Who needs quality photos…

So here I am back again.

As an update to the last post for those playing at home… It didn’t feel right to ask anything, and I think that was the right decision. I’m really good friends with her and that’s awesome. It means good chats and good times spent hanging out.

Onto this post though…

Ever since I bought my first camera at the start of 2006 I’ve been hooked. Over the past few years I’ve seen my skill and experience increase, and so has my gear. From the beginning with just one camera and 2 lenses, I now own probably just under $10k in equipment. Many I know will scoff when they read this, but it’s true. One of the reasons why I’ve been able to amass such a large amount of gear has been that I don’t drink of smoke. I’ll still happily go out with friends, but won’t drink. That isn’t to say that I am against alcohol or anything like that, don’t mind a glass of wine when catching up with friends or at a dinner, but generally I’ll be the soft drink kid. But I’m getting side-tracked, so back to the point.

The thing with digital photography nowadays is that everyone with a digital camera thinks that they can take a photo that will be as good as one on a magazine cover. To some extent this can be achieved, but there is a point at which you need to expand into better gear to get the better results. Expensive gear does not make a person a better photographer though. You have to be skilled so that you can get the most out of what you’ve got. I didn’t really expand into a pro camera until last year, mainly due to money, but also due to the fact that I needed more from the camera. This is when you upgrade.

Coming back to less expensive gear, everyone should try and get the most out of what they’ve got. I try and teach this every week as I go up to the local primary school and help out with the photography program. What I do in the program is get the kids to become familiar with all of the functions of the camera. First you start with the basic principles of photography and then move up. From every group there are always a handful of kids that something clicks and everything that I’ve said starts to register. This is why I coach youth sport and help out the kids, to see that moment when the light bulb turns on, and suddenly they are into it and excelling. The kids only use little digital cameras, and there are always a number of photos that so many people that went straight into DSLR’s couldn’t get. It’s about refining your eye and visualising what you want to do. These principles apply to many experiences in life. By getting the kids to concentrate early on and keep practicing you know that you’re setting them up for something good

So as you can see, most of the time it is not the gear that makes the photographer. However, there are many times when it is best to get someone that does have more knowledge and better gear than your own for an event or certain project. This is where I step in. What got me thinking about this recently was an opportunity to take some photos for a number of uni teams at the uni games in september. Already I take lots of sports photos, so that isn’t the issue. The issue is that no one ever thinks of getting someone to take photos, or they think that a mum of dad on the sidelines will get a good enough photo simply because they have a digital camera. This annoys me immensely. I’ve now coached sporting teams for 3 years at my high school, and it annoys me how little emphasis is put on recording the students playing. When I was in grade 12 and got my first camera I was out at most rugby games and took quite a few photos. I’ll admit now that my skill has progressed a long way since then, but it was the fact that the boys had a physical memory of their time playing rugby for the school. A number of parents even told my mum to thank me for doing it. I’ve taken photos over the years that I’ve coached, and they’ve always been met with great appreciation. People want physical memories, and no one is letting the organisational bodies know. I even sent a letter in to the high school the year after I graduated offering my services for weekend sport fixtures. I was turned down and told that ‘as I did in grade 12, other boys have also taken up photographing weekend sport’. This was total bullshit crap. I knew that no one was, it was the fact that people didn’t see photography as a worthy expense. Their loss though.

I play club touch football, and over the past 2 seasons I’ve started taking photos at the odd match. These have been greatly appreciated, because once again no one had a physical record/memory. So this season I’m looking to spread the photos over most of the club’s teams and get people that memory that is missing.

What got me thinking about this issue of photography neglect was a conversation with a mate about the upcoming uni games. It was a bit pricey for me to participate but I said that I’ll turn up and get some photos. He said that, ‘photos would be awesome’ and suggested that there are lots of other sports that I could take photos of as he was sure everyone would appreciate having quality photos of their games. THANK YOU! This type of thing is what I love to hear. When people can actually appreciate that I can deliver a high quality result and that it will be enjoyed. Sure you can take a little digital camera down and stand on the sidelines, but nothing will be as crisp, as close, as detailed, or even as well framed. So that’s my plan. Head to uni games and take some really good shots of as many UQ teams as I can get to. I’m going to try and contact someone close to the organisation of the teams, so that maybe we can set something up

Ok so I don’t know if this all flowed well, or even makes sense to a lot of people, but it was on my mind and I thought it would be good to get down in type.

I saw an advanced screening of the upcoming film ‘District 9′ last night, so I’ll give you all a taste of what it’s about and why you should all see it in the next post.

Nelson

and the rain just keeps pouring down!

So i just got back from a day and a bit at the sunshine coast. At the moment it could be called anything but the sunshine coast though.

I arrived with the family, and the clouds were foreboding. Stepping out the car, it didn’t look good. After a couple of hours, it started. First it was light, and then it poured. And it continued to pour for the next day. Apparently it’s now the wettest April in a long time. This statement makes a bit of sense, because never have I heard of flash flooding around Gympie during easter.

Even though it rained a lot ( ~200mm in 3 hrs), I surprisingly didn’t mind it. In Brisbane you get used to the mugginess and fluctuating heat. In the recent past there hasn’t been much rain though. This ‘drought’ caused our dam levels to drop to near 20% overall and caused level 6 (?) water restrictions. Naturally we all stepped up to the plate and kept our water usage down. So when it decided to rain heavily for an extended period, it kind of felt nice.

The good thing about QLD weather is that when it rains in summer/autumn, it doesn’t get that cold. You can sit in front of the TV while enjoying a quite relaxing temperature range.

It was a shame that the weather decided to turn bad, because this meant surfing was out of the question. The surf was crap bad, which was annoying because it’s one the things that relaxes me. The rain meant no photography outside either. Which was doubly annoying.

So from my easter weekend came some positives and negatives. On one hand, I got to enjoy the rain for once, but on the other hand, there was no surf and I couldn’t take any photos. Oh and a major positive has got to be the easter eggs. Chocolate for breakfast only happens twice a year, so you have to relish it when it comes around.

I’ll be doing a fair bit of stuff over these next few days, so I’ll try and keep the updates coming thick and fast.

Hope everyone had an enjoyable easter and got to relax a bit.

mid-semester break time!… minimal break though

Ok so uni is now on mid-semester break… yes! And to make it even better, the Masters starts in about 6 hours. YES

The problem that arises is that some uni subjects have decided to destroy the break by putting their assignments over it. First question, why? Second question, why? Fortunately for me, my subjects this semester mean that I don’t have any exams around the break. Also fortunate, is the fact that in 3rd yr science you have a 3rd yr non-teaching week. It’s a shame, because this week is after the mid-semester break. That means, assignments!

For a science course, I’m at uni 5 days a week. It pretty much is my full time job. That is why I take my holidays, when I get them, so relaxed if I can. I want to get as far away from uni as possible. This means that I’ll be heading to the Sunshine Coast for a couple of day for some surfing and photos. It’s really annoying that I’ll have to come back from that break and get stuck into work straight away. Oh well, nothing can be done.

Wish it was like the northern hemisphere and we were just about to finish semester

I’ll probably be posting some photos on flickr in the near future, whether they be from fame promo shots, or my travels to mooloolaba. Just trying to get away from uni

Hope everyone is having a good break so far. Try to enjoy it and relax, too much work is just hurtful to yourself.

So it begins…

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