I think the thing people don’t always realize when they’re getting into photography as a hobby is how little the camera matters at first. Like a lot of things, the thought process seems to be “I want to take good photographs, so I need a good camera.” When really, you just need a camera and it does not have to be any good.
You have to sort of develop your eye first, understand framing/lighting/aperture/bokeh/etc and what makes a picture “good” to you, and then figure out what look you want to achieve, and then the camera or lenses you need to achieve that will become a lot more obvious.
I feel like a good analogy is being a “car guy” in a way. You say, “well, I know how to drive, but I want to have fun driving and drive really well, what car should I get?” You might get 100 different answers about the cars people enjoy, but you can achieve the “drive really well” portion in any car. An F1 driver doesn’t need an F1 car to out drive you, they can likely do it in a KIA Rio. Just like a good photographer is going to take better pictures on a phone than you will with a DSLR. It’s not until you really understand what “fun” means to you (and in the driving analogy, that could be off the line speed, maneuverability, off road capability, etc) that you’ll really be able to hone in on what you need to get there.
You could say “I want to drive well and have fun” and go buy a Tesla when what you actually needed was a Mustang or a TRD 4Runner or a straight up race car you want to take to a track. You don’t really know what you need until you understand what you’re missing, and it’s a lot easier to figure out the limitations of the KIA that bother you first than spending money on a Tesla and realizing those limitations are still there.
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