DSLR, a history with norbs. (Bandwidth heavy post ahead)

[norbs]

After getting Gary's (muchos gratsios) approval, I here by present you with a bit of a run down on how I have gotten into photography. Some people may have seen it at OCAU, but I hope the rest of you find it a bit of an interesting read.

Inspired by Admiral (at OCAU) and Mole2k (at RSC), I have tried my best to put together a bit of a dSLR journey, as done my norbs.

I got my very 1st dSLR camera in November 2005. It was a pre-loved Canon 300D. Add to that a couple of kit lenses and I was away. The very 1st photo I took with this camera is below.

All photos can be viewed in a larger size by clicking on them.



Shot using the Macro mode on the 300D, I was happy that it was a clear photo. I spent a good couple of hours out in the backyard snapping shots of all manner of things. Not knowing a damned thing about aperture or exposure, it was all done, Im ashamed to say, in Auto mode. At this point, I didn't even realise the exposure meter in the view finder was just that. Over the next few weeks, I dabbled with manual mode, only to take a hell of alot of over and under exposed photos. Hmm, this was starting to feel like I had made a bad choice. I knew bugger all about photography and it showed in my photos. I dont know how many times I went for a walk and took a stack of photos only to get home and find that most of them were rubbish. The read LCD screen on the 300D was showing them as being ok, but on the big screen, they were a mess. I had a lot to learn.

In December, Andree and I went away for christmas to her brothers place at Wagga Wagga and then to Albury and Culburrra Beach. Lots and lots of portraits, nothing too flash, but I got a few pleasing photos and people liked what they saw. Whilst in Albury, we went out on Andree's brothers speed boat for some wake boarding. Here is a challenge. Set the 300D to Tv (time priority) and away we went.


Seymour cuts a swathe.


And getting some air.

Wow, hey, look out, Im a sports photographer. Obviously, they aren't all that good, but they were a damned side better than I expected. I was still struggling with the whole photography thing. I had read about exposure, aperture and shutter speed, but it hadn't really sunk in. By the time the trip was over, I had a load of photos, but nothing that I really couldn't have done with the old IXUS point and shoot.

Late in January, we went down to my mums place in Culburra Beach. I was a bit nervous about using my dSLR on the beach. Sand and salt water aren't to kind to cameras apparently. Again, lots of experimenting, and again, lots of dud photos. But I did jag this one.


My foot.

It is still one of the most popular of my 1400 odd photos on Flickr. Nice and sharp and the colours aren't to bad either. February and March were lean months, the photography bug really hadn't bitten at this stage and I was fighting a bit of a nasty settlement case in court.

April, and the Royal Easter Show rolls around. Well, this has to be a good opportunity for a budding photographer. My girlfriend was overseas and I had heaps of time, so off I went. Movement, colour and lights. Wow! Snap, snap ..........snap. I had learned a little bit more by this stage, so I could almost figure out how to minimize depth of field.


Well I thought I had.

As you can see, I hadn't quite got the affect I wanted. That lovely blurry look as the clowns moved further away from the lense. What the hell I was I doing wrong. All would be revealed a few weeks later. I did manage another photo that was, and still is one of my faves.


This pup looked up just as I had finished focussing.

[norbs]

The next real photo opportunity I got was at Mount panorama, Bathurst. The Bathurst Festival of Speed was on. A couple of hours drive out west to see a stack of cars zinging around Bathurst. As it turned out, it was a crap day. Hardly any racing on and lots of waiting. Again, alot of photos taken and quite a few keepers.


The Torana goes over the mountain.

It was here that I realised there is a whole lot more to motorsport photography than just pointing and clicking the button. Panning became something I wanted to be better at. The changing light made things difficult, and it was after the day at Bathurst that I decided that I have to learn more about photography if I wanted to take a good photo.

May came and it really was the month the penny dropped. It was prompted by 2 things in particular. The 1st one was when I finally got my head around how aperture affected depth of field. I can even remember the moment it happened.


