I Have A Camera Confession
by Amanda on March 16, 2010
Now do I go tell my sins in the confessional box or just whisper them here to you instead? Oh, OK, you twisted my arm.
I have been shooting and playing with cameras since I was a wee one. I played around with Mum and Dad’s automatic 35mm cameras when I was little, was given my first camera when I was around 9 (it was long, skinny and hot pink) and taught myself with my first SLR in my teens. I didn’t start using digital cameras till much later, so one would think that I would know my way around an old school film camera.
My Yashica FX3 is one manual camera that I use to shoot a lot of my film shots you see here. I found it in a second hand camera store in Seattle about 5 years ago. For 5 years I have been using it without a light meter. Because of it’s age, I assumed the light meter was just broken.
Here is my confession: It only dawned on me recently that maybe it wasn’t broken. Maybe there was a dead battery inside and maybe if I changed that dead battery, it might miraculously work. Battery bought…battery inserted…light flashes inside viewfinder…would that be my light meter indicator working for the first time? AHERM.
So for the first time in 5 years, I’ve actually been shooting my manual camera with a working light meter. And before you ask me how I managed to use my camera and get photos exposed properly? It was a lot of guessing and sometimes referring to the digital camera as a light meter, but mostly guessing. Even with all the guessing, they still mostly turned out, so no harm done, other than me feeling like a fool!
So now it’s your turn. Have you ever had a little moment when a light when on and you discovered something new about your cameras or photography? Here is your chance to get it off your chest…or you can just have a chuckle at my expense. Hell, if you don’t have a camera confession but just want to confess something completely unrelated, go right ahead.
Related posts:
It took me far too long to realize that when my shot was exposed properly in M, the bars lined up in the middle on my viewfinder status screen.
See: http://a.img-dpreview.com/news/0801/canon/eos450dback.jpg
You know, right under the shutter speed?
Talk about feeling stupid.
That is so cute!
I have no idea what I’m doing… and so dearly want to know more… but it overwhelms me. x
Haha, sometimes it is so simple!
I just recently understood what WB meant. 8) No need to say that I’m a newbie.
I love photography, but I’ve only recently discovered my passion. I want to learn (so badly I want to start over and go to university for a BA in Photography, but unfortunately that’s not possible at the moment..).
Do you have any tips on how to teach myself to be a better photographer? I love to photograph, but I never get the results I want! In my mind, I blame the camera, but I know it is either the settings or the photographer… ;) How do I learn what I’m doing wrong?
:) I love that. You managed, and that’s all that matters.
Once for a trip, I packed everything for my digital camera (3 different lenses, tripod, filters, etc, etc) except my CF card. This was kind of annoying since I got up at the crack of dawn to take my first pictures of sunset, and it took me a full 30 shots or so to even realize it wasn’t in. Oh, and I was in the mountains. No CF card store ANYWHERE near.
Another thing I very painfully had to discover was that the AE-1 I bought off ebay has a defect that means it never turns off, so I must always remember to take out the batteries, or it will run out very quickly. I’ve wasted a good 5 batteries due to forgetting to take them out.
That was 2 confessions. I better stop now. :)
I’m sure I’m going to discover something new about my camera shortly, I’m only an amateur. Something spectacular is going to pop at me and I’ll be embarrassed of not knowing it earlier.
oh this makes me smile because this is something that could totally happen to me.
okay, my confession, and I feel stupid just thinking about it right now.
I recently purchased a holga polaback. I started shooting with it, but all the polaroids came out totally black. I thought it was because the film was expired (2007!) so I kept shooting. still black. and then, in a lightbulb moment (and after actually READING the manual), I realized there was a lightproof paper that I had to remove when taking shots. OH. MY. GOD. I wasted a whole pack of film! talk about feeling stupid!
xo
Hehe, I did the same thing with my mom’s old Canon. I could not for the life of me figure out why nothing was working how it was supposed to and just realized the other day about the battery… oops!
