I Got My Camera Back

After nearly 3 weeks, my camera is fixed and back in action.  It was quite fun and educational experimenting with film but I must say that it is nice to have a digital in my hands again, one of the biggest reasons being that I don't need to dish out $9 per roll of film.

Trying to shoot with film has definitely piqued my interest though and reminded me that I still have tons to learn about photography.  The time while my camera was getting fixed, I thought a lot about what direction I want to go in with photography.  I have a few thoughts brewing in my mind, but they are still a little too premature to say anything right now.

On a side note, I have added the Nikon F6 to my wish list.  Perhaps in a couple years...

Needless to say, I went out shooting this weekend, hoping to catch something...anything really.  And even if I didn't, man did it feel nice to be walking along the harbor with my camera and Rain.  It was a cloudy weekend, but the sky cleared up Sunday afternoon and provided a nice sunset to welcome back the return of my camera.

This was a 25 or 30 second exposure at f16 and ISO100.  Because the contrast between the sky and the foreground was so great, I increased the fill light in photoshop and then boosted the colors.  More detail in the shadow was recovered using some HDR editing.  It was my first time using this technique, and I will probably experiment with it more on future shots.

It All Started With a Dog

Like most journeys, there is a specific moment in time that I can point to and say "Yes, this is where it started".  For me it was when I decided to get a dog.  It doesn't really have a lot to do with photography, but this really is the beginning.

I believe that people tend to gravitate toward a certain course in life regardless of what situation they are placed in.  No, I don't subscribe to destiny.  Quite the opposite in fact.  I like to believe that people are empowered to decide how to shape their lives.

What I am trying to say is that no matter where someone is born or how they are brought up, they tend to make millions of decisions, both big and small, that ultimately take them to where they want to be and what they want to do. 

Sometimes that end-goal is clear from the very start of the journey.  For others it is just a hazy feeling that sways day to day choices one way or the other.  I tend to be the latter.

I had always wanted a dog but our family never bought one.  It was one of those childhood dreams that vanished like dreams often do when you wake up and realize you have to face the day.  And the day I actually decided to get a dog, it couldn't have been further from my mind.  

It was the middle of November.  It was quite cold, as it gets here in Utah, and all I was focused on was getting through another work day.  Every so often I'll check the company classifieds to see if anyone was getting rid of anything that might be of value to me.  That day, someone had posted that a friend had just had a litter of Labrador pups and was looking for homes for them.  By the end of the shift, I had pretty much made up my mind that I was going to get one of these pups.

A couple weeks later, I called Joe, the owner, and asked if I could see the litter.  He lived in a quaint little town about 40 minutes south of where I lived.  When I arrived, he told me that I was one of the first to look at the pups.  As I picked them up one by one, I noticed one little black pup on the far side of the yard away from everyone else.  All the other pups were snuggling up around my feet, but she was by herself stumbling through dirt and weeds just exploring the far reaches of her little world.

She was the one I wanted to bring home with me.

The day that I was to take her home I stopped by a local Best Buy and walked out with my first DSLR--a Christmas present for myself.  It was a Nikon D3100 with a 18-55mm kit lens.  The only reason I bought it was to take pictures of her, this yet to be named dog.  It was either going to be Aspen, Willow, or Rain.  The day was overcast with a few showers here and there.  With help from the light drizzle during my drive to Joe's place, I decided on a name.


December 18th, 2010--I drove home with a beginner DSLR in hand and Rain in a laundry basket.  Photography and that dog have been a part of my life ever since.  I'm not sure where this will end up, whatever it is...but I'm sure this is when it all started.

That there is Joe's hand.

Rain and the Nikon D3100