Your passion for photography: how did it start?

I have the "original" digital camera used by Adam when he was a boy and I love it!. It is an Olympus C4040z and what is today, a piffling 4.2 megapixels. It cost nearly US $700 in 2001 ( a fortune back then). BUT it is still a great camera because it has a great lens. I think this is more important than other gizmos that you hardly use on cameras. When all said and done, it's "the nut behing the wheel" that is most important: empathy with the subject; insight and imagination; the right light and composition and a bit of retained editing are the shot. The only problem with my old camera is that it uses discontinued/obselescent "smart media" which aren't made any more. Everybody has these dinky little camera cards. When my old cards finally stuff up, I'll have to ditch a wonderful camera. It's a conspiracy!! Reply to this

In 1994 I was selected to be an exchange student, so my mom helped me buy my first decent camera (I'd had some cheapies before that). It was an Olympus stylus. Over the course of my year in New Zealand, I was never without my camera, and came home with over 1000 photos.

Eight years later, as I was preparing to go back to New Zealand for another visit, I decided it was time to replace my faithful Olympus with an SLR, and I replaced it with a Canon EOS Elan 7. I was disappointed with many of the photos, because I didn't understand the features I was trying to use.

I enrolled in a photography class at my community college, and when I went to Costa Rica after finishing the course, I got some fantastic shots. I was already pretty invested in photography as a companion to travel (literally and figuratively), but on this trip the two became intertwined passions.

I made the switch to digital late in 2004, after being frustrated with taking film through airport security, especially in Europe. My first big trip with my Canon 20D was to Malta (coincidentally, this is also when I joined travel blog). I was averaging 100 photos per day, and I was really thrilled with the results. I started seeing everything in terms of light, and colour, and composition, whether my camera was with me or not.

Three weeks before I was due to head on holidays to Central Europe, in 2007, my beloved 20D broke, and so I replaced it with the 30D. I love it. It's a minor upgrade from the 20D, but the kit lens is much higher quality than the lenses I had before (it has image stabilization, which I don't ever want to shoot without again). I came home from five weeks in Europe with 2000 photos.

I find that each time I head out to take photos, whether it's while travelling or at home, I refine my skills a bit more, which I absolutely love. One of my favourite things about photography is that it has given me a new way to see things, and there will always be ways for me to refine and develop my skills. Reply to this

Great post! My photography history spans 8 years now, Im getting old. I've only used digitals, I bought my first 1.3 megapixel Sony point and shoot camera in 2000 before a grand road trip from California to Texas. This is what got me into travelling and photography, and like Ana I would love to post a travelblog of that trip. I knew nothing of lighting compostion, anything! I was just capturing the things I would see that captured my attention. Sometimes pictures would turn out good and sometimes not- and I didn't ever bother to ask why. I took road trips across the southwest, then drove home the next year on another 2 week road trip taking more pictures.

In 2002 after starting school for a new career, I upgraded my camera and bought a 3.2 megapixel Olympus point and shoot. I got some great pictures with that camera, backpacking the sierra's alone practically every month. This is when I started to find out the why's and how's of taking a good picture... Is the lighting too harsh? Is everything that caught my eye to cause me to want to take a picture being included in the frame? Is their too much contrast in light between the foreground and background? I never once thought of getting an expensive camera, I always saw myself as still learning. My method was simple, and still is today- if something catches my eye, I capture it with my camera: "Zoom in...Is the island in the far right of the frame as possible to show the forested cliffs on the left? I want to show a hint of the crater rim at the top, but I also want to include the snow patch at the top right, zoo out. The island needs to be on the far right so as much of the forested cliffs on the left can show, that's important to the shot. Ok now is the lighting balanced, is it in focus? Adjustments... hold your breath... SNAP!"






In 2004 I finished school and had planned another grand road trip through the Southwest to Texas to see family. I upgraded my camera again, this time to a semi-fancy 5 megapixel Nikon 5700. After I settled down and started working 2 months later, I bought a point and Shoot Canon A95 I still own. I feel like in 2004 when I started taking international vacations (first to Chile, then to Puerto Rico and New Zealand I, II, III) my photography started getting much better. When I discovered Travelblog, I finally had a way to post my top 50 pictures from a trip and post a story in a great format, and my presentation became better as well!

