I had a GREAT time at the workshop on Saturday. I met three great models and a lot of great photographers. It really was a lot of fun. I got a lot of great photos, and a ton of great experience. I’m looking forward to really getting started on my own as well as going to his next workshop!
Today, I decided it was time to let go of the past…time to let go of any bad feelings I had toward anyone in the glamour field. Wipe the slate clean and “leave it all in the ring.” From here on out, I plan to try to keep my focus away from the past…good shoot, bad shoot, bad experience, good experience…leave it all in the ring and focus on the next shoot. From here on out, I don’t want to spend time focusing on the past…only the future.
Tonight, while reading a thread I had started on the Canon Digital Photography Forums, I came across a post…one that really put things into perspective for me.
Honestly, I think it’s time I go back to my roots…time I truly put the past in the past…chalk the disappointments up to lessons learned, and move forward with my true goal in photography…glamour and fashion.
While I’m not saying I won’t attempt some sporting photography at a later date, I don’t think it’s a good idea to let my mind, money, and time wander off what I truly want in the end.
Sports aside for the time being, glamour/fashion to the forefront. Looks like it’s time I got a computer with a bigger screen and some software to truly make the best out of my photos.
So, here’s a very special thanks to that particular user/poster. You really did help me out.
I’ve been thinking recently (possibly too much) about where the money would be best spent first. As all of you who have been reading this journal already know, I’ve taken a particular interest in sports photography. But, at the same time, I’m actually somewhat concerned that this massive interest in sports photography will end up being a rather large distraction from my true end goal of fashion/glamour.
So, the question now becomes…where is the best place to spend the money first? Assuming they are the same cost (and for all intents and purposes, they are), should I continue to save toward a sports packing (backup body, monopod, additional/replacement lenses), or should I put that same money towards a 17″ notebook, Capture 1, and Photoshop CS 2 as I probably will be doing a fair amount of post processing on the road?
On the one hand, I’ll have everything I need to go after the sports I want to shoot. On the other hand, I’ll have a notebook that should last me a good long while plus all the software I’ll need for a good long while.
Currently, I honestly just don’t have the lenses or backup body capable of sports photography, so that’s out the window unless I buy the sports package. I also currently only have a 12″ iBook, Photoshop Elements 3 (latest for Mac), and Canon Digital Photo Professional (all can get the job done, but definitely not going to make it as easy).
Honestly, I’m rather glad that it’ll be another couple of months before I can afford either one because this one is going to be a real thinker. I’m truthfully not sure which direction I should go.
Well, as a blessing and a letdown, I came to recently find out that I doubt I’ll be able to shoot any school sporting events this school year (for collegiate sports, this ends in May). I say that because, once I get my main body back from Canon, it’ll probably be late March to early April before I get a chance to shoot anything. By that time, there are only a handful of games/matches left before the school year ends.
On the good side of all of this, though, this gives me plenty of time to save for the proper gear without having to rush myself or do without in other hobbies. I have six or so months to save for the gear I need to start shooting next school year.
I do believe it’s probably best, for the time being at least, that I put Macro aside. Not only would it take a big chunk out of my savings for sports photography gear, but I honestly don’t know if I’d have the motivation or patience to set up for a lot of Macro photos.
Well, as of right now, I’m leaning more towards sports photography than Macro. Unfortunately, it’s going to take a very sizeable investment to get into sports photography, but so be it. I have heard that shooting collegiate level Tennis and probably Golf for that matter won’t be anywhere near as difficult as I had once thought. So, I might go ahead and call Clemson University (my old alma mater) as soon as I feel comfortable enough with sports photography to do so. Who knows, maybe with my NYIP credentials, I can get into some basketball and football games too (probably just wishful thinking, but we all can have our dreams).
Anyway, this leaves me with a good bit of cash to save. I have a feeling that I’m going to be saving for at least another couple of months to get everything I want/need for sports photography.
