Hey Y'all ! How are you doing this week? Me ? Pretty well. This week I want to talk about he past. We all have one and most are very different. But the past I wan't to talk about is our photography past. More importantly the camera's that we used or owned that shaped how we see things and how we do things when it comes to photography. Some of our most basic instincts and feelings are formed when we are children and the things that surrounded us. For example when I grew up as a child in the 60's and 70's when black and white was still a big thing. I can remember watching the moon landing on a black and white TV with rabbit ears trying to adjust the picture for my dad. I was the remote! LOL But now my grandchildren  were born with phones that took photo's so they have always had a camera in their hands that could take video as well as stills. So their experiences will be much different than mine. Growing up in a lower income family meant we didn't have fancy cameras. We had cheap ones that were only brought out for special occasions like birthdays, Christmas or a vacation that was taken by the family. This is when I got to use the camera. So lets look at the camera's that shaped me.

Kodak Brownie. The Kodak Brownie has been around for a long time and had many variations from made from cardboard to plastic. The one I Brownie Memories got to use on family vacations or special occasions was a plastic one. Really no Focus just point shoot and advance the film until full and then rewind and then send to the drug store to get developed.  I would say the mid 1960's to early 70's is when we used this camera the most. This camera has disappeared from our family probably sold in a yard sale wish I still had it.

Poloroid camera. I do remember using this camera and was amazed that it would flash and the photo you could see right away. The photo's didn't seem to last like the film ones did as we only have one or two photo's left that were taken with the Polaroid .  Film then as now was expensive.

Pentax K1000. My first real camera that I bought was a Pentax K1000. This a totally manual SLR 35mm film camera. Back before the internet we had catalogs that you could buy things through. I bought this camera from Sears and Roebuck specialty catalog. The camera cost me 99 dollars.  It had a 50mm lens and the film I bought from a company called Clark. When you bought the film you also got an envelope to send the exposed film and in a week or so you would get your photo's back in the mail. I got this camera when I was a teenager and took it to high school with me many times and still have photo's of people and events from my high school days. I purchased a 135mm lens for this camera from a friend and still have the lens. So I had a small telephoto at 2.8 that I used. I sold this camera after I joined the military while stationed in the Philippines and hated to part with it .

Old Eyes Pentax MX. My next camera that replaced the K1000 was the Pentax MX. The only thing different from the K1000 is that this had a self timer on it so you could shoot selfies or photo's with the family. I shot a lot of color slide film with this camera and developed myself. I still have this camera and that first 135mm lens that I bought as a teenager and still shoot occasionally with it. I used it until I got my first digital and haven't looked back.

Kodak DX 4900 Digital- This first digital camera was crazy I could take photo's and put on a computer right away! I got this in early 2000's maybe 2002 or so. Before this camera I was developing and printing black and white but after this camera no more chemicals and converting my bathroom into a darkroom. This camera changed the way I took pictures .  I could see the photo's instantly!

I have had many digital camera's since that first Kodak digital camera when I went to Nikon and shot with many camera's and then I switched to Sony and have gone threw many cameras and still shoot Sony. But those first cameras when I was looking through a viewfinder for the first time and seeing the Square of what the shot would look like changed me forever and gave me this great hobby that I have now and enjoy decades later. What camera's made you? What was your first one? Let me know in the comments. Until Next week Get out and Shoot!

Hey Y'all ! Hope your having a great week. Me? Not too bad. Today's blog is about stepping out of your comfort zone in photography. Now I would like to take credit for coming up with this topic but really I used the Digital Story podcast my favorite photography podcast that comes out weekly and you should be listening to it also. But during this podcast Derrick Story was talking about getting out of your comfort zone and trying something new.  I know a lot of people that only shoot Landscapes or Wildlife or Natural light only. Thats the only thing that they will shoot. And if they pushed themselves they would find out that shooting stuff that your not used to will make you a better Landscape, Wildlife or any type of photography. Pushing the boundaries of what your used to will make you better.  It certainly has for me. When I got into digital Kimbrell ChristmasMax Stansell Photography photography I was mainly a Landscape photographer but then I started shooting a lot of product photography with flashes and all sorts of props and doing a lot of experimental photography.  That made my landscape photography better. It made me look at light in a different way it made me look at perspective in a different way. It made me a better photographer. And it made me smile.  The work I was doing experimenting was turning out pretty good . People actually noticed .  My landscape stuff people would look and say "pretty" but that was about it but the experimental stuff I was Raven's Roost Va. doing got them thinking and I got responses like "how'd you do that?"  Thats awesome! We should have a workshop on that. But I was selfish I was doing it to make my other photography better and I was learning new skills that would crossover to all types of photography.

Let me tell you a story of one of my friends Mike. He is a fantastic photographer. He mainly shoots Wildlife and Sports. Really anything with a big lens! He recently went on a trip with me and my photography wingman Robert to the low country of Savannah Ga and Charleston Sc. Where we mainly did street , architecture type of photography. The lens that he had on his camera 90% of the trip was a 24-70. Which was way smaller than the 800mm EagleThis Eagle was at a Photo Expo at Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina. lens that he brought with him and only pulled out once. I could tell that he was a little nervous on the first day but after just a little walking I could see the smile on his face and his camera kept going up to his face. I think he carried a larger lens with him maybe a 28-300 or something but he didn't pull it out. He was shooting and having a ball.  The next day was more of the same and I think he pulled the 800 out to shoot at a distant Lighthouse but the rest of the day it was the same 24-70.  I think the whole trip and experience really changed the way he might think about photography.  Like I said before Mike was already a fantastic photographer but I think he had forgot how to shoot with just a 24-70 and have fun.  The photo's that he produced were excellent but the smile on his face while shooting was even better.

