A shop on my route home sells limes, the fruit, 3 for a pound.

Nothing special about that but it sent me beck to a time when it was special. Around 1977 I was a photographic assistant in a studio doing advertising work and it was part of my job to source props.

We needed some lime fruit in a shot and it seems unbelievable now but the only place I could find limes after a lot or ringing round (before internet) was Harrods Food Hall, So we send a taxi as a courier on a 60 mile round trip to get some.

This got me thinking, what experiences can you share if you walk down the photographic memory lane? Professional or amateur tell us all.

I can remember my early efforts at horse show photography for a living. Long before dye sub printers and the internet. Would take the photos on film being very careful not to shoot more than the odd one of each entry. No auto focus and with a long zoom no chance to focus on the fly. Pre focussed on the jump I chose and learned to time the shot. Even then you would only know if you nailed them for sure several days later once the film and end prints arrived back from the lab

Getting your money involved asking the organisers for a list of competitors and their home address, then posting off an end print with order form hoping for a response. Think I actually had a better hit rate than with modern events mind you.

My first shoot which was organised through this site - I ended up driving up to Liverpool - accidentally locking my keys in the car with the engine running. Smash a window to get back in, drive around on luckily a dry day with the air swirling around the car. Eventually get to and complete the shoot. Only to drive home with an insecure car, several disappointing photos, and a new found respect for planning, thoroughness and consideration.

Not quite the same thing - but it taught me a lot about how to conduct myself in this world versus how easy I thought it would all be.

I've only been doing this in earnest for about 10 years.. from digital cameras really.. however... not so much memory lane.. but a prediction..

at present, when I shoot weddings.. people still form a line, stand stock still & gurn a 'parent induced smile' ... in years to come I foresee, due to the influence of the selfie, a scrum of heads, chaps with comic ripost & damsels sporting a trout pout..

ohh one from memory lane just popped into my noggin.. a model the other day informed me she was holding poses as she usually changes on the click-clack of the shutter & mirror noise of the camera... my mirrorless had her statuesque & confused..

I have returned here at the suggestion of friend and looked at my Portfolio here for the first time in years - 10 years since I joined up a time when business pictures, Trains,Planes and automobiles - never ever came near my Glamour Work (that was to pay better in the future). How times models and things have moved on. I have met some fantastic people over the 10 years since I arrived here and I have this week re-lived some memories and had more than one chuckle remembering shoots including my first digital shoot in a studio. 4 hours with my brand new Olympus, I think 8 of the images were actually any good - the rest oh so naff as I could not get the trigger working properly. Solved for the next one bought my own trigger and never looked back !!

quoting post from redbaron:

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I can remember my early efforts at horse show photography for a living. Long before dye sub printers and the internet. Would take the photos on film being very careful not to shoot more than the odd one of each entry. No auto focus and with a long zoom no chance to focus on the fly. Pre focussed on the jump I chose and learned to time the shot. Even then you would only know if you nailed them for sure several days later once the film and end prints arrived back from the lab

Getting your money involved asking the organisers for a list of competitors and their home address, then posting off an end print with order form hoping for a response. Think I actually had a better hit rate than with modern events mind you.

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I remember those days! I was covering show jumping but the techniques were much the same as were the sales which fortunately I never got involved with.

I still find the skills you describe learnt then still stand me in good stead and sometimes think digital photography students would learn the technicalities quicker with out a chimp screen.

I did hear of one place which blanks the screen off for a while so students learn by measurements and feel.



Ace, Ace baby! on www.acestudios.co.uk

Quoting Ace:

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I remember those days! I was covering show jumping but the techniques were much the same as were the sales which fortunately I never got involved with.

I still find the skills you describe learnt then still stand me in good stead and sometimes think digital photography students would learn the technicalities quicker with out a chimp screen.

I did hear of one place which blanks the screen off for a while so students learn by measurements and feel.



Ace, Ace baby! on www.acestudios.co.uk

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Actually got to go back to those days a bit over the last couple of weeks while on a Safari holiday in Kenya. Did not fancy lugging the Canon 5D MkIII and all its lenses around, besides my son needed them at the studio so took a Sony Alpha7MKII /i bought to play around with mirrorless along with a 30 year old Canon zoom from my film days shoved onto an adapter. In theory it could auto focus but in practice was far too slow so it was back to good old manual. Half way through I re discovered the Sony auto zoom for manual focus too. Bloody brilliant idea

Felt strange being the only one in the Landcruiser with an actual camera though. Everyone else was using iPhones!

quoting post from KISS_motoempty:

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My first shoot which was organised through this site - I ended up driving up to Liverpool - accidentally locking my keys in the car with the engine running. Smash a window to get back in, drive around on luckily a dry day with the air swirling around the car. Eventually get to and complete the shoot. Only to drive home with an insecure car, several disappointing photos, and a new found respect for planning, thoroughness and consideration.

Not quite the same thing - but it taught me a lot about how to conduct myself in this world versus how easy I thought it would all be.

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Ah I think we have all done similar....it would be nice to hear some more stories though, keep 'em coming.

Anything you look back on with a wry smile as an amateur or pro photographer. We all want to nod as think " I have that T shirt! ".



Ace, Ace baby! on www.acestudios.co.uk