Not quite 20 questions.

[outdoor_matt 0]

Well, I got a 35mm cheapo Kodak maybe ten years ago for my birthday...I'd often climb trees during the nesting season, this was when I was like 8 or 9 , and take photos of the eggs...only problem is, after I got the pictures developed, they all turned out blury...I didn't take a lot of photos then as I didn't have much money for film...heck, my allowance was a couple bucks a month Our family eventually got a point and shoot which I loved using, and then several months ago I bought a Canon 30d with a 70-200mm F4 lense...ouch, a pile of money, especially since I'm only 17, but worth the price.

 

What? Any outdoor related stuff...wildlife, scenics, hunting and fishing stuff and scenes, some family stuff

 

Where? Anywhere wild and free...ok maybe that sounded a little cheesy but that's the case. Specifically-I loved shooting in Saskatchewan this summer on my mission trip. The grand river with the leaves changing colour. There are so many places I love bringing my camera.

 

Where it will lead? Actually I bought my camera for the primary purpose of becoming an outdoor writer and photographer...yes I know I have a lot to learn and I don't know half as much as you guys here, but that is my long term goal, Lord willing. I've enrolled in an Outdoor Writing Course with Roger Brunt, some of you guys might know what I'm talking about, so that is what I'm working on right now, besides a big high school work load.

[Guest]

Matt, I don't think you will hear anyone say anything like "you have a lot to learn" on this site. I think we all know that we were all new to this hobbie at one time. Also these guys really know their stuff and give out some really good advise. Good luck on your writing course, that is one thing I wish I had taken when I was in school.

 

Jim

[KVRNut 0]

Welcome to the forum Matt! Glad to have you with us.

 

Matt, we all are still learning this thing called photography. That's why this forum is such a great one with the way that knowledge is shared among all of us. This is one forum where the only dumb question is the one that isn't asked so if you have a question, please ask away. I'm pretty sure that you'll get a lot of good answers.

Jim hit it squarely when he said

Matt, I don't think you will hear anyone say anything like "you have a lot to learn" on this site.

. I learn a little something every day about photography and I imagine I'll keep learning a bit every day until the day I finally hang up the fly rods and cameras for good and that isn't going to be for a looooong time yet!

 

BTW: I hope you do so well with your studies you give your teachers fits.

 

Ernie

[Guest]

I agree with you totally Ernie there isn't a day that goes by that I don't learn something from this site. That statement was meant as someone was putting the young man down for being new to the field of photography. Like I said Matt. I sure wish I had taken a writing class when I was in school.

 

Jim

[Graham 0]

Hi Matt,

 

Welcome to the forum, sounds like you have a deep passion for the outdoors as well as a strong desire to share your experiences with others. This planet needs more people like you.

 

Combining photography with writing sounds like a fun, challenging and rewarding career, and I wish you all the best.

 

Don’t feel bashful asking questions, there are no bullies or crazies here, just good folks who enjoy practicing photography. I doubt anyone ever stops learning new and exciting things when it comes to photography, even long time masters likely struggle at times with challenging subjects and light, and constantly try to improve their work. Even doctors and lawyers, close to retirement, are “practicing” when working, but I do sense you are seeking perfection, and I have no doubt your hard work will be rewarded. I think it is great that you have such a strong directional pull at your age, and have even invested money and time towards that goal. Great stuff!!!

 

Cheers,

Graham

 

[Peterjay 0]

Wow! I apologize in advance for a lengthy post, but there are no short answers to this one.

When I stop to think about it, I've had so many incarnations as a photographer that it's hard to keep track of them myself. Aspiring outdoor photographer/writer, free-lancer, portrait photographer, street photographer, landscape photographer, etc., etc. My original goal was fishing writer/photographer, but I eventually found that turning something I loved (fishing) into work wasn't something I wanted to do. I did eventually become a fishing columnist for several years, but that didn't require any real work other than taking mental notes and being a smartass. (Which comes naturally to me)

Sooner or later, something had to stick, and I suppose that since most of my friends were artist/ musician/writer types, a drift toward fine art photography was inevitable. It helped a lot that one of my acquaintances was a photographer who was well-known in pictorialist circles. He rarely had anything good to say about the stuff I showed him, but his critiques were valid, and knowing that he was equally tough on himself kept me from becoming too discouraged.

It also helped that I was lucky enough to have spent 2 years in Washington D.C., where I was a regular visitor at the National Gallery of Art, which houses one of the world's great art collections. I don't recall seeing much photography there, but light and composition are the same regardless of the medium, and there are no better people to learn from than Rembrandt, Van Gogh, Georgia O'Keefe, and people of similar stature.

