One of the most exciting things in my life right now is my new camera! I finally joined the digital photography age, and got my first Digital SLR camera this Christmas. I so missed being able to take photos manually, with a camera that allowed me to set the aperture and other settings. I now feel sorry for my son, Dylan, who only has mediocre photos of himself as a baby. Sylvie, if I can help it, should have some real stunners!
I have dabbled in photography for a long time. My undergraduate degree is in film production and studies, and during that time I studied the elements of framing shots to tell a story and convey meaning. I took photography classes in university, and learned about developing in darkrooms (I process which I love). But, when the digital age hit, I guess I was a step behind. My point and shoot was not cutting it. So, now I feel as though I have finally arrived (well, maybe that’s a bit dramatic, but I do feel good).
And so, in honour of my new camera, I have made myself a promise to take photos everyday. Partly, to see all that is beautiful in life, and partly for practice, practice, practice. I have dreams of a little home studio, and am excited about reconnecting with the art of photography. I started off wanting to take beautiful photos of my kids, but now that I am on a role who knows how far I might go?
Yesterday, while flitting around the web, I landed on a great site. MCP Actions is a company that sells photoshop presets for your photos – to make them look really pretty. They have a weekly photo challenge, and I thought, “Perfect! A challenge I can handle.” You submit one photo a week, and they even give you handy little themes to follow.
So I have a new banner on my blog and a new commitment. I’ll be posting my weekly photo on my blog, so you can all see how truly lovely it is.
Nice. A worthy challenge. By the way, I think its great you are still good with the manual cameras. They can evoke feelings no digital SLR can. Besides everyone can be a photographer with the digital; not so with the manual.
Thanks for the encouragement. You’re right, I shouldn’t forget to value my manual. Maybe I’ll even get around to setting up my old darkroom one of these days…
Claire is waving hello to the pretty little angel with drool coming off her lip. Lovely photo 🙂
Hello lovely Sylvs. Question, do you have to have photoshop for these challenges? I am thinking of joining up!
Not on our new computer. It’s on my “want” list. Anyways, going unedited for now. Figure it will make me a more careful photographer, and give me extra skills practice!