The panel is ready with their questions...
First question...
What is your motivation for photography?
It makes me happy. Also, despite the human-created ugliness all around, the world remains a beautiful place so I prefer to focus (pun intended) on that. And the internet lets me share!
How id you get involved in photography.
What is your favourite lens?
Macro lens definitely. It enables me to capture how my (uncorrected) eyes actually see.
Which photographers inspire you.
I read a biography of Margaret Bourke-White when I was 12 or 13, and at about that same time came across a series of Edward S. Curtis prints which I found absorbing. They were so much a window into a world that no longer existed, a concept that really appealed to me. Ansel Adams has always been a favorite; no one does dramatic landscapes better. I have always been impressed by the amount of work that he put into an image; every print from a particular negative was an experiment and he'd meticulously record the timing in each development bath, every little bit of burning and dodging, sometimes making a hundred attempts or more before getting the print exactly right. I also like the work of northwest photographers Asahel Curtis (brother of Edward S. Curtis) and Josef Scaylea, they both had a real feel for the Cascade Mountains, and Mt. Rainier in particular. Having lived in the desert southwest, I also like photographers Brian Klimowski and Alain Briot.
Name three websites that you recently visited.
Do you mostly use a film camera or a digital?
Digital ... it's all about the pixels, baby!
What kind do you use?
I use a Canon 20D digital SLR.
One more question: What's your favorite lens to use? Oh, one more, if you use a filter on your lenses, is there one that you enjoy more than others, and why.
Macro lens is my favorite. On my other lenses I use a polarizing filter, that's my preference. I have it on anytime I'm shooting outdoors (which is almost always) as it's useful for many different things. I have also used a soft-focus filter to great effect, though I don't have one that fits any of my current lenses.
When did you discover that you loved photography?
I think that I have always loved it - that idea of capturing a fleeting instant in time that can never come again, a unique combination of light and shadow that will never be repeated.
What is your "Official Camera System" (including lenses, flash units), and why did you go with that configuration?
My current system is a Canon 20D, with a Canon EF-S17-85mm IS/USM, a Canon EF 70-300mm IS/USM, and a Sigma 50mm f2.8 fixed aperture macro lens. I don't have any external flash units or other fancy stuff. I chose the Canon because my previous camera was a Nikon and I was somewhat disillusioned with it, and I had several people recommend the 20D (which was just about all I could afford anyway). I did want an SLR for sure because there are too many compromises on a point and shoot, even a high end one.
Space Needle or CN Tower?
Space Needle of course! Although truthfully I've never been to the CN Tower, so I might change my mind if I ever visited it.
Are you totally digital, or do you still do film from time to time?
Completely digital.
Name one place on Earth you wish you could travel to for a photo shoot if money were no object.
Antarctica .
(The Obligatory Question) Mac or PC?
Currently PC. But it's pissed me off enough to tempt me get a Mac for my next computer.
When did you develop your interest in photography?
Pun intended, I presume? :) Pretty early on, certainly before I was about 12.
What was it that got you interested?
I was surrounded by photographers when I was a kid, my father, grandfather, and great-grandfather were all into photography. My grandfather had a darkroom in his basement that I was always poking around in (well, as soon as I got over my fear of dark corners anyway...).
What was your first camera, and what were the first things you tried with it?
My first camera was one of those flat little cameras that used 110 film. I think that it was a Vivitar, but I'm not certain about that; it was a looooong time ago! And honestly, I don't remember my earliest attempts with it.
What is your current dream camera?
A Phase One P45 digital back on a Hasselblad H2. Although Hasselblad just announced the H2D-39 which is the equivalent number of megapixels, but I don't know how the image quality compares to the P45 which is supposed to be exceptional. However, either way you're talking well into the 5-figure price range and probably quite a bit more than my truck.
Name the top five places in the world you would go to do photography if you could?
- Antarctica
- Torres del Paine ( Chile )
- Somewhere in Africa where I can photograph an elephant in the wild before they're gone
- Australia / New Zealand
- China/Mongolia
How did you end up with a cat that thinks it's a dog?
I had a dog. Then I got a cat. The cat liked the dog better than me and bonded to her instead. But I am an acceptable substitute for the dog when it suits Pepper's mood. :)
Tell us a bit about the cats that own you. Okay, not a question, but...
Well there is the aforementioned Pepper (a tuxedo), who thinks she's a dog. Old age has caught up to her (she's 16) and she's struggling a bit at the moment. The main doggy mannerism that she learned from Ginger (my Irish Setter), is to take control of the center of the kitchen floor whenever there is any activity in the kitchen. This is achieved by lying on her side and stretching out her tail and legs as wide as she can to take up as much room as possible. She also learned to like marshmallows and Milk Bones.
Next is half-Siamese Seal, who is handsome, debonair and elegant: a long silky tail, just the right amount of salt and pepper for a distinguished gentleman of a certain age, and white (well grey) whiskers that stand out beautifully against his black coat. He's also the prissiest nancy-boy ever. His favorite pastimes are being brushed, and drinking out of the bathroom faucet, first wetting a paw under the trickle of water to wash his ears with.
