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Most of the time, a camera is simply my work tool — especially my Sony cameras: reliable, precise, virtually flawless. But sometimes a camera becomes an extension of my personality: my love of adventure and travel, my weakness for elegant, beautifully made objects, my urge to be different. That urge pushes me to seek out or create more scenes to shoot, because every story or spark of inspiration speaks to something I long for inside. With work as busy as it is, I can't always travel far — so finding fresh things to feed that passion right around me is how I keep life fun.

Sometimes I set myself challenges — shooting the hard way on purpose: adapting vintage manual lenses, mixing glass from different eras, or framing everything in one fixed aspect ratio to break old habits. Just as I later found I could never work in an office, I need to take on life's varied challenges — and enjoy them. That's what keeps me moving forward.

I often feel photographers carry little theaters inside them — I call it the "soul." It's also what drives us forward: nailing that long-awaited trip, capturing the kids playing in the park, or taking a new lens out for a proper portrait session. In this "Soul of Photography" series, I'll share the little theaters inside me and my photographer friends — maybe you'll recognize your own in them.

One room of my inner theater is simply this: "I like good things." That doesn't exactly mean expensive (though it's rarely cheap). Good things please the eye and satisfy the hand — and more importantly, they shape your taste, your thinking, even your decisions.

I love the design of Leica and Hasselblad cameras. Their specs may not be cutting-edge, but I deeply admire how they embody beauty and simplicity in a camera — something wonderful you can hold in your hands. The moment I head out with one, the urge to shoot keeps bubbling up, as if the air and light around me were staged just for me, ready for the shutter at any second. It feels amazing.

On many jobs I shoot with a Leica or Hasselblad alongside my Sony — very much my personality: keeping a little challenge inside the routine. More precisely, it's about "anticipation." Whenever I import files, the Leica or Hasselblad shots are always the first I open. I look forward to their color and detail — that beauty you fall for at first sight. Photos from a Leica or Hasselblad linger with me long after, and leave me looking forward to the next shoot.

As a kid, a bag of marbles could keep me happy all afternoon; growing up, the price of happiness only goes up, and camera gear stirs something in every photographer's heart. So if it's within your means, I'd recommend getting a Leica or Hasselblad. Even if they one day become your second body, the joy they gave you along the way is worth it.

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