WWMS? What Would Meatyard Say?

When I was in college, photography saved me. I have never been a school person. I know what you’re thinking, why am I a teacher? I love learning now. I hated school, because I never felt smart enough. The truth is that I never learned the study skills I needed and I was not very disciplined. In college I started out in psychology. I thought I would become a counselor, and I really wanted to be a profiler. Mostly, because I watched a lot of television and movies. Once I reached my third year in college I wanted to quit. I didn’t think I could do more school. I even took a semester off. When I went back I decided I would change my major. I had taken an art class before that break and decided I would sign up for all art classes. I knew I liked photography, because I did it in high school. I was right. I loved everything about photography. I loved scouting out the perfect shot. The world opened up for me behind the lens. One of my favorite things about photography was the darkroom. I would spend hours in there, dodging and burning until I had the perfect print. Many times I would be the only person in there. I would listen to Dr. Laura and just print. 
Flash forward to after I graduated and I suddenly stopped taking pictures. I no longer had a school darkroom to print, and film was expensive. Life was strange without my camera.
I missed it, and it left me feeling a little out of balance. During this time I was living in Long Beach. I worked in Culver City at a preschool and babysat for a photographer there. She is one of the kindest people, and a great photographer. She gave me all of her old darkroom equipment. I have had that equipment ever since with the dream of one day having a darkroom. A few years later I was able to buy a digital camera, and a Mac. I shadowed a photographer and learned Photoshop. He taught me a lot. I started taking wedding photos and was in love with photography, once again. 
I now have a digital camera I use often. I’m also financially able to replace the Mac I had that died long ago. My Mom has been in the process of moving and that has forced me to take inventory. My darkroom equipment has been sitting in her garage. I read this article the other day and it made me sad. It basically said that the darkroom is dead. Photographers can do all the same things in Photoshop that they could do in the darkroom, maybe even better. Chemicals are expensive and hard to find. Many more people are able to enjoy photography than were able to before digital photography. 

Is the darkroom dead? There are some really valid points here. I mean, chemicals and paper can be hard to come by these days. Maybe this is more toward the budget restraints of teachers, but I don’t know. Some amazing photographers still shoot film. They often send their film out to be developed and printed. Most are completely digital though. Is someone who only learned through digital means how to do photography lacking in their skill? I know many who only learned this way and are talented. I always thought of myself as a purest and I still love the darkroom. That equipment that was given to me, I gave to habitat for humanity and someone already bought it. That makes me sad, but I think I’m okay with moving on completely and pursuing my craft the digital way. I will always honor the past though.
If you are interested in reading the article, you can find it here:
https://www.theartofed.com/2016/08/17/time-accept-darkroom-dead/?mc_cid=7af6e4db56&mc_eid=83dd6bd4cd

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

April 13, 2018

Image
Today is the day that I could have been a mom. It was my projected due date. I’ve watched so many become parents for the second, third, fourth time since then. It’s a hard day. It’s hard to share these thoughts, but I feel compelled to. This is what I put in my journal MONTHS ago.  If I’m not meant to be a mother, what am I meant for? That is the big question I have right now. Maybe I will find an answer. Only God knows. It’s the ONE thing I ever thought I’d be good at. Being a Mom. Now what, God?  What am I to be? I haven’t blogged about this, or really even talked about it that much. I don’t know that I even have the words still.  Back in May my birthday fell on Mother’s Day, which was tough. I had found out that my odds of having a baby were 1%. I wrote these words in my journal right after I found out about my fertility odds. I blogged about it here: http://citywifeinacountrylife.blogspot.com/2017/05/birthday.html I can’t describe how m...
Read more

Swiper! No Swiping!

Image
Remember that kid’s show, Dora the Explorer? Kids had to yell at the television, “Swiper! No swiping!” so that the sly fox would not steal the prized object of the episode? That show always got on my nerves, but my niece loved it. I remember her watching it with fascination and getting so upset when Swiper came on the screen. She would gasp like, “How dare he!”Swiper was always there, lurking. Often we are too busy looking at the prize that we don't see Swiper hiding in the bushes.  Hebrews 11:1 is one of my favorite verses. God showed me this one back in high school and it became my life verse. It says, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for. The evidence of things not seen.” Let's face it, faith is hard. I know that each of us have had something they have prayed and prayed for, only to wait and wonder if God is listening. That's the question right? Is God listening? It's like that Judy Bloom book, "Are You There God. It's Me Margaret." I hav...
Read more

The Boogyman

Image
I LOVE scary movies. I spent many hours watching them when I was growing up. I was, and still am in search of the latest GOOD scary movie. I think my love for all things scary started as a child, when I watched The Twilight Zone with my Nanny. We watched it every day. I also think that Scooby Doo had a lot to do with it. As I got older I remember watching the Freddy Krueger T.V. show called Freddy’s Nightmares . In high school and college I rented countless horror films from Blockbuster. Some of my favorites include: A Nightmare on Elm Street, Halloween, Poltergeist, The Fog, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Conjuring, Insidious, and Amityville Horror (the original) . I don't know why I like these movies. It may be the rush I get when I'm scared. It may be the laugh that I have after the initial scare. As scary as these movies may be, they are “safe.” Nothing is really going to happen to me. I'm watching something unfold before me, but I am able to walk away from it at ...
Read more