Where It Started

I have always enjoyed taking pictures and thought I had a decent eye for photography. I can remember a string of cameras from when I started working–all of them point-and-shoots without any kind of manual control or GoPro’s. Then, like most people, my phone camera became my main camera until I bought a ruggedized Olympus with some manual controls. I never used them though. An interesting thing I found with photography is that, at one point or another, a lot of people try and get into it. I mentioned to a woman I know that I was wanting to get a camera and she gave me a Nikon D80, bag, and a bunch of accessories. Before I could even really use it though another person gave me a Nikon D90, tripod, and lens. I had no idea what I was doing with even such an old camera, although I was able to get a good picture here and there. I bought a couple of prime lenses, a 35mm and 50mm, since I liked street photography and already had a zoom lens. I made myself wait at least a year of trying to learn how to use that camera before I decided to make a real purchase.

Where It Is

So, I bought a Nikon Z50ii with a kit 16mm-50mm lens and started really diving in to learning how to take a picture. It turns out that having an eye is like having any small innate talent in a skill and that it takes a whole lot more effort to actually get good at it. I tell people that think they might want to be a fly fishing guide (like me) that being extremely competent in nearly all aspects of fly fishing is the baseline. From there, you learn how to actually guide, but you shouldn’t think about guiding until you have a mastery of the basics. I think it is the same thing with photography. Like most people these days, I found a couple of YouTube creators and started trying to mimic their styles and learning composition rules and then I realized that I was putting the cart before the horse. I needed a mastery of the basics with the camera. I need to learn the controls, the settings, and most importantly how to use those controls to create a well-exposed photograph. Recently, I went on a trip to Yellowstone and during days of taking pictures, as things often do when you study and practice, it clicked. I could use the controls, including the histogram, to expose a photo properly.

Where It Is Going

I fly fish because it is more interesting to me than fishing with tackle. There are more aspects to learn and control and I think that is the way I am going with my photography because my end game is to buy a nice film camera and shoot in that esoteric and difficult format. But first, I need to learn more about composition. I am gaining confidence and competence with exposure and handling the camera. When I can shoot in all light, indoors and outdoors, as well as high-speed action and low-light, long exposures, I will move on to working on my composition. Other than some of the basics “rules” and understanding framing, leading lines, and simply having a subject in every shot, I think composition comes from practice. A lot of practice. When I can expose and compose for all the styles I want, I will purchase a film camera. I’d like a Nikon F2 Titan or F3, but I may start with a Contax so I don’t have to bother with buying more lenses (again) and once I get good with the point-and-shoot style, I’ll invest in a Nikon.

One last note on why I like photography. I think as a new skill, it is hard to beat that forces you to really see what is in front of you. Canon, in a nice bit of advertising, ran a small test to differentiate the layperson to the professional photographer. Titled “The Obsession Experiment” they showed a photograph to three people: a layperson, a photography student, and a professional photographer and used eye-tracking software to analyze their analysis of the photo. The layperson had 212 eye movements looking at the photo. The student had 445 and the professional had 1,197! Think about how different the world must look to someone used to obsessing over details in every scene. While I have no aspirations of becoming a professional photographer, I would like to see the world that way.