A Fascination for Capturing Life

I have always had a fascination for photography, since I was a kid. And, somehow, back then, I knew it was something that would stick.

I remember getting one of those plastic box cameras which used a disposable rotating flash cube as a gift one holiday season. I'm sure I wrecked that plastic box soon enough, and I don't even know if I got any prints out of it.

But, from then, I continued to dabble in taking random photos with my mother's point and shoot film cameras, whatever they may have been at the time, Kodaks, Ricohs, 35mm, or AP-S. Some of those shots came out nicely, some came out as "what in the hell exactly was I seeing?" shots.

Much later in my life, I decided I would really get into photography, and this time, as an actual hobby – perhaps even a passion. So, around 2003, I decided to buy my first digital camera, a Canon Powershot A90. I did all my research and I thought it had one of the best feature and capability sets for the price. Bang for the buck. I started out telling myself that I did not have to spend on this hobby, and that I would grow, and learn, and enjoy on a reasonable budget. And, to be honest, I was pretty happy with that camera for some time, actually, until it died on its own in 2005. But what it always lacked, for me, was speed and flexibility. I had always had those moments which I just could not catch, or those shots in my head which I just could not squeeze out of that baby. So, in 2005, at just about exactly the same time my A90 decided it would go the way of gadget heaven, I got my first digital SLR, a Canon EOS 350D. With it, I got myself a sigma 55-200mm lens. And I thought I was set. A reasonable kit, which covered pretty much all the necessary focal lengths. What else would I need?

Since then, it has been quite a ride. A ride of learning. Of exploring. Of spending. And of sharing. And growing. I have since sold my entire original rig and gone through two more bodies, a Canon EOS 20D and an EOS 50D. I have also gone through a number of lenses, some of which I have grown with and sold, some of which I continue to grow with. There's the Canon 28-135mm IS, the Tamron 28-75 f/2.8, the Canon 50mm f/1.8, the Sigma 10-20 UWA, Sigma 50-150 f/2.8, Sigma 70mm f/2.8 macro, Sigma 150mm f/2.8 macro, and, of course, the trusty 18-55mm Canon kit lens.

I have also gone through all sorts of accessories and photographic tools, from my small studio lighting kit, to the various bags which I have also gone through and sold, to my flashes, and even my photo printer.

What I have now is not my dream rig, by any stretch of the imagination. Yet, I know that have spent quite a bit on this hobby, from my humble beginnings of a powder blue plastic box. To be honest, I have spent more than I care to honestly account for. Yet, at the end of it all, I know that it has been, and will continue to be worth it. And I honestly do not need my dream rig for it to be worth it.

For photography has allowed me to grow, and to share in this growth with others. Through the passion of photography, I have learned to give and take...the emotions, the truths, the visions of and from life. For, yes, photography is about capturing the moment, and capturing the light, the color, the texture – the shadow and the light, but it is also about capturing the emotion, the truth, the vision – the story – in life – around you and within you. It is about reaching out and reaching in, at the same time. Expressing emotions, truths, and visions, while, at the same time, taking in emotions, truths, and visions.