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Ten years ago I resumed my passion for photography, but for a moment lets travel back in time just about 46 years: I was just 16 years old, had an old '49 Ford, and was out driving down the Carmel coast one Saturday morning when I spotted the "Greatest Photographer on Planet Earth" coming the other direction in his black and white station-wagon with camera platform on top. "Hey", I said to myself, "that's Ansel Adams!". So, I turned around and followed him into Carmel where he visited the post-office and disappeared into a coffee shop. Being MUCH too shy to approach Adams directly, I cowardly left a note on his windshield, asking him if he would look at my photos some day. Before long--imagine my surprise--I was sitting in his living room with him going over a stack of my photos. Adams gave me careful advice about how I could improve each print. An incredible opportunity for sure. So, to make a long story short, I learned a lot from his criticisms--Adams really didn't think my work was very good but a few months later I persuaded him to take another look. I had been using his "Zone System" and my work had improved considerably. Ansel seemed quite pleased in the progress I was making. I found his help inspirational. I use the camera as an extension of my eyes. In fact, the camera is far better than my eyes--by adjusting the borders of an image I can include what I feel is important, and exclude what is not. I tend to photograph with a narrow field of view, allowng me to get tight and in close--to isolate and emphasize the important arts of my discovery. So, what is important? Well, I gravitate towards nature, soaking up color and light while trying my best to capture the moment. Becoming emotionally attached to a particular photograph is easy, but magic happens when beauty or drama in a photo is conveyed to others. |
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