Blue Water Splash Its important not to get stuck in just one way of doing things whether it's maybe only using Photoshop or Lightroom to edit photo's and maybe using some other software maybe just on a trial run just to see how it works. For me its stepping into infrared photography and editing it in Lightroom and photoshop. At one point I was doing a lot of composite work merging two or three photo's together to make something altogether different. Sometimes Its just using one lens for a day just to get you out of that comfort zone of being able to use whatever focal length you have in your bag. If you only have a 50mm you have to figure out a way for it to work and it takes you out of that comfort zone making you think. If you think that your shooting the same thing all the time  Man Waiting for T Boston you probably are. So think outside of that box and try something completely different. If you only shoot wildlife try street photography. If you're a street photographer try Landscape. Get out of that comfortable photography zone that you've put yourself in and try something new. It will improve your photography and broaden your horizons. So until next week get out and shoot ! Something Different.

Hey Everyone! Hope you had a super week! Mine? Pretty good thanks for asking. This week I want to talk about shooting in the rain and some tips and tricks to make it easier to do so. First of all why would you ever shoot in the rain? Well sometimes it just can't be avoided. Here in North Carolina the weather pattern has been nice during the week and rain on the weekend. I think it's been 9 weekends in a row now. Now if  your retired like me you can wait and go when the weather is nice but let me tell you sometimes shooting in bad weather is the time to shoot!  You can get lots of photos that you wouldn't normally get. With all the water and puddles for reflections there are all types of opportunities to get unique images. You may have planned a trip way in advance and the weather didn't cooperate. You still want to get those memories. You might be on an outing and the bottom falls out and you get wet you should be  prepared to keep you and your gear dry. So there are many reasons to shoot in the rain or what to do to protect your gear from the rain.

Know your Gear. All camera's are not made the same. Knowing your gear and how weather proof it is , is important. Mine for example is an older Sony and not really great at being weather protected.  Usually higher ended cameras are more weather resistant than entry level cameras. And some companies just do a better job at weather proofing their cameras with gaskets and just engineering of the camera. Now I'm not afraid to take my camera out in light rain or sprinkles but when the heaver stuff comes out I need to protect my camera against water damage. Some lenses come with gaskets on the side that hooks to the camera to keep moisture and water out but some don't so even if your camera body is a good weather sealed camera but the lens is not there is a potential for water to seep in between the lens and the body. So knowing what gear you have and how protected it is against the elements is a very important part of shooting in the rain. 

Being prepared for emergencies is another thing that can save your equipment if the weather is bad. I was out shooting a waterfall one day I had hiked over a mile in to get to the waterfall. The weather was nice but out of the blue one of those afternoon thunderstorms popped up and I got drenched ! I had put my camera back in my bag but my bag wasn't weather proof either. So at first it would protect but after a while in the rain the bag would get soaked and damage my camera . Luckily for some reason I had a full sized trash bag with me that I put my camera bag into to keep it as dry as possible. What Im getting at is be prepared. Now in all of my camera bags I carry an emergency poncho. They are made out of thin plastic and are made for only one use but they can save your butt in case of a sudden downpour. Its about a 5 dollar investment to save your expensive camera gear.

Planning to shoot in the rain? There are many ways to protect your gear in the rain. First the simple stuff. Wear a rain jacket to keep you dry you can tuck you camera under your jacket when not shooting and bring it out to shoot. Using a small umbrella is another great way to shoot in the rain. They are quick and easy to deploy when it starts raining and they are great for shielding your camera from the rain .  They make rain covers to go on your camera to protect from the rain. You can get inexpensive ones for 5 bucks or so or really expensive ones.  They work great but can be cumbersome to use so bring your patients with you when shooting in the rain because it is more difficult. Another simple thing to do is carry one of those disposable shower caps like you get at a hotel. You can wrap one of these around your camera body and maybe lens depending on how large your lens is to keep it dry.  Once your gear is protected then its time to shoot. Keeping your lens clean and dry is difficult. Use a lens hood on your lens it will help keep the water droplets from getting on the front of your lens. Try to never point your lens upwards towards the rain. I know it sounds simple but I always do it. Bring lots of dry microfiber cloths with you to keep your lens free and clear of water droplets. Don't change lenses while in the rain! There are just too many chances for water to sneak into your camera body once it's wide open to the elements. Be very careful even if your inside after shooting in the rain. A wet rain jacket or hat could have water drip into your camera .  The goal here is to use common sense to protect you gear when shooting in the rain.

Try to enjoy the experience. With all of the water around look for reflections! The colors are more vibrant when they are wet. Using a polarizer filter can come in handy with all of the reflections out there. Experiment , Experiment, Experiment with your photography in the rain. Motion of water falling or running down a window, Puddles, People rushing to get out of the weather with a news paper over their heads. There are so many fun and unique possibilities when it's raining. I hope some of these tips will help you get out and shoot in the rain!