What makes you embark on photography?
Jan 14, 2020 21:16:10 #
lilac wrote:
I had posted this question six years ago. I thought it would be fun to ask it again. I consider my photography as a journey. Why do you shoot and where do you want to go with it?
I received my first camera when I was 11 years old. A Kodak Instamatic. Love old and new photographic gear and using the gear to create memories and also to document where I have been and what I have seen. I feel successful in my art of photography when my images tell a story and someone in addition to myself is affected in some way by the story told by my images. Also shooting digital is fun. I love the instant gratification of seeing my creations good or bad immediately, something that was unavailable for my first forty years of shooting.
Jan 14, 2020 21:26:35 #
cascom
Loc: Redmond
My grandfather gave me a Brownie #2 in 1946. I would walk up to people on the street and ask to take their picture. Granddad and I would process my images in his darkroom. Royal X pan film was introduced and I could push it to 1600 ASA and used my mother's Rolliecord for the yearbook. I also used the school's 4x5 speed graphic. Came back from RVN with a Topcon and a couple of lenses. I turned to Nikon when I started freelancing with the Richmond Times Dispatch. A manual 400mm F2.8 made my sports photos stand out. I now spend my energy photographing sports and referees for Referee Magazine. I enjoy interacting with the officials and learning more about the game
Jan 14, 2020 21:55:44 #
Everyone should have a passion. I can't paint and I can't draw. So photography is mine. I have gone in and out of a lot of hobbies over the years. However i have never lost interest in my interest/love of photography for over 60 years
Jan 14, 2020 22:17:27 #
Creativity urge is always at the forefront. But day to day my motivation to shoot changes. Today it was because I have made a pledge to myself to walk daily (or use my elliptical in bad weather), plus a pledge to myself to take a photo a day. And if I'm out walking, might as well take my camera with me. Some photos are for art, some for technique practice, some for documenting - just depends. Then the other half of the fun is uploading the images and see what I have, what is great, what is throwaway, what I can tinker with, and what do I want to do with the image - share, print, store, hide?
Jan 14, 2020 23:26:52 #
Mood. My mood often dictates whether or not I "feel" it is worth my time to take the "tools" out of the bag, based on the time and moment. Influences around me including events, weather, people, or opportunity. Hoping a positive mood will be reflected in my photos. For example, seeing my daughter's dog jump up on her bed and give me a pensive look.
Jan 14, 2020 23:38:42 #
Jan 14, 2020 23:43:01 #
Dean37
Loc: Fresno, CA
I was never interested in photography per se. I found an interest in light passing through lenses, in a high school physics class. My older brother got a small (?) camera that took very clear pictures with black and white film.
A brother-in-law bought my EX and I a cheap 35mm Lacon camera in Japan around 1960. I could take good pictures with it when my ex father-in-law showed me the settings he was using on his his Argus C3. I figured he knew what he was doing, and I was correct.
At a professional sports event, we were very late in leaving the stands and I spotted a large Canon lens that had been left behind. When I tried to find a lost and found at the stadium, they just told me to leave the stadium, NOW!
Being a neophyte, I wanted to have it mount on my Lacon which had a fixed lens. A camera shop tech laughed and said it would be cheaper to just buy a camera that would take the lens. I gave it to somebody that could use it.
A year later a friend had bought a new Ricoh camera, and offered me his "old" Nikon FE with 4 lenses for $400.00 (1979), and I took him up on it. I was not happy with the lenses 2 Nikon prime lenses and two Vivitars with a Sunpak flash. What I wanted was something that zoomed, and I didn't like the 2 Vivitar Series 1 zooms. I photographed a dance performance, for myself. That was a good thing as ALL the photos suffered from medium orange and I kept one just to figure out what happened. In the camera bag, I found some filters and tried all of them out in similar lighting conditions (the engineer in me). I found that the light did change colors with all of them except for the polarized one which only changed the brightness.
I am guessing, but I think I was already getting GAS because I began looking for lenses in a couple of used camera shops. If it was not Nikkor/Nikon I skipped over it. I found a nice Nikon FE2 which became mine. Another friend had his wife's Nikon F3 and a couple of Nikkor Lenses for sale, in June 1996. I offered $350.00 and he said bring the money when you can and handed me the camera bag. His wife had bought the camera and lenses new for a photography class, and decided not to attend, so the F3 supposedly had only had 2 rolls of film run through it.
I got offered a Nikon F5 by a photographer who had bought 3 for his business and decided 2 would be enough. Bought it in 1998 for $2,500.00, bought 2 battery's for it besides the AA setup. Probably have run about 25 rolls of film through it, one at full speed, about 5 seconds for 36 pictures of the same thing just to experience it. The only thing wrong with it now is the LC display on the back of it has blacked out.
Along the way I have acquired an FA, an F4e, another FE, several point and shoot Nikon's. A replacement D200 (one was stolen with my 17-35 f/2.8 G) a D300 (my baby) and my favorite P7800 (small and totally almost perfect to carry).
I still mostly have an interest in how the light passes through the glass lenses. One day I may decide to give the cameras a workout and learn how to use them.
I know how they work and the functions of the lenses, so probably half of a photography course would be going over what I already know. The framing of a potential picture is what I really need to learn. So far I just take a photo of objects/people that I want to remember.
