There's an old saying that goes "The teacher will appear when the student is ready". I subscribe to it and I find that it's true. Learning depends a lot on the student. Much much more on the student than on the teacher. You can employ the best teacher to teach but if the student is not ready it will not do much good.
I love photography. It's a hobby for me. I shoot and I learn when I'm shooting and also when I'm not shooting. Also, I share what I've learned readily with anyone who is willing to listen. Unreservedly.
There is an old Cantonese saying that goes, "Once the disciple has learned, there will no longer be a master" or in alphabetized Cantonese "Kau Sek Tou Dai, Mo Si Fu". It carried a somewhat negative view in that if one is to teach everything one knows to a disciple, then there will be no more need for a master. Which in turns leads to the phenomenon that is known as the 'Chinese Kung-Fu Mentality'. It's where a master of 10 moves only teaches 9 moves to the disciple and the cycle goes on and on... after the 10th generation, the kung-fu is a lost art!
Now I don't buy the above reasoning. I teach unreservedly because I know not everything I teach, the disciple will learn. Maybe he wants to learn but he is not ready yet so some lessons will fly past his head. This is not saying I'm a master in any way but I will teach all I know to anyone willing to listen.
One may think that one is ready to learn but if all the neccessary 'elements' are not in place, there will be certain things that one will not understand even when one is taught meticulously.
For example:
When I began my photograpy journey close to 5 years ago, I lusted after the great lenses revered by so many. I envied those who have them. I wanted them so badly. So many wise teachers (and when I term them teachers, they need not necessarily be professionals. Just people who have learned this particular lesson and thus is qualified to teach) had said, "Gears matter not..." I disbelieved them.
I asked "How can gears not matter? If gears mattered not, how do you explain all these pros using those gears?" The wise just smiled, nodded and moved on. I was not ready to learn.
Today, I spout the same saying. It really does not matter all that much. Gears are tools that one uses. If one prefers a bigger spoon than another, it does not make a big spoon better than a small spoon or vice versa. It's just a matter of personal choice. Maybe a big spoon works better for you and a small spoon better for another. In the end what matters is does the tool you use give you the desired result?
The story of the picture:
Back then all I had was a 'puny' entry level Sony A100 DSLR with a kit lens. I took this picture.
Back then, I wanted the latest and the greatest. After a while I got myself the A850 and I have been mainly using the A850 since then. Took lots of other pictures. Bought other lenses that are 'better' than the kit lens. Recently when I displayed some of my works to some friends, the picture above was included with other taken with the A850 but of course I did not tell them which pic came from which cam.
One of them, a non-photography enthusiast, told me later that when he saw the above pic the first thought that entered his mind was "Wow! That must be from a very expensive camera!"
Although that was not the remark I had wanted to have, it drove home the point that 'Gears Matter Not' perfectly. It was a pic taken with the 'lowest' ranked gears - the 'puny' A100 with a 'puny' kit lens! To that audience, it mattered not. To that audience, that pic was worth it's weight in gold. He chose it over all the others taken with the 'greater' A850.
Of course at this point, I was already over my 'gears matter most' phase. I do not know when I came to this and I do not know who or what actually tipped me over the point. All I know is now I have learnt the lesson. So back then when so many wanted to teach, did I learn? No. It all flew way over my head. So to all the 'teachers' out there - teach unreservedly and do not worry. Not all you teach will be learnt.
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