At least as far as my photography is concerned.
It seems lately as though my interest in photography has finally risen from its ashes and is now transforming into a bigger, ever more passionate being. I feel that i had taken all the right steps to resurrect that flame, and now it's starting to show its glow.
Step one happened when i decided to buy two lenses to add to my bag of tricks: the 28-105/3.5-4.5 and the 70-300/4-5.6. These two sure did jumpstart my motivation to take photos again, as they surely proved themselves worth their price tags right out of the boxes. I figured that one of the reasons i gave up on my photography was because i felt limited by the lenses that i had, and this move sure solved that problem.
Step two: I decided to join local photography clubs. The first one i attended, i felt so happy to be with people who share a common interest. It helped tremendously that they are nice people, but for the most part i felt right at home in this meetup group because we talked the same talk, were stimulated by the same things... Furthermore, I realized that being a member of this group opened up so many doors because i can learn from the experience of others and go out take photos in location i would probably never get to on my own lazy a**. I also met some people who later became my Flickr friends. Attending this meetup also sparked the idea in me to start a website where i can showcase my photo for better access and showing to fellow photographers.
Step three: I started the website. This process turned out to be invaluable not because of the site per se, but because in the process of trying to pull some photos together from the jumbled mess of themes that is my Flickr account, i realized that my main interest in photography really lies in People. I LOVE photographing people. I can relate to them. I want to showcase them. I am passionate in capturing their images. All the other themes, i was basically just attempting to lay my hands on them to see if i can do it. So, yeah. People.
Step four: I found my focus. I started reading a book called Photographing People by Roderick Macmillan, and aside from getting wonderful tips on executing a photo idea, this book enlightened me as to how i should curb my enthusiasm in trying to capture every aspect of the world in images and should instead focus on one thing that really captures my attention. And given step three, the answer was clear to me. I want to focus on photographing people. And suddenly the challenge of being a better photographer seemed so much easier to take on once i have a set focus in mind. Thank you, Mr. Macmillan!!
Step five: I overcame my fear of failing. I think by far this is the biggest thing that has been holding me back from trying to improve further. I obviously have zipped through the first learning curve, and i was hitting a plateau. Or rather, the next curve is so steep i felt like i was hitting a wall trying to climb it. And instead of trying harder to climb, i instead decided to stop right there because i was afraid of failing if i tried. And one day it finally dawned on me: If i never try, i will never know. Failing after trying is better than turning my back and walking away from the challenge, never knowing if i had it in me to take it on and accomplish it. So, climb i did...
Step six: I realized that i need to curb my expectations on myself. Gone are the days when i curse myself for being inept with my techniques when i look at other's wonderful, wonderful photos on Flickr. I finally saw that i wasn't being fair to myself by asking me to perform at the level these other people perform. They're pros and experts, fercrissake. They've been at this for years and years, if not decades. I need to give myself time to learn and to make mistakes to get to the level that they'r at... And once i realize this i no longer feel incompetent and helpless... I can do it!!!
Step seven: I actively asked people to model for me. Fueled by my newfound epiphanies, i made the move to ask my friends on FaceBook if they'd model for me. And surprisingly enough, some of them did volunteer. And now i'm finally faced with a real challenge: Real people, real model. Good images to come up with. This felt daunting at the beginning, but the more i go along with it, the more ideas come up and the more excited i become to start shooting.
Step eight: I found Strobist.com. From reading the Macmillan book, i finally realized how vital lighting is in executing an image, and how complex - but how feasible - good lighting really is. In the process of edifying myself with various information from the web about this matter, i ran across a very useful website that teaches everything about lighting and about lighting light. By lighting light i meant they show you that achieving good lighting doesn't have to break your bank account... It can be done easily with small, affordable flashes and lighting kit setup. They even laid out the concept of lighting in a linear fashion to make it easy for the thousands of dummies in lighting out there. And they have a Flickr group so people can post their stuff and ask for critiques and comments and all that fun stuff. Wow. Suddenly i just know that i had to jump on board. It doesn't get any better than this.
Step nine: I purchased my lighting kit and my first off-camera flash. They're in the mail now, and i can't wait to start learning to use them.
Step ten: I douse myself in a pool of information on lighting and posing and composition. I want to be better, and i want to do it right.
So... let's see. After all that, where am i left now? Here's where i am: 1. I have a model shoot scheduled out sometime this weekend or the next (Read: Learning opportunity!!). 2. I have, through the wonders of Craig's List, found a willing model to do some nude work with me. 3. I have an appointment with my friends from the photography meetup to scout some location for outdoor shooting. 4. I have a semi-pro photographer (Sam, who shot me as a model once himself) who offered to model for me while i learn my lighting on him. Wow.
So needless to say i'm very excited about all this development... I feel that i finally have a momentum to ride on, and this thing is going nowhere but UP. My first photoshoots might suck, i might end up with no usable images, but hey the important thing is that I'm learning.
Yeah. For the moment, life is good in Shobi's world of photography...
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