i am artist (as in painting) i have a set of about 7-8 year old brush, cheapo ones, i still paint with them, and each time i paint, i improve... i dont have to buy those brush made from panda or grizzly bear from the mountain of noname... its not my art.

in end of the day, there are millions of children of all age (and adults) uses the SAME brush as i do. i dont see they paint better then me.

cute.

well, u dont get the point. even u have all the "best" brush that u think can make u stand out from the crowd of common brush users... doesnt mean ur picture will live through ages.

to answer ur question, not everyone will wan a macro lens. or a IR converted camera. if 'i feeling like' shooting IR, do i get a IR camera? not until i ABSOLUTELY need and wanted to get IR pic, yea, but i can always find/borrow from a friend. so if i felt like painting a oil painting, i can always get a set from my artist friends.

adui....why these days this forum so many heated discussion one?

BTW, yes, i am using a L lens, and yes my skill still sux, but i enjoy using it because my other lens is prime lens, and i don't like the color outcome of it, and yes, i am quite stupid to skip kit lens

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Added on January 11, 2011, 9:54 amand btw, i find that my best upgrade is still the flash lol.

adui....why these days this forum so many heated discussion one?

BTW, yes, i am using a L lens, and yes my skill still sux, but i enjoy using it because my other lens is prime lens, and i don't like the color outcome of it, and yes, i am quite stupid to skip kit lens

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Added on January 11, 2011, 9:54 amand btw, i find that my best upgrade is still the flash lol.

btw, i do believe in few things

1) sux skill person using sux tools = sux outcome
2) sux skill person using great tools = might or might not get better outcome
3) awesome skill person using sux tools = good outcome
4) awesome skill person using great tools = awesome outcome

no matter it's painting, music, photography, driving.

another example is like

you ask Michael Schumacher drive kancil at sepang, and ask alex yoong drive a F1 car at sepang. who will win leh?

Spot on..I like your example..so Schumacher is the winner is it? 

There are certain phases which one who dabbles in DSLR photography goes through.

The first phase is 'buy the camera' phase:

This is when one first buys a dslr cam. Usually it will be an entry level body plus kit lens. If you have not ventured before in dslr you will logically not want to spend too much on it, right?
The second is the 'initial learning and poisoning by others' phase:

One starts to get familiar with dslr and the system's many gear options. One gets sucked in by pics others posted in forums or wherever. One feels inadequate when one compares gears with others. Thus one begins to lust for premium gears.
The third is the 'spend, spend and spend to get better picture quality' phase:

This is when one starts to purchase gears in an attempt to improve on one's picture quality. Notice I mention picture quality as opposed to image quality. Here one is likely to subscribe to the motto that better gears = better picture. This is not true unfortunately.
The fourth phase is the 'realization and understanding' phase:

This is when one starts to realize that better gears do not always equal better picture. This is when one realize that skills is ultimately more important than gears and one has to learn more than depend on gears. Some people take a very long time to get to this phase. Some people never get to this phase at all.
Also there are people who buys and DSLR just to take pictures like a PnS so they just snap away without ever wanting to learn. When they perceive that their camera is outdated or obsolete, they go out and buy a new one.

I think new example is better.....

if Michael Schumacher (awesome skill) drive kancil (sux tools) VS alex yoong (normal skill tongue.gif) drive F1 car (great tools). Alex Yoong will win

BUT

if I (sux skill) drive F1 car (great tools) vs Michael Schumacher (awesome skill) drive kancil (sux tools). Who will win? I don't know. Maybe I can't even control the car, so I still lose. Maybe I can control the car but using 10% of it's performance, then maybe I can win.

Hence the outcome of sux person using great tools is = might or might not get better outcome

what nasty comments. always have to go against some folks who have different opinions, dont you gogo2?

before you start hurling at me, i have to say i agree with your views. but some posts/dumb questions from you are really not necessary.

See? This is prime example of people who is in 3rd phase and haven't reached the 4th phase. Yes you can have all the gears you can lay your hands on but if you go to a place where they die, die also not allow you to use flash then how? You have flash also no use what. So have to fall back on what you know on how to take a decent pic without relying on the flash isn't it? If you have zero skills and always have to rely on flash then die lor, isn't it?

Gears are essential but gears is not the be all and end all. When people come to realize this fact, then they will tell you that gears is not everything and skills matters. They start to see gears as a tool they utilize to get the picture they want. They will move away from the notion that good gears will guarantee you good pics minus the skills. Gears will not compensate for lack of skills in most situations.
And not all people who buy gears will learn. This will explain those people who buy top end bodies but shoot in AUTO mode.

Anyone can use a big aperture lens and flash to shoot a decent pic. It takes skills to get a decent pic without having to resort to using big aperture lens and flash isn't it?

When all you have is super duper gears and someone take away your super duper gears, you're done! Finished! And time to say sayonara. If you have skills then you simply pick up another cam (does not matter whether it's top range or entry level) and continue shooting and still deliver decent results. That's what matters.

Do you need D3x to learn? 
I think I need D3x, 70200, 85mm, 50mm, 200mm, 24mm,11-24 tokina. To start learning.
What do you think??

wouldn't my dad cop my head off?   

even rich people have a brain don't they?

would throwing RM 50k++ to start learning. what a brainless human   

This one is an age old question... tried asking this before but no conclusive answer.

Which is right.. since it means different things to different people.

Or rather... lets ask this question... if you're going on a trip and limited to only a single body+len. What would you bring?

Sorry 4 being harsh..
i feel some ppl butthurt because others got $ for luxury gears.. even they dont have the skills..
BUT.. so what? y bother about ppl wit no skill buy spend hell lots of money buying expensive gears?

just enjoy taking photograph with what you have now is the most important thing.. my POV.. dont bother about what others have..
ppl r rich 4 the effort they put in..so they have the right to spend on what they want..  dont jelous..