Who do you trust?
Who do you trust, on the internet...
I provide advice, in my blog entries, about cameras, lenses and photography. Elsewhere, I provide support for technology users. Why do I do it? What secret commissions do I earn? What do I have to gain, and should you trust me, or my advice?
Politics aside, this is not intended to be a philosophical discussion. When looking to buy a new product we all look for advice. Family, friends, and business contacts all provide an invaluable, and often face-to-face, opportunity to help us make the right decision.
However, if we read it on the internet, it must be true!
A story...
A long time ago, I was seeking to improve performance from a fairly new computer. Solid State Disks were new, rare, and expensive. They appeared to offer the solution I was looking for (slow transfer for large amounts of files).
I covered the entire internet, or so it seemed, looking for something beyond the raw numbers of performance. What were the questions not being asked or answered? Was there something I was missing?
I saw references to a specific brand of US-made SSD. Everything about it seemed to superlative. An "independent" site even provided glowing reviews, backed up with reams of data, complementary articles and other background information.
Because of the nature of this information provided by the independent source, I chose to trust their advice.
I bought the product ($700), and it promptly failed on me. The (first) replacement was well handled by the company, but it too failed within a few months. Eventually, they agreed to a refund - at their current price ($200), with a re-stocking fee on top!!!
Later review of the independence of the trusted source, seemed to reveal a closer business relationship than had been stated.
It appeared that it was nothing more than an expanded advertorial...
The moral - don't trust any single source on the internet. Keep asking "why"?
Why?
Like all of us, I am biased. Biased towards my own historical choices (right or wrong). Biased towards products and systems I used first. And biased in ways that I may not even notice.
I'm not trying to sell you anything, apart from my images. If I have a sponsored link, it will be clearly marked as such.
I do want to 'sell' you my enthusiasm for photography: "sharing the light".
I use Canon equipment: it's easier for me to provide support and examples based on what I use. I buy genuine Canon lenses, not because they are better (the price certainly suggests they should be), but because I've been 'burned' by incompatibility too many times before, both in photography and other areas of technology. Technology that 'just works' really excites me, and I'll continue own that theme, as time permits.
If any of this helps you, that's great. I don't need a tip or feedback, or thanks. Just remember there's always one more review to help you decide!
"It's much better to learn form the mistakes of others..."