film

Reprinted (mostly) from my Storm Artists page.

I have a plan

It's taken longer than I expected, but my plan has been fulfilled.
The first two examples of it have been uploaded (smaller versions will appear here).

About a month or so ago, I got my hands on a 35mm film camera.  Now, my friends tell me I'm a photographer, although I've always been more comfortable with the term picture-taker.  I wondered...do I have what it takes to be a photographer?  Do I have the right to call myself one?

I needed to test myself.  I needed to be sure, and I figure, the best way for me to do it is shoot with film.  Armed with a Canon EOS Rebel Ti and three rolls of film, I challenged myself to shoot photos without the luxuries digital offers us: No second chances, no do-overs.  One and done.

I took the three rolls over the end of November and the beginning of December.  Due to the holidays, the exposed film sat in my coat pocket for a few weeks before our budget allowed me a little extra to get it developed.  The Christmas rush meant it would take a few extra days before my pictures came back, but they have...

I won't lie.  A good number of them were blurry.  It's the first time I played with a manual focus SLR for any extended period, and I was figuring out what I was doing as I went along.  I could've used the automatic focus feature the lens had, but what kind of challenge would that be?  This was final exam, as it were.  No cheating.

Still, there were some out there that were pretty good.  I'll scan the ones I like over the next few days (maybe even one that Julie shot of yours truly with the automatic focus where I almost look human) and share with you my results.

This is my grand plan.  Please be honest and critique them.  I need to know...if I have what it takes.  If I really am a photographer.