Sorry, I got you to click. It is a clickbait title but bear with me for a moment.
I read a lot of technology articles and a lot of them are about photography or cinematic gear. I’m the first to admit I LOVE new gadgets and gear but I also am very pragmatic about what is needed versus what is wanted. I will spend good money for good gear but I'm also a huge fan of doing a lot with less.
A lot of articles about photo gear are all “you need this to be a photographer” or whatever... blah, blah, blah.
So here is my list:
- Camera
- Lens
- Memory card or film
- Tripod
- Lens cleaner
That’s it. Don’t be duped by people telling you that your camera is not good enough or your lens is bad or whatever. Go out and shoot. If you said, "Adrian, I have $500 and want to be a photographer," I'd say, "you can get everything above."
- Nikon D3100 — $239
- Nikon 35mm f1.8g DX— $166
- Sandisk 16GB SD Card — $11
- Polaroid 42" Travel Tripod — $17
- Zeiss Lens Cleaner Kit — $30
A grand total of $463. It may not be superlative gear but you’ll be photographing. And that’s more than can be said about a lot of gear reviewing and blogging clowns. Check out a few examples of photographs taken with the Nikon D3100 and Nikon 35mm DX lens.
Adrian's Life Rule #56: Go out and shoot.