Jim Shadforth
New member
I found this website the other day, and I am impressed by the courtesy and professionalism of the members. The first photos in the forum I stumbled upon were John Harper's photos of jets with colorful smoke streaming from them. I think John and that 500 mm lens make a good team.
I'm 54 and grew up and lived in Southern California until last year. My wife and I moved in March 2006 to Richmond Hill, GA, which is just south of Savannah. It's beautiful here.
In 1976 I bought my first camera which was an Olympus OM-1, which I still have. A few years ago I bought my second camera, a digital Canon Rebel, which I am currently using. Knowing me, I'll keep the Rebel for many years. Even though the Rebel is unsophisticated by today's standards, the thing still amazes me.
I do stay up- to- date on equipment, though. About a month ago, I was photographing some jewelry for my wife's e-Bay auction, and I dropped and bent the kit lens (18-55) on the Rebel. So I inhaled deeply, closed my eyes, and bought a 16-35 L lens from Canon. So, I guess that makes me a professional now. (applause) I also have the original 70-300 kit lens. But now that I'm a professional, I may have to upgrade to a 70-200 2.8. Or, if John Harper keeps posting photos, I'll mortgage the house and get a nice 500mm.
By nature, I am a nuts and bolts sort of person, so I lean toward photojournalism as an interest. I tend to get into ruts, and so I want to grow beyond what interests me and try to appreciate other forms of photography more. Here's an example. Did anyone see that posting on this forum of the telephoto street scene shot, with traffic on the left, then a wall with a bird sitting on it, then three ladies walking toward the camera? If I had taken that shot, I would deleted it off the camera. But when the posting photographer asked some questions about his photo, I stopped to think about it. It wasn't long before I found myself liking the photo. I liked it, because to me, it was an odd photo. And it got me to thinking about it. It feels strange getting out of my rut, because I don't want to become a fine arts weirdo, but we'll see.
Anyway, thanks for having me.
Jim Shadforth
I'm 54 and grew up and lived in Southern California until last year. My wife and I moved in March 2006 to Richmond Hill, GA, which is just south of Savannah. It's beautiful here.
In 1976 I bought my first camera which was an Olympus OM-1, which I still have. A few years ago I bought my second camera, a digital Canon Rebel, which I am currently using. Knowing me, I'll keep the Rebel for many years. Even though the Rebel is unsophisticated by today's standards, the thing still amazes me.
I do stay up- to- date on equipment, though. About a month ago, I was photographing some jewelry for my wife's e-Bay auction, and I dropped and bent the kit lens (18-55) on the Rebel. So I inhaled deeply, closed my eyes, and bought a 16-35 L lens from Canon. So, I guess that makes me a professional now. (applause) I also have the original 70-300 kit lens. But now that I'm a professional, I may have to upgrade to a 70-200 2.8. Or, if John Harper keeps posting photos, I'll mortgage the house and get a nice 500mm.
By nature, I am a nuts and bolts sort of person, so I lean toward photojournalism as an interest. I tend to get into ruts, and so I want to grow beyond what interests me and try to appreciate other forms of photography more. Here's an example. Did anyone see that posting on this forum of the telephoto street scene shot, with traffic on the left, then a wall with a bird sitting on it, then three ladies walking toward the camera? If I had taken that shot, I would deleted it off the camera. But when the posting photographer asked some questions about his photo, I stopped to think about it. It wasn't long before I found myself liking the photo. I liked it, because to me, it was an odd photo. And it got me to thinking about it. It feels strange getting out of my rut, because I don't want to become a fine arts weirdo, but we'll see.
Anyway, thanks for having me.
Jim Shadforth