Ahaaaaa......

I remember taking this photo and thinking.. "if this doesn't work, I'll give it away". When I looked into the LCD after the shot I felt a rush. It had worked. So now, I realised what happened when I used a large aperture. And because of the bizzare way we talk about aperture, I had been messing it up every time. Small f stop, large aperture, small depth of field was how I remembered it from then on.

The second thing that happened was a meet up with 3 guys from the OCAU photography forums. All three had alot more experience than I did, so it was terrific for me to go out with them and learn a few things. Admiral, or Kris Dick to use his real name was more than generous with his time and patience. Amongst a few fantastic tips, he demystified the whole apeture mystery by saying something like, "Apeture just means hole!" It was like someone had turned a light on in my brain. Sure, it sounds simple, and I must sound like a tool for letting something so simple befuddle me, but I can't explain the differance it made to my confidence.


Just one shot from that night.

June saw me out and about, taking photos of everything and anything. It was the 1st time I had tried anything approaching arty type shots. Im not a huge fan of the pretentious photo's that you see hanging in gallerys around the place. But I thought I may as well try and see how it works.


Not exactly stunning, but it was high art for this little black duck.

The photography bug had bitten. And how. I was starting to understand alot more about it, purely by doing it over and over. But it did get me out there, and even, up early in the morning.


Sunrise, the 1st of many.

July was a big month. Thanks to the conclusion of a long running property settlement, I splurged and bought myself some new kit.


mmmmmm, good!

Yep, a brand new Canon 30D. Wow, what a differance. It felt solid. Its was heavy. It shot 5 frames per second. 8 megapixels. A groovy dial doodad on the back. It really was too good a piece of gear for this rank amatuer, but hey, you only get divorced once (I hope). With this baby in my grubby mitt, it was off on a roadtrip. Time to give this baby a work out. Canberra 1st stop.


An experiment with light painting.

The to Wagga Wagga, Wodonga, Castlemaine, Melbourne, Lakes Entrance, Eden, Naroooma and back home. What a blast. Plenty of early morning get ups and late nights. Lots of walking and talking to locals. I had a ball.


One of my faves from the trip.

[norbs]

August 2006 saw me out all over the place. Night time in the city. Down to the beach. Batemans Bay with work. All the time with the camera. It was beginning to be my main hobby. More and more, photos turned out the way I had hoped they would. I was actually getting the hang of it. I bought a macro lense and found out how much fun it is to photograph tiny things.


A little hoverfly.

September and back to Eastern Creek for some more car racing photos. This time I was alot more confident, and guess what? I stuffed most of the photos up. I was trying to pan at 1/60th of a second. Nup, not good enough for that yet.


Cortina goodness.

Heaps of outings and lots more photos. Lots more learning as well. Photography is like getting older. The more you learn, the more you realise you dont know.


October was a busy month. 21 days I went out taking photos. Either after work, during work or weekends. Nights, early mornings and just arsing around at home. Again, another busy month of learning. It was the month I went to Lilyfield train yardsand did some urban type shots. It was also the night I thought I was going to be killed by a train.


A long exposure.

November was a massive month. Sculptures by the sea was on along the coast. What a great opportunity for some photos. But the big one was my wedding and honeymoon. The wedding was a great day.


Bertie, Gerg and Macca try and calm my nerves.

The honeymoon in Vietnam was a photographers heaven. Click that link for more photos from Vietnam, but here is one of my faves.


See, I can pan.

After a month like that, and purchasing a house in December, it was time for a bit of a rest. Apart from the chrissy rush, not much was done in December.

January 2007 saw macros come back. Portraits and crash zooming. Lots of experimenting to be done and lots to learn.

Which brings us to February. Now. Present. No more rambling. I still have a long way to go, but judging by the reception this photo has got, I am getting better.


The Opera House.

Thanks for all those people I have hassled with stupid questions and have given their time to help me understand this terrific hobby that is photography.

