steveb leatherworks: the blather

I favor photography as a form of creative expression as much as writing, painting, drawing or even leatherwork. Many folks will say that photography is just “snapping pictures” and yes, it has an element of that undisciplined  “it’s all about the gadgets”,  casual-ness to it, but the gadgetry will only get you so far.. and in my experience, the gear doesn’t get you very far at all. Gear obsessions are endlessly deep and complex and expensive, but at the end of the day, it’s kind of like giving a fine pen to someone who cant write….its a cool but useless, underutilized thing.

I went through this phase years ago where i tried my hardest to complicate the shit out of things, really gave it my all, and did a fair job too. I collected lots of crap I didn’t need, upped the tonnage of the karmic baggage i was toting and basically saddled myself with a whole buncha shite.

So, after having my nose rubbed in the poop of my folly, I began to shed myself of all the vestiges of shite-i-ness I had collected. Sold off junk and excess stuff, ditched or gave away what i didn’t use or need and got  to living “slimmer”, well at least as “slim as i could manage. It’s taken alot of effort and thought to get slim..the Boss is “expert” at living “slim” and i’ve been slowly learning. By the time I am dead, I will be optimally slim..ha!

So part of the “simplification” and slimming down was a stoppage of photographic activities for me. I have absolutely TONS of photo albums, pictures, posters, artwork, framed stuff, etc, etc.  I mean, I have run out of wall in my office…and thought – geez, I really do not have room for much more of this stuff. So I back shelved photography as a creative pursuit and used it more to simply record activities: family events, bike trips, parties, etc. I did not pursue the creative side of imagery, just defaulted to my journalistic side. This was like 20-years ago.

This last summer, I was in Sturgis SD just pooping around, without a booked agenda or calendar and jsut wandered around town…which is uncharacteristic for me -usually i am on a mission and have a clear purpose..but not on this trip. I had my little point&shoot Nikon digital with me and began taking pictures again, for the hell of it… I had nothing better to do and part of the purpose of this trip for me, was to shake the tree a bit and clear some cobwebs..so I indulged myself.

and i fell back in love with photography, years after shelving it.

Well, the little Nikon did me fine up to a point, and i squeaked some killer shots from my litle $300 pocket camera. Used it for years, really didnt think i needed to upgrade, everyone loved my shots and i got a private thrill by using my little pocket cam to produce these “wonderful images”…ha!

Then last fall i picked up a new camera (thanks Seabass), a real camera – a DSLR – didn’t even think of film at this point as i lead a wholly digital life and film just doesn’t fit. I had come to the point where i needed some more pixels, better processing controls and most of all – i needed control of the evil twins of photography: aperture and shutter speed – i needed them to perform for me – and the little pocket cam just couldn’t do it.

So I got a Nikon D90, one of the new breed of prosumer units. I did more research than i cared to, but i wanted to make sure i committed to the right system, because once you committ – your in – there is no turning back due to the costs of lenses, the learning curve  – etc.   I used to be a Pentax guy back in the film days, but opted for Nikon over Canon for reasons not wholly clear.  I think i liked the logo better….it made me feel better about myself – and my choice.

Well I have had the camera for awhile now and am learning how to use it – but more to the point, I am out and about – once again actively seeking the subject matter that interests me. I seek out new places, looking for what captures my interest…I am continually location scouting which has made life much more interesting and an adventure….I am hunting for things to see. I love that, i didn’t know how much i missed that sense of adventure and mission. I LOOK to get lost.

I have lots of things that interest me from a subject matter perspective, but I am particularly captivated by Industrial Demolition, Dereliction, Abandonment and Destruction. I am in a part of the world that still has some vestiges of this industrial past above ground, not plowed over …so I’ve been following my camera where it takes me…and it has taken me some really interesting places…. you can browse my flickr site for a deep dive – but i will also begin featuring, every now and then some of my “demo & destruction” photography.

I hope you like it and as always – look forward to your emails and comments!