Wow, it's been 10 years. I just realized that I bought my first digital camera (a Nikon D50) in 2006. This anniversary got me wondering, how have digital cameras changed in the last 10 years? For some photographers (e.g. landscape, video, commercial) the changes are significant but for me, not so much. My current camera (a Nikon D7100) allows finer control of focus and records higher quality images in low light but one would be hard pressed to see any difference in the overall quality of the great majority of my prints or website images over these 10 years.
Boston College vs. Clemson
For example, above is one of the very first images I took with the D50. The low-resolution version you see in this week's POTW loses some detail but I have a 20" x 30" print that clearly shows individual blades of grass, the texture of the player's socks, and even a hand-written note on #7's right wrist. And this with a camera and lens that you now can buy used for about $220.
Which is a bit of a bummer because I like buying new toys as much as the next shutterbug. However, until someone says "Gee, your work is good but I would like it so much better if you just had a better camera," I think I'm stuck -- which is maybe a good thing ;-)