Snap Happy

For my last birthday, my then fiancée gave me a Canon Rebel XTi, and I’ve been snap happy ever since. I probably took that thing with me just about everywhere I went for the first several months of having it. I’d even pack it with me when I went to church. Taking pictures is something that I enjoy doing and something I’ve been doing just for the hell of it since I was in high school.

I remember I was using a Kodak 35mm when I was in school. It was the kind that flipped up from the middle, and the flash was hidden when it was folded down. I can’t say that my pictures were that great, but I snapped up just about everything I could. My shots were normally of people, those that I thought were friends at the time, and trips, events, or other situations that I may have been around at the time. I can honestly say that during that point in time, most of the photography I was doing was simply to capture memories of my experiences and the people who may have been involved with them.

This carried on into my earlier college years, where the same style seemed to show up in my shots. I guess at the time, I didn’t even view it as a hobby, just something to do…be in a place, see folks around, and snap the shot. It was as simple as that. The weird thing is that I started getting compliments on some of the pictures I took. I never thought much about it, but I guess that subconsciously it caused me to start “thinking” about the shots I was taking, and how they looked before I took them. I’ll admit that the ones I took then, at least the better ones, were often results of dumb luck. Still, they were mine and I took them. Over time, I moved from taking posed shots (still very much amateurish) to more candid shots. I don’t know why, but I moved to a stage of wanting to have the camera catch things “just happening”. It seemed more real then, and appeared to have more of an impact to memory than something that seemed “phony”.

By this time, I had moved from the Kodak 35mm to an Olympus D560. It was a fun camera to use. The pictures were normally okay, but the quality was better. I had no idea at the time of serious photography lingo, just the simple “see it, shoot it, print it”. I’m sure you can imagine that the pics often looked grainy, washed out, and often blurry. But still, a lot of them came out okay, and I started learning my camera more, and that’s when things started to change. I played with settings, resolution settings, using the timer and tripods, and the pictures got better. Still, my focus was people at the time, but there was a feeling of becoming more “seasoned.

After graduating and entering the real world, I just about took my Olympus wherever I went. I started shooting not only people then, but the objects / buildings / locations of where I was currently working. And I took them around different times of day and in different ways, looking for different angles and different setups – particularly night shots of the bigger cities I worked in. I moved on to editing my pictures using various editing programs, and that made a HUGE difference. At a friend’s wedding, I took some pictures – mainly because my then fiancée was the bride’s maid – but I was trying to take them differently than just shooting straight on. I was catching reflections in mirrors, and shooting individuals in mirrors from the reflection of mirrors (think about it and it’ll make sense).

This probably set the stage, ‘cause a month later I was presented my XTi and an expectation of getting good enough to probably do something (financially) with my photography was put out there. Since then, I’ve been trying to set the stage. I began reading up on digital photography, and have since then learned that there is SOO much to it…learning about f-stops, aperture, focal lengths, etc. Even my editing skills were getting challenged as I learned more about the capabilities of the software programs I used. However, more importantly, my pictures began changing. I’m a lot more open to the pictures I take. I still take pics of friends and family, but they have a different feel and quality to them. I try to keep them more candid, but with a much more natural feel to them. I’ve started looking at photographs in magazines differently now, and I find myself asking “How did they take this shot? What were the settings?” From there, I try to recreate it if possible. I really enjoy getting scenic shots…not just of landscapes (though a nice day when the sun is setting makes for a great shot and a peaceful mood), but also of city landscapes - especially at night. I definitely got into back in my Olympus days, but a better camera and editing software make for awesome shots that can take you places…or so I’ve been told and I’ve felt from pictures I’ve seen.

(Surfer's Paradise, Australia and W. Kerr Scott Reservoir - Wilkesboro, NC)

So I guess it’s definitely become more of a hobby now, but it’s more than just that. I really enjoy it, and I like catching moments that seem almost as grand as they are if you were there in person…or presenting a feeling that can make you wish you were there. I’m still an amateur, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t feel as much as a novice as I once did. I can’t thank my wife enough for helping bring me into this. She knows this more than anything I guess, ‘cause she has – more than she’d probably like – been the subject of my focus. But considering she’s the most beautiful thing on Earth to me, why wouldn’t I take aim? I’m still hoping and working towards that one day that I’ll be able to bring in a little something-something for this fun hobby, but until then I’ll just keep having fun with what I do and learning more to get better at it as I go along. And who knows, maybe I’ll continue to sneak a few into my blog.