JUST PhotographIN'

Last night [12-13-2012], I was outside trying to capture a few “astrophotography” shots of the Geminid Meteor Shower.

As I mentioned in the “Church Project” post, photography is about capturing moments and photographers try their best to be prepared for the moment so that they are able to capture it.  It does not always turn out with a favorable outcome.  I was trying to capture meteors randomly falling through the atmosphere and because it was basically my first attempt, I failed…  When I say I failed, I mean that I was not able to capture a picture to share!

However, that brings me to the point of this post.  I learned from my attempt last night.  I know that what I tried did not work.  That means that I have to “go back to the drawing board:” read the instruction manual for the camera again, research what other people have tried, maybe I need a different accessory or piece of hardware.  Then, I need to practice again.  The old saying “practice makes perfect” applies to so many things including photography.  Maybe next time I take the camera out to shoot a night scene I will get one good photo out of however many I attempt.  The next time after that, maybe I get two.  Sooner or later I will have practiced enough that I will know that I can get a good photo because I have accomplished it enough times – I will know what to expect.

That applies to almost any type of photography.  I would not expect to get a decent portrait photograph the first time I hit the shutter release button with a person in front of the camera.  If I am willing to learn, then maybe I will expect that.  My objective is to continually learn, push the envelope of what I know and apply what I learn to every situation I encounter [if it applies].  Photography is a great field for this principle because there are endless opportunities.  The only thing limiting what is able to be captured with a camera is the person behind the lens!  [I am sure that has been said before!]

Of course, I will excel in some areas over others – that is to say, I am not going to put as much effort or I may not enjoy capturing some moments.  That does not mean that there are not other people that can capture those moments, and do a good job at it!

The last two weeks or so have been full of taking and editing pictures.  I was tasked with documenting the most current renovation project at the church that I attend and creating a picture slideshow.

The slideshow itself is not just about the latest renovation project.  It is also showing projects that have been or need to be completed around the church property.  I am not posting the slideshow here because it is for the church.

This was a fun and challenging project.  First off, architecture hasn’t been one of my photo subjects.  I had to use creative techniques to shoot and portray entire rooms or the entire structure in one photo.  This is also partly do to my limited amount of equipment at the moment.

Second, well, it is a church building and most churches are open on more than just Sunday for various reasons.  Needless to say, there are circumstances that come up and you just have to adjust.  I ended up going in on a Saturday thinking that nobody else would be there and ended up having to leave almost as soon as I got there because people were gathering for a funeral.

I enjoyed the opportunity to photograph the church.  As I mentioned, architecture hasn’t been my primary photographic subject.  That is one of the things that makes photography fun though.  You can photograph just about any subject: wildlife, flowers, landscapes, architecture, portraits of people, special events, etc.

Photography, to me, is about capturing moments.  That is why I adopted the philosophy not to hesitate to take any picture.  It may not be the “perfect” set up, right time or lighting, etc., but you never know how a photo may turn out…  What I mean by that is, you may think it’s a horrible photo, but it may inspire someone else in a way you never intended.  Granted that set up, timing and light are all important factors to capturing the moment.

That is how I felt most of the time that I was shooting at the church.  Most of the photos that I took were not what I would normally take or the moment wasn’t right, but the feedback that I have already received tells me that other people appreciate seeing the church from the perspectives that I was able to capture with the camera.

Well, back at the beginning of the year, I came up with a theme for 2012 – “renewals.”  So, here I am creating a blog to renew a venture in photography that began back when I was in college, and even before.  My hope is that I will be able to reach out to a broader fan base through this blog and give a little bit of the inspiration, or behind the scenes look at some of my photography.

The theme of renewals goes beyond just photography, being that many people have more than one passion or hobby in their lives.