Good information about why one picture is better than another is hard to come by. As you would expect, you have to pay a price for the knowledge by studying, then practicing what you’ve learned by taking pictures. Some instructors advocate starting out with a manual camera in order to learn the basics.
Ansel Adams brought a new dimension of perspective to black and white photography. With the 100th anniversary of his birth, it should be remembered that his generation saw the harm being done by uncontrolled harvesting of the giant redwoods, and he began to document the primitive areas of the West on film to at least preserve the memories of those places.
How many times have you gone on a field trip or a photo shoot and, after looking at your pictures, wanted to go back and shoot them all over again?
That happens frequently in the early years of most photography careers. It doesn't take long for a person to realize that if someone is really serious about photography they had better learn the basics by going to a photography school, joining a camera club, or doing both.
On the day the Twin Towers fell, still photography was reborn. And, according to the New York Times Picture Editor, "It will never be the same again."
She said it. I believe it. And that's that. The New York Times, News Week Magazine, The National Review, and untold other News Bureaus around the world clamored for still pictures that revealed the gruesome, detailed, personal stories that will remain for centuries as images the civilized world will recall. The Law of Unintended Consequences* was invoked upon the radical Muslims by their own hand on 9/11, and it will never be forgotten.
In 1903, there were two cars in the state of Ohio. They promptly ran into each other. The newspapers sensationalized the event, without pictures, reporting how the vehicles dashed around emitting loud noises that frightened horses and disturbed the domestic tranquility. Some labeled them weapons of destruction, and a menace to society. During the next year the president declared that no one should have to go faster than fifteen miles per hour. (The speed of a good horse)
I have been asked a few times where to get digital printing done. This is a fair question since there are few places in this area that are equipped to provide this service. All the retailers like Costco, WalMart, the drug stores, and grocery stores fall into the category that have a service they can send slides, negatives, or digital files to, but generally speaking those services take a long time and tend to provide straight production prints. It's generally a hassle to get custom work done and way too expensive for what they provide.
The opportunity to try out some front and rear curtain features provided in Nikon's flash system that I had never used effectively before was provided by the A.V. Fair Friday night. The brightly lit carnival midway with the colorful Ferris wheel, merry go rounds, and various spinning, zooming and acrobatic rides provided the action that only a carnival can.
The bungee jump concession on the other side was especially exciting, too.
As you see more and more photographers turning to Digital Cameras you wonder what the big attraction is. After all, there are many examples in magazines and contests of film camera pictures that do as well or better than their digital counterparts.
