A bit of respect please....

[Ma Noob]

My brother, well he got into photography a bit earlier than me, he has been for a couple of years. Saddly he is has been spanked with the brush of my father and has to have the biggest and best whether he could afford it or not (which he never can) I know with Dad its just to show off (im not a fan of my Dad and dont talk to him but thats another story)

My brother on the other hand well, he has never really seemed to be in to photography before, then suddenly he has bought a Canon DSLR, im not sure of the model but its quite large and chunky and has the dual grip so i would assume its an up there model, He also has quite a pricy external flash for it, and a couple of lenses, i wouldnt think they were the kit lenses, because i wouldnt have thought the camera he has would have come with kit lenses.

Well he comes over the other day to my sons soccer training to take some photos and i get a look at his camera and OMG the lenses!! They were both just covered in dust, both ends! and im not just talking about your out taking photos on a dusty day dust, they were filthy! Then he just chucks his lenses, with no cap on either end back in his camera bag (which is also fithly), i would hate to think what the inside of his camera is like.

So i mentioned to him that they are filthy, and his photos are going to be covered in dust, to which he said, its only the back of the camera where dirt and things matter, which i just ignored.

But i know he has had some of his camera stuff bought for him and i just think, that is expensive stuff, for his 21st he was asking for $800 + lenses and equiptment for birthday presents (i told him to get stuffed), just shows a lack of repect, i think anyway. But he is a bit of a full of himself know it all that knows not much at all. He was also trying to tell me how good lightroom is cause when you edit a jpeg it doesnt alter the jpeg so you still have your original, to which i replied, well most save the new pic in a different file, and thats all its doing.

Is it just me that thinks treating a camera and equiptment like that is really really wrong? I just want to smack him

[cphoniball]

Your brother is right about dust at the front of the lens not really affecting quality (to a point) and lightroom.

However, rather than spending all that time telling us about how badly he treats his equipment, you would probably be better off talking to him about it if you're looking to resolve the situation.

[Ma Noob]

trust me talking to him pointless, i tried, I will get more out of it mentioning it on here to complete strangers who also can do nothing

The quality of his pics is really irrelevent, its more along the lines of treating an expensive piece of equipment in that manner especially when someone else has bought some of it. But surely throwing the lenses in bags with caps or anything cant be good for them, and im guessing that having dust on the back of the lense isnt good either because it could go on the senson?

[Rolling Stone]

He doesn't want to listen, let him learn the hard way. And don't buy him anything expensive.
Seems it's all that can be done. Hopefully others will catch on and he'll learn an important lesson in life.
Signed,
Dear Abby.

[wulf]

It's not good for the camera but it's not your camera. Don't lend him any of your gear, don't spend money buying him expensive gear and leave it to him. From the point of view of longevity of the equipment it is rather foolish but that doesn't make it morally wrong (certainly not more so than smacking him upside the head! ).

Wulf

[olgabe]

Sounds like you have a relationship problem going on there, more so than the gear maintenance problem.
Having said that - I would not treat my equipment this way, but... I remember my ex-bf near fainting when he saw me stuffing my DSLR into a purse for a daytrip. He was convinced it's gear abuse. Cameras belong in camera bags, not purses. I think that as long as there are no sharp objects in the purse, there is nothing wrong with that.
I also consider my UV filters dispensable, I keep the lens cap off whenever the camera is out of the bag - even if it's sitting in the car passenger seat. I buy filters so that I don't have to worry about scratching my glass. Some people think it's abuse as well. A lot of it is a matter of opinion!

I would not buy him any gifts in this category though if I don't think he is appreciating them.

[Ray Dockrey]

This does sound like more of a relationship problem and also some jealousy. It doesn't matter how he treats his stuff. Do I treat my stuff that way? No but it is really no ones business. Do I have the best of everything? No but I have nice stuff for what I can afford and some of it I really couldn't but I managed. Some of it is used but again it is not of anybody's business. Concentrate on what you have, take care of it, and learn to use what you have. I can out shoot a lot of people out there who has better stuff then me and there are a lot of people who can out shoot me with lesser stuff. That is what drives me, the photographer, to get better.

[kencaleno]

Originally Posted by olgabe

.
I also consider my UV filters dispensable, I keep the lens cap off whenever the camera is out of the bag - even if it's sitting in the car passenger seat. I buy filters so that I don't have to worry about scratching my glass.them

I think you mean that you consider your UV filters IN-dispensable. But they are of no practical use whatever-all modern lenses,since 1970 have uv protective element built-in.Lens caps should be kept on when camera is not in use-it's what they are for!.. In 50 years I have never scratched a lens, but if your uv filter breaks from a knock, then the shards,can scratch a lens front element. So you use uv filters at your own risk,and don't forget that a uv filter will give you flat colors,and will attract flare. Not worth it!. Ken

[cphoniball]

Originally Posted by kencaleno

I think you mean that you consider your UV filters IN-dispensable. But they are of no practical use whatever-all modern lenses,since 1970 have uv protective element built-in.Lens caps should be kept on when camera is not in use-it's what they are for!.. In 50 years I have never scratched a lens, but if your uv filter breaks from a knock, then the shards,can scratch a lens front element. So you use uv filters at your own risk,and don't forget that a uv filter will give you flat colors,and will attract flare. Not worth it!. Ken

No, she means that they are dispensable. Meaning they can be broken and new ones can be purchased relatively cheaply. Indispensable would mean that she could not throw them away/replace them easily.

[olgabe]

Originally Posted by kencaleno

I think you mean that you consider your UV filters IN-dispensable. But they are of no practical use whatever-all modern lenses,since 1970 have uv protective element built-in.Lens caps should be kept on when camera is not in use-it's what they are for!.. In 50 years I have never scratched a lens, but if your uv filter breaks from a knock, then the shards,can scratch a lens front element. So you use uv filters at your own risk,and don't forget that a uv filter will give you flat colors,and will attract flare. Not worth it!. Ken

Dispensable - I'm ok with buying a new one if I scratch it.. or get some real bad dirt onto it..
Once I had a toucan in the zoo hit the lens with his beak through the net - I was really trying to get a close up! He did not break or scratch anything, but if I did not have a filter on, I would have had a heart attack right there by the cage!!

I've really only scratched one UV filter in about 12 years of owning SLRs, and one polarizer (that one did suffer from abuse - I kept on losing the case). I know that a filter degrades image quality a bit, but I'm prepared to live with it. I am not a very careful person, and I know it, so when I have a naked expensive lens on my camera, I'm freaking out about damaging it and I can't enjoy photography. Maybe one day I'll have the courage to take the filters off - turn into a more careful person, or have more money to spend... but for now - they are here mostly for my mental health...