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View Full Version : New to the forum, (semi) new to LF



E_Aiken
15-Mar-2007, 22:24
Howdy all.

Maybe more aptly, howdy those who read this particular, and seemingly niche subforum of an already niche website. The three of you, hello.

I took my first full-time job in photographer as a news shooter over a summer in 2000 while still in college. Upon graduating, I worked briefly in design before realizing photography and music were really where my heart was, and I was more likely to be able to support myself with the camera than with my ears (as the past decade of performances had left me feeling rather near to deaf at 21.) Took a job as an assistant with a studio in the DC area and quickly moved up to shooting regularly through a bit of right time/right place luck. After a few years, I moved to NYC and am currently part of the photojournalism and documentary program at the International Center of Photography. With both of my Leicas and my 'blad all breaking within one hectic month, I sold off a mass of equipment left over from my stint as a would-be audio engineer producing records destined to be heard by very, *very* few, and bought myself a 4x5 camera in November 2006, which has been my mainstay ever since. It's been such a great experience that I'm already contemplating the move to 8x10. Large format has been tremendously enlightening an undertaking - I'd reached a point where I'd come to the conclusion that I was a technician above all else, strong with knowledge of photography's science and practice but lacking in vision and creativity; at best, I could absorb a situation and respond to it, but couldn't dream of controlling and creating an image as many of my amazingly talented peers were doing. The slowdown and abstraction of the image (as seen upside down and backwards) has been instrumental in teaching discipline and to really look - though my images still have miles to go and my own vision still in its infancy (to put it euphemistically) large format has been one of the most exciting steps I've yet taken with photography. I look forward to learning more from the experience and devotion to the format so many here so clearly display.

Ralph Barker
15-Mar-2007, 22:33
Welcome to the LF Forum, E. :cool:

E_Aiken
15-Mar-2007, 22:36
Welcome to the LF Forum, E. :cool:

thanks, Ralph! I've been lurking for days, trying to absorb as much info as possible. It's absolutely daunting how much some of these guys here know, and the picture thread has some gorgeous work in it.

Ron Marshall
16-Mar-2007, 05:16
Welcome to the forum. After starting LF, my 35mm and MF also improved, benefiting from the extra attention I paid to composition with LF.