About
A British citizen born and (mostly) raised in Germany, I have been a photography fan off and on since the 70s. I started with a Pentax SLR doing mostly B&W because of both cost and creative control in doing your own developing and printing. I experimented with Ansel Adams’ zone system, studied Edward Westons‘ work, and experimented with cross processing B&W film. Eventually I drifted away from photography because of time constraints.
When consumer level digital cameras at affordable price started appearing a few years ago (it was a few years ago, wasn’t it?) I picked up a Canon G3 and started getting serious again about photography. Initially just a few shots here and there, it’s now grown into a serious hobby (again). Computers and digital cameras have just made it so easy to get out there and take pictures. In fact to easy. I’m in the process of weaning myself off the habit of taking way to many shots of whatever I’m photographing, and instead treat the memory card like film, where wasteful shooting was never an option. My current gear is a Canon Xti with my primary lens being a Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L, a Canon EF 50mm f/1.8, and some kit lenses (which I rarely use) that came with the camera. I also have a Canon Speedlite 420EX Flash.
I have a half dozen computers I play with, many of them running various versions of Linux, but do most of my photo processing on a Dell Dimension 4550 running Windows XP Professional with a Mitsubishi Diamond Pro 2060U 19 inch Monitor. All my photos are stored on Western Digital USB 2 external hard drives. My initial processing is done with Canon’s Digital Photo Professional which came with the camera. For any additional processing beyond the basic provided with Canon’s software, I use GIMP, an open source image processing package. It’s a bit tricky to work with, and a resource hog, but it’s free, and forever upgradable without fees.
As an engineer with an aerospace firm with clients world wide I’ve been privileged to visit every continent on this earth except Antarctica, my most favorite places being Melbourne in Australia and Rome and Naples in Italy. Unfortunately busy schedules, unfamiliarity with the region, and transportation issues most of the time have made it difficult to take photos of the places I visit. I hope to improve on this in the future.
Most of my photos are taken within a short drive of my home. I truly enjoy getting out and taking pictures. It’s almost like taking a dog (my camera) for walk. I like to explore areas urban and scenic, and sometimes take small risks (don’t we all?). Occasionally some of us local photo bloggers get together for a few hours and wander around taking pictures, with maybe a beer afterwards. Always fun.
I hope you enjoy some my photos and appreciate comments.
- Werner