Have you ever bought a piece of kit that really changed the way you thought about your photography?

[bms]

<p>After D80, D300, yes... an enlarger a used F3 and a Leica M4. Taught me to think first again, before pressing the shutter... :)</p>

[paul_aylett1]

<p>Ditto Lex - Nikon's CLS changed my view of speedlights completely.</p>

[bmm]

<p>My first fast lens - a 50mm f/1.4 prime. Even in the early days when I used it in a way I now recognise as being very crude, that level of control over depth of field was a total revelation. And of course while secondary to the DOF amazement I was experiencing, also amazing to me was the low natural light option that such apertures offered.</p>

[kris-bochenek]

<p>Same as Lex and Paul, Nikon CLS</p>

[nina_myers]

<p>I bought a used Nikon FA with a 55mm 1.2 on her...<br>

This combo has made me want a darkroom.<br>

I played around in one a lot when I was younger, and having this great camera and fuggin' beautiful lens just makes me yearn for that red-lit room o' magic.<br>

It has also opened my eyes to the limitations and conversely, strengths of the digital format, and how to work around them, or with them.<br>

I think everyone should own a nice 35mm camera. :)</p>

[rich_evans]

<p>When I started getting serious about wedding photography, I made the purchase of a Hasselblad 500CM, without really knowing anything at all about the format or the idiosyncracies of that system. It was perhaps the most eye-opening photographic learning experience of my life. Yep - even though my college years were spent learning photography on an all-manual Honeywell H1a with a Luna Pro meter, and I had been shooting with a Nikon FTn, this was totally foreign - the paradigm of framing and composing was all new - I actually had to re-think every shot. Eventually, it became automatic, and I yearn to hold that immaculate camera in my hands yet again - maybe soon. --Rich</p>

[dan_beauvais]

<p>I added one simple item that doubled the number of keepers I get when shooting in golden light. Without this item, fully half of all available golden light was not visible to me. The best part is, that the least expensive of these items is as effective as the most expensive. If I should forget one when I travel, a replacement is available at almost any store, but there's most likely a very serviceable one in my hotel room. A few people don't need this, but I, and most others do. The item? An alarm clock.<br /> <br /> Closely related is my 5AM filter.<br /> <br /> Thanks to Boston-area photographer Jacob Mosser (http://www.psaphoto.org/gallery/mosser.htm) for the clock quip, and Hatteras Island photographer Scott Geib (http://www.lightkeepergallery.com/) for the 5AM barb.<br /> <br /> Dan Beauvais in Kitty Hawk<br />

[galileo42]

<p>The basic kit for developing: two-reel Paterson tank, changing bag and one liter bag of Xtol powder. The ceremonial that surrounds the act of photography in b&w, from chosing the film to hanging the neg to dry, both made me feel like I was doing the real thing, and humbled me. And even more so now that I'm slowly returning back to it, after a long digital hiatus. I just scanned and retouched a few Tri-X shots tonight, and there is really nothing that compares to it. I've had, and still have, the cream of the crop in terms of digital equipment, but it never gives me the same joy as b&w film. Convenient, beautilful, at times spectacular, but never really moving. B&w makes me feel I'm a much better photographer than I actually am :)</p>

[robert_hooper1]

<p>The first time I looked through a <b>S</b>ingle <b>L</b>ens <b>R</b>eflex camera, (Nikon F), I was hooked. After selling my Leica M bodies and buying into the Nikon F2 system, my image compositions improved dramatically. Not nearly as much cropping needed in the darkroom. </p>

<p>The next epiphany I experienced was in printing my first 4x5 sheet film, (Kodak Super XX). Mein Gott, what amazing detail I saw popping off the enlarging easel after focusing for a full frame 16x20 print!</p>

<p>However, I sure wish I had that Leica equipment now! :-)</p>

[johnny_anderson]

<p>My first DSLR changed my photography because I can now afford to take as many shots as I want. I've shot 35mm film for over 35 years but had to limit my shots because of the expense of processing and printing. For the first time I can now experiment to my hearts content. I am finally able to try all the different views, settings, and lighting that I've always wanted to do. It's a very liberating feeling. I have always gotten good photos but went for the "money" shot. Now I can go for the experimental shots!</p>

[peter]

<p>Yes.<br>

I think the purchase of a good digital SLR and a good photo editor (initially PS Elements and later Paint Shop Pro Photo.) The move from analogue to digital allowed me to do a few things. First I got immediate feedback on my photos. I was prepared for that. The thing I was not prepared for was the fact that it facilitated me doing some <em>serious </em>post processing work and this in turn brought me to the realisation that more than 50% of an excellent photo lies in how well it was processed after it was captured.<br>

Image capture is one part of the equation but to my thinking the value added by digital manipulation is huge. It made me realise this.............Photography is not just about accurately representing on the screen / page what you saw in real life. It is about creating an emotion.<br>

