Anthony Highet explains what inspires him about being a member of a Croxley Camera Club. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Becoming passionate about Photography really happened by accident. What started as a means of taking better pictures of the kids growing up has become an obsession, and one that has taken me by surprise. Though perhaps it shouldn\u2019t be a surprise, I am a guy after all, so I am naturally drawn to \u2018gadgets\u2019, especially gadgets you can customise. So what better customisable gadget than a DSLR Camera? But that\u2019s only half the story, long before I was able to use my camera in \u2018Manual Mode\u2019! <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n To explain the direction my photography has taken, it\u2019s important to understand its origin. Besides my family, I really did not enjoy photographing people. First of all, people never do as you want. And secondly, they answer back. Give me a tripod and a cityscape over people, any day of the week! My first experience of portraiture was during one of the regular studio evenings held by the club, it\u2019s a great way to learn studio photography & working with models. But I was terrified, faced with a lovely blonde model, I had no idea what I was doing. \u201cChange your camera settings to this, point it at her, press the shutter button to take the picture\u201d was the advice issued. Now to some, that might seem a little simple, but that really is the level of instruction that I needed, such was my lack of ability. Shot 1, \u201cclick\u201d, and the result was the best picture that I\u2019d ever taken. And from that point onwards I knew what I wanted to get good at. A year on and things have changed. That first studio shot, \u2018the best I\u2019d ever taken\u2019, is now the \u2018worst image I have ever taken\u2019\u2026by a country mile. And that\u2019s not bad thing. It show\u2019s me how far I\u2019ve come and in such a short time, so seeing that photo now actually makes me happy. A year on and I\u2019m enjoying my photography more than ever. My confidence has grown and I am shooting fashion & portraiture each week, I\u2019m also challenging myself to make every shot better than my last.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n With my confidence grown, it\u2019s now time for the next chapter! This summer, I\u2018ve had a go at organising a couple of portrait \u2018social\u2019 events. A full afternoon giving 5 photographers the opportunity to work with a top model whilst enjoying the Great British Summer, before finishing in the pub for drinks, food & great company. In fact, we have recently enjoyed the first \u2018Portrait Social\u2019 in Croxley\u2019s famed \u2018Orchard\u2019. Thankfully everyone came away smiling, with tons of great images, and lots of material for next season\u2019s competitions. And it didn\u2019t rain until we had finished shooting. A perfect day!<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n Though I must confess, I had hoped the shoot might give me the opportunity to practice some \u2018tutor\u2019 skills, but it wasn\u2019t to be, thanks to our model. Our model for the day, the delightful Sinopa Rin is an incredibly hard working & talented young lady, as well as a talented photographer. Such is her talent, it\u2019s impossible to take a bad picture of her, and if you somehow managed to achieve the impossible, Rin knew just what to do to remedy the situation. So no need for a \u2018tutor\u2019, our model had it covered!<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n As Rin took our photographers to shoot with her one to one, experiencing how easy it was to achieve great images working with such a talented person, I was left feeling a little redundant and contemplating the advice given to me at the beginning of my journey as it felt like an appropriate way to describe working with Rin<\/em>; <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cChange your camera settings to this, point it at her, press the shutter button to take the picture\u201d.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n All images \u00a9Anthony Highet. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Anthony Highet explains what inspires him about being a member of a Croxley Camera Club. Becoming passionate about Photography really happened by accident. What started as a means of taking better pictures of the kids growing up has become an obsession, and one that has taken me by surprise. Though perhaps it shouldn\u2019t be a … <\/p>\n