DownUnder
Nikon Nomad
How has your photography influenced and shaped your life during the course of your time on this planet?
This is a question I've been pondering since the start of the Covid crisis. I'm a pensioner (architect) of 72, happily retired and (touch wood) in good health. I've been shooting film since the 1960s, digital from 2009.
Trying here to be brief, ha! I did photojournalism and commercial photography in as a student (1960s) with Yashica TLRs and a Rolleiflex 3.5E2 I saved for a year to buy in 1966. Weddings and portraits gave me much needed income in my boarding school and college years. I became a cadet reporter in 1965 with one of several newspapers I worked for in Canada over the next five years.
In 1970 I left print media for TV promotion. I also did a commercial photography course in Toronto but gave up any notions I had of a career in that field after a year's part-time work as a darkroom grunt for a successful but tyrannical pro who taught me only mixing vats of fixer and cleaning enlargers.
From 1974 I traveled to the US West Coast and Southwest (found new spiritual homes in Hawaii, New Mexico and Arizona), the Pacific, Australia and Southeast Asia. I bought a Nikkormat EL - the start of a lifelong love affair with '35' and discovered the world of stock in that long-gone time when everything shot in exotic places easily found markets, even black-and-white images of Bali.
In 1976 I relocated to Sydney, Australia. I did journalism, editing, media marketing, promotions until the mid-'80s, and expanded my cameras to more Nikons and other brands - Rollei TLRs, a Zeiss Ikonta, Leicas M2 and M3 as my career and income improved.
By 1985, weary of the hit-or-miss life in media, I again shifted my life-gears and did a new degree, moved to Melbourne and went into commercial interior design. In the '90s I bought Hasselblads which I liked (the results if not the costs) but didn't really bond with those Swedish ergonomics. My Nikkormat and Rolleis still did it all for me. I also bought Leicas (an M2 and M3) but sold them when I returned to studies, which I've long regretted.
Much of my photo work 1990-2012 was architectural, with occasional trips to Southeast Asia to do stock photo shoots. From 2000 the stock market declined and when with the coming of digital the photo markets were oversaturated. A few commercial clients still bought my images, until the GFC in 2008-2009 seriously impacted my photography and my design work. At this time I again realized I needed new direction in my interests.
Until the 1990s I shot mostly 120 slides with TLRs and MF folders (those good old days when film was cheap and B&W processing was done in kitchens and bathrooms at night) but then moved to 35mm. Fast forward to 2009 and the then-new Nikon D90 convinced me digital could match film in quality. I bought D90s, D700s and now a D800. Also a Lumix GF1 kit which gives amazing results for the mental-shift it requires.
By 2012 I wanted out of design and the day-to-day drudgery of my own agency. An offer to sell out came my way and I took the quantum leap to retirement, freedom and my own life without limitations of work.
Since retiring I've disposed of many of my film cameras and am now trimming down the darkroom to essentials - one enlarger, a Jobo system and very little else.
I still use my Nikkormats, Rolleis and Contax G1s. I also occasionally write for publication, now and then sell images, and travel as much as my age and situation will let me. Am now looking to the end of the current lockdown and the return of overseas travel in Australia, for a reunion and photo excursions with friends in Malaysia, Sarawak and Sabah, but sigh, who knows when. We live in uncertain times.
So. Me, in a nutshell. I'm amazed at the many directions six decades have taken me.
Did I say brief? The meaning of this word seems to have eluded me.
Many of you have similar adventures and experiences to relate, I'm sure. Please let us all hear from you.
This is a question I've been pondering since the start of the Covid crisis. I'm a pensioner (architect) of 72, happily retired and (touch wood) in good health. I've been shooting film since the 1960s, digital from 2009.
Trying here to be brief, ha! I did photojournalism and commercial photography in as a student (1960s) with Yashica TLRs and a Rolleiflex 3.5E2 I saved for a year to buy in 1966. Weddings and portraits gave me much needed income in my boarding school and college years. I became a cadet reporter in 1965 with one of several newspapers I worked for in Canada over the next five years.
In 1970 I left print media for TV promotion. I also did a commercial photography course in Toronto but gave up any notions I had of a career in that field after a year's part-time work as a darkroom grunt for a successful but tyrannical pro who taught me only mixing vats of fixer and cleaning enlargers.
From 1974 I traveled to the US West Coast and Southwest (found new spiritual homes in Hawaii, New Mexico and Arizona), the Pacific, Australia and Southeast Asia. I bought a Nikkormat EL - the start of a lifelong love affair with '35' and discovered the world of stock in that long-gone time when everything shot in exotic places easily found markets, even black-and-white images of Bali.
In 1976 I relocated to Sydney, Australia. I did journalism, editing, media marketing, promotions until the mid-'80s, and expanded my cameras to more Nikons and other brands - Rollei TLRs, a Zeiss Ikonta, Leicas M2 and M3 as my career and income improved.
By 1985, weary of the hit-or-miss life in media, I again shifted my life-gears and did a new degree, moved to Melbourne and went into commercial interior design. In the '90s I bought Hasselblads which I liked (the results if not the costs) but didn't really bond with those Swedish ergonomics. My Nikkormat and Rolleis still did it all for me. I also bought Leicas (an M2 and M3) but sold them when I returned to studies, which I've long regretted.
Much of my photo work 1990-2012 was architectural, with occasional trips to Southeast Asia to do stock photo shoots. From 2000 the stock market declined and when with the coming of digital the photo markets were oversaturated. A few commercial clients still bought my images, until the GFC in 2008-2009 seriously impacted my photography and my design work. At this time I again realized I needed new direction in my interests.
