I often fail to realize just how much I know about photography. What I do know I owe mainly to Wah.What is bringing on this fit of flattery you ask? Well, I’ll tell you. I know a young woman who is a design major. She recently took a photography class. She loves photography but, suprisingly, she didn’t seem to learn that much about it. Since she found out that I know a little something something, she’s been asking my advice and asking for my help.
That’s the strange part. I don’t think I know that much. How could I, I compare my knowledge of photography with a guy who got funding to try out palladium printing, who figured out the zone system and starting shooting it, who painted an entire room in our house as a backdrop for a single series of photographs. I mean, compared to Wah I am a rank amateur. But compared to lots of other people, I’m an expert. Hell, I’m fairly certain that I could teach an introduction to photography class. Its really funny; I can start talking about lighting methodologies, developing techniques, and lens useages.
Anyway, I’m thanking Wah not because some cute young woman is talking to me but because I learned a lot about photography from hanging out with him.
I really should read my own blog more often. You are very welcome, but I’m assuming I was really drunk when I did this teaching, cause I don’t remember any of it.
Most of it came in the form of talking about the process. But often it was when you would want to try out something you read about, or when you would want to see what you could get the film or the image to do. I guess it was basically a positive environment for play in relation to film, with room for discussion about the mechanics.