Reflections

I  miss film photography. I miss the smells of the film and the chemicals, the feel of the paper, and the anticipation of seeing my photos for the first time. I even miss the fears that I had screwed up somewhere and that nothing would come out at all.

My life as a photographer, for a long time, was defined by those things. What I learned as a film photographer bleeds through into my rebirth as a digital photographer.

I still try to take my pictures in such a way as to minimize (or eliminate) post-processing. I try not to be lazy, assuming that I can fix my images after the fact. I know the “rules of photography” (Sunny 16, Rule of Thirds, etc.). I understand the zone system (and use it daily!).

Instant gratification has its place, but that doesn’t mean that everyone with a cameraphone is a photographer.

You need to know the rules before you can break them…and you need to understand them before you can use them.  Some moments are fleeting, and missing one because you didn’t take the time to learn the basics is devastating.

Beluga Whale

Taken in March of 2004 with a Maxxum 7xi (film camera!) and a Sigma 28-105 lens at SeaWorld in San Diego. exposure information unrecorded, no flash

I apologize for using Wikipedia as a reference, given that all content is user generated; however, the explanations of the rules and zone system are well explained for people who are new to them as of the time I linked them. -m