Until the 1990s I shot mostly 120 slides with TLRs and MF folders (those good old days when film was cheap and B&W processing was done in kitchens and bathrooms at night) but then moved to 35mm. Fast forward to 2009 and the then-new Nikon D90 convinced me digital could match film in quality. I bought D90s, D700s and now a D800. Also a Lumix GF1 kit which gives amazing results for the mental-shift it requires.
By 2012 I wanted out of design and the day-to-day drudgery of my own agency. An offer to sell out came my way and I took the quantum leap to retirement, freedom and my own life without limitations of work.
Since retiring I've disposed of many of my film cameras and am now trimming down the darkroom to essentials - one enlarger, a Jobo system and very little else.
I still use my Nikkormats, Rolleis and Contax G1s. I also occasionally write for publication, now and then sell images, and travel as much as my age and situation will let me. Am now looking to the end of the current lockdown and the return of overseas travel in Australia, for a reunion and photo excursions with friends in Malaysia, Sarawak and Sabah, but sigh, who knows when. We live in uncertain times.
So. Me, in a nutshell. I'm amazed at the many directions six decades have taken me.
Did I say brief? The meaning of this word seems to have eluded me.
Many of you have similar adventures and experiences to relate, I'm sure. Please let us all hear from you.
charjohncarter
Veteran
I'm older than you, and I have had a camera with me since 1963. I take pictures of anything I like. I've never been a professional photographer, just enjoy it: so figure out the number of years I've had with my hobby. For me it is the best until the sun goes down then I go to my next enjoyment: guitar. Also, I still have too many cameras, but sometimes I just get an idea to use my Petri7s; so I'm really not a gear man (or should it be person).
Archiver
Veteran
My photography education began with my Dad and his cameras, the Pentax ME and Minolta SR-T Super. I learned the basics of focusing, framing and camera handling. Later, I read his collection of You And Your Camera partwork magazines, all of which I still have. Would love a Pentax MX if I can get a nice clean one, but then again, I want a lot of things, hahaha.
There was a long hiatus from photography that went from 14 to 28, and I deeply regret not having more, or any, pictures from my late teens and early adulthood. I don't even have a picture of my first girlfriend, despite being together for a while and professing undying love for each other. We broke up and I have hardly seen her since.
I began digital photography in earnest in 2002 and have not looked back. Since then, I've gone from hobbyist to earning a living from it, although the current world health situation has stymied that to a certain extent. Gear is just as important as the act of photography, so I have fair collection of stuff. More than some, no way near as much as others. I sleep with a camera by my bed and my study is festooned with stuff.
The only time I've ever felt like I didn't want to shoot was after a work trip in 2007. My boss sent me to Sydney to shoot the tourist attractions (dream job, right?) and I spent over a week driving everywhere and shooting everything. The Blue Mountains, Luna Park, every major beach and landmark, I shot it. At the end of that trip I didn't want to shoot, I was all photo'd out. It took a few days before I felt like shooting again. But that was the only time.
An ongoing project is to return to as many childhood and teenage locations as I can, and if possible, take photos with the cameras and film I would have used at the time. Otherwise, it's digital. In the past ten years, I've gone to numerous places from my past in an attempt to create a photographic history in retrospect, including my old school, pubs, parks, concert halls and theatres.
I'm looking forward to what the future brings; my life revolves around photography and it permeates almost everything I do. There's a camera in my pocket and/or bag wherever I go. Even if I wasn't doing this for a living, I'd still shoot every day.
There was a long hiatus from photography that went from 14 to 28, and I deeply regret not having more, or any, pictures from my late teens and early adulthood. I don't even have a picture of my first girlfriend, despite being together for a while and professing undying love for each other. We broke up and I have hardly seen her since.
I began digital photography in earnest in 2002 and have not looked back. Since then, I've gone from hobbyist to earning a living from it, although the current world health situation has stymied that to a certain extent. Gear is just as important as the act of photography, so I have fair collection of stuff. More than some, no way near as much as others. I sleep with a camera by my bed and my study is festooned with stuff.
The only time I've ever felt like I didn't want to shoot was after a work trip in 2007. My boss sent me to Sydney to shoot the tourist attractions (dream job, right?) and I spent over a week driving everywhere and shooting everything. The Blue Mountains, Luna Park, every major beach and landmark, I shot it. At the end of that trip I didn't want to shoot, I was all photo'd out. It took a few days before I felt like shooting again. But that was the only time.
An ongoing project is to return to as many childhood and teenage locations as I can, and if possible, take photos with the cameras and film I would have used at the time. Otherwise, it's digital. In the past ten years, I've gone to numerous places from my past in an attempt to create a photographic history in retrospect, including my old school, pubs, parks, concert halls and theatres.
I'm looking forward to what the future brings; my life revolves around photography and it permeates almost everything I do. There's a camera in my pocket and/or bag wherever I go. Even if I wasn't doing this for a living, I'd still shoot every day.
I think the biggest influence in my photography has been the impetus to get around and see the neighborhood and countryside. And then that record serves as a reminder of place and time and people.
I'm reminded of how it started, with me on my way to Izmir Turkey for military service, and my mother instructed me to get a camera and use it! After a decent lapse of time to show independence, the camera gave me good reason to travel around the area, mostly on foot. Glad I did, and this has been a pattern for me... except for the time lapse!
I'm reminded of how it started, with me on my way to Izmir Turkey for military service, and my mother instructed me to get a camera and use it! After a decent lapse of time to show independence, the camera gave me good reason to travel around the area, mostly on foot. Glad I did, and this has been a pattern for me... except for the time lapse!
Rayt
Nonplayer Character
“How has your photography influenced and shaped your life during the course of your time on this planet?“
If not for photography I would not have gone to where I have gone and see what I have seen. There would have been no motivation.
If not for photography I would not have gone to where I have gone and see what I have seen. There would have been no motivation.