I really enjoyed this rant.  I started out with Poser 1, and painted everything over by myself.  Poser, at that point, was actually a tool for introducing reasonably proportioned figures into a cgwork.  I think Poser 1 was a good tool.  At some point, Poser became a means to an end, and, that old "make art" button was sought by many.  Around that time, I got sick of Poser.

I have little pictures, and scenes in my head.  None of them could be made with Michael, or Vicki, or, even a heavily morphed Aiko.  They involve creatures that are not mass produced, and, landscapes and lighting that really don't exist in the real world.  I love these little critters, but, could not make them without knowing how to model, texture, rig and light.  If I can't get behind premade stuffages in a Poser scene that's because my own unique imagination doesn't show me premade stuffages.  Nope, I like the other worldly, fantasy critters that can only be one of a kind.  Sure the Millenium Dragon is a very nice dragon....but, he ain't the twig dragon that I'm working on right now.  Nor could he be morphed into that tree dragon.

As to photography....Well, I carry my digital camera EVERYWHERE.  Sometimes, even the most mundane things, if they are showing an interesting balance of light, color, or shadow, can sing to my soul.  Occasionally, something will also be of later use as part of a texture.  However, I am not a photographer.  I just try to catch what captures me in the first place.