My Camera and Eye

Where do I start? High school, mid 1970s. I took a photography class because I wanted something easy to do, a class in which I could get a good grade and have fun. Little did I know the lasting impact that class would have on my life.

I can't remember the teacher's name, but I do remember that he was old and in poor health. He was a likeable guy and a decent teacher. He taught us the basics, gave out photographic assignments, and let us use the darkroom.

Aha the darkroom! That's where all the magic happened. The enlarger, chemicals, light, timing - all tools of the trade. Exposed film took on new life as negatives. Negatives revealed the world as they were turned into prints. Prints became evidence of photographic ability. Film to negatives to photographic trophies. I loved the darkroom.

I wasn't enough for me to take photographs and then let a lab do all of the finishing work. I wanted to be in control of my photographs. I wanted to create art. So, I tried to convince my parents that it would be good for me to have a darkroom in order to get better grades. I don't know if they believed it, but I got a darkroom - I put it in my closet. I quit using the darkroom after High School. I just didn't have the time - college, work, family, etc. It's just a well, the darkroom is a computer these days. The darkroom taught me a lot. I still carry that knowledge with me to this day.

My first camera was a Nikkormat FT3, 35mm SLR. It had a Nikkor 50mm f/2.0 lens. I also had a Vivitar 70-210 zoom lens, which I used more often than the 50mm. The Nikkormat was made by Nikon and was an advanced amateur level camera. However, to a 16 year old high school kid it was professional perfection. I loved that camera. It gave me many years of faithful service. I still have it, but it doesn't get much use these days. It has earned a well deserved rest. I like the Nikon company and its family of cameras and lenses. I still use Nikon products today - cameras, lenses, and their editing software Capture NX2. My opinion.......Nikon products are second to none. I've got my eye on their new D7000 DSLR - HD movie capability. Who knows, maybe I try my hand at video?

Meanwhile, back at school. I spent that year learning the basics of photography - shutter speed, aperture, f stops, lighting, focusing, depth of field, and so on. I also learned the basics of darkroom technique - chemical baths, film developing, paper types, printing, exposure, dodging, burning, and enlarging. Of course, all of this was done in Black and White. Black and White was king back then. It's hard to beat a well executed Black and White photograph. That class hooked me on photography and I have loved it ever since.

Well, things have changed since the mid '70s. We are now in the digital age. We use memory cards instead of film, the darkroom is called "photo editing" and is done on a computer. I resisted at first. I thought that nothing could replace film. I was going to use film till the end. The end came sooner than I thought. I gave in and bought a digital camera.

Wow! What a learning curve. Oh the basics are the same, but everything else is different. The cameras are miniature computers with a vast array of settings and buttons. And photo editing! What can I say? It's a whole world in itself. It was all a little overwhelming at first. However, I made it through. Like eating an Elephant I took it one bite at a time. Don't get me wrong. I haven't learned it all. There's still a lot of Elephant left to eat. I continue to learn, but I'm far enough along to be able to produce photographs of sufficient quality. I'm not bad at it, but I want to get better.

Cameras will change. Software will change. Computers will change. Whether I like it or not I will change. My love for photography? Oh, that will never change. Photography will always be with me. It's a part of my soul.

Happy shooting,

Ken

Connect with me on Facebook

Visit my websites @

http://kenwilliams.artistwebsites.com

www.kenwilliamsphotography.com