(Disclaimer: This is not advice to new photographers thinking they need to buy new gear... this is merely some fun observations about my own photographic journey)


So, I started out with a Nikon P520 with its fantastic zoom range (35mm equiv 24mm-1000mm) and I would take lots of photos making full use of that massive zoom lens.

I then bought a Nikon D5500 with kit lenses with a 35mm equiv of 27-450mm... This shorter zoom range forced me to be more selective in what I tried to photograph, and also forced me to walk around more to get closer or further away from the subject. While doing the forced walk around, I became more aware of subject framing, and the relationship between objects and their distance from the camera, and the lens focal length. The larger sensor also meant that changing the aperture had a bigger impact on the depth of field, and I found that being able to sufficiently blur the background improved photos which would otherwise have been too busy.

Next, I bought a Nikon D7200. Again I was surprised by another improvement in my photos. The bigger camera body fitted better in my hands, which makes holding the camera steady a whole lot easier, so I'm getting a much higher hit rate on that focus.


So in conclusion, buying new gear does (can) improve your photography