Your photographic orgins

<p>What got you started in photography?<br>

When I was about seven, I bought a film P&S for $1.50 from goodwill and loved it. Eventually I saved up and bought a pentax k1000 (still my favorite camera of all time.) in sixth grade. I used that camera (and would still be using it if the local camera store hadn't stopped selling dark room materials) all the way up until last year when I got a XTI.<br>

I'm only in high school so I don't have a very long photographic orgin but I'd be fascinated to read others.</p>

<p>Many members post that information on their community home page. That's what I did anyway...</p>

<p>Cheers</p>

 

<p>It's good to get an early start as you're doing. I didn't start until I was in my late 40's and think of the lost opportunities... if I only had a camera in hand.</p>

<p>Majored in sculpture in college and art school. Got into photography as soon as I got free of art school. Should have majored in it.</p>

<p>My dad was a photographer. I spent a lot of time in his studio and darkroom. We had a darkroom in our basement at home too. I never got into taking/making pix until I was older, but I collect cameras too. I love the 35mm types from the late 40w and 50s. They have a sort of jewel like about them.<br>

And now, I love taking pix with them.<br>

Larry</p>

<p>I started with a cheap Kmart 110 camera when I was about 10 years old. By the time I was 14, I had my first dark room, with my Luckimaya enlarger. I shot mainly 126, although I still shot some 110 B&W. I really wish I still had the negs from that era, although I do still have alot of the prints. My first real camera was a Konica Autoreflex TC I bought used at the local camera store, at the age of 19. I still have it and use it, but I have a big PILE of lenses and more bodies now. </p>

<p>I used to shoot weddings for extra money, but my last 3 clients all ended in divorce within 1 year, and I soured on the whole wedding scene. I still have most of the negs though. Photography is my main hobby, others include gaming (WOW) and building plastic models, mostly WWII military. I should photograh some of them someday...</p>

<p>My father was in the 5th Photo Tech, part of the 5th Airforce (Under the Southern Cross), in WWII. He shot K18 recon photos. When he came home he brought back his faithful Argus C3 and taught all of us about photography. The result was thounsands of E6 slides and a life-long appreciation of the challenge of capturing light. My first camera was a Pentax K1000 (like millions of others) when I was about 13. I fell away from photography after college but I am glad to have found the time to get back into it, at least a little.</p>

<p>I'm a lifelong model railroader. I bought a Pentax ES-II in 1974 and a macro lens to take photos of my models. Things got out of hand after that. That's all I'll say LOL.</p>

<p>My dad was into it. He had cameras before, but I remember the story of him buying his Kodak Retina IIa in Germany while stationed in the US Air Force during the Korean War. He later got a Minolta SRT-101 that he used mostly with slides. He kept the Retina in his car for such occasions. He bought us all Diana 120mm plastic cameras. I got into photography very young (not sure of age - I think around 8-10 years old as I had the Canon FTB in high school and had been collecting for years) with a Kodak 35 (see - http://www.tcp-ip.or.jp/~peachan/camera/kodak35/index-e.html manual everything - no meter, focus via estimating distance, etc.) I go into collecting cameras (tragically my 800+ camera and photographica collection was put in the hands of my sister-in-law to sell on ebay, they never did and a flood in the house destroyed it to be trashed - total loss there were a few I had here still, but that is it) and my staple was a Canon FTB. I got out of it when film and developing got too expensive. I had an uncle with a Canon FT and I visited my older cousin (Mark Gooby) that is a professional studio photographer (http://www.hotshotstudio.com/). My wife got me back into it suggesting I buy a Canon Rebel XT. She got into it (originally a Canon PowerShot S3 - now my 10 year old son has), my became hers, then an XTi to replace her XT. I have gone on to a 20D and have a 10D as a backup. When I was younger, I learned all the techniques, but was just a good snapshotter (read all the Popular Photography and Modern Photography mags that Dad subscribed to - I miss Modern Photography). I have since taking my techniques and technical knowledge and am working on the art and composition side - much to learn but I have improved significantly. </p>

<p> </p>

<p>I started when I was in high school shooting a k1000, shot my first wedding with a Canon F1 I borrowed from my Dad. Did some commercial work with 4X5 and with Mamiya RB 67 for a commercial studio. While in Junior College I shot the Nikon F2, while working part time at 2 papers and the college information office. At 19 I shot my first NFL game. I started to shoot full time for a newspaper when going to a four year college with the Nikon FE-2, FM-2 and later the F4. While working for Scripts League I shot the Nikon F5.<br>

When I work for Pulitzer I started with the F5 Transitioned to the Canon D30 (I hated that Camera) Then the Canon Mark 1D. I toke about a 3 year hiatus from photojournalism, I was put in charge of over seeing the installation of a pagination system for 3 newspapers. I then was put in charge the electronic prepress for a commercial printer.<br>

When I visited my Dad for his last Christmas I was the webmaster for 8 Lee Enterprises central valley newspapers, he told me that he was proud of the work I was doing but photography was my true love I should go back to it. About 9 months later he passed away. First opening I saw with Lee for a photojournalist I went back to it. By this time I had bought the Nikon D2x.<br>

About 2 years ago I left Lee and now shoot editorial and commercial as an independent contractor with the Nikon D3. I now have just moved into a studio and started to get settled, but still specialize in location work.</p>

