If you know me and see me at any type of “event”, you will likely see me with a camera. As long as I can remember, I have been the unofficial photographer for all the family-related activities.
I have thousands - but a few favorites made it on the wall
I got into photography while I was working at Corner Drug in Glenwood at the young age of 15. The owner, Dewey Essig, was into the lastest photography gadgets (I remember the early days of autofocus with the new Minolta cameras). The front counter had a small section of photo-related equipment for sale with miscellaneous filters and supporting odds-n-ends. Plus, the Corner Drug was the place in town to have film developed – as it offered the fast two-day service.
I came upon a nice 35mm SLR camera via Dewey. He had a guy show up in the store with a camera bag – filled with assorted lens, a flash, and a manual control Minolta X-370 body. Dewey bought it from him for little money and turned around and offered it to me. Chances were likely 9 out of 10 that the camera was stolen, but it was too good for me to pass up. That equipment turned me into the primary photographer for various high school annuals and the major documenter for each major family get-together.
Most of the family children are represented in some fashion
My access to cheap photo processing made taking pictures any easy task. As the world progressed into digital photos, I quickly jumped on the bandwagon and appreciated the ability to take as many pictures as memory would allow.
I have thousands of images stored on my computer. When I have my camera and an assortment of nephews or neices available, I can easily take 150 pictures in the course of an hour. I have found the rule that if you want 3 or 4 good pictures, you need to take 20 to 30 for each good one. Thus, I am always snapping away.
I put some of my favorite images to work this weekend as I continue to update my bedroom. I had the idea to create a photo wall with some of my favorites spanning over 10 years of digital photos. They are nearly all about my daughter and the children of my brother’s families. Photos of kids are great, as they capture the nature inhabition that al kids have. I don’t take posed photos, but like to capture kids just being kids.
Erin - sans mask - and the dog on the big evening
This weekend also included the Halloween holiday. This is a big deal for my daughter, as the holiday ranks up there with Christmas and birthdays. Never the “princess”, she chose to go as a rather frightening werewolf for this year’s costume.
My version of Dr. Horrible
I also dressed up this year – for the first time since I was in elementary school. I assembled a look that was similar to Dr. Horrible using a chef’s jacket and some goggles that my brother bought me several years ago. My daughter had her party at the Ex’s place, so I hung out and supervised while ten 13 year-olds gabbed, watched a movie, and went trick-or-treating for the evening.
As you can see in the photos, even the dog got to dress up.
Thus, the weekend was more about mental challenges instead of the physical ones I typically highlight in this blog.
