Monday in Michigan (on Tuesday): Me the Photographer

By Tracey G

My very first digital camera!

I've had a camera as long as I can remember, in my hands. I remember getting my first one and I was so darned excited. I couldn't wait to take pictures! Through the years there were lots of photos taken, modeling with the girls, landscapes, silly pictures - you name it. Always fun. And always slightly disappointing - they never quite turned out to be what I had envisioned. Of course I only had a point and shoot, but even if I'd had an SLR, I wouldn't have known what to do with it anyway! So,I just accepted my fate that some would be good, and some would be downright terrible - and it always seemed that the ones I really wanted to be decent, were the downright terrible. It was a roll of the dice with every click of the shutter button...

 I think one of the most exciting things to ever happen was the digital camera - for me that was awe inspiring! No more film to develop! No more waiting to see just how good or awful they turned out! I had so much fun with my first one, it was only 2 megapixel, but it took really nice photos. Somewhere along there I got my first SLR - but I still had no clue what I was doing, and just stayed on auto. I never bought any lenses for it because it seemed kind of a waste since I had really no idea what to do with them or it.

 It wasn't until Harry's 1st birthday that I got my current camera, a Nikon D90. It actually was for my birthday since it's the day after Harry's! I chose that camera (gosh, hard to believe it will be 6 years this February!) because it was an in-between - not pro but not totally consumer/amateur either. And it had capabilities - granted, most of them I had no idea what to do with yet when I bought it, but I was hopeful that I eventually would. So, I chose it with features I knew I could grow into.

Taken with my iPhone 4 via Instagram

And now thanks to getting involved in Capture Your 365, I think I've used just about every one of them, and thanks to Katrina Kennedy's Exposure class, I went to totally manual settings the end of 2013. If you want to learn to get off the auto setting, and use manual settings that's the class and the teacher to help you do it, I highly recommend it if the opportunity arises! I tried being self-taught, but all the books did was manage to make me even more confused than I was to begin with. One class with Katrina and I've never looked back!

My very first - ever! - photo for Capture Your 365!!! May 1 2013

That's kind of my crazy evolution to where I am now and how I found my way here. As far as gear, I think so far, my most used lens in my 50mm. I use it almost exclusively these days. I've gotten so used to moving my body instead of just zooming, that, when I do use a lens that can zoom, I forget that I can do that! I love using the 50mm because it helps me see things differently and from different perspectives since I have to physically move myself around my subject. My second favorite lens is my macro lens. It's a Tamron 90mm, it's nice to finally have the capability to take shots I always wanted to. There was nothing worse than working with limitations!! Trying to get lenses to do things that they just physically can't is just plain frustrating and ends up in disappointment in the end result - the photo.

One of my favorite CY365 photos from April 2015, taken with my 50mm

                                                                                   

Another favorite CY365 photo from November 2015, taken with my Tamron 90mm Macro

                                                                                

Thinking about subjects to photograph,I think my favorite subject, aside from Harry when he's cooperating, is food! I love taking food photos and I think that stems from my love of cookbooks - they're so inspiring, especially any Ina Garten cookbook - I think I love them as much for their fantastic images as I do for the recipes!!! The greatest challenge I seem to face though, are light issues, my house is so dark, finding good light can be quite the challenge, hence the reason the spot right next to the front door gets used a lot - teamed up with my big piece of white foam poster-board as a backdrop/reflector!

Taken January 2015 with my 50mm lens

Oh gosh, I almost forgot one of my other favorite subjects - Legos! I had no idea how much fun they could be to work with! The possibilities are endless, and they are especially great fo days when you're just coming up blank for something to photograph. Harry and I now have our own mini-figures - I keep mine stashed away lest they become lost in the sea of his collection!

April 2015 CY365 photo, taken with my Tamron 90mm

I also love to use my phone - and I never thought I'd say that! But really it does help sometimes when I'm in a rut - I find that if I switch up and use it for a few days (or challenge myself to using it for a week for my photos of the day), it helps me out. Maybe because it changes up the routine and the method for taking photos, but whatever it is, it's a nice break and can be a fun challenge to myself. I always seem to come back a little fresher to my "big girl" camera!

Taken with my iPhone 4, Hipstamatic app and the Americana lens with the Claunch 72 film

I suppose I could go on and on about likes and dislikes, but that can be saved for another day!!!