Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2001/06/11
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Dan Honemann asks: > Obviously, only the most passionate and dedicated photographers with the > most discriminating eye use Leicas (isn't it fun addressing the choir? :)). > > I'm interested in hearing how fellow LUG nutz got interested in photography, > why they pursue it and what they like to shoot. I'm spending some time now > looking at my own interest in this medium and seeing if I can't refine my > vision (no pun intended) of what I want from this medium. I'd love to hear > statements from others about their visions and goals. Well OK. I was at the 1971 Daytona Motorcycle Races in 1971 making a documentary film (16mm) for Kawasaki. That was the year several motorcycle racing legends came out of retirement just to do that race; Mike Hailwood, Giacomo Agostini, Phil Read, Kel Carruthers and Barry Sheene and Paul Smart were also there. Usually when shooting a film you have lots of time on your hands so i amused myself by taking still pictures. Later back at home in Los Angeles one of the magazine editors called me to ask if I had any good shots, I did and he bought some of them. From that I would start getting regular calls to go to races around the country to cover them. They also wanted me to write a story about the race. From that I started to do road tests and eventually a staff editorial position. The gear I used were two Nikon Fs with a 50mm and a 200 that I had bought at a pawn shop. These were part of all the gear I traded last week for two new M6s. It was hard letting go of those memories and extraorindarily reliable cameras. A few years later I started my first magazine, a trade magazine for the film industry and for the past 20 years I have been taking a lot of celebrity pictures, still with that original gear plus more gear that I added on. My first Leica M2 pictures (first role) were of Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. I might add that I have never been driven to take pictures and to this day do not call myself a photographer when somebody asks what I do. I could probably do better if I applied myself. Photography is a fun thing I like to do, especially Street Photography. My goal is not to buy any more camera gear Leica or otherwise. I will leave my vision for others to say. And that is most of the story. sl