Say Cheese

I once heard about a guy who would hike into remote areas of the world for weeks just to take a single picture. After he took the one shot, he would relax and explore for a while, then hike back out. His pictures were always impeccable. In my competitive brain I have this idea that I can do better.

So I am on a quest this semester to become the greatest photographer that has ever roamed the earth.

Here's a travelogue of my adventures thus far (because I'm sure you're all on the edge of your seats, dying to know about it).

Day one: I rented a killer camera from my professor. I don't even have to pay a penny for it. I felt like my cool factor was significantly increased as a lugged around a huge bag full of thousands of dollars of equipment. Poser? Perhaps. But you have to start somewhere, right?

Day two: I stared longingly at my new camera, wishing I could play with it instead of reading 50 textbooks for my other classes.

Day three: I vowed to make time the next day to spend some quality time with my new friend (read: camera). Perhaps I should give him a name. I'll work on that.

Day four: I trudged through the snow in a skirt (long story) up rock canyon, looking for something cool to photograph. I realized I have no idea how to actually use this chunk of plastic and metal and who knows what else. Perhaps there was some wisdom in my teacher's counsel to read the owner's manual before embarking on my photography journey. An hour later, the only thing I had to show were 128 pathetically ugly pictures, and 2 pretty sweet ones. I won't show you yet though. It's my element of mystery...or something.

This whole photography thing is going to be harder than I thought.