focus, composition and living as an intentional being

A while back a friend who is a fellow photographer and I were talking, and eventually the topic turned to people's preconceived notions about what makes a good photograph, and thereby a good photographer, and at some point I mentioned how I have repeatedly produced pictures that were well recieved and when people asked about them one of the most common questions is "oh wow what camera did you use, what lens, software, etc" and to their dismay I frequently reveal that an image was made with a little point and shoot like my Nikon Cool pics or Canon Power Shot, and some even with a cellphone, the secret more often than not is in the composition, intention, and focus or as my friend so eloquently put it " the magic is in the magician not in the wand" you can have all of the latest equipment with all of the bells and whistles and the latest software for editing but if you do not have a sense of composition and some intention behind your image chances are more likely that what you produce will only be sub par, and nobody wants that as their reputation, you have to look at your subject and decide what is going to be the best way to present what you have to say with this image because if there is no intent behind it you are one step closer to having pictures that resemble what you find on those disposable cameras that are handed out at weddings. Admittedly sometimes you do not have time to sit and think before you take a picture because sometimes things just happen in the moment and you know that you have to capture that picture but you don't have time to set it up, the more you think with your camera and plan out your photos before you take them the better you get at thinking on the fly and being able to capture that image that you just happened upon and the more likely you will be able to capture it with intention because intention is what you need behind your pictures that is what draws people to them not what kind of camera you have what's editing software you use what tripod you use, none of these it is your vision your intention, the reason you took the picture in the first place