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Photography and Me
My first camera was a Kodak Brownie point and shoot. Fixed aperture, fixed focus, just push the button and then roll the knob to advance. It was produced from 1953 to 1957. I think my Grandmother gave it to me when I was six or seven years old.
Later I managed to get my hands on my Mother's old Balda Baldinette. Another 50's era camera but this time in 35mm format. It was fun and interesting but I wanted to do more!
I then started playing with my Mother's Asahi Pentax. I slowly learned a bit about exposure times and light meters. Still, some of my best shots were best guess's one exposures. I have one in particular that I took of Mount Tamalpais just after sunset on a partially cloudy day. Pretty much every color in the rainbow was there... Somewhere along the line I broke down and bought a camera of my own, a Minolta SRT 100. Soon I was looking for various len's I could buy and use for my nefarious functions. In particular I was a freelance photog for the yearbook in my senior year in high school. It was amazing what you could catch with a 400mm lens! Bwahahaha! Off to college I went and with that time I took a break from photography. Who had the time for that sort of thing when you were buried in Calculus, Physics and Chemistry homework? Oh sure I took a couple of photos of life in the dorms and such but nothing significant. After college I started working full time and found myself with something called "disposable income". That meant more toys! That meant a step up to my Minolta X700. Soon I had all sorts of cool lenses to play with and along with my motorcycle habit all sorts of things to shoot. What fun!
As time went on I found that less was more. I was more inclined to stop and shoot photos if I didn't have a huge bag full of lenses and such with me. The new point and shoot cameras were becoming more and more practical for travel and such. It was easier to toss one into my jacket pocket while riding cross-country on the motorcycle so I could stop, point, shoot and scoot. Along came the Canon ELPH 2. Though tiny compared to a normal SLR this little camera had other cool options. You could chose one of three different formats including panoramic mode for you photos. The zoom was fairly good and it did well up close and personal. I also bought the cordless remote for it so I could set up some interesting self portraits while on the road. It was rugged too! I had one tossed of my motorcycle at 35 mph and it continued to work just fine after it's terrible tumble. Alas technology has a way of passing you up. Such was the case with the ELPH. Film was soon to become a thing of history with the advent of the digital camera. You no longer needed to carry three dozen rolls of film with you when traveling across the continent. All those rolls will now fit on one tiny little flash card the size of a postage stamp. Though resistant at first, I finally allowed myself to be sucked into the digital age. My first digital camera and still my favorite is my Nikon Coolpix 4500. I first met this camera (actually it's preceding version, the 990) in Baja. Some friends of mine had one and they were doing some fabulous stuff with it. Upon returning home I started shopping around and within a month had my very own.
Cool features include a swivel head that allows you to position the camera above your head, down low or in other places you would normally not be able to achieve. You swivel the head so you can see the display and setup your shot. As with most new digitals you can take movies. Unlike most common digitals you could buy aftermarket lenses to attach and increase the capabilities of the camera. In my case a wide angle and a 3x teleconverter were soon added to my collection. Last but not least a 4 megapixel resolution CCD. Since most of my photos are ending up on the web this was perfect for what I needed. Alas it would not end there. There was one more step to be taken. My kayaking habit has put me in dangerous waters. Digital cameras and water generally don't mix. Sure I managed to find an interesting flexible case for my Nikon that is supposed to be good to 10 meters but it's hard to use and I'm still not sure it's that good. Why take the risk? Plus most of my on the water shooting is at sea level. I really didn't need something too technical, just something convenient.
Sratch that! My Optio WP died in the Galapagos! Guess they really do mean 3 meters max depth! Whups! Meet the replacement! My new Optio W20! It wasn't my intention to go out and replace my Optio WP but I got a little over zealous in diving during my first snorkeling trip in the Galapagos and went deeper than the gaskets could handle. The rest as they say is history.
Rather than attempt a costly repair I just spent $300 on a new camera. This one is 7 megapixels but is even less "dive-worthy" than the old camera. Let's just say I intend to use it only for kayaking and damp environments rather than snorkeling. The features are pretty much the same as the older Optio. The viewing screen on the back is larger and there are a few more shooting options but the battery is the same, the chip and the general operation. Can't wait to use this one on the water! So in a nutshell that's my progression from novice to advanced novice photographer. There is so much to learn about photography that to truly do it justice I would need to dedicate a lot more time and effort to the study. Instead I will continue to amble along learning things as I go and as you can see, collect new cameras as they and I advance. Ciao! Craig
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