[ozczecho]

Todd, great story, and I can definately relate....gee I feel like writing my "autobiography"

Whats really nailed for me is the online interaction via this forum as well as flickr...through these two mediums I have met so many people (even face 2 face) and have been inspired by many more....

[hart]

... ... simply awe-struck. I can hardly wait to get started on a similar journey of photographic fun!

[gstark]

Todd,

Thanx for posting this. I know there's a lot of work in putting this together, but I love the way that it documents your journey from being a raw beginner through to where you are now.

Great stuff!

[Mr Darcy]

This is a great story of a great journey.

Make sure you keep a copy of it - and add to it. Your great grand kids will thank you (though your kids may think you're nuts!)

[Glen]

Norbs, a great story well told

[rooboy]

Great work Norbs . Thanks for sharing

[Hudo]

Hi,

Enjoyed being taken on the journey with you.... Thanks for sharing your experiences with us.

Mark

[MCWB]

Nice one Todd, I didn't comment over at OCAU but I will here. I really enjoyed reading this, especially having been there at the OCAU Sydney Harbour meet. Great story and pics!

I'd like to see more of this stuff from others too.

[gstark]

I'd like to see more of this stuff from others too.

What do others think about this?

I'm quite happy to put up a separate section especially for these sorts of posts, if y'all think it's worthwhile.

This is not to say it's open slather for long posts with lots of images. Rather, I think Todd's story of his development as a photographer is of great merit, and I'm sure that many others here have their stories waiting to be told. That's the sort of thing I think is of interest: it tells us more about who you are, how you came to photography, and shows us how you have developed in this hobby. Within that context, I think that this sort of thing fits in perfectly with the style of community that we enjoy here ...

[MCWB]

Not sure about form or whether it requires a separate forum (as long as you're happy with them being in General Discussion), but at any rate though I love the idea.

I loved reading both this thread and Admiral's thread over at OCAU (registration required) that norbs linked, so many different and *wow* images, which is one of the things I love most about photography. It's the same reason I enjoy Chris (sirhc55) posting his old photos. I also think it's a really valuable exercise for the photographer to go over pics taken a while ago up to the present day, takes you on a journey and may remind you how much you've learnt!

[Old Bob]

This is a very encouraging post, particularly for those struggling with producing images to a standard we set for ourselves. It's easy to become discouraged, when we can't meet this standard. You have shown that with support from others, and perseverance, excellent results can be achieved. Best of all, you had fun doing it.

[mark]

Nicely put together Norbs.

I have had a similar journey to you with respect to the learning and really enjoyed reading your post.

Congrats on this photo at flickr "Waiting to see Dawn's crack" I see it's at almost 900 views with a stack of comments. Well deserved.

Thanks for sharing your story.
Cheers

[norbs]

Thanks for all the good comments.

Gary, I would love to read more peoples experieces. After all, it was the Tolstoyan effort of Admiral (Kris) at OCAU that really inspired me. His story is far better written and presented. As Trent says, whether it needs its own forum, I am not sure. But I certainly would encourage others to take the time to do something similar. It certainly puts things into perspective.

Old Bob. Stick at it mate. You wll see improvement over time. I have taken alot of photos and still 95% are rubbish. Like they say, if it was easy, every bastard would be doing it.

[norbs]

Nicely put together Norbs.

I have had a similar journey to you with respect to the learning and really enjoyed reading your post.

Congrats on this photo at flickr "Waiting to see Dawn's crack" I see it's at almost 900 views with a stack of comments. Well deserved.

Thanks for sharing your story.
Cheers

And if a few more people make it a Fave, it might make it to number 1 photo for Feb 16th. Oh, and comments help to apparently.

[gstark]

As Trent says, whether it needs its own forum, I am not sure. But I certainly would encourage others to take the time to do something similar. It certainly puts things into perspective.

I think it does need its own section, simply because of the lengthy nature of the posts that will be the thread starters. By breaking it out into a different section, I can suspend some of the normal rules for posting in terms of, for instance, the number of images in the post.

