Ok so now I officially have a new obsession, I say it’s new but really as I’m about to explain to you. It all started 26 years ago when I was a freshman in high school.
Anyway I’m calling it an obsession because for the time being its overriding my desire to buy a new iPad mini. It’s ok everybody take a deep breath. Hard to believe. I know but just keep reading. Ill explain it all in great detail(it will also become clear to you why that pictures at the top)
I went back and forth with this idea, wasn’t sure I was going to make it a blog, thought maybe since Alan and Eric are the only two of my twitter friends that would give two shits about this subject, that I would just email them. So the rest of you wouldn’t be subjected to it. But. Sorry changed my mind I’m not emailing them separate I’m just posting it here for everyone’s amusement. 😉
The subject I’m referring to is of course photography.
You see this new obsession I mentioned is that I want a new DSLR camera or a ‘bridge’ as Eric told me it was called, that’s darkstaff for those of you that are not on a first name basis with him.
I actually gave this one a little thought, and had a whole lot of helpful advice from both Eric and Alan . That’s unusual for me normally I’m an impulse buyer. But that wasn’t the case here. However the decision has been made now, I’ve ordered a Panasonic lumix FZ200 from amazon.com. That’s also unusual for me I’m usually a ‘hands on’ purchaser. But anyway since I’ve let the cat out of the bag now(you ever wonder what a cat was doing in the bag in the first place?)
Here is the background story I wanted to share with all of you and as I said especially to Alan and Eric. I would like to publically here THANK both of them for their helpful advice.
26 years ago in 1986 when I was just a freshman in high school(Byrd high in Shreveport LA). Haley’s comet came by. If you don’t know. Haley’s comet only comes by earth close enough for us to see(with the naked eye) every 75 years. I believe that’s correct. So it is for most of us probably a once in a lifetime event to behold.
I had a science teacher, Hal Meekins, what a perfectly geeky name. I mean no offense to my former teacher after all its not like he’ll ever read my crappy little blog lol. But seriously Todd, Eric and i are proud of calling ourselves geeks.
He had arranged to take a group of students out to the LSU observatory south of town on the night when it could be best viewed.
So that explains the picture(although I found that image on the web it closely resembles the way I remember my picture. That’s right I said my picture. Let me explain.
Mr. Meekins had a camera I’m pretty sure it was a Nikon 35mm. I’m guessing it was top of the line all those years ago. He agreed to bring his camera on this field trip and allow any of us that wanted to bring some film and he would show us how to take a picture of Haley’s comet with his camera.
He had an attachment with a button you could press and hold to increase the length of the exposure rather than just snapping a picture. And as he had explained to us the best way to photograph the comet and its tail was to hold this button down for an extended period of time.
Well I won’t bore you with any of the details of that night that I don’t remember. Ill just get to the point. I had brought along a roll of film for his camera to take my picture. I don’t remember exactly the specifics on the film so I can’t tell you but that really doesn’t matter.
The point is when it came my turn. Mr Meekins loaded my film into his camera,that he had already set up on a tripod and aimed at the comet. I stepped up looked through the viewfinder and pressed and held and held and held that button. How long did I hold it. That like a lot of the other details I can’t even guess at after all it was 26 years ago and I’m only 41 years old so that makes it over half my lifetime ago.
So after the field trip that weekend, I believe this was a Saturday night if memory serves me correctly. I took the film to a drugstore and had it developed. So Monday when I went back to school I had my picture to share with Mr. Meekins and the rest of my class.
Well it was good to say the least. So good in fact that Mr. Meekins submitted it to our yearbook staff and it was indeed published in the yearbook!
As I said the picture you see here is not mine. I had a framed copy but where it’s gone over the years escapes me. That’s a real shame because I’d love to be able to share it with you here and on twitter.
But wait. I know somebody’s saying what about the yearbook? Sadly I have no clue what happened to that either. So unfortunately I am unable to share my spectacular published photo with you 😦
So there it is that’s what started my love of photography all those years ago. So the obsession isn’t really new it’s just been laying dormant for 26 years. Anyway ill let you go now and get back to your family and friends,who I hope you are with, cause that’s when this blog will be published(I’ve scheduled it for Christmas Eve)
Hopefully Tammy and I will also be home celebrating with our family. I say hopefully because right now we are sitting at a truckstop in Wisconsin waiting to deliver this load in the morning. I here they are expecting a blizzard to come through here tonight, but that’s another story. Hopefully we won’t get snowed in here and I won’t have to blog about it.
So MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY NEW YEAR to all of you friends.
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