Are you obsessed with the technology only?

Like in an anonymous alcoholics therapy, I must openly claim that I am the victim of the technology. I buy cameras because they provide better output, I play with cameras and gear, I study the technology, hardware, software, I have some knowledge here and there, yet I am not a happy photographer. I do not put the photography in fair use to justify ANY of that. Given the content on the forums, this leads me to the conclusion that I cannot be alone.

And so, dear addicts! Please, let´s reconcile, and let´s find ways to:
a) Bank on that, and help others with technology.
b) Find ways to enjoy the gear with photography, not just by geeking out on the gear.
c) Find inspiration and negotiate acceptable action plan and channels for using the photography.

At this point, little unmotivated, I am thinking about forest walkies (have to move), and some mushroom photography "more seriously".
Is that a good discipline to spend time on?
How do you get yourself to produce something, to avoid the GAS and spending guilt?

The best way to get better work is to keep working. Your work will tell you what you need to do to make it better, if you only listen to it. If you're stuck, come up with a project. It doesn't matter what it is. The narrower the better. You'll run into boundaries and have to force yourself to deal with them. It doesn't matter what gear you use. You'll see where your gear is limiting you and what you have to do to remove those limitations. You'll also see the next project, if you keep at it assiduously enough.

To give yourself motivation, aim for an exhibition.

ah... the frailties of the human mind.

Kinda reminds me of the guy who walked into a music store and said...
‘which piano will make me sound like Beethoven?’

@JimKasson:
We might as well realize this goes much deeper in the psychology.

Here is the thought process:

To justify ones stuff, it has to be important, viewed or wanted. It must be excellent too. No participation medals.
For it to be excellent, excellent people have to judge it positively. Excellent people are often better than you on the subject, so praise is not to be expected. Wrong expectation.

Random "uneducated" people don´t praise the effort. They don´t either see the quality or don´t care. If they happen to care, it is you who doesn´t really enjoy and take the praise, because who are they to judge you, they are "below you" in the profession.

And then you are stuck in an unsolvable issue of the motivation. It must come from somewhere else, basically from within.
How do I not bullshit myself into the wrong thinking, and motivate myself? I motivated myself with rewards already, and it´s a baaad bad approach.

At this point I am glad to help, to teach, to discuss. But did not find the key to the passion of photography.
Oh, and don´t let me start on the archives. All those photos nobody will see, useless! And then we die :-D

Answer to last question first: my desires are too expensive for me to be able to satisfy them (e.g. Leica M10 and lenses...)

As far as actually using my camera, I forced myself to go for a walk by the Donau this afternoon. Somehow, I got my Canon R6 into a state where it was shining the "low light focus aid", and every time I pushed the trigger I had to wait for the shutter to open. I wasted a lot of time trying to fix this -- in vain; but when I arrived home I noticed that I had some interesting photos. If anyone reading this is interested, I shall post one or two in this thread later.

(I never did discover what I did wrong: after going through the menus three times, I clicked on "reset to factory defaults", and that did the trick!)

David

I started to dig into raw because I wasn't happy with out-of-camera JPEGs and Nikon Capture. The goal was (and still is) to get better TIFFs.

I hope this is not a psychiatric case. I am not alone in this. Are there thousands untreated individuals then? (light hearted, not that serious).

That´s the peak of the misery. Bhaha love that, and indeed, that is my state now too.

Actually, wow! That was helpful! You know - I never thought of it that way! I did that before, but with very wrong mindset. I took switching brands as a misery. Now I see it might not be so! Dangit. But thank you for inspiration!

Yes, functioning psychopaths. We are never fully healed, permanently in remission. But it still can be nice times! :-)

Thank you VERY much for this.

Well, it managed to motivate you into something far deeper. If it is the goal, then by all means, do that. Today, I was playing with UniWb,ETTR and processing a lot. Got great impressions out of the result, but it still fell on that "geeking out for myself" side. I do hope I use all that knowledge for myself. You already gave me some of that in the other threads, sooo. I hope the praise fulfills you. :-)

@davidwien:

Yes please! Inspiration! let me suck you off it. :-)

A little reading while waiting for inspiration ;)

Number of Photos (2023): Statistics, Facts, & Predictions
photutorial.com/photos-statistics/

If this doesn't motivate you, nothing will. lol

Classic Essays on Photography by Alan Trachtenberg.
Published in 1980 ~300 pages. Often available on eBay for peanuts.

That's too high a bar. You're setting yourself up for failure. Just concentrate on making the best work that you can make.

Read this:

www.amazon.com/Art-Fear-Observations-Rewards-Artmaking/dp/0961454733

Full disclosure: Ted and David are friends of mine.

I did that, for real.

A few years ago I decided I want to play the violin, So I went to a music store and instead of investing 100 bucks in something basic to test the waters, I went into full Philarmonic mode, and waste $1000 on a beautiful instrument. (yes, I know there are 1-million dollar violins).

I went home, open the case, put some wax on the bow, and softly slide it on the strings. I hear the sound It made, put the bow and the violin in their case and next day they were up for auction on eBay. 😂 End of my violinist phase.

There's a saying in the photographic community where I live: If you buy a violin, you own a violin; if you buy a camera, you are a photographer.

OTOH, my guitars are excellent instruments, and I am a mediocre player. That doesn't keep me from enjoying the instruments, and makes me want to play more.

What is wonderful about photography, it does not require any talent to be able to practice it.
Unlike other forms of art or sport, where we quickly realize our limits.
For the photo, you simply buy another camera. 🤡