Happy World Photography Day

Today is World Photography Day...

To celebrate, I'm posting an image that I don't think I've ever posted before, even though it's one of my favorites.

I shot this back in 2005 with my Olympus OM-1, the camera that I learned to shoot with... my first "real" camera. I worked as a camp counselor one summer to earn the money to buy this particular camera and I still use it to this day. I think I've got a roll of Ilford Delta 3200 film in it right now that I need to finish off.

I thought this image would be appropriate because I shot it in Paris. On this date, 172 years ago, the French government proclaimed the invention of the Daguerreotype by Louis Daguerre as a "Gift Free to the World".

There's some controversy about whether the Daguerreotype or the Calotype (discovered by William Fox Talbot) was first. For my part, I'm just glad these people were up for experimentation.

Thank you gentlemen... and all the other photographers I've been priveleged to learn from as well.

An Oldie but a Goodie... The Friday Photo

I decided sometime ago to post random images on Fridays.... giving no explanation as to what they were or where they were taken. I'm diverging from that goal today.

I shot this image several years ago when I was in Paris. I was still shooting film regularly and was quite frustrated with my work. I decided to treat myself by giving in to the tourist in me and devoting some time to shoot my own interpretation of the Eiffel Tower.
What makes me proud of this shot --- besides the fact that capturing it helped re-energize my creativity --- was the fact that I captured the bird as it was. It is not an edited shot. I saw the pigeon land on the planter and waited for what seemed like five full minutes for it to fly off. I even resisted the urge to toss a pebble in it's direction to force it into flight so I could keep walking.

I'm getting ready to add Intermediate DSLR classes to my teaching roster at the Light Factory. I think I may introduce the students to some of the old school ways of shooting to really give them command of their equipment.