So .... I have created that section, and I'm moving this thread into that section, which means that it now has the honour of being the first thread in that section.

[norbs]

Thanks Gary.

[Alpha_7]

Thanks Gary.

Coungratulations norbs, on being the first and starting what would hopefully me an itneresting tradition..

Out of interest how long did it take you to prepare these photos ? and commentary ?

[norbs]

Thanks Gary.

Coungratulations norbs, on being the first and starting what would hopefully me an itneresting tradition..

Out of interest how long did it take you to prepare these photos ? and commentary ?

Craig. Took about 90 minutes, and I am annoyed that I rushed it. I have thought of so many things that I could have added. Different things I have learnt and the techniques that worked for me and didnt.

Im not much of a writer, and it annoys me to think I could do it a lot better, had I spent more time on it.

But there you go

[Alpha_7]

Thanks Gary.

Coungratulations norbs, on being the first and starting what would hopefully me an itneresting tradition..

Out of interest how long did it take you to prepare these photos ? and commentary ?

Craig. Took about 90 minutes, and I am annoyed that I rushed it. I have thought of so many things that I could have added. Different things I have learnt and the techniques that worked for me and didnt.

Im not much of a writer, and it annoys me to think I could do it a lot better, had I spent more time on it.

But there you go

I can't see why you can't work longer on a revised version and re-release it. Better to check with Gary.. but I think the more indepth each is the better.

[Yi-P]

Right, i'm inspired from this, I'll see what can I write about my own experiences here.

Its very inspiring, very well done Todd

[norbs]

No more threads?

[MCWB]

No time to do so Todd. Intending on it!

[bwhinnen]

Thanks Norbs! Great read, I can't wait to read the next instalment, and by that I mean I hope you continue to add to your journey as it progresses!

Thanks to Gary for supporting the idea, I think this will be a great little section and I hope one day to get the time to be able to add my own little story, not to mention some photographic talent

Cheers
Brett

[Yi-P]

Would like to know, if people actually prefer long text + photos or short text + photos?

[gstark]

Y-iP,

That's entirely up to you.

I would imagine that some people might prefer one format, and others another - we're all different, and that's the beauty of life. Just do it as you deem appropriate.

[Alpha_7]

Y-iP,

That's entirely up to you.

I would imagine that some people might prefer one format, and others another - we're all different, and that's the beauty of life. Just do it as you deem appropriate.

I agree with Gary, we are all different to pick the format that tells your story best.

Oh by the way, any chance we'd be seeing the sort of Mr G. Stark ? I'd certainly be keenly interested Gary.. I'm sure you'd have no shortage of material.. infact it might be hard to pick what to put in and what to omit.

[bumthology]

awesome
im just curious now
how many people understood aperture before they got their dslr
i didnt.. . for some people it actually takes experimentation to learn more about something

[gstark]

how many people understood aperture before they got their dslr

I did.

But then again, I'd been using a film SLR for ,,,, a long time.

But what exactly do you mean by "undertsand aperture"?

Are you referring to small number vs large hole?

Or how it affects your exposure?

Or how it affects DoF?

While I certainly understand all of those questions, which of them are you asking?

Craig ....

Very bloody difficult; many of my images are no longer in this world; they belong to another life, a very long time ago.

I can certainly tell the story, but it won't be the "Illustrated Adventures of Gary Stark".

[Alpha_7]

I can certainly tell the story, but it won't be the "Illustrated Adventures of Gary Stark".

I'd settle for the full or abridged works, with large text and not pictures.

[Pehpsi]

good read with some awesome pics, great stuff...

[Alex]

Interesting read. Thank you for posting this.

Alex

[norbs]

Carrying on from where I left off, just on a year ago. February 2007 to
February 2008 has been not as much a learning experience as an
experimentiting experience. Now that I have a bit more confidence in my
abilities as a photographer, I have started to try different styles and
techniques. Many times, completely stuffing a chance at a good phot, but
it has been rewarding none the less. In late February 2007, I once again
upgraded camera bodies. Out with the 1.6X crop of the 30D, and hello
full frame goodness of the Canon 5D. Here is the 1st shot I took out of
the box.



