Photography

You don't take a photograph.  You ask, quietly, to borrow it.  ~Author Unknown

Photography is very unique. It can be a hobby, a profession, a lifestyle, or a security blanket. You can freeze time and memories and capture the essence of the world from every view. I do not consider myself a photographer, yet. Although, I do strive for one day mastering this art. I have loved cameras and pictures my whole life. It wasn’t until 2008 that I purchased my  first DSLR, Nikon d70. Before then, I was using a crappy, barley digital, camera I had found in an old closet. I should have not under estimated the content that came from that camera for it was the one I used to take my first two-time awarding winning photo. That just goes to show that even the simplest of photos can go along way.

I didn’t really start to grasp the art that I loved until my freshmen year of high school. During my second semester, I was granted the permission to take an independent study of the photos program my school offered. Normally you would have to take the prerequisite class, essentials of art, and be at least a sophomore. I took the prerequisite my first semester. The economy kind of dumped on my school leaving us with budget cuts. I knew that last year would most likely be the last year photos would be offered at my school. I was right. I was the first freshmen and one of the last students to be in photos. It’s a damn shame because I learned a lot.

The photos class was all about old fashion film and dark rooms. I learned how to roll and develop film, how to operate in a dark room using enlargers, and how to develop the final product of a photo. On average I would only develop 3-5 photos a class period. Photo means light. To master how to manipulate light is how you master photography. You can’t rely on the automatic switches located on a digital camera because then you don’t really know what you are photographing. A manual B&W camera does not allow you to do that. You have to learn what light works and what doesn’t. Unlike a digital photography where you can view, edit, and delete, a film camera you have to wait until after development in which case could be too late. I think anyone who is interested in photography or becoming a photographer should learn the dark room process. To kind of get the basic and back ground knowledge of what photography is about. You learn the rules so you learn how to break them. I encourage anyone who decides to pursue photography to do it. But remember, just because you own a camera doesn’t make you a photographer. It makes you a camera owner.