The World According to Tom

I figured since I had some time, I would write about how I became interested in photography. While I always had a desire to see the world through a lens, it wasn't until recently as November 2008 that I purchased my first serious camera, the Nikon D40 digital single lens reflex (D-SLR) camera. I had attended the International College of Broadcasting and graduated in March 2003. While I have always been interested in television and movies, I never pursued it until after I became severely injured during an incident at a factory. And just like a character in a movie, my first flight was on an ambulance helicopter.

After three months of looking for work, which was limited to my injuries, I decided I needed to go to college and then decided to get into video production. I had purchased The Filmmaker's Handbook long before registering for classes and by the time I sat in the classroom, I had a headstart in understanding the concepts. During the time I was a student, others looked to me to have a top notch student video produced. However, I feel that the best video that came out of our class there was Scott Knisley's music video. It was a great concept and very well executed.
Eventually, and by eventually I mean three and a half years, I finally got a full time gig in broadcasting, which I continue to do at this moment. I direct newscasts at a local news station. It involves bringing together all the video, camera shots, graphics that a producer wants in his or her show and putting them on air. While most of the time, things go smoothly, there are times when things go haywire and you have to remain calm and really stay on your toes because there are thousands of people watching your work as it happens.

While I still love video and the production of creative works, there are two large obstacles. The first is that besides perhaps nature videos or the like, a production of a video takes numerous people working together. While I love the creative process of many people putting their own mark on a video or movie, it also leads to the second problem: money. Financing a project is not cheap. From buying not only a good quality camera, one must also buy or rent good lighting, editing equipment and pay for actors and anyone else involved in the production. While one may find volunteers, they're not as passionate about the project as you are.

While the Nikon D40 is an awesome camera, it is a basic entry level D-SLR. Since November, I have taken nearly 9,000 pictures with it. When I have had a few hours in a day, I easily shot 400 pictures. Sometimes after looking through them at the end of the day, I would be happy with nothing I shot, but if nothing else, I learn from the experience. One thing that photography gives me is the the freedom of not needing to rely on several other people to have this creativity outlet. However, I still watch television and movies with half my brain paying attention to the storyline while the other half is looking at how a scene was shot and if they used a fast lens to blur the background as I see constantly in one of my favorite shows, ABC's Lost.

Recently, I upgraded to a Nikon D200. It doesn't shoot better pictures than the D40 because that is the job of the photographer. So, don't be fooled when someone shows you the latest and greatest camera and tells you about the great pictures it takes. Because it isn't about the camera, it is all about what you see! The D200 only allows me to get to the controls much faster and easier than the D40. And it isn't the latest and greatest D-SLR either. The D300 was annouced on August 2007, nearly two years after Nikon announced the D200. Both cameras are similar with the D300 getting a couple of more megapixels and a larger LCD screen. However, it wasn't until recently that D200's really came down in price and I quickly bought mine from BestBuy.com. However, a couple days later, the price dropped again and I was able to save an extra $160, which brought the price of the camera down over a $1000 from its original released price in November 2005. See how patience pays off?

And what did could one purchase with that savings? A speedlight, tripod and head, camera bag and a couple of very good lenses. The lens, not the camera is the most important part of the system.

Below are several pictures I've taken. Click on them to go to their page in Flickr for a larger view.

Photography is not black and white

This is one of my favorite photos that I have captured. It was during the praise and worship of a service at church. I, of course, shot it in color and then adjusted it to greyscale. I have little understanding of why anyone would want to shoot in just black and white digitally because one can capture the image and adjust it later using more information than pure greyscale. I mean, I love black and white photography, but if one is going to shoot, then just shoot with the greatest resolution and information including chrominance because you can always go to B&W from color, but not the other way around.

I shoot RAW format most all of the time, which allows for adjustments later. While there are still arguments between film and digital, no one can argue that it is absolutely great to have the ability to review your shot immediately after capturing it with digital. I feel much more comfortable snapping away, especially at such a live event such as music because no matter what, timing is everything. A singer's lips may look awkward one moment, but the next moments everything looks natural in that fraction of a section of the capture.

While I would love to buy a nicer zoom lens, the Nikon 55-200 VR (vibration reduction) lens is pretty sweet for its price. Shooting on this Sunday morning allowed me to capture inside without as much worry about my hand movement as much and allows for a bit slower shutter speed. However, I still sometimes push process these types of pictures because slower shutter speeds also can lead to blurring if the subject of the picture is moving as well. So I'll set the shutter to a little faster speed and get a darker picture, but I can still bring out the details in the shadows. One thing I've learned is that blown out highlights just cannot be recaptured. Once it reaches white, then no details can be brought out. This is true of any photograph, film or digital.

I have learned quite a lot after I purchased my Nikon D40, but there is so much more to learn. Perhaps I'll never venture out as a National Geographic photographer, but I can still enjoy the experience of capturing and processing photos. And with digital, I can do it without the chemicals and darkroom, although I would love to learn it.

Just as there are photography standards like the rule of thirds, etc., rules were meant to be broken and there really is this process of creativity that just cannot be quantified. So have fun and happy shooting!

200mm f/5.6, 1/50 sec., ISO 400
Sing unto the Lord, 1 March 2009