All photos can be clicked on for a larger view

Holy moly Batman, thats some severe vignetting! As it turned out, it was
actually the 50mmf/1.8 lens had been dropped and theplastic backing had
come away slightly from the body. Only about 1.5mm, but with the added
size of the 5D's mirror, enough to upset things. Once that was sorted,
it was situation normal again.

March saw a few trips out, the 1st being to Olympic Park at Homebush one
night with a couple of blokes from Flickr. I was starting to concetrate
more on composition than just wildly snapping things and hoping for the
best.



That photo fo Homebush Park railway station was one of the better ones
from that night. The lowlight abilities of the 5D certainly made
shooting at night alot easier. And, the fact that it didn't have a built
in flash certainly made you think about things.

A trip to Melbourne for a party in March also got me out and about. It
was about this time that I started taking photos that I knew I would
turn into black and white in Photoshop.



It must be part of your development (bad pun) as a photographer that you
go through phases, and see things slightly differently.



I knew when I composed this what I wanted. Some motion blur on the trams,
but the rest as sharp as possible. I now knew enough to be able to
execute this. Obviously I was no world renowned street photographer, but
I know a few months earlier I wouldn't have been able to figure out the
right aperture settings to get that shot.



Did somebody say phase? It took a storm of biblical proportions to jolt
me out of the B&W phase. Laying in bed one night, it sounded like a
767 had landed on the roof. After laying there blinking and rubbing my
eyes, I soon realised we were having a cracking thunder storm. Oooh,
lightning shots. Something I had never tried before, but hey, how hard
could it be?



Actually, it was alot harder than I thought. A couple of things. It is
usually persisting down during a storm. And the other thing that makes
you slightly cautious, are those bloody great arcs of light crackling
around the sky and looking for a path of least resistance to the ground.
I took the above shot huddled under a petrol station awning, shaking
like a leaf. The noise and light was unbelievable. It was one of those
storms you dont get to see very often, or when you do, you dont have a
camera handy.

As I said earlier, it was a time to experiment. And part of this was
getting out and about a bit more. I had driven past this site at White
bay thousands of times with out giving it a second look. But when
photography becomes a hobby, ney, passion, you see things differently.



Not a great shot when seen large, but I loved the colours and feel of
this one. And I could see potential in these derelict night scenes.

Obviously March was a busy month. I cranked out some macro work.



And old hard drive stripped down is a fascinating thing to look at and
photograph. Well I thought so.

Also in March, the Sydney Harbour Bridge had a little celebration.



75 years old and they were expecting a massive crowd. Not being a huge
fan of crowds, I headed in really early and got some shots I was very
happy with. This one of the Cahill Expressway was taken in a very
strange light and I knew it would lend itself to some slight
desaturation in post processing.



April is a favourite month, as it is usually Royal Easter Show time. But
this year, a friend of ours gave birth to young Jack, so it was my 1st
chance to take some shots of a new born.



proud parents Paul and Ruth seemed happy enough with the shots to ask me
to photograph their wedding. Gulp. But that was some time off. 1st, lets
get to the show.



Fasion and Style indeed.

And how often do you see this?



An empty Show Bag pavilion?

Walking around the local neighbourhood at night, things are transformed,
and something as simple as a speed bump, can look entirely different in
long exposure photography.



Late April in Australia, we celebrate ANZAC day. A day for our war
heroes to march and be proud. I would urge anyone who hasn't been to a
dawn service, to get to one. To see these proud and brave men is a
humbling thing indeed. It poured with rain last year and yet there they
were, in their thousands. It is a day full of emotion, and you dont have
to be a terrific photographer to be able to get photos like this.



or

[norbs]

Before April was out, I got over to Cockatoo Island with a bunch from
Flickr. Another must see for the Sydney photographers.



