As much as we should avoid it, we can often get very involved with our equipment. It's not just a tool, it also says something about us as an individual. I've just bought an old Nikkormat FTn from the late 1960's. I have justified this as it was in a charity auction. But that's not why I bought it. The camera was used by a photo journalist in Vietnam and later in the liberation wars in Southern Africa. It has history attached to it.
One of my life choices was to be a photojournalist, but I chose another route. However, there is always the 'what if' in the back of my mind. Not that I pretend I would have gone off to war armed with a Nikon. However, the camera has a history and I feel good about having it an using it. It's a chrome model but has had the bright parts painted black which just gives extra allure. The lens is of a later vintage and Nikon geeks will spot this from the lens meter coupling (pigs nose not the original rabbit ears: the geeks will know!)
When Don McCullin, Britain's greatest living war photographer finally came home he settled down to making rather gloomy landscapes. I'm in Scotland in the winter so gloomy landscapes are all around. I'm off to make some of these in glorious black and white. Nice to be back with film for while.
On the subject of cameras defining who you are. A video of how a boy (canon) and girl (nikon) cannot be together because of their loyalty to competing brands. "Like Romeo and Juliet our families disagree". But as they say "lets look on the bright side at least we're not Pentax". Brands rule OK. Not to mention the erotic power of a lens.
