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@dahliaambrose- Posts:10395
Allows Edits? YesThis time around we get to know a little more about Steve, @stevewalker
• Tell us a little about yourself and your photography journey.
o Where do you live? How long you have had an interest in photography?
I’m a 74 year old Caucasian male, living in Columbia, South Carolina. I worked in administration in the public mental health system in the state, now retired. The job involved data collection and reporting with a heavy dose of measuring staff performance against the standards set by the various funding agencies. I’m married, been that way now for 53 years.
o Hobbies and Interests
In addition to photography, I do a bit of writing with a group of seniors who meet regularly, part of one of the Shepherds Centers of America chapter in our city. I also help the organization with various computer activities, mainly related to getting us online so we could meet during the pandemic and after. Many of our members say that the virtual meetings we had—and continue to have–were a life saver against what would otherwise have been a crushing isolation. I do a bit of reading and a fair amount of exercising too—walking, using a rowing machine. I try to keep in reasonable shape, partly so that I can walk a fair distance without being too tired to see an image that calls out to be photographed. I’ve always cautioned people I talk with about photography that one of the threats to their landscape image making is that being hungry, thirsty or just tired undercuts patience and distracts from the visual and creative senses.
o How long you have had an interest in photography?
I’ve enjoyed “taking pictures”—I don’t really like that term–for a long time. I began to take it seriously in 2003.
o What got you interested in photography?
Up to that time, my main form of recreation was bicycling. Twenty, fifty-mile rides on back roads. I loved getting out there. On April 1, 2000, a dog decided it needed to herd me into his yard, knocking me down, breaking my collar bone and giving me a concussion. I returned to riding; but then, on March 2, 2003, my rear wheel decided to slip out from under me as I rode over some railroad tracks. The fall broke my other collar bone and my leg. Ten days in hospital and rehab later, I was all done with road cycling.
When the accident happened, I had just bought a 35 mm film camera in preparation for a trip to visit our daughter and son-in-law living in England. I had taken my Olympus point and shoot over for their wedding in February, 2000. Our plan was to tour the Cotswolds’ and I was absolutely convinced that this new camera with its 28-90 mm zoom lens was gonna produce great pictures. Well, you can guess how that turned out.
So, the realization that “it ain’t the camera” and a need for a replacement hobby made me begin to think that a more serious approach to the craft of photography would be something I would be interested in. And, it turned out, I was. Am.• What is the best advice you have received so far regarding photography?
Early on, I posted a picture to a Yahoo photography forum. It was an image of a church graveyard in England. I liked the image pretty well. One of the experienced photographers in the forum—Lord, I wish I remembered his name, sure he is long ago dead now—wrote a long narrative about the symbols and emotions the image conjured up in him. I commented back that I didn’t mean all that. I just liked it. His response became something I took to heart: “It was in there. You felt it, even if you didn’t have words for it.” Since then, I have worked to find the emotion that scenes can hold and that rouse me from just wandering around. I have found that having a camera in hand reminds me to look and feel and prevents a tendency to sleep walk through life or to simply listen to the commentary that runs in my mind and distracts me from the immediate.
• How do you maintain inspiration?
I constantly think of the acts of creation, and how I can tap into and participate in them. Seeing; framing; exposing; reviewing; processing for display; re-viewing later, sometimes years later. Each is its own creative act. Each can and should engage us. Even just looking is more active and engages the spirit more than most think. A friend once told me “You see things I don’t.” That’s because I have been taught to look with my heart, not just my eyes. I didn’t say that out loud to her. Paying attention is enough to inspire me and having a camera in hand prompts me to participate in those acts.
• What is your favourite subject to shoot & why?
I mostly do landscapes. I love them, though I don’t get to the locations I most enjoy as often as I would like. I also like to photograph quirks of life, but I don’t feel comfortable with street and people photography. We have 2 grandchildren. I like making candid photos of them. They’re both 12 and lose patience with me now.
• Do you have a favourite type of photography?
Landscapes
• How would you describe your photographic journey to date?
Mostly self taught. In the early days, one could get lots of useful feedback from the online photography forums. Facebook killed most of that off. I did a fair amount of reading though most of it was repetitive. I did find a lot of interest and value in a book called Developing Vision & Style, edited by Eddie Ephraums
• Are you currently involved with any photography projects? If so, what?
No projects. I’m more spontaneous—well, less disciplined, than that. I am often asked to do event photography for our Shepherds Center and I do when asked. I don’t enjoy it but produce reasonably good images for their use. Otherwise, I mainly go places with camera in hand. Most of the day trips my wife and I take incorporate photography. I have to keep in mind that she can get bored if I spend too much time in one place though.
• If you could only use one camera/lens combination for a year, which would you choose?