In November 2006, I made the ultimate upgrade and bought a very expensive Nikon D80 with 20-200 mm lens. At first it was heavy, cumbersome and difficult to get used to not seeing the picture on an LCD screen *before you press the shutter. I also found out what you see is NOT what you get when you look through the SLR viewfinder. First off slightly more area is included in the captured image than what shows through the eyepiece- second what you see through the eyepiece is just like looking with your eyes- so if your final picture is too dark because of incorrect shutter speed/apeture you wont see it until you take the picture! I missed seeing the final picture in an LCD screen before I pressed the shutter, it compensated for my lack of knowledge about shutter speed and aperture! but the pictures it produced were excellent. I now knew why people think cameras make good pictures, because in terms of clarity they do. I first took my new camera on a trip to the Sierra's, and soon on another trip to the Sierra's as well. I got some great shots!







This highlights my own learning process- I never took any classes or read books, and I never bought a super nice camera first and learned how to take pictures later. I learned by trial and error, a process film photographer could never even dream of due to expense and time. I feel like a lot of people try to learn photography the opposite way they should: First buying an expensive camera and taking classes and reading books, and only then going out to take pictures. I feel like we should be going out to take pictures, and sort out the specifics of processing our own film, $5000 cameras and lengthy photography books later! Its like being a Buddhist or Christian- are you going to read books about it all day, or go out into the world and practice compassion and love? (A lesson from Ajahn Chah)

Some professional photographers grow tired of all the expensive cameras and people thinking it is the equipment that's what takes great pictures. Purists, they handmake pinhole cameras: a small 2 inch cardboard box with film inside and a hole poked with a needle on the other side with a brass slider to expose the film. The pictures in the article were as good as any photographer shooting with a $5000 Hasselblad camera- which carries home the point that capturing with your camera whats captures your attention and good lighting makes a good picture- not the equipment!

I still suck at portraits, look at the portrait taken by Cumberland Sausage and drool. How does he capture locals like a National Geographic pro? I also see pictures by Crazy Canucks, Ali , lovelyplanet and TeamTurner too- how did they capture that with their cameras?








I also think photography is always something you can improve at. Look at all the great photographers- David Muench, Galen Rowell, Jim Brandenburg... they are all noticed and successful not before the age of 50! Certainly their early work is good, but maturity in photography comes with age, and as long as we have our eyesight and one hand we can take pictures.

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Team Turner: yes, this Canon is great and when I decide to move to a DSLR, I'll definitely open a topic here!

Nice to hear all these histories 😊 Reply to this

For me its about story telling..I found that a phot could tell the story of some trip I took...or a place I had been..so i started taking photos of everything even little trips to the store..I used to carry a camera in my bag(throw away ) but now phones fix that..My Nikon D50 rocks.. I have now traveled to 33 countries..Next stop South africa,Kenya and Tanzania.. Reply to this

When I was younger about 5 My parents gave me a plastic 110 camera. It's been going ever since. I have upgraded a couple times since then. My father was a photographer also. Reply to this

I wasn't actually into photography before college. I was more into writing and drawing. But my degree required me to take three units on basic photography. We were required to use film SLRs so I bought a secondhand Nikon F10.

I soon grew into photography and found myself taking a lot of pictures. It was expensive since you'd have to develop the film and print the negatives.

Then during my senior year I enrolled in a creative photography elective. It was then I bought my Nikon D40x, which I have been using for almost five years now. I also apprenticed for a time for a wedding photographer, who gave me some valuable tips especially on shooting portraits and events.

I've been meaning to buy a more high-end version, especially now that the model's obsolete. I'm having problem with the battery and there are no more available batteries here for D40x. Reply to this

In response to: Msg #158557

Dave,

Wow, my socks are knocked off understanding that you are doing your photos with a point and shoot...even if a good one. My mind stands still at the thought of what you might do with a more complex piece of equipment.

All photographers know the camera is the equipment and what makes the real difference is the photographers eye, sense of the scene and the ability to use light properly. I would welcome an opportunity to see what you might do with different equipment.



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