Last, but not least, there's Spectra. She was (apparently) abandoned near my office and lived wild for a long time with a little help from me and my co-workers. We eventually trapped her and had her spayed. That was when we discovered that she wasn't completely feral, which we had assumed to that point. She's still wild in many ways, but she has the sweetest personality of the three. She's the one in the picture that Basil chose for my interview icon. (Great choice, Basil!)
What are your favorite photographs so far, the top five if you will?
Holy buckets! Try asking something a little harder why don't you! Of my own stuff, my favorite is one I took of my grandfather before he died
Other favorites (in no particular order):
Of other photographer's images, tip-top of the list is a panorama of Mt. Rainier and the National Park by Asahel Curtis. I have a reproduction custom framed on my wall, but I can't find a link to it online, so you'll just have to take my word for it that it's fantastic. Others (again in no particular order):
- this by Brian Klimowski.
- and this by Wojtek Kwiatkowski.
- this one by Ansel Adams
- the first one here by Adam Jahiel.
B&W or colour?
Yes.
How do you like your new truck?
I love my new truck! It's not so new anymore actually. In 15 months of ownership I have put 20,000 miles on it. Almost all of them fun!
What are the worst photographs you think you have taken?
The further back you go, the worse they look to my eyes because I'm a better photographer today than I was even a month ago (and I'm still learning, with lots of room for improvement). Some of the early shots that I put up on my weblog are cringe-worthy to me now. Seriously, with every day's shooting there are many that deserve to be on a list of the worst, if only because I knew better and was simply careless, so that's a hard question to answer.
Are you going to hurt me for getting you to sign up for this?
Of course not, sweetheart ... this has actually been fun. (That's negotiable of course, should you just happen to have any "toys" lying around waiting for a workout... *g*)
What is your favorite camera? Favorite lens?
My favorite camera so far is my current Canon 20D (with macro lens), although I have very fond memories of my old Olympus C2100 and even older Konica 35mm.
Do you prefer film or digital?
Digital, absolutely. I'm often an impatient, instant-gratification kinda gal, and digital suits me perfectly!
If you prefer film or work with film, do you develop your own pictures? If so do you do color, or black and white, or both?
Even when I was using film, I never got into developing my own, and I mostly stuck to color.
Do you collect cameras? If so, what kind? Do you have any that you collect just to own or do you use all of your cameras?
I don't really collect cameras per se, but I do have a collection of cameras. Mostly old film SLR's that I inherited from various people, none of which are in the least bit valuable except in the sentimental sense.
How long have you been interested in photography?
Since I was a child. I took some stuff as a teenager with my old Konica that wasn't too bad, but I didn't keep it up for some reason. It wasn't until about 10 years ago that I started seriously taking photographs (as opposed to snapshots) using an old Asahi Pentax 35mm of my Dad's. I couldn't get very far with it though; I took some good shots, but I ended up frustrated most of the time. I could see what I wanted in my head, I just couldn't get it out of the camera (and it wasn't the camera's fault either). It wasn't until I got my first digital camera that I started to figure things out. Nothing like immediate feedback to teach you quick!
I noticed you have some black and white pictures, but not as many as your color shots. Do you enjoy working in black and white?
I do enjoy black and white and should probably do more of it, as it forces you to think differently. However, it's so easy anymore to manipulate just about any photograph into a decent b&w using Photoshop that it takes some of the fun and challenge out of it.
What was the first photo you ever remember taking?
The first photograph that I remember actually thinking about what I wanted and seeing it in my head before clicking the shutter, was in Berlin in roughly 1977 with my little 110. It was of a sunset shining through trees and glinting off of an icy pond. I was very proud of that picture!
What's the most emotional photo you've ever seen?
Very, very hard question. This one always affects me as I had a college friend who was an exchange student in Beijing at that time (and was actually in the square that day), so it reminds me of being glued to CNN hoping that he wasn't getting trampled, shot or crushed.
I'm from a military family (I think Korea and the current conflict are the only major ones we've missed since the Civil War) so pictures like this, this, and this all affect me in different ways.
But on a purely personal level, this photo has the strongest impact on me now.
Bobby Sherman or Davey Jones?
Who? (Before my time, I think...)
Thanks to Jan Bussey for playing along. We enjoyed it ... and learned something. And thanks for sharing your photographs and you talents with us.
Next week, we're scheduled to feature Lyn Perry (Bloggin' Outloud) and Silke (Hooah Wife and friends).
The Interview......
ReplyDelete...is up! Those of you (all two of you) who have been waiting with baited breath go here. This was fun, thanks to all who sent in questions!...
Nice interview. I really enjoyed the photographs, and finding out what camera equipment Jan uses. I was surprised and delighted that she gets those great images with a digital.
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