UKC

apologies to sasmojo for this one but he's just asked me a question about a camera that's got me thinking... the question was 'how is it performing?'

my response was something along the lines that it took a while to get to grips with but it seems to be fine... but... do you look to objects to be able to improve what you do? do you think they can do that? for instance, will more technical axes make you a better climber? will a canon eos 5d camera make you a better photographer than a 350d? the thing that occurs to me about climbing gear is that lighter can mean faster, which is good, but apart from that...

would you get rid of something that you didn't perceive to be 'performing' or would you stick with it and work to improve what you got out of it?

anyone got any thoughts? does any of this make any sense?

(and again, sasmojo, it's definitely not a dig, it's a genuine question!)

In reply to CJD:

I once had a pair of climbing shoes that stretched to the point where they felt like clown shoes.

They didn't "perform". When I replaced them my climbing improved quite a bit.

In reply to CJD:

A good guitar will enhance my performance more than a crap guitar, lots of factors contribute though. Build quality, subconscious effects of owning said item, reliability, ease of use, enhanced features, historical context etc all add up to "performance" of an object.
IMHO.

In reply to CJD:


Leashless is the way forward.

In reply to blueshound:

but if you're just starting out playing guitar, will that amazing guitar help you more than a basic one? I'm just pondering as I got quite lucky with my first camera and I think it helped me take pics I was pleased with, which gave me a bit of confidence to take more.

In reply to CJD:

Couldn't say, there might be a psychological boost knowing you have a shit hot bit of kit, it might even be easier to play physically.

In reply to CJD:


depends what you are doing really. My case nope but someone with the requisite skill level would be boosted by it.


i suspect you get into diminishing returns (personally i cant be bothered with a slr yet cos it to learn how to take advantage would take time).
However it may give better photos, eg for digital the capture speed.
Most of the time a skillful person would be able to compensate for this, but that is arguably skill wasted on the compensation as opposed to the main pic.


better protection - allowing you to push your skills and develop faster or shoes definitely improve performance.


depends how much it cost really, but i would tend towards testing it first, eg for my mountain bike i have it rigged in a way that suits my style rather than try changing my style it makes sense to get a bike that compliments it.

In reply to CJD:

I'll try and answer the question from a climbing perspective.

Some pieces of gear definitely improve performance, better shoes, or a harness with gear racks that you can reach when pumped.

Sometimes (and I'm not sure I like what this says about me) a bit of gear you have faith in (new or old) can make you feel more confident, even if it doesn't directly contribute to performance.

When I was young I was definitely a gear freak, and lusted after the newest most high tech gear. These days I quite like older, less up to date stuff too, it shows more of an environmental conscience, plus I'm certainly more likely to trust someone I meet with worn out gear, than someone using gear with the labels still on.

Hmm quite a lot of honesty in that reply, perceptions again!

In reply to CJD:

I've just bought a very swanky acoustic guitar and it has without doubt improved my playing. It's playability, sound and overall gorgeousness just makes you want to play more and play better. It brings out the best in you. At the risk of sounding a bit ludicrous I'll go further and say that it has impoved my life in more general ways. The most well-crafted or engineered objects exude a philospohy of beauty, creativity, discipline, commitment, and noble aspirations. It can be that good!

In reply to Jimmy D:

so you... er... you quite like this guitar then...?

In reply to Jimmy D:

Yep, totally understand where you are coming from there.

In reply to dissonance: yeh - i was thinking along those lines too - performance (and improvement in performance) is an interaction between person and object

an all-auto camera might make 'better' photos in the hands of the clueless (compared to an all-manual one or a 'worse' auto one) but might lead to 'worse' photos if a pro had to give up the manual control she was used to and relied on

it's probably quite complicated though - simply put improved performance is probably a combination of motivation to improve, ability to improve, and belief that you can improve (or something)

i'm reminded that i really struggled to learn to ride a bike - my stabilisers definitely 'improved' my bike riding performance and i even remember thinking why should i bother putting myself through this when a perfectly good technical solution exists - they were also a block though of course but if i'd never had stabilisers . . .

In reply to CJD:

I think there's two sides to this.
1) "A bad workman blames his tools" - the best, most technical rock shoes ever are not going to make me able to climb E1, because I'm not that good.
BUT
2) I'm fairly sure there is a point where your tools may be holding you back. Another musical instrument illustration; I remember when I got my virtually-professional-standard wooden clarinet, as opposed to the beginners' plastic clarinet I'd been playing on till then. Given the standard I had got to, the plastic instrument was limiting what I could do. However, if I got the wooden instrument out of its box now, given that I haven't played it for a couple of years, I would sound terrible, no matter how good the instrument is.

In reply to CJD:

I think if you have a passion for something and can afford it you should get the best 'performing' gear you can. Life's too short to worry whether your ability justifies it, or whether you'll lay yourself open to 'all the gear no idea' type jibes. Good gear won't necessarily make you good at something, but crap gear can certainly hold you back.

In reply to blueshound: i find a maxed out distortion pedel and f*ck loads of volumne does the job just as well as an expensive guitar.
well, it does if you want to sound like hendrix...

In reply to CJD: I'm sure Team Scarpa would climb harder grades if they swapped to 5.10 Onxy rubber.

In reply to Jimmy D:


of course high performing gear can also hold you back.
To use my mountain bike again - for me it boosts performance but a novice would almost certainly find it worse than a cheaper bike since i have it rigged for twitchy handling.

Better gear can def help but it can also be detrimental if over specialised.

Ultimately it is a mix of skills and tools for the job.
A very good person with poor tools will still probably beat an amateur with the best but they wont be able to perform at the same level they could with the best tools.

In reply to CJD:

Oh and if I make it round the Cuillin Ridge this summer I'm certain it will in no small part have been down to owning a fancy guitar

In reply to CJD:

Think of your camera, then the zoom lens you fit on it. A twist focus and twist zoom may suit you but a slide zoom is often quicker.

Those controls on your rolly, took a bit of finding but once done they just work well don't they? Fast lens will give you more range of lighting options than small lens, but may not have quite the same acuity.

Same with a car, better tyres and brakes and suspension will not make it go faster, but will let you do journeys faster overall.

Some ropes feel crap, I was shocked when I first felt a wall rope at Leeds as it just did not handle like my outdoor rope, luckily I do not like walls. Nice gear of all sorts makes you feel more confident, and may then make you relax enough to get the best out of it.

In reply to CJD:

cool, lots that makes sense here.

only one thing, Sutty - although I've just received this windfall of lenses, I haven't used them yet, and all my cameras just tend to use the lens that came with them 'cos I'm lazy like that

In reply to CJD:

>and all my cameras just tend to use the lens that came with them 'cos I'm lazy like that

Or, if it aint broke don't fix it.