It's about time...

...for me to learn how to use my camera properly. Seriously, I've never learned how to use it properly and just fumble round with buttons until I get some sort of result, or worse, the opportunity is gone. I've somehow picked up this vague notion of adjusting for light conditions, but it was a few years back when I used film. In fact, I guess that's my problem. I was just getting the hang of film and then I got my DSLR in Japan and made the changeover about 4 years ago, but have never got to grips with the technology. And this extends to Photoshop.

I like to joke that hey, my photos are all natural. None have been touched up. The truth is it's only because I've got no idea how to use Photoshop. I've got a digital camera in my mitts, but my head is stuck in the film era.
The final straw was when I needed to write a bio and send a photo of myself for an article I recently wrote for matador.com. I looked in my files for a pic of me and proceeded to search for Photoshop on my computer. It had pretty much buried itself in the 'never used files' basement of my computer.

OK, I've got the thing open...OK, I've got the photo on the table...now crop, crop...hmmmmmmm? Right! I've found it! God, I'm such a dork! OK, I've cropped the photo to the needed size and save. Shit! No! Dammit! I fricking went and rewrote the original file, didn't I? Since it was a photo a student had taken of me in Thailand I guess I now have to practice some serious Buddhist non-attachment and say goodbye to that one.

There are two community ed programmes within driving distance of my house and I hope one of them has a teacher who is up for a challenge.