the daily dub

He checks his composition one last time, measuring the horizon, ensuring that it is horizontal. Half pressing the shutter, he sees 4 of his focus confirmation lights light up. He exhales, holds his breath for 2 full seconds, then depresses the shutter release the rest of the way.

Wexford Irish Creme Ale, atop a U-haul box
Lit from behind with a Vivitar 285HV, triggered by Pocket Wizards

For 2 and a half milliseconds, he is disconnected from the subject of his photo, the mirror slaps up against the stopper, the shutter curtains open and close within 1/250th of a second, and it’s done. His photo is made, not taken.

What’s the difference between a point and shoot, and a digital SLR? Why would people spend 2 grand on an SLR (not to mention lenses and flashes and remote triggering) when you can spend $150 on a point and shoot and still get “good” photos?

There’s something in the shutter click of an SLR. Something in the composition, the attention to detail. Thought is put into every aspect of a photo taken with an SLR. The photographer chooses the lens, the shutter speed, the ISO, the aperture - each with careful evaluation, and attention to the results. Shutter speed to stop action, aperture to increase or decrease depth of field. The half press of the shutter engages the autofocus motors, which whirr into action and are done as soon as they’ve begun.

That split second when the photographer is blind, when the mirror slaps up to allow the shutters to expose the sensor (or film). There’s something to that, something that is just not reproducible with a WAV sound clip.

I recently received an Olympus Stylus 790 SW - completely water proof, shock proof, dust proof, and freeze proof, all to military specifications. This thing kicks some serious ass, and to test it out, I brought it to the spa and took some underwater photos. The SPA! The novelty value here is incredible - I can now take a *Camera* to the *water*, and they don’t kill each other… wow!

Really though, it’s amazing. But even being able to take a photo underwater doesn’t make up for the absence of a mirror slap and shutter click. With my new point and shoot, the composition takes a back seat to opportunism - click! I’m constantly shooting - click! But something is - click! - lacking, even still.

I don’t feel the LCD glass against my nose. I don’t get to see the focus confirmation lights illuminate. I’m missing the backout time and the satisfying “clunk” of my SLR. I’m missing the ability to choose which lens I use to make - not take - the shot.

The ability to control every aspect of a photo is something an SLR user can appreciate. People who have never shot with an SLR may not understand the freedom of expression that comes with full manual control. Add in the ability to control the lighting of the scene, and the permutations are endless.

A point and shoot simply cannot capture the essence of photography.

The shot you see at the top of this post was made with a 30D, a 50mm f/1.4 @ ISO 100 - f8 - 1/250th. It was lit from behind the beer glass with an off camera flash set at 1/16th power. The flash was mounted on a Bogen Super Clamp. The flash was triggered via a pair of Pocket Wizards (though, to be honest, I was close enough to use a PC cable).

Something like this is simply not possible with a standard point and shoot.