I have a Canon r6. I seldom use my cell phone camera. It will do a pleasant image under good lighting and a proper place to stand, but nothing I generally want to use. My main lens is the Canon 24-105 f/4L. Since I’m mostly serious about landscapes, this is the one I would choose to use for a year—and nearly is the only one I use.
• What is your favourite image right now?
o Yours? (provide a link if you wish)
That’s a toughie.
This scene and a bunch of others are less than 5 miles from home and less than 1 mile from downtown Columbia. I go there fairly often. I’ve found over the years that each day is new. The same scene can surprise you day in and day out, if you have the heart to see.
• Is there a photographer that inspires you?
I get inspired by a photographer who gets out. There’s one I have come to know on Flickr. He lives outside Asheville, North Carolina and goes to many places I know about. He gets up and goes to them, day in and day out at the best times of day. His current user name is Octave Photography. He seems to change it from time to time. He is quite skilled and very dedicated to his art.
• What is your biggest challenge when it comes to photography?
Getting out of my chair and getting to a place I want to photograph. If I do get to a place—mountains, beach—I sometimes have trouble getting out of our lodging to get to the place to stand at the proper hour.
• If people want to follow more of your work where should they go?
- Facebook – I post for friends there. I belong to a couple of Groups but am not particularly active.
- Flickr – again, not particularly active there.
- Website
• Provide 3 or 4 of your favourite images that can be displayed with the interview
I have posted several pictures from this very spot to Lightstalking and I return to it regularly. There’s a 3 or 4 mile sidewalk along the Saluda River with places to step off the path and get to the banks. This is from November 2021.
This is from the elevated boardwalk, just upstream from the other one. January, 2023.
Then there’s stuff inside the house. This image from January 2023 took a lot more work than it appears to get the colors and shapes and background to suit. It’s what I saw but probably not what was there.
Finally, here’s a film image from December 2004. It was pretty much the first one that made me stop and gasp when I picked it up from the place that was doing my film developing at the time. The owner, a pro, liked it as well and I think he tried to adopt me. Well, at least he encouraged me.
I posted this on some forum or other and one of the commenters said I should study it and try to repeat it in the future. I’m sure he meant that I should find the qualities that made it an engaging image, but I had no idea what he was talking about at the time. The puzzle he posed did make me think more seriously about the art and the craft.
cc: @admin
Here is a list of our members who were featured in the past if you would love to read. I have attached a link to their profile and their interview.
Diane Wehr @albirder : Introducing Diane Wehr
Tobie @tobiepsg : Introducing Tobie
Rob Eyers @reyers : Introducing Rob Eyers
Duncan Stewart @falxy : Introducing the Falx
John Thompson @nikon-nut : Introducing Nikon nut
Valery @valeryp : Introducing Valery
Tom Dinning @tomdinning : Introducing Tom Dinning
Christina Brown @Chrissiebee : Introducing Chrissie Bee
Bobbie @bobbie : Introducing Bobbie
Gordon James @gordonjames : Introducing Gordon James
Chris Pook @chrispook : Have you met Chris Pook?
Erik Fransman @erik-fransman : Have you met Erik Fransman?
Gary Zerbst @garyzerbst : Have you met Gary Zerbst?
Allen Furst @3pco : Have you met Allen Furst?
Jim @Mistyisle : Have you met Jim?
Frogdaily @frogdaily : Have you met Frogdaily?
Robert Apple @robertapple : Have you met Robert Apple?
Steve Matten @stevematten : Have you met Steve Matten?
Cornelia Acorn @corneliaacorn : Have you met Cornelia Acorn?
Gray B @grayb : Have you met Gray B?
Dahlia Ambrose @dahliaambrose : Have you met Dahlia Ambrose?
Patrick @patrickw : Have you met Patrick?
Dave @pentaxfan : Have you met Dave?
Peter @peternowak : Have you met Peter?
Beaky @ozride : Have you met Beaky?
Graham Hart @diripics : Have you met Graham?
Daniel Krueger @drkrueger22: Have you met Daniel?
Jasenka @jasenkag : Have you met Jasenka?
Astaroth @astaroth : Have you met Astaroth?
Joanne Van Praag @vanpraag : Have you met Joanne?
Leanne Cleaveley @leannecleaveley : Have you met Leanne?
David Chesterfield @dchester1001 : Have you met David?
Patricia Garrett @PAToGraphy : Have you met Pat?
Beth @loki : Have you met Beth?
Elin @elax : Have you met Elin?
Greg @glegg : Have you met Greg?
John @johnteate : Have you met John?
Paul @paul-3 : Have you met Paul?
Charmaine @joubie : Have you met Charmaine?
Aurimas @aurikami : Have you met Aurimas?
Rose Marie @rgatscha : Have you met Rose Marie
Wendy @wendyp : Have you met Wendy?
Federico @federicoalegria : Have you met Federico?
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