Many of my photos are turned from a simple image into an impressionistic image and sometimes and abstract piece of art. This is much more powerful than just capturing a "true" image that is representational. My goal in image making is now to make people feel something and think when they see my photography, something more than "my isn't that a pretty picture."<br>

For this reason I have now taken much more to black and white photography and where I use colour it is less and less the real colour I saw in real life.</p>

[jakelester]

<p>A tank with reels, a bag of D-76, a bag of fixer, two bottles, a thermometer, a graduated flask, a changing bag, and a stirrer.</p>

[Mary Doo]

<p>My interest was piqued after taking an online photography course offered by AOL; which led me to join my local camera club (<a href="http://www.psri.us">PSRI</a>); which led me to befriend an important mentor who opened my eyes to equipment, composition and other skills toward making a good photograph; which led me to photo tours/workshops with nationally/internationally significant photographers for landscape, wildlife, and macro photography; which led me to making many photographs that someday will be shown on my website (hopefully soon but dunno when - LOL!)</p>

[ramon_v__california_]

<p>when i was in 2nd year college and bought my darkroom kit to process my own tri-x exposed from my F Photomic. that was the start of my photjournalism career.</p>

[luca_stramare2]

<p>For me it was when I bought a loupe and built myself a light table. This allowed me to manage my slides far more effectively. The second was a professional 35 mm slide projector and a screen.</p>

[Apurva Madia]

<p>Nikon 18-200 VR.</p>

[paul_b.1]

<p>The first camera that changed how I "see" things was a 197... , Zenit E , my first SLR (Russian). Then commes the Canon D20 my first DSLR , and now the D3 with amazing low light performance and speed. Oh..., I almost forget the tool I'm using right now : my computer...; who gave me a whole new perspective on the photography.</p>

[steve m smith]

<p>I know you said 'excluding the camera' but in my case it was a Nikon D100. After nine months I thought to myself 'why the f*** did I spend £1500 on this?!!'.</p>

<p>I then started buying medium format film cameras which I couldn't possibly afford ten years previously.</p>

<p>Upgrading back to film was the best decision I ever made.</p>

[jose_angel]

<blockquote>

<p><em>Seems to me that a lot of equipment is bought on a speculation that it will make a difference, it would be interesting to see just what kit has inspired what changes</em></p>

</blockquote>

<p>The Adams "trilogy", and a bit later a Canham 4x5". A Linhof Technika improved my shooting speed a lot, shooting easily in any place, even hand held. Definitely large format lenses. A Sekonic multi mode hand held meter.</p>

<p>A Jobo developing system. A "really dark" darkroom. Stroebels`"View camera technique". "Post exposure" by Ctein. "The film developing Cookbook" by Ancholl and Tropp. A Peak magnifier. A densitometer. Studio strobes and light softeners. More books.</p>

<p>All this changed myself from being a weekend snapshooter to a photographer in an endless learning process, I think.</p>

<p>Nikon items speaking, the biggest one in this digital era... a D700. Some lenses, too, but only for improved sharpness on my photos, usually the lastest the better (most of the times is the only interesting issue on my work, I`m afraid). Perhaps the SB-80DX were my first flash heads that improved my results seriously. SB-800`s CLS simply made things easier.</p>

[jose_angel]

<p>Double post (?), my excuses.</p>

[jose_angel]

<blockquote>

<p><em>"... I probably learned the most from John Shaw... "</em> Shun.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>It`s obvious! :)</p>

[jos__javier_vicente]

<p>1.- A lens: Sigma 180 5.6 - it opened for me a brave new world of close-up pictures<br>

2.- Another lens: Nikkor 50 1.8 - it helped me to discover the simplicity of going just 1 lens<br>

3.- A book: 'Mountain Light' from Galen Rowell - there I learnt that shooting while mountaineering could be much more creative than showing countless summits and tired faces... <br>

4.- A tool - OK, it's a camera :-D but it is the only one that I've found acceptable when I run across the mountains: Canon (oh my God I said that) IXUS 70 - fits my pocket, focus is fast and reliable enough, the zoom range is perfect for me (35-105) and allows for decent macro shots.</p>

[bjørn rørslett]

<p>My first Nikon F opened up the world of photography for me. I never became comfortable with the rangefinder systems (Leica, Contax) I used before the "F" system. For many many moons thereafter, whilst working with computers, I had a dream that photography would venture into the digital domain so cameras also became computers. That happened for me in 1997 and since then, I hardly use film anymore. Looking back, I only wish digital photography had entered the arena earlier. But the gestation period presumably helped me form my own approach to making pictures.</p>

<p>I sill use some of the Nikkors from those early years on my D3 and D3x. Even some of the rangefinder lenses from the '50s see occasional use today, on a DSLR.</p>

[jos__javier_vicente]

<p>(...) I apologise for double posting and trapping master Bjorn Rorslett into my jaws :-)</p>

[max cooper]

<p>Yes, this happened to me just recently. I got a Pentacon 6 as a gift from my dad. It's a whole new approach. Blogged about it here: http://darktopography.blogspot.com/2009/02/arrival.html</p>