Confessions of a Camera Junkie

#73: Counting Cams


Newest Baby 

Shoot me. I am guilty. I bought another camera two weeks ago and I don’t know whether to be happy or to get my head checked. Or kicked.

You see, our trip to Sydney highlighted the reality that one, it’s very hard to get normal people to understand the complex workings of an SLR camera (i.e., hard to get a decent picture of yourself because your companions will not have the aptitude nor the patience to figure out how the thing works); and two, it’s extremely difficult for me to entrust my Rebel to strangers for group pics (unless I get only amputees or senior citizens who can’t run fast to do that for us… in which case, we go back to my point # 1.)

It was a need. Really.

How else could I make my camera fit in those tiny chi-chi purses you're required to use during weddings? How else can I make picture-taking idiot-proof?

Of course, a close friend would hear none of this. It’s all crap to her. For her, the bottomline is that I’m a camera junkie in denial. Four cameras over five years. I can’t even let go of my two other film SLRs, one of which I haven’t used since my trip to Malaysia last year; and the other, I haven't touched since my trip to New York in 2002. Well, that was until I was overcome with guilt over camera gluttony when I purchased the last one that I decided to sell the two so I could still pass myself off as a sane person.

The other night, while packing for my North Luzon visit, I stumbled across 3 of my favorite pics from my 2002 trip. One was a picture of my cousin pouting at me. The other one was a picture of the railing of a bridge in Central Park. The last one was a pair of basketball shoes beside found words scribbled in chalk on one of New York’s sidewalks, “Become Your Dream.” Their quality amazed me. The subjects were so real. It was like I was discovering the beauty of film-based photos for the first time. I hate to admit it since I’ve supposedly thrown away my pseudo-film purist facade to convert to digital (see post #15), but film will always have an advantage over digital. I can’t put my finger on the exact thing but film photos seem to have more solidity and durability to them that digital prints can’t match. Well, at least not yet.

Now I’m torn between being practical and being a nut. Come on. It’s hard to let go of your first Pentax. Or your second one.

Seems like the nut prevails. For now.