I visited two locations over the weekend: the first an oldie but goodie and the second a much-anticipated blank canvas. A couple of good friends had some new toys to play with so we went out to practice shooting: He on his new Rebel and myself on an unmodified 24mm TS-E lens. I was really excited, looking forward all week to being able to do this. With all the hype around the lens I felt like I was holding a loaded gun at first (and it’s just as heavy). I wasn’t there for great photos – I was there for moral support and to try not to fall off the wall with the steep learning curve. Ha ha.
I am not sure I knew what I was getting into. The whole 4 hours felt like me grabbing at handholds and missing. Snatch, wave, slip. Boom. I technically understand what this lens does after half a day of fiddling and a week of research, but I felt like I was missing something Very Important because I wasn’t getting amazing results. And not knowing what that was really started to dig like barbs under my skin. I’m SMRT! I have an edumacation! (Albeit not one in photography, but shush.) I think the most interesting thing I was able to do were vertical panos, but I don’t particularly care for panos…
This is where I get the urge to rip all my hair out, but I swallow, smile, and stay optimistic. After all I get another chance tomorrow at a supposedly fabulous old insane asylum in the sticks. Don’t use up all the mojo in one morning, right?
*mmmph* Tug! Rip! Tear!
Gulp. Smile. Nod.
This isn’t to say I didn’t get some cool shots. It’s neat coming from a place I’ve visited half a dozen times and still get photos I want to share. But these are “typical” tilt-shift photos, shots that make chairs and people look tiny. I wanted something more, because when you plug those two little words into Google all you get are endless pages and pages (and pages) of tilt-shift miniaturization galleries on Flickr. I added the 7 photos I kept from this set to my original photo gallery from Pembroke State Asylum, here.
Sunday comes. I’m up at 4 and sitting in the car until almost 10 AM. Backside soreness aside, here’s my chance not only to see this most amazingful wondrous asylum and use one of the most amazingful wondrous lenses built specially for this kind of thing. And then…..
NOTHING. I’m bored out of my mind. I’m pissed off at this lens, or maybe I’m just pissed off at the fact that the wonderful misty mountain sunrise turned to hot, overcast, and rainy and the building is completely empty and this lens that I was so excited about isn’t giving me my missing mojo!
Still, I’m glad that my friends who came with me – and used their usual zoom lenses with AF - got great shots. I’m even more glad that I got to put faces on to some new people I’ve known for ages and never thought I’d go out with. And most of all, I’m glad that we had a nice extended two-margarita lunch break. The "complete" gallery from Chaffton Asylum is here, although I'm not sure 7 photos counts as complete!
But I am going to have to re-think what I know about TS lenses and what the heck I want to do with one. I think I need to seek professional help, or at least private instruction.
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