I’ve been doing a lot of thinking since I got that refund. And, I’m still not sure where I should use it. Macro is inexpensive and easy to get into. But, I find myself more and more drawn to sports photography (specifically Tennis, Golf, Wakeboarding, and Ultimate Frisbee). Though I must say that being on the sidelines of a football field, camera in hand, would definitely be a rush (be it High School or College…not a big fan of Pro).
Ran the numbers on costs of getting into sports photography, and they are high. Not really higher than expected, but not something I can easily invest in right away either.
I’m very tempted to just save everything I have right now until I get my first package from NYIP to see what might be required by them. Maybe after I get that first package, I can decide if more camera gear is the best bet or maybe new software or computer hardware would be the better place to spend my money right now.
Someone on the Canon Digital Photography Forums pointed me toward this group. I signed up for it and am awaiting approval. Looking forward to seeing what kind of good information I can find.
Here is the URL if you are interested:
http://groups.msn.com/NYIPRoundtablePart2/
I know it’s only been a week since my return was accepted, but waiting for that money can seem like forever. Honestly, though, after talking with a professional photographer friend of mine, I begin to wonder if using the money to buy a Macro setup is really what I should be doing. Or, maybe I should be trying to find a way to use it toward my true end goal of glamour/fashion…maybe to pay amateur models a small fee per hour versus just TFP or TFCD shoots in hopes that this will bring about a better response from the models.
Whatever I choose, I think I’m going to hold off at least for the weekend to think it over. maybe this money would be better spent on software or computer hardware versus camera and studio gear. Maybe it would be best saved towards lenses that are more suited for sports photography as I find myself more and more interested in that area (and it would really be useful for those slow times in Glamour/Fashion).
I honestly never thought I’d need another one of these things, but it looks like I’ve just purchased a Sony Cassette Walkman from Best Buy. Seems the courses and feedback for NYIP only come on Audio Cassette not CD or MD. And, until I placed this order, I didn’t currently own a single Audio Cassette Player. I think it’s been three or four years since I’ve owned anything that could play Audio Cassettes.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining. Just more of a blast from the past. Amazing how expensive these things still are… $33
So, I ran the numbers this morning against my finances and found out that I could afford to take the course. So, I called and registered this morning. I should be getting my first package in 10 to 15 business days. I’m honestly very excited.
After waiting very anxiously for two long weeks to get it, I finally got the information package from NYIP. Honestly, this really looks promising. Not only will I get to try out all different kinds of photography to find out where I really fit (probably still fashion/glamour), I also get a press pass and many other great things from the course. And, for the price, it’s not so bad. I haven’t made up my mind yet, but I probably will be doing so soon.
First off, it’s now quite obvious to me that, if I plan to do any sports photography, I most definitely need a second body that can handle it. And, unfortunately, my 300D just isn’t one of those bodies. Secondly, by the time that my camera gets back to me, Basketball season will be over, and so will my ability to use strobes to light dark games. Next up is Baseball, and I don’t believe there are many daytime baseball games in high school baseball. And, I definitely don’t have the lenses needed to capture baseball at night.
So, I pretty much realized that, while I’d have a lot of fun in sports photography, I really need to spend some time saving up for lenses and a second body that can handle this type of photography. Honestly, I’d hate to shoot three basketball games for my old alma mater, have them want more of my work on other sports, and not being able to provide it because of the lack of camera body and lenses for other sports.
So, while the auto rotation issue is a problem and will be nothing less than a pain to get fixed, I’m almost glad it happened. It put a lot of things into perspective for me. It showed me that I need some extra time, money, and study into sports photography before I give it a try.
That said, as soon as my tax refund comes in, it looks like I’ll be ordering up the necessary lenses, reflectors, and hood for macro work (since it can be done with either body I currently own).
When I first got my new 1D Mark 2, I was doing some test shots and noticing that, esp during burst modes, the auto rotation feature wasn’t working correctly. I figured it was no big deal…a normal thing. I thought, maybe the camera just doesn’t have enough time to figure out orientation when shooting that fast.