I also once went to rewind my film and turned the wheel the wrong way, snapping my film before it went back into the cannister. I wasn’t able to salvage it, unfortunately.
oh, you are so cute :)
i’m sure there are a zillion camera related things i haven’t yet figured out which will lead to such light-illuminating moments!
x
I’m one of those people that always forgets to take off the lens cap. I go to shoot a picture and all I see in the view finder is black. Funnily enough, whenever this happens, the LAST thing I look at is the lens cap. I always turn the camera all over as if perhaps something on the bottom or back is causing this. It’s quite embarrassing when I’m out with other people and this happens.
with my dear holga, i rather frequently forget to take off the lens cap (and since the viewfinder is not connected with the lens – this results in quite a few black shots…)
Jessica, haha
Chantelle, baby steps, baby steps xx
Marthe, I’ve been doing this for years and I’d still like to go to photography school. It’s never too late. Maybe do a community college course for now? I’ve done 3 of them and they do teach you a fair amount.
I guess you need to figure out what it is you want. What is it that you feel is wrong about the pictures? Is it the technical settings or the composition? Until you decide what it is that makes it not how you want, then you can figure out what you need to work on.
Me? I know I can compose a photo but the technical side of my photography still needs work. That is what I decide to read up on and practise.
Oh no, Chuck! My camera tells me when there’s no CF card and doesn’t let me take pictures. That must have hurt!
The AE1 isn’t really your fault so we will just count your confession as 1 hehe
Rosa, it’s all part of the learning right? :)
Oh no, Irene! Actually I do something similar with my Pola SLR680. If it’s been in my bag, the flash turns itself on and I can easily ruin 2 or 3 shots before I realise it was on. Damn you Polaroids taking a few minutes to appear!
Sydney, it took me ages to remember how to load, wind and rewind film in my manual cameras. I used to carry my manual around so I can follow the steps. I think I’ve finally got it down now though.
LOL Kate, if I can’t be skilled, I should at least be cute, right? hehee
Oh Ashley, I think we all do that one. Non photographers LOVE telling me that my lens cap is still on. You hear such glee in their voices!
Janis, I think the holga is the easiest camera to screw up with. I have done that, I often forget to wind it on and then forget if I have wound it on and wind it on when I shouldn’t have! I’ve screwed up SO many Holga shots.
I think we have all learned the most important lesson: read the manual lol
LOVING these confessions!!
light readings even in digital have been hard lessons for me. and even now that i am playing the the fuji instax, it’s still this elusive balance for me. i keep looking at photographers on flickr that i admire and how they set their properties….and i’ve learned a lot.
that’s why i love reading blogs like these – it’s so interesting
I too have had the very same problem of not realizing if I only changed my battery the light meter that never work…would! And oddly enough it was yesterday that I got a new battery for my pentax. It’s a miracle hehe.
I had several “doh” moments when learning to shoot my Polaroid Land Automatics and peel apart film – shouldn’t be that difficult with “automatic” in the camera’s name….but somehow I managed to make it difficult on myself! FINALLY have it down now though! It’s fun to look back on those learning experiences though because I appreciate the Polaroid Land Automatic twice as much now! I bet you will keep that camera with you forever!
Classic Amanda!
Lucky that 35mm film has a whole lot more latitude :)
so funny, I’m glad I’m not alone!
I have to confess, I took my Yashica GSN to be mended as I thought the shutter was jammed. Turned out I didn’t press the shutter button hard enough…arhem!
haha, i don’t feel so dumb now.
my confession– i only just found that i have a black and white setting on my camera, i don’t have to do it in the editing software. :P
great confessions, once you start shooting in manual you never look back, and I guess we learn everyday!!!
Amanda, thank you for your sweet comment on my blog! :)
I think my problem is digital, when I take pictures with film they magically end up the way I like them! ;)
Which makes me think this is a technical problem. When I take digital photos, I never get the light right, and the photos don’t look timeless, like I have captured a moment, do you know what I mean? They look flat and dull and ordinary even though I’m using the same equipment as other photographers (I guess).
I keep blaming the (lack of) light and keep wanting to buy more (and better) lenses, but I think I have realized it has something to do with my skills! ;)
I was so super excited to get my Polgaroid – the film arrived and I loaded that bad boy in and shot a few snaps …. and they all came back totally black. OK, maybe I got the light wrong, so I went outside and shot some more. Hmmm, still black.
So maybe I’m not letting it develop long enough? I leave it a minute longer. Nope.
I checked the instructions again.. and the part where it says to take out the slidey-thingamabob that prevents light exposure? Yeah, I left it in. So 20 shots later, I finally had my first Polgaroid shot. lol.
I find myself Googling “sunny 16 rule” all too often. I can’t ever remember it for some reason.