A Minimalist's Reject

Do bloggers take the summer off? In my case, I guess they do, but a vacation from just what, I’m not sure. Mine’s not the sort of life from which one needs often to escape, at least not every day. It’s not perfect, but it is a preamble to retirement, with lots of good coffee, plenty of beer, and more than the occasional walkabout. And oh yes, the occasional need to bring in a couple of bucks.

So off we went, my family and I, to the central Oregon coast. September is a good month to go explore out there; the weather is fine, the light is beautiful, and the crowds have thinned out to manageable levels. And this time, I made a conscious effort to pack along some camera gear. Let me explain.

On my many wanderings of late, I’ve seen fit to carry along nothing more than my iPhone (a 7Plus) and sometimes an attachable wide-angle lens. Even my week in Chicago this year (which happily included a Blackhawks game) was photographed by this, and nothing more. It does a beautiful job, and allows me to feel more engaged in the moment. Then again, it might just be tiresome old age and an unforgiving back.

But this time I packed my mirrorless Fuji, and kept it with me on every walk. It truly does create a marvelous file, and my three lenses provide all the coverage I could ask for. In fact, lens versatility is really the great advantage of a camera system over a smartphone. But here’s the thing: I went to a mirrorless camera to reduce the weight and complexity of my Canon system; I was already down-sizing.

Cannon Beach, Oregon Fuji Xe2 2015

And before that Canon system, I was shooting with a couple of Nikon film cameras and a whole pack-full of lenses. Remember, these were solid metal cameras, but my back was younger and stronger. And around that same time, I was out there shooting with a Mamiya RB67, a weighty medium format camera and a couple of huge lenses and tripod. A really big tripod. And before that, my monorail 4x5 and a coupe of lenses. And before that, a magnificent flat-bed Burke & James 8x10 camera, for which I had (and could really only afford) one lens, but it was a doozy.

You can see that my progress through life as a photographer has been not only to learn and grow, but also and equally to shed weight and travel as light as possible. Each of these influences the other. I don’t know how much lighter and faster I could go, but if my glasses could become a good camera I’d give that serious thought. Because this is what it’s really about: the need to make images, not to project one. The more gear I shed, I find, the more impactful is my photography. The moments are clearer, more immediate. And I’m having enormous fun.

But of course now I’m starting to sound a little preachy, and I’ll have none of that. Some of my best friends are dedicated gear heads, and I admire them for the effort. Shoot and share, says I.

As for me, I’ll just take the rest of the summer off.