May saw me leave on my 2nd photographic road trip. This time I was
headed for a mates 40th at Broken Hill. As it was, his mother got very
ill and passed away. But I didnt find out til the day before i got to
Broken Hill. Before that I had visited Bathurst, Parkes, Dubbo and
Cobar.



For someone who has never been to the outback before, it is a terrific
experience. This is such a big country. With a few side trips and
driving about, I had covered nearly 1500kms by the time I got to broken
Hill.

Just to the west of Broken Hill is the old mining town of Silerton, a
photographers dream location. red dirt, clear blue skies and derelict
buildings.



In total I took about 2500 photos on the trip, of which, 139 are
here.

Easily, one of my faves from the trip is the Moo Quartet.



June was a quiet month, we moved to the south coast and I had a cracking
flu most of the month.

July was the wedding I had been asked to shoot earlier in the year. I
had bought a new 50mm f/1.4 lens just for the occasion, and just as well.
Lighting was terrible in a marquee out the back of a house. It was a top
wedding, but hard work for me as a very amatuer photographer.



probably the best shot of the night wasn't even of the happy couple.



So my 1st wedding, and probably the last. I have nothing but respect for
people that try wedding photography. It is a lot of pressure.

August, lunar eclipse time. Not nearly as exciting as I thought it would
be, but I did manage to cobble this little montage together that was
well received on Flickr.



Some odds and sods from September.






October started off with some more experimneting with some new ND
filters. Hills Hoist take off.



And with the vege patch going in, it was time for some macro fun.



November, and I was lucky enough to spy a full rainbow, and have the
camera, and a lens just wide enough to squeeze it all into frame.



It was also my 1st wedding anniversary, so the bride and I went away to
Bawley point and Mollymook for a few days. I had just acquired a Canon
80-200 f/2.8 lens. A magnificent piece of kit.





Both taken with the "Magic drainpipe".

November 24th saw the people do exactly what the sign said....



December was pretty quiet, but I managed a couple of animal shots I was
proud of.





Both very different, but finally I was confident enough to try shots
like this, knowing that I was half a chance at suceeding in what I was
doing. It had taken the best part of 2 years, but I was finally getting
somewhere.

January, 2008, and another animal shot.



I thought lightning was hard to shoot. At least you can open the shutter
and leave it for 10 seconds and hope you jag it. Bloody Flipper wont pop
up where and when you want him to.

February 2008. More experimenting. First, lets turn a very good camera
into a pinhole camera.



Not my best image ever, but one that was very satisfying none the less.

Some more experimenting.



One of my better photos.

And that rounds out another year of norbs and his dSLR. Obviously I
haven't learnt as much in the last 12 months as what i did in the
previous 12 months, and I dare say, the calibre of photo taken may not
be a huge improvement, but it does show with some persistance and sheer
bloody mindedness, you can achieve some reasonable results.

I hope it helps people get out and press that shutter button.
Photography is an incredibly rewarding hobby.

[gstark]

Todd,

It's fascinating to see your work, and, for me at any rate, very pleasurable to see the obvious progress that you have made in improving your skillset as you travel through your photographic journey.

The experimentation that you're doing - the pinhole and the speedhump shots stand out for me in this regard - clearly indicate a level of curiosity and a a sense of not simply fun, but the pleasure that you;re deriving from using your camera. And that you're willing to play with things, and break things, whether they be the typical guidelines that we follow in making our images, or perhaps other things more ... um ... of a legal sense (the Cahill Expressway shot seems to be taken from a somewhat dubious legal PoV) indicates to me that you more than just a little bit hooked on this hobby.

And good for you, I say!

Great stuff; I love this, and thanx for sharing and extending what you started a year ago.

[sirhc55]

Todd

You have travelled a road from an unknown place to where you are in a truly mystical way. May your journey continue in excellence.

[Alpha_7]

Todd,

Thanks for taking the time to making another great addition, I'm really impressed by the presentation, commentary and the growth and experimentation with your photography. You've inspired me to take some time out at some stage soon, and take some different shots, and challenge myself. Again thanks for sharing as its a fascinating read.

