photo I took had something wrong with it; it had too much noise, there was motion blur as I couldn't have a high enough ISO or the image quality wasn't as crisp as I was expecting.
I was convincing myself that I had outgrown the cameras capabilities and, more importantly, that I needed the Nikon D7000, D700 or even the impressive D3s.
This is the state of mind half the world is now in after Nikon have announced the Nikon D4. I will be one of the first to say "Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god" at the spec sheet, the look of it and some of its new functions and layout. The spec sheet is readily available over the Internet so I won't go into details her (head over to Jared Polin's FroKnowsPhoto website) but there are a scary number of functions that make you go "Wow."
Who wouldn't want a ISO of 100-12,800 (with the capability, and please add a comment if you can think of a reason to have to use it, 204,800 at Hi4) a 1/8000th a second shutter (... For shooting the sun?) or 1080p video capture at a 2.7 crop factor (everyone needs a robin photo from a mile away).
The camera is beautifully and rightly pitched as their flagship model. An aspirational target for all photographers (Nikon and, dare I say it, Canon). Looking up at the higher echelons of the Nikon range when I was shooting with the D3100 was agonising, and even now I've taken a step up to the D90 the functions and abilities of the flagship models will, and rightly should, always inspire you. These cameras are there to push our photography skills further to the limits of the cameras we are currently using.
Standing in a garage doesn't make you a car, and by the same degree, owning a Nikon D4 doesn't make you a photographer. Have a think about what you are shooting with right now and understand what it can do and what it can't. If, after that, you find yourself with a D700 and a need to shoot video, indoor sports and events then maybe you could look at a D4, but more likely, you'll never have the need to buy the D4. That of course doesnt stop my incredible urge to own one and if a year down the line I end up with enough disposable income to not blink at the thought, then I will no doubt be overjoyed with the purchase.
It may baffle me for a few days with all the functions and menu options, as I'm 90% sure it would probably be a step too far, but on the flip side, I have no doubt that I would be able to be come as fluent using it's controls as the D90 I use now.
What is more likely to happen is that my first upgrade to a full frame camera (of which, I might add, I'm itching to move to) will be a D700 or possibly the D3S as video in my line of work (tennis coaching) is hugely beneficial.
Until then am very comfortable and happy with the tools I have right now. I'm thoroughly enjoying using them and trying to find their limits and break them. More so than the D3100 which, I now realise, I was fighting with for most of my sports photos and, to some extent, portraits too.
Get confident with your camera, find your 'inner peace' (to quote Master Shifu from Kung Fu Panda, that classic and well known photography feature length cartoon) and simply enjoy capturing photos. Use the D4 as an aspirational beacon to where one day you will be experienced and knowledgeable enough to pick one up and instinctively know where the ISO dial or the autofocus beep option is, and that the 3D matrix metering system will help you focus during a game of ice hockey.
I know I will love to take my photography and camera journey to the Nikon flagship model, but for now, these shots make me smile in the same way they did when Poppa explained why this particular ERA was special (it was of course, Prince Bira's).
Thanks for reading guys and get out there and enjoy your photos!
See you anon (as Poppa used to say)
Chris
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