Michael David Friberg

I normally hate the whole “what Camera do you use?” question but I think this is a more legitimate form of that question in that it asks why use one type of camera over another. I really don’t have an “arsenal” per se. I’m really finicky with cameras and I buy and sell them a lot depending on what mood i’m in. Lately, i’ve stabilized more. Currently I own:

Mamiya 645 with an 80mm

Canon 5dmkii with a zeiss 50mm

some off brand 4x5 field camera that I haven’t used in probably 6 months (film is getting prohibitively expensive and I’m lazy).

Assorted 35mm point and shoot cameras (these are my favorite)

A lot of people may get the vibe that I HATE digital on here. I don’t really hate it, I just would prefer not to use it if I didn’t have to. That being said, the realities of being a working photographer these days sort of require that you shoot digital some of the time. Digital excels in some areas that film doesn’t. I can go from shooting at 100 iso outside to shooting at 3200 iso inside in a matter of seconds. Ultimately the reason I shoot with one camera over another comes down to which one is best for the project. Sometimes, I’m broke and can’t afford to spend 500 dollars on film so I shoot something digitally. The second half of my West Yellowstone project was shot digitally simply due to budget constraints. Sometimes I need to be able to work really fast and loose. Other times, I want to be more slow and deliberate. That’s basically it.

In conclusion, Don’t get hung up on gear, use whatever you have in front of you. Most of my favorite pictures in the last year were made with a 2 dollar camera from a thrift store.