James Bond had Q. The Ghost Busters had Egon. Captain Kirk had Scotty. Some of the greatest heroes in movie history always had one know-it-all tech guy on their team. That tech guy spends his days testing some of the coolest gadgets known to mankind in an effort to make the hero look like a total badass on screen. So it stands to reason that if you want to be a photography badass you're gonna need a tech guy. Too bad there isn’t a place where photography techies hang out all day doing nothing but testing new camera gear! Oh, wait…….

Quick Robin… to the camera cave!

Camera stores are the greatest place to find a tech guy to become the Robin to your Batman, the Donkey to your Shrek or the Buzz to your Woody. Now that I see it on the screen, that last one could use a bit of rephrasing. But nevertheless, camera stores are a one-stop-shop for not only gear but a potential partner in the fight against photography related evils as well.

Good camera stores don’t just sell cameras

A good camera store doesn’t sell cameras. A good camera store will sell you the tools you need to make your creative vision a reality. In every 007 movie Bond will walk into the equipment bunker and start playing around with all of the gadgets. But Q ALWAYS directs James to only the gadgets that fit Bond’s particular mission. A good camera store is a lot like that. They will only sell you what you need to be successful. A bad camera store is just there to sell you anything they can make a commission on.

So let’s use my favorite camera store as an example. Whenever I can, I shop local for all of my camera gear at Focal Point Photography in Dallas Oregon. I’ve been shopping there for well over 15 years and because of their help I have saved thousands by not buying equipment I don’t need. The first day I walked into Focal Point Photography they sat me down and we had a long talk about where I wanted to go with my photography career. Based on that conversation they came up with a list of gear I was going to need to get started, in the order I should purchase it in. They used my photography goals and my then meager budget to come up with a list of gear I could afford at the time, as well as some gear I should pick up when I started making some money.

I was a total newbie to portrait photography. They could have sold me anything and I would have blindly believed it to the point of taking out a bank loan to afford whatever they suggested. So like Q does with Bond, they directed me to only the gear that works for my goals (or mission if you will). The mindset of my friends at Focal Point Photography is that if I’m successful - so are they. They’re playing the long game by building a loyal army of professional photographers, one newbie at a time.

Good camera stores sell the magic trick, not just the rabbit.

If you’re a total dork (like me!) at one point you’ve been to a magic store. If you haven’t, it’s probably because you were busy dating in high school. But I can tell you that a good camera store and a magic shop have a lot in common. A magic store is full to the brim with everything you need to become a professional magician. But if you just walk in and ask for the “rabbit out of the hat trick”, pay for it and leave, you won’t be very successful. You need someone to teach you how to do the trick, not just sell you the hat and rabbit. That’s what a good camera store will do for you.

Here’s a cell snap of my tech guy and partner in crime Nate from Focal Point Photography in Dallas OR.

When I switched over to the Sony A7iii my tech guy Nate was there to give me a 45 min rundown of all of the features of my new camera. Including some things that would have tripped me up had he not pointed them out to me. Nate was there to help me be successful by not just selling me the gear but by teaching me how to use it as well. It’s that level of service that makes me come back again and again.

Now comes the homework. My suggestion is to take a few Saturdays and find a camera store that you can trust. How do you know if a camera store has your best interests in mind? They’ll be more interested in you and your photography goals then they are the contents of your wallet. I want you to block out a day on your calendar and spend that day visiting camera stores. Google some directions, pack a lunch and hit the road. Fare warning for you introverts… I expect you to actually talk to people at the camera store. Your goal is to find out if these guys give a crap about making you successful or if they’re just out for a paycheck. Also ask yourself “would I be willing to spend time with these guys on a regular basis for the next two decades?”. Remember your goal is to find a long term partner in your photography career.

For those of you who might be interested, here’s my camera store tech guy. Looking at this pic it is no doubt that I have found the Donkey to my Shrek. So now it’s your turn. When it comes to photography, who’s your know-it-all wise-cracking jackass? (Sorry, Nate couldn’t resist that one. Nothing but love brother.)

Do you have a favorite camera store employee? If so, tell us what store they work at and why you love them!

Later,

Daniel

Find your Donkey