Unfortunately, after more testing, I’ve come to find out that it’s happening quite often…and not only in burst modes. So, of course, I placed a call into Canon. They’re more than willing to fix it, but it’s a 10 to 15 business day turnaround. Unfortunately, I have a workshop I’m supposed to attend in less than 15 business days. And, I want to use this camera to shoot it.
So, I must wait until after the workshop on February 18th to send my camera back to Canon to have the work done. Now, not only does this cause a big bump in general photography, but it also brings a lot of sports photography plans into perspective.
Not long after I made this decision, I went after the goal hard and heavy. First thing I did was to book a model for a paid shoot (paid well, at that). Unfortunately, even with her reputation of showing up for shoots, she was a no-show to mine. And, that made me come to the realization of just how slow the glamour/fashion scene moves…unless you’re a big name.
The idea of being able to book models on almost a weekly basis just flew out the window, and I had to rethink things. While my final goal is still fashion/glamour, I wasn’t about to let my brand new, never before used 1D Mark 2 go to waste. So, I decided it was time to tackle one (or possibly both) of the remaining two types of photography that I was interested in. Macro and Sports.
While Macro would most definitely provide the most subjects and wouldn’t require more than just myself, Sports just seemed like it would be a bit more fun. Did I want to become a full time sports photographer? No. Did I want to become a full time Macro photographer? No. But, both of these offered me a way to use my camera almost right away. And, since it did seem like more fun, I leaned towards sports.
I looked into a lot of information (bought a book, read a lot of threads) about sports photography, and was planning on approaching the atheltic director of my old alma mater (local high school) next week.
In mid December 2005, I decided it was time to crap or get off the pot. It was time to get serious about things or just go ahead and sell it all. And, I made the decision to go for it. Over a matter of about a month, I purchased a Canon EOS 1D Mark 2, 2GB Compact Flash Card, Tripod and Head, studio lighting setup, backgrounds, etc. And, I became very focused on exactly what I wanted to do in photography…glamour/fashion. I set up a website, got business cards made, registered on www.onmodelplace.com, and more.
In early October 2004, I decided almost on the spur of the moment to purchase my very first digital SLR camera, the Canon EOS Digital Rebel 300D. And, I enjoyed it so much that I begin to soak in as much knowledge as I possibly could from books as well as the photography-on-the.net/forum (great place to learn). From early October to about late February, photography became my obsession. Unfortunately, as you’ve read earlier, it had to be put aside for about 10 months while I battled some physical and mental problems.
Though I had been keeping an eye on them for years, I didn’t buy my first digital camera until late 2002. My first niece was going to be born in May of 2003, and I didn’t want to miss a bit of it. So, after looking around at many different cameras, I settled on the Canon PowerShot S30.
I didn’t really take more than snapshots with with the camera for a good long while. In late September/early October 2004, a full size sample image of the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark II got me very interested in photography again. It was the spark that I needed. Very shortly after that, I bought my first book on Photography: Digital Photography All-in-One Desk Reference for Dummies. And, I began to learn.
My father had an SLR camera that he had bought probably back in the mid 60’s. That was the very first SLR camera I ever used. I really enjoyed playing around with it (though at the time, I knew nothing about exposure, depth of field, etc.). I actually took some photos that I’m still rather proud of. They are a little on the dark side, but I like them nonetheless. This all happened around my early college years (1995-1997). Unfortunately, it wasn’t very long until other hobbies, interests, and life in general took over. I had to put photography aside.
Well, first of all, I want to let you all know a little about me before I start writing this thing. First off, I tend to be a bit long winded when it comes to writing. But, with this journal, I intend to try to work on that. My goal is to write much more succinctly than I have in the past in hopes that people will not only have the time, but the want to read.
Just a quick medical history. March/April 2005, I had some stomach issues and had to go through some tests. Wasn’t fun, but luckily no problems were found. In June/July 2005, I had to go through many heart tests. Also not fun, but at the same time nothing was found. Since that time, I have been diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder and have been battling that for six or so months now. So, when you notice a gap between about March of 2005 and December of 2005 when it comes to Photography, you’ll now know why.