The One That Started It All

Cross-posted at: http://thevisualgeek.com

Three years ago I went on my first trip alone to visit a friend in Ohio. Yes... Ohio.

Other people want to visit exotic locations that may have the words "tropical paradise" typed in the brochure.

My pick was Ohio.

There were two logical reasons for this choice: the first being that my friend, who I've known for years invited me to crash at his place and thus, money would be saved on a hotel. 

The second choice was also a major factor for me: Cedar Point ( The amusement park known for it's amount of kick ass roller coasters ) in Sandusky Ohio, was a day trip away from his place.

It was sort of a double bribe on his part. Free lodging and my passion for roller coasters was a double whammy against me and something that couldn't be turned down.

What I didn't realize at the time, is that going on this trip would re-ignite a passion that was there in me, but I had completely forgotten about.

It started on a trip to the Easton Mall for an IMAX screening of The Dark Knight. We had gotten their early, but we lucked out as it wasn't that crowded on that day and we got great seats. Afterwards, we decided to get some iced coffee and hang out.

I had bought a new camera specifically for this trip with the functions that go beyond point and shoot. It was the next step up from that and I had already started to shoot in "manual" mode.

After walking awhile, we decided to just sit back and watch some electronic boats at this large fountain located at the center of this outdoor/indoor mall. It was crowded on the outside of the mall on that day and in retrospect, a perfect place for me to do some street photography, but at the time I didn't even know what the genre meant.

I was just sitting there, when I noticed a small boy running along the edge of the fountain. I set up my exposure for the fountain and the daylight sun that was providing enough light and waited. He ran right into my view and I took about six shots in a row, but this is the one that caught that perfect moment in time.
When I look at this one photo, I remember everything from my trip to Ohio.

• The fear of getting on the plane and taking off ( yes, I hate flying )
• The joy of meeting a friend that I had known for years, but hadn't met yet.
• The adventure of playing my very first Dungeon and Dragons game with people who were very dedicated to the game.
• The excitement of going on each roller coaster at Cedar Point, the hot and humid day, and the mega slush that ended the day to cool us off.

It was a great trip and in the end it re-ignited my passion for photography and all that comes with it.

My plans for 2012 included buying a new DSLR, finding a new website for myself ( because Blogger isn't cutting it ), and moving myself forward with this passion, because this is the one thing that I want to do.

I also realize that I'm not giving myself enough time to shoot. I plan on shooting, but then other stuff keeps getting in the way. My 2012 promise is to actually book myself time and keep to it, letting nothing else get in my way.

I hope that everyone has a great start to the New Year and please, remember to keep safe. Don't drink and drive and if you see other's about to do it, speak up and encourage them not too.

-The Visual Geek