[Bodak]

It's been a great ride.

Thank you very much.

[radar]

Todd,

thanks for adding to your journey, it has been great to see your skills develop over time, great set of photos,

Cheers,

André

[norbs]

Todd,

It's fascinating to see your work, and, for me at any rate, very pleasurable to see the obvious progress that you have made in improving your skillset as you travel through your photographic journey.

The experimentation that you're doing - the pinhole and the speedhump shots stand out for me in this regard - clearly indicate a level of curiosity and a a sense of not simply fun, but the pleasure that you;re deriving from using your camera. And that you're willing to play with things, and break things, whether they be the typical guidelines that we follow in making our images, or perhaps other things more ... um ... of a legal sense (the Cahill Expressway shot seems to be taken from a somewhat dubious legal PoV) indicates to me that you more than just a little bit hooked on this hobby.

And good for you, I say!

Great stuff; I love this, and thanx for sharing and extending what you started a year ago.

Thanks for the kind words everyone.

Gary, that shot on the Cahill expressway was not as bad as it seemed. The road was closed, so I clambered over the safety rail and set up the shot. At one stage the police did fly around the corner and nearly ran me over. They gave me a warning and told me to get off the road. But hey, I wanted that shot. You can see in this shot if you look closely, what happens when you have to bolt half way through a long exposure.





Just goes to show, persistance pays off, and I got the shot in the end.

[norbs]

Todd,

Thanks for taking the time to making another great addition, I'm really impressed by the presentation, commentary and the growth and experimentation with your photography. You've inspired me to take some time out at some stage soon, and take some different shots, and challenge myself. Again thanks for sharing as its a fascinating read.

Thanks Craig. The bolded bit above is the thing that keeps me clicking. If I stuck to say landscapes, I would become bored and probably lose interest. But I have these ideas, like the clothesline shot, and try and get them to work. It is probably nothing original, some clothes blowing around on a Hills Hoist, but it took an idea, and time to execute that was the pleasurable part.

Something that otherpeople have said, and it certainly isn't something I am concious of, is that alot of my photos are from slightly different angles or perspectives. Not having a clue about photgraphic history or the great photographers may have helped me develop my own slightly unique style. Im not sure, I may be pissing into the wind, but alot of people do comment on the angles or way I have taken a particular shot.

Good luck and keep your finger on the shutter button.

[Pehpsi]

Nicely done mate. Some really fantastic shots there! Very enjoyable..

[jethro]

Wow what a story and an expos'e of imagery.
fantastic journey
Cheers
jethro

[Greg B]

Todd, great thread, great story, great shots. Very enjoyable, thanks for sharing it all.

cheers

[muzz]

G'day Todd,

what a fantastic read - nevermind your photographic skills, I love your matter-of-fact narrative. I'm at a point myself where I'm probably in the middle of a photographic journey, but it still feels like it might be the beginning in some ways. I certainly couldn't pull together a portfolio like yours - really nice to work through. I'm still hoping that I can learn to see - if it turns out to be a gift, I think I've missed the boat! Nevertheless, I've joined this forum, joined (almost) a camera club and no excuses from here. I can see my old 350D out of the corner of my eye as I type, and it's winding me up - it doesn't seem to know that getting bigger and better toys is also a part of the journey, at least it will be once the Global Financial Crisis is on the wane.

Thanks again for a great read as well as nice images to look at. I'm off to your Flickr site from here.

Cheers, Muzz.

[Nikon boy]

Thanks for sharing
I found this thread a very enjoyable experience

[norbs]

So as not to kill the load time of this thread, given it has a truckload of images already, I will link to the 3rd part of theinstallment.

http://toddnorburyphotography.com/blog/?p=328

Enjoy.

[ozimax]

Great thread Norbs, very enjoyable browse indeed.

(The last opera house photo is an absolute cracker too).

Ozi.