My Photography
This is my story
I have had a passion for photography since I was a small boy. My first camera was a Kodak Brownie box camera, which I still have by the way. All the cameras since, Kodak Starmight (still have!), Minolta, and a multitude of Nikon film (FM2N, N8080 still have!) and digital (Coolpix 995, D80, Z6ii) and current Z7ii have helped me down this path to where I am today.
Having a passion for photography does not necessarily make me a good photographer. However, to bastardize an old saying..... "take enough pictures and some will be good!". I have a few that I consider good enough. However, my photography is for my enjoyment, and opinions of others are not a driver.
Unfortunately, I do not seem to find the time to get out near as often as I would like. But, any time spent is time spent worthwhile.
With the family kids growing up etc etc, I have developed a passion for impromptu portraiture. At one point I thought I could make a living, or at least supplement my income as a hobby taking child portraits. But, my real job in technology did not allow the time needed to get this off the ground. Sigh!
I do not have a particular genre to my photography, but instead I enjoy trying different genres and different styles. I must admit, however, that I have always seemed to gravitate towards impromptu portraiture (likely out of necessity) and abstract stylings.
For some unknown reason, I seem to see a lot of what is commonly referred to as abstracts. There is something about abstract art that leads one to a) wonder what it is, and b) how it was taken. It may be an abstract based on colours, forms, blur or the many other facets to this art form.
When I retired from my tech job, I had the intent to travel and become some form of amateur landscape photographer. Nowadays, it is more like seeing an opportunity and taking advantage of it, with my camera or my cellphone camera (currently an iPhone 17 Pro).
Living in a rural area, with a lot of trees, ponds and grasslands, there is ample opportunity to shoot wild life. Still trying to get a good handle on my 100-400mm lens, and challenged when I add the 1.4x teleconverter which gives the 400mm end to 560 mm.
When there is no wildlife around, and I feel the need to get outside with my camera, there is always my wife's garden. Gardens are great for macro photography. No just taking pictures of her lovely flowers during the gardening season, but catching the little creatures the are also enjoying the flowers and shrubs.
For the past few decades, my passion has been sailing. Unfortunately, the body is telling me that it may be time to retire from that as well! I have, though, enjoyed photographing various aspects of this sport.