Photography..........aaaaah the mere thought of being able to take a photo worthy of taking up some valuable wall space on my OWN wall, much let alone someone else's, fills me with a challenge which I constantly strive for....but can never seem to grasp. Let me explain....
I'm a normal everyday Australian bloke living on the West Coast of the world's biggest Island (or smallest continent if you want to be picky.........miserable mongrel!!). We have some of the best light on the planet (which any photographer.........even amateur plonkers like myself) know is pretty handy for the taking of a half decent photo. Tick One!! I happen to own one of the best DSLR cameras on the market (A Canon 5D mark 11) thanks to the good wife's most excellent of graces and a decent sale price for the last house we sold. Tick Two!! And we have a 3 year old daughter who is the cutest princess that God ever breathed life into and who is a camera hog of the highest order. Tick Three!!
Combine that with the fact that the in-laws live in the Southwest of the USA which is one of the most diverse, photographed, National Park endowed parts of North America, and I really do have a lot of opportunities to take some great photos. So I try my best to take photos for my family and friends that please no-one else but them (and me!!)..........they're never going to grace the walls of any multi named building with the word museum at the end of it, but as you will hopefully find out, doesn't faze me in the slightest.
I've never had a lesson or attended a camera seminar of any sort. I subscribe to "Outdoor Photographer" magazine from the states, have the must read Scott Kelby bible for scrubbers "The Digital Photography Book" volumes 1,2 and 3, and have a patient cousin who, as a serious(ly) good amateur photographer has been more than forthcoming with advice and encouragement.
Do I hope to get better?? Yeah of course I do. But I'm going to do it under my own steam. And most importantly, the wank factor simply isn't going to exist with me. I've read too many articles by albeit tremendous photographers, who are simply that far up themselves that it is difficult to work out where their head ends and their lower colon begins. Photography isn't some world changing deeply emotional event....it's the simple taking of a photo to make a record of a moment in time. Full stop. End of story. At least in this humble correspondents mind anyway. Anything above and beyond that is a pile of BS.
So the reason I've put together this blog is to mostly allow my acquaintances and family in various far flung corners of the globe to keep up to date with what's taking my camera's "eye". I am also planning to offer a commentary to accompany the shots which will probably be of absolutely no interest to anyone other than said family and friends. And I am sure that the plethora of camera owners who may happen to come across my tome, will happily pass comment and tell me how badly I suck, as most keyboard heroes are want to be. And if I cared then I might be upset.........but I don't, so therefore I'm not.
Feel free to come on a hopefully humourous, guaranteed rank amateur tour of a "happy snappers" journey from blandness to mediocrity.
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