I did the art show/gallery circuit for quite a while until I burned out in 1995. Having a bunch of my prints stolen by a gallery owner was the last straw, (Rot in hell, Billy Gullett!) but the business side of it was becoming intolerable anyway. I was doing well artistically, but when it became just another job, it was time to give it a rest.

Graham, Ernie, Fred, and the rest of the guys here at the photo corner rekindled my interest a little over a year ago. Guess I needed a reminder of why I got involved in photography in the first place, and I found that here.

 

What? I have two primary areas of interest. The first is nature. The natural world is full of surprises, and it seems like I learn something every time I go out, or at least I try to.

The second is street shooting/urban landscapes. There's something about catching people at interesting moments and combining that with the geometry of the city that I find fascinating.

 

Where? Just about any place that's outdoors, and I mean absolutely any place. I love looking at sunsets, pastoral scenes, mountain vistas, waterfalls, etc., but when I'm looking for images, I'm more apt to be found checking out frozen mud puddles, brushpiles, or other seemingly barren places that might escape the notice of the casual viewer. Maybe it's the challenge - I don't really know, but it's what I do.

My street shooting/urban landscape cravings are best satisfied by spending a few weeks in Paris, roaming the streets, observing daily life, and deliberately getting lost. There's no place quite like it; the art, the blend of old and new, interesting people, and the food. (Ah, the food!) Hemingway was right - you carry Paris with you the rest of your life.

 

My own photography probably isn't going to lead anywhere except to continue to explore my own personal vision, which I hope keeps evolving. I'm lucky enough to have reached a place where the only person other than my wife that I have to please is myself, and that's where I plan to stay. That said though, I still enjoy sharing my work with others, and what I'd really like is a place where I can permanently display my stuff. We're in the process of relocating right now, and we've just made an offer on a house that has plenty of space for a private gallery once we get it fixed up. That would be a perfect setup, but we plan to establish some type of gallery regardless.

[SullyTM 0]

I started photography in the 1960's, working with my dad's old Polaroid instamatic...the kind you could take a picture, pull out the film and watch it develop. Love those fumes! I graduated to a Ricoh 35mm which became my work horse. I took a photography curriculm at the local community college and envisioned a carrer as a photo journalist. The highlight of my growing passion for photography was the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal. I photographed everything! I could see myself as a staff photographer for Sports Illustrated...In 1978 I moved to California to further my 9 to 5 career. Working in San Francisco and living in the East Bay provided me with many different photography opportunites. My Ricoh was still my work horse and I had several different lenses. City scapes, nature, the ocean...a photographers nirvana! In 1980 I quit the 9 to 5 and went back to college to finish up a degree in Mass Communication. What happened at college I never planned. I had to get a work study job as part of my student loan package and of course I wanted to work in the photograpy department. Well, no one ever answered the phone and there was no such thing as the email back in 1980. The next best work study job was in the Instructional Media Department's television studio...as the saying goes, "the rest is history!" I fell in love with video production and that is what I still do today. My photography interest fell by the wayside and when the digital age appeared, it left me behind. Regrets? Not really. I still have a very good "eye" which has served me well as a videographer. I love seeing the works of those who are into photography...it reminds me that the path we choose has many turnouts!

 

Later...

[Wulff 0]

Alway had a keen interest in photography, just never had the time or desire to pursue wildlife photography until DSLRs became more mainstream, due to the prohibitive cost of processing film. Anywho, jumped in with both feet in the spring of 06 and since then its been an adventure learning what the bejusus Im doing, including both with the camera and the post processing. So in all Ive been at about 18 months now.

 

My main interest if you can't tell is wildlife with a heavy emphasis on bird of prey. After that pretty much anything form songbirds to deer and fox. I just love being able to walk out my back door and lose myself on a stream, in a marsh, in a valley or in some fields. Id say 90% of my photography occurs ithin 10 minutes from home.

 

Wildlife/Nature photography is I think a natural extension from a life long love affair with the outdoors, qhich in recent years has meant fly fishing. I dont know how many times in my life Ive been out fishin/camping etc and just wished I had a decent camera and lens to take it in ad preserve it. So now a seriously addicted nut is born whos knee deep in fast water lugging a ton of fly gearand photography and on any given morning Im as likely to grab my camera bag as I am my fly rod if not both.

 

As to where I wat to go?

Simple, for the most part this is just a hobby and a way orme to continue doing what I love the most and that get out. Somewhere, mabe next year when I think Im ready I may start trying to submit some images and/or contribute to publications but I'll cross that bridge when I get there.

