Not long ago, a photographer friend and I spent about an hour talking with a teenage girl who is interested in photography. The girl’s mother felt her daughter would benefit from some mentoring, so my friend and I sat down with the girl, showed her some of our own work, and also showed her books full of photographs by the great masters. We told her about our enthusiasm for photography and that, for us, taking pictures is a joy, not a job. We encouraged the girl to shoot, shoot, shoot, and to always keep it fun.
After that meeting, I got to thinking about my own teenage years. My parents were both music teachers and I know I made them crazy because, as a high school trumpet player, I enjoyed music but wasn’t so good about sitting alone in my room, practicing my horn. Scales and exercises bored me to death. I listened to albums by “Blood, Sweat and Tears” and wished that I could play music that way...
Then something AMAZING happened: I discovered PHOTOGRAPHY! Flash! A light went on in my teenage head, and it was intense. The camera--”taking pictures”--was something so enjoyable for me, I could (and did) practice, and it never felt boring. To this day, 30-plus years later, I am still practicing with my camera, always learning. My everyday shooting does not always produce great art, but it is certainly an exercise I do happily. I walk to the mailbox and along the way I take a few pictures of my neighbors' horse. All the while, tunes by “Blood, Sweat and Tears” play in my head.
