I used that ten-year-old camera of mine today and went down to the University of Oregon campus to take some good shots of random stuff. Well, maybe not so random after all. That's because I spent most of my time at the Pioneer Cemetery, which is an old cemetery around which the campus grew and expanded. I'm pretty sure that it's now owned by the university. I took photos of anything I thought was interesting, pretty and/or unique. I also took photos of other things around campus, and I'll return other times to take more.
After reading all the horror stories by amateur photographers in the blogworld about being harassed by police or security for taking photos of buildings and such, I was a bit nervous about being harassed myself. It's really sad that photography as a hobby is being decimated by the need, valid or not, to protect against terrorism. I personally think it should be legal to take photographs anywhere that is public and I'm pretty sure it is legal. Why would terrorists be defeated if they couldn't have access to photographs? Couldn't they just go to the location and take a look around? Terrorism can happen with or without photographs, so I think security guards and such should leave tourists and law-abiding people alone. Photography has been a valid art form for over a century now, and it should continue to be respected as such.
Fortunately, not a single person said anything about my taking photographs. The man mowing the grass in the cemetery didn't even say anything. I'm glad it's still OK to take photos on a public university campus.
In other photography-related news . . .
- I'm thinking about getting a new camera. Right now, I want it to be a 35MM film camera like the one I have now. I'm not at all ready to give up traditional film photography even in the face of the ease and speed of digital photography. I value the permanence of negatives and prints. Hard drives can easily be erased, CD-Rs can easily be destroyed, but you'll always be able to make new prints when you have negatives. The main things I'll be looking for in a new camera are features similar to my current camera, use of AA or AAA batteries instead of the ultra-expensive batteries I currently need, and of course the quality of the shots. That last thing will be the hardest to judge without trying the cameras before buying, but I'll rely on the professionals to give me advice.
- I'm also thinking about making a Flickr account for myself. I only want to put non-family shots on there, but if I get serious about this photography thing then I may have enough shots to really make Flickr worthwhile. If I do make an account, I'll announce it here in the blog and put a link or two on the sidebar.
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