[kargen 0]

Matt you should grab two books. I think the 2008 ones will come out in November. Get The Photographers Market and The Writers Market. I believe both books are published by Readers Digest. They are basically just lists of magazines and other publications that are looking for freelance writing and photography. The Photographers Market has a section of greeting card companies that purchase all kinds of photos. Those books are a good place to start and offer some advice and suggest other books you might want to look at.

 

Now for the questions and this might be long. Kind of like asking some of you the same questions about fishing or tying flies. It is hard for me to remember a time when I didn't have a camera. The first camera that was actually mine was I think a Kodak Instamatic. I got it for my sixth birthday and my parents took me to the Oklahoma City Zoo and let me shoot four or five rolls of film there. I wore that camera out, and another just like it. Those were not the first cameras I used though. Mom had a polaroid camera I think Dad bought in an auction or pawn shop (this will become a type of theme) and I remember being allowed to take some photos with that. I also got to use my grandmas Brownie camera a few times with help. My grandma bought one of the early Brownie folding cameras when it came out and fortunatily saved all her negatives she shot with that camera and now I have them. Over seventy years worth of photos. I have them all scanned. When I get back to Texas I will post a couple of the photos.

Dad was/is a school teacher and always liked photography. He also liked auctions and pawnshops and ended up with several assorted cameras. We lived in a very small town and Dad taught most the highschool science and math classes. So he naturally became the annual staff sponser and had to set up the darkroom at school. They used bulk film and during the summers I got to shoot any of the leftover film. Dad had managed to get some 2 1/4 cameras from somewhere and a bunch of bulk film for them, both color and B&W. I know I used a Yashica and a Skyflex camera quite a bit around the age of four. Both are twin lens reflex cameras and I still have them around somewhere. Dad was learning to process film so he let me shoot all the photos I wanted with those cameras and then usually I would also go to the school with him and goof off while he processed the film. I had a great time with those cameras right up to the time I got ahold of the first instamatic (moms) and then made the switch.

In fourth grade I got an old Praktica 35mm camera and three lenses. Again they came either from an auction or a pawnshop that Dad visited. I used that camera for three or four years and in fifth grade began developing and printing my own B&W stuff. I also that year did a science project on the light refraction of lenses, and that involved all kinds of fun darkroom stuff.

In JR high I got a Pentax K1000 and began taking the camera with me pretty much everywhere I went. I had several K1000s right up to college where I finally switched to a Pentax ME super. I wasn't going to switch until I found out the ME could be used fully manual. All through JR High and High School I photographed all the events I wasn't actually participating in and was getting a bunch of photos in the yearbooks even though I was never in annual staff and even landed a few photos in the local papers.

 

I spent one year at college as a Pre Vet major getting bad grades and taking photos. Shortly into the 2nd semester I realized I was more interested in photography than caring for the little critters so I changed schools and went to one of the highest rated commercial photography schools in the nation at that time.

 

Here is the funny thing. It was while I was at school for photography that I spent the least amount of time taking photos I think other than required for assignments.

 

My 2nd year of school I needed a 4x5 camera and once again Dad came through. He landed me an Omegaview he found in a pawnshop somewhere. It was a studio camera and I no longer have a use for it. I would like to get a good 4x5 field camera though and start doing some B&W again.

 

After college I started my own business. Actually I started several some failed some did okay, and all were photography related. I did pet photography for a while and that did real well. I started a stock photography business with a couple of other people and it failed miserably. the failure wasn't my fault though and I learned tons of stuff about business from that experience.

I've sold freelance to magazines, shot weddings, sold prints, shot tabletop for catalogs and done some commercial studio and location work.

 

THere for a while like I did in school I kind of quit shooting for fun. I've always really liked shooting but for some reason when it was a job it seemed hard to motivate myself to always have that camera with me away from work. I don't do studio work any more though I really miss it. I am doing more freelance photography again. I have also started shooting for fun again. For a while when I started shooting freelance stock photography I got into a rut of thinking "will this sell" all the time.

 

If I could do some tabletop catalog work without having to be in a huge city I think I would do that again. Otherwise I will stick to stock photography, selling some prints and things like that. I still want photography to be my profession but want to strike a nice balance where it is also my hobby. About two years ago I switched over to digital. Magazines and studios were slow to make the changes and I used that as an excuse to stick with film.

 

I told you this would be long, and I went back and took some stuff out!

[Peterjay 0]

Boy, this is a great thread. I identify strongly with Kargen's wish to strike some kind of balance. It's a difficult chore that aspiring pros should give a lot of thought to. And it's not limited to photography by any means. I know several fishing guides who have quit the business for the very same reason.