Michael!

Great to see another post by an artist who cares about line and execution, and understands the difference between good drawing and copying.

As to the camera: I feel it is never productive to compare different media. Each medium has its own demands and its own approaches. There can be as much artistry in a photo as in a drawing or painting, but the media and their reasons for being differ.

So, as you point out, the manner of seeing for a painter, say, is different from that of a photographer. Each medium requires variations in the way the final work is achieved.

No doubt that the "masters" drew brilliantly, but a lot of people think so, perhaps, for the wrong reasons.

Your mantra is a good one!