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I started taking pictures as a photographer (as opposed to snapshots of friends and trips) my freshman year of high school. My family had just moved to Maryland from Heidelberg, Germany (my father was military). That first Christmas I asked for a camera. I had no idea how to use it (a Minolta x370 kit with two lenses). I actually though that I could connect the two lenses together to make a bigger lens!
The following year I asked for and received darkroom equipment for Christmas. I set it up in the bathroom, the enlarger taking half the sink, one tray on the toilet, three trays in the bath tub, and a lot of black tape and insulation around the door. This is probably a very common setup for a high school photographer in the 80’s.
I received some college financial aid based on my photography skills and went to the University of South Florida to study photography and eventually get into making films.
The summer after my freshman year in college I went to Paris with a group of photographers from the school. We stayed there for the summer practicing. It was cosmic payback for me not paying enough attention in French class in high school.
The next year I decided to apply to UCLA based on a friend’s recommendation, since my ultimate goal was to enter the film business. I was accepted and transfered to UCLA for my Junior year. But I was no longer studying photography; I changed my major to economics. I figured it would be better to learn business skills and have photography as my hobby.
After finishing school, I moved to New York. It was the middle of a recession and Los Angeles wasn’t happening for me work-wise or culture-wise. A friend and I drove here from LA and I was dropped off by the Williamsburg bridge. I’ve been living in NY since.
There are long periods of time where I took no pictures, or only took pictures on trips or special events. But in late 2003 I paid off all my debt and rewarded myself with a Leica M3 with two lenses (Summaron 35 and Elmar 50/2.8) and also set up a darkroom in my apartment. This led to more pictures being taken of course.
I started a masters program in Financial Engineering in 2005, which ended in December 2008. As a reward for this, I bought myself a Leica M7, Summicron 35 ASPH, Summicron 50, and Elmarit-M 90. I also invested in the digital side of the workflow with a new iMac, Epson V700 scanner, and Nikon CS5000 ED scanner as well as Vuescan and Lightroom.
In 2008 I bought the Panasonic LX3, which I intend to use on hiking trips and social events. I also bought a used Nikon D200 to try a DSLR. Although I have gotten some nice pics from it, they are not as good as the pics I get from my Leicas and the camera is just too big to carry around. My prediction is that I will invest in pro digital equipment in 2010, hopefully rangefinder style.