My D700 made me happy, it was with me all the time for the past few years and was my excuse to go out. I became emotionally attached to my everyday companions and the photos are witnesses of our adventure.

Then came the D800, the greater toy... but a stranger... I have to admit my attachment to it is not there yet and my old friend is sitting lifeless on a shelf.

PB PM said:
Chocolate chip cookies make me happy...

+1

Got milk?

Chocolate chip cookies make me happy, oh wait this is about photography right? ;-)

Camera's themselves don't make me happy, but what I can create through them sure can. Of course camera can piss me off too, so it goes both ways.

I was out this morning taking photos of aircraft landing...about 1500 feet from touchdown...guessing. Mainly this was a test of a new gimbal head from induro, which is very nice. Not a RRS but for less than 1/2 the price and it did everything I asked of it.

So, the idea of what it is that makes one happy...at least for me, this morning, it was the moment I clicked the shutter. Pop, pop, pop....about six exposures with each airplane. This is the photography where one waits for several minutes, then maybe 5-15 seconds at best to do the work. Approaching planes seem to jump up out of nowhere and they are moving at 120-170 mph, so the planning is the build up to the shot.

And this I like....at the moment of exposure. This is also exactly what I like about working with models... pop, pop, pop, banter, pop, banter, pop..... it is a process of two or more working together.....

SkintBrit said:
It's not the equipment that gives me a smile, it's when I finally manage to use it correctly that does that..........a bit like my motorbike.

"Motorbike" Is that the word I read? Well them....let's not delay. Let's Ride!!!

My grandson makes me happy. And photographs of him make my family happy.

SkintBrit said:
Yes, but the same could be said about children, but I'm still rather partial to mine!

+1 (Mine, I mean.)

msmoto said:
So, the topic being what makes us happy....well, there is nothing quite like a trans continental solo bike trip at age 66....

In my opinion there is msmoto...........doing it with a bunch of your best mates and just "Gelling"?

OK, this makes me happy.... in 2008, my last cross country solo, 7000 miles, and this was taken with the P & S somewhere...maybe Wyoming??? My five days from High Point, NC to Portland, OR made it necessary to use the P & S instead of dragging out the big stuff in the right Pelican case. Next time, I would set up the system to allow a full frame body in an accessible bag on the tank.

This was the same trip I rode through Kalispell (are you listening Mike?) about a week and a half later. So, the topic being what makes us happy....well, there is nothing quite like a trans continental solo bike trip at age 66....

Bike? You got a bike Skinty? I knew I liked you... ;-)

Here's mine after a nut and bolt rebuild:

Don't talk to me about black holes.... But my camera still makes me happy.

captainelmo said:
Course we are'nt happy. Camera's are a blackhole where money sinks in never to be found again xD.

Yes, but the same could be said about children, but I'm still rather partial to mine!

It's not the equipment that gives me a smile, it's when I finally manage to use it correctly that does that..........a bit like my motorbike.

Wataru said:
Photographs make me happy.

Good for you.

If I was only a landscape photographer, I would not give a rat´s arse about AF speed or AF tracking speed and such things.

A slow-focusing lens or poorly tracking camera becomes a source of stress when trying to capture birds in flight or fast and erratic wildlife.

Adequate gear makes for more successful action photos -> better gear, happier action photographer

Mike Gunter said:
Hi,

The first poster is right --- but there are some things that can only be done with some equipment, like faster shutters or synchronizing flash with rear/faster shutter speeds and lens with very wide apertures.

Gear isn't the thing, but it might be the thing we use make the result we want to see.

My best,

Mike

+1 Well said Mike :D

msmoto said:
.... A friend produces ladies lingerie and wants a few items which are a bit different....

I don't know if I should ask...

Hi,

The first poster is right --- but there are some things that can only be done with some equipment, like faster shutters or synchronizing flash with rear/faster shutter speeds and lens with very wide apertures.

Gear isn't the thing, but it might be the thing we use make the result we want to see.

My best,

Mike

bjrichus said:
I have used all four of the bodies you mention (and own the DX ones) and you are right, but it is only half the story, it is the start of the process.

We should ask the same question of the post-process and then the end result.

I can tell you that I hate post processing. So much that I don't edit.

I do agree that I enjoy the act of photography, but I also enjoy the gear too. Not having the right tool in the right moment really slows me down.

Course we are'nt happy. Camera's are a blackhole where money sinks in never to be found again xD.

spraynpray said:
Or more recent: After setting up and testing my wife's newly acquired D3000, my D7000 gives me pleasure. I'm just glad I can't get to handle a D4 or D800....

I have used all four of the bodies you mention (and own the DX ones) and you are right, but it is only half the story, it is the start of the process.

We should ask the same question of the post-process and then the end result.

Or more recent: After setting up and testing my wife's newly acquired D3000, my D7000 gives me pleasure. I'm just glad I can't get to handle a D4 or D800....

I admit that cameras make me happy.

Try to pick up an old Nikon F3 with a Nikon MF lens. Then come back and tell me that cameras dont make you happy :-)

You've got to respect the tools, man... a part of me always rejoices when I take up my dad's old Minolta with the Rokkor 50 1.4 that is built like a brick shit house and smooth and well dampened... I'm not even talking about its performance but the sheer quality of its build. There's a techie inside of me that can't help but break a big smile.

I think a bit of the tools always resounds in the pieces they produce, be it a scratch-built bed or a wall cupboard you just hung or hardwood floor you laid out, or a photograph you took. At least for me, that is.

The absolute ease with which one can obtain results which in the past were difficult if not impossible does bring some pleasure. But the final use of the photograph is where I really get off. I recently did a shoot of four walls of a room for a special run of five photos.... and the results were very close to what I was after.

If one looks at what I shoot, "snapshot" is the best description. My goal is to record life as it is.

I do enjoy using models in the studio and might be doing some stuff shortly in this area. A friend produces ladies lingerie and wants a few items which are a bit different. And working with people is one of my most enjoyable moments.

I like them both. Loving my D4 & D7000. And the results they produce makes the blood flow all throughout my body.

Cheers...

I agree.

There is nothing quite like that satisfying feeling when I hold a great print and think to myself: "done".

Well ... There *IS* but it's not quite the same thing and I'm not going to discuss those *other* things here ;-)

Photographs make me happy.