A brother-in-law bought my EX and I a cheap 35mm Lacon camera in Japan around 1960. I could take good pictures with it when my ex father-in-law showed me the settings he was using on his his Argus C3. I figured he knew what he was doing, and I was correct.
At a professional sports event, we were very late in leaving the stands and I spotted a large Canon lens that had been left behind. When I tried to find a lost and found at the stadium, they just told me to leave the stadium, NOW!
Being a neophyte, I wanted to have it mount on my Lacon which had a fixed lens. A camera shop tech laughed and said it would be cheaper to just buy a camera that would take the lens. I gave it to somebody that could use it.
A year later a friend had bought a new Ricoh camera, and offered me his "old" Nikon FE with 4 lenses for $400.00 (1979), and I took him up on it. I was not happy with the lenses 2 Nikon prime lenses and two Vivitars with a Sunpak flash. What I wanted was something that zoomed, and I didn't like the 2 Vivitar Series 1 zooms. I photographed a dance performance, for myself. That was a good thing as ALL the photos suffered from medium orange and I kept one just to figure out what happened. In the camera bag, I found some filters and tried all of them out in similar lighting conditions (the engineer in me). I found that the light did change colors with all of them except for the polarized one which only changed the brightness.
I am guessing, but I think I was already getting GAS because I began looking for lenses in a couple of used camera shops. If it was not Nikkor/Nikon I skipped over it. I found a nice Nikon FE2 which became mine. Another friend had his wife's Nikon F3 and a couple of Nikkor Lenses for sale, in June 1996. I offered $350.00 and he said bring the money when you can and handed me the camera bag. His wife had bought the camera and lenses new for a photography class, and decided not to attend, so the F3 supposedly had only had 2 rolls of film run through it.
I got offered a Nikon F5 by a photographer who had bought 3 for his business and decided 2 would be enough. Bought it in 1998 for $2,500.00, bought 2 battery's for it besides the AA setup. Probably have run about 25 rolls of film through it, one at full speed, about 5 seconds for 36 pictures of the same thing just to experience it. The only thing wrong with it now is the LC display on the back of it has blacked out.
Along the way I have acquired an FA, an F4e, another FE, several point and shoot Nikon's. A replacement D200 (one was stolen with my 17-35 f/2.8 G) a D300 (my baby) and my favorite P7800 (small and totally almost perfect to carry).
I still mostly have an interest in how the light passes through the glass lenses. One day I may decide to give the cameras a workout and learn how to use them.
I know how they work and the functions of the lenses, so probably half of a photography course would be going over what I already know. The framing of a potential picture is what I really need to learn. So far I just take a photo of objects/people that I want to remember.
Jan 15, 2020 00:02:36 #
That is very long story, so I will endeavor to make it somewhat short. It thrill me to capture a moment in time that I hopefully can keep always. Although I can draw, paint, create accurately from scratch there is no way that I can do all that I see and want to keep, thus photography becomes my paint brush. I started as a teenager, took photos for the year book, captured landscapes while traveling and was able to take pictures of all of my favorite western Actors/Actresses, horses, and other critters, was honored by being able to photograph all of the Indian Chiefs and all of the Indian dancers in the western United States to name a few, always striving to get the most fantastic shot I could to enhance and preserve my memories. It is still a love and I am always looking for a photo that calls to me so that I can paint a few of them. The photos here on UHH thrill me no end, they speak of all the walks of life, love and excitement, a journey for sure.
Jan 15, 2020 00:10:00 #
Dean37
Loc: Fresno, CA
I know it was drawn out, and am sorry for the space I took. I had wanted to point out that I am a camera buff, but from a slightly different perspective. I am more of a recorder than an artist.
Jan 15, 2020 02:12:20 #
I can capture the images in my travels which I see and interpret, then my two grandchildren provide me with excellent material. I do it for me.
Jan 15, 2020 02:12:22 #
Jan 15, 2020 02:29:53 #
NO REAL BIG EXPLANATION. just like to take all kinds of photos I e landscapes, flowers, bird, sunsets, sunri now that should keep me busy for awhile.
Jan 15, 2020 06:34:04 #
Ron Krause wrote:
NO REAL BIG EXPLANATION. just like to take all kinds of photos I e landscapes, flowers, bird, sunsets, sunri now that should keep me busy for awhile.
👍👍
Jan 15, 2020 09:10:51 #
theoldman wrote:
I see what many others don't see, the light sparkl... (show quote)
Excellent explanation of why probably most of us are photographers. Very inspirational to future photographers, also.
Jan 15, 2020 09:58:16 #
Thanks everyone for such interesting and honest replies. Thank you for thanking me about posting this question once more. I myself, actually found out at a very young age that photography was something that really interested me. I was fascinated with it. I enjoyed taking people's pictures and seeing their reactions good and sometimes not so good. They would always say why did you take that? I look so bad. Sometimes they would even chase me to get the camera. That was funny. I could tell they really didn't mind. Like most of you where my journey has taken me is for the moment right here among great people. I can't help but see some are no longer here with us on the site. Because of illness. I hope it will be only a short time and they will be able to join us again. As for me now I will continue on this journey and hopefully will check in again with more images.
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