Photography

I want to become a photographer.

Let me backup just a bit.

Years ago, I took a photography course with my cousin, Jennie, at Langara College. It was fun, having never taken a course like that before, and with someone I know. (I usually go and do things crazy like that on my own accord, like when I took a sketching class....that was fun too, even when alone). She was using her new Olympus camera (this isn't the cousin who works for Olympus) while I was using my dad's old Canon from the early 80's. Film photography, not digital. We had studio time, evening time outdoors and darkroom time, and I really got my feet whet. I was really proud of all the photos and slides I developed, and had been meaning to enrol in another course or two.

Then life happened.

I don't know....I seemed to have forgotten about my f-stops and depth of field and white balance and exposures and such. It's totally escaped me. It's escaped me for a long time. I was meaning to brush up on my photography before I had Gabe....you know, so that I, too, could take those oh-so-cute baby portraits. Did I manage to do that, all whilst being a mom? Nope...who had the time?

Now I wanna make time. All this dSLR thinking has gotten me to believe I could pursue this again, this time with a digital camera as my arsenal. Nevermind that I would need a dSLR, but could I do this? I don't want to change careers but I would really like to pursue a life-long hobby. Knitting doesn't count (ok, so I can knit...I'll pick it up again when I'm 90). This I could do, couldn't I?

An old friend of mine from university has a website displaying many of his photo-art, and it's just great. He seems to really enjoy it; if his photos tell me anything, they tell me that. What really encourages me are not the fabulous nature shots but the personality of his little boy shining through the portraits he takes. The joy he captures of his son and wife have really touched a chord with me. And this is a guy who's really, really busy, already a doctor yet still going to school, and he's able to love not only his job to do well in what he does but he marries his family with his hobby, photography. [If you happen to be reading this, Don, by chance, you will remain forever admired in my books]

Langara has a Basic Digital Photography class starting Mondays, January 14, for 12 weeks. It's essentially the digital class of the Basic Photography I took with my film-based SLR. Doesn't hurt to take it over again, since I've already forgotten most of everything. Maybe I can convince my cousin to take the course again with me, or perhaps someone else who may secretly desire becoming a photographer too. Who knows...maybe I'll finally complete that much desired Photography Certificate I wanted years ago.

Now, I only need a camera.