<div></div>

<p>I had an Indian-Head 3-legged Buffalo nickel back in the 1950s that I sold for $35 and bought a camera. That's when I started taking pictures. It wasn't until 1971 that I bought an SLR and was absolutely amazed that I could actually change the shutter speed and aperture to match the situation -- it was amazing. Just last week I bought a 1950's Rolleicord that's almost as old as I am -- it's still fun trying new cameras.</p>

<p>I was a model railroader and started taking pictures of cars and engines, back in the early 70's. That lead to other types of photography. I wound up being a weekend pro for about 6 years doing weddings, model portfolios, and portraits. I got out of photography about 15 years ago and just got re-interested about a year ago. Now I just do photography for myself as a hobby. I love the new digital cameras (have a D80). It's great to be able to check your shot if necessary to see that it was exposed correctly. I can now afford to take as many pictures as I want, something I couldn't afford to do with film!</p>

<p>My father gave me the "right to use" his Kodak Retinette, and "allowed" me to shoot one roll of Kodachrome 64 per month. I had no exposure meter. That was the place where I learnt how to make every shot count. When I started secondary school, I got a Fujica STX1 with a 55 mm f/ 2.2. lens in gift, and I entered SRL world. That camera is still in use by a friend of mine.</p>

<p>Junior High School transfer to a school I hated, and didn't have any class openings for me. That year, they were starting their first Photography class as part of their vocational program. I was stuck in it. It was one of the few good things which happened to me at the time; I loved photography; I received a camera as a gift; it's been a part of my life ever since; sometimes in the foreground, sometimes in the background, but around. J.</p>

<p>The K1000 is an awesome camera. If you take care of it, it'll probably last in working order for another 25 years. I have one.</p>

<p>Yes, and I forgot to mention, Do your Math homework and read from a book every day. Study hard and stay in school. The high adventure assignments go to guys who do their homework. Good luck. J.</p>

<p>Most good things that have happened to me have come from attics. It was there that I found an old brownie box camera. My parents sprang for the film and processing, and my pics were less than stunning, as I kept double exposing them. It wasn't long before my parents bought me an Instamatic, probably in an effort to boost my keeper rate. As I got just a bit older, it became my job to switch our heating/cooling system ductwork back and forth every season in the attic. (It was a very small space that I fit into better than my parents.) While making my seasonal trip one day, I discovered my grandfather's enlarger and dragged it down. My mom taught me how to use it, and everything snowballed from there. I bought my first beat-up SLR (a Honeywell Pentax H1) at age 13, started selling pics at age 15, used the proceeds to fuel my equipment habit (Spotmatic F, lenses, Honeywell Strobonar), etc., etc. Now decades later, I'm stuck in front of a computer screen typing about it. How pathetic is that?!</p>

<p>My dad was a serious hobbyist photographer. I tagged along and he always had a camera for me to use. I watched and "helped" in the darkroom. I still have some of those old cameras and the contact printer I used. Dad also got me started collecting photography equipment.<br>

In my 20's I bought a K-1000 (my favorite also) and the rest is history. It waxed and waned over the years, but, after buying my D-80, photography has become almost an obsession.</p>

<p>My aunt bought me a little grey plastic camera which shot 127 film. I shot the occasional roll, but then one day, when I was aged 12, a man by the name of Dr Richard Beeching came along and ripped up my local railway branch line and sidings, my childhood stamping ground. I took four shots of the last days of the railway, my first 'serious' photographs, and that was when I realised the documentary capabilities of photography.</p>

<p>I love the story, Chris. That's pretty cool! If only all kids had that sort of passion. Is documentary photography something you've continued into your adulthood, and if so, where can I see some of it? (Love your self portrait, BTW.)</p>

<p>I'm sure that many of you know my story. I lived in Great Cranberry Island, ME and worked as a small boat sailor hauling mail and freight to the islands. My mom and dad insisted on moving to Houston, TX. I lost my two scholarships, took my savings and bought an Argus C3 camera (known as the brick) two rolls of 36xp Kodachrome and prepared for the trip.</p>

<p>The instructions on the film said with the sun on your left or right shoulder, focus carefully, set the lens at f6.3, the shutter at 50, stand with your feet apart, take a breath and let it part way out and squeeze (not jerk) the shutter release. I did that 72 time on the trip and when arriving at Houston, mailed the two rolls of film back to Kodak. After a couple of weeks, my film came back in neat little yellow boxes. All of the films were "beautiful" and so I assumed that a famous magazine would buy them. They were sent and several weeks later they came back minus 1 slide and a check for $45.00 (in those days a week's pay for most people). My response (and my first major mistake) was "This professional photography is easy"!</p>

<p>At less than 3 bucks per roll of Kodachrome I started shooting photos and submitting based on my incredible $45. after several months, a little known wire service offered to buy photos that they assigned. I did and at the same time was a sophomore in high school, and a soda jerk for Kleins Ice Cream. At the end of the school year I quit and joined the Navy at age 17, became a Hospital Corpsman and continued to shoot for the wire service. Before I was 19 they asked me if I could write and of course, I said yes. I read a book on inverted pyramid writing for publications and started shooting and writing. In the early days I was a better writer than photographer, but kept working at it. Took a correspondence course in photography, then went to a small school of photography and started to get better. 5 years later I managed to get into USN Medical Photography School, and 3 years after that, took my second Honorable Discharge and went to Brooks Inst. of Photography with hard work (3 jobs) and the Korean War GI Bill. </p>

<p>I graduated from Brooks in 1960 and didn't have much trouble finding jobs, first, I actually was pretty good at that time, and secondly, Brooks' reputation was good for me.</p>

<p>Lynn</p>

<p> </p>