My Camera Life & Self-Introduction
Self-Introduction
Hello everyone, I'm Ori_Lab. I'm currently a technical college student, and I plan to talk about cameras, gadgets, road bikes, and more while chatting away in a lively manner.
Without further ado, here is my camera life.
The World and I Through the Viewfinder
1. The First Shot
I got my hands on a camera during Christmas in my sixth year of elementary school. A relative brought a waterproof digital camera to the beach, and that was when I first became interested in photography. I remember buying it with my New Year's money, thinking along the lines of it being waterproof and sturdy enough to handle roughly. I'm pretty sure it was a Coolpix W300. Once I finally got it and started taking pictures everywhere, I realized I barely used the waterproof feature, but even so, the sky I saw through the lens felt fresh, like a world all my own. I really enjoyed the time spent looking at the photos after pressing the shutter. No matter how bad they were, I felt like I had captured something. That one shot was the beginning of my life with a camera.
2. Beyond the Viewfinder
Since then, every scene that caught my eye—the path to school, my dorm room, the light by the window, the shadows of the school building—became a subject. Around that time, I started feeling the limitations of a compact digital camera, so I saved up money and remember getting a great discount on an α6400 at Yamada Denki. After buying the α6400, I started taking many good photos, and things I had overlooked with my naked eye looked different through the viewfinder. Being able to capture the beauty hidden in everyday life and moments that no one else noticed made me feel like my 'way of seeing' had changed. And through photography, I also realized the fun of 'having someone see' my work. For someone like me who isn't good at putting things into words, the camera became another voice.
3. My Life with a Camera
Before I knew it, the camera had become a part of my life. I would take pictures of the sky from the school rooftop between classes, take photos of friends after school, and sometimes take the long way home alone. I would import the photos to my PC night after night and adjust the colors in Lightroom. There is a joy in that which you can't experience by 'just taking' photos. By changing the color temperature just a little, that sunset could become more poignant, or a cloudy sky could become more dramatic. The camera, which allows me to edit between reality and emotion, was both a 'record' and an 'expression' for me.
4. Being Evaluated and My Own Value
Once I started posting photos on SNS and note, I began to get reactions. I'm happy when the 'likes' increase, and I look back at the photos that are praised many times. However, there were also times when I became too conscious of evaluations and couldn't take the photos I really wanted to take. Taking 'moments I love' rather than 'viral photos.' While struggling with that boundary, I have gradually started to see my own style. I think both having someone see my work and being satisfied with it myself are important now.
5. Leaving It in Writing
I decided to post this text on note this time because I wanted to leave behind 'the me of now.' I hope that when I look back on this in a few years, this text will remind me of my current sensibilities and way of thinking, just like a single photograph. Starting photography changed my daily life. What I see, what I feel. And by recording it and putting it into words, I was able to connect with others. I want to leave behind that accumulation of days as 'the world through the viewfinder.'
Afterword
I recently started posting photos on GANREF. I would appreciate it if you could take a look. Please watch over my growth.
https://ganref.jp/m/ailkww114/portfolios/photo_detail/5642950