Sometimes your hobbies are in perfect alignment.

Sitting in the park.
Watching a basketball game.
Cool summer breezes.

Street Basketball was my First Hobby

Long before I collected cameras, long before I could quote stories about Abraham Lincoln, long before any hobby or avocation, I played basketball as a kid.

Pick up basketball games are very democratic:  one man, one shot, one vote.  And apparently that spirit of equality extends to photographers watching playground basketball in Chicago’s Kilbourn Park.

I’ve never been denied a chance to play street basketball.  But admittedly, it’s been years since I played in Chicago or elsewhere.

Photography in my late 20’s and early 60’s

I seem to have missed four decades of photography.  It sounds horrible, and I never thought of all the serious photographs I may have missed along the way.  But like most Americans, I always had some type of family camera nearby.

In my late twenties I purchased a Nikon EM with a 50mm and telephoto lens.  Perhaps after being stolen by a neighborhood kid (Vince Txxxxxxx, I still remember your name) my Nikon EM’s light meter died.  I never recovered the stolen telephoto lens.  And during my 30’s, 40’s, and 50’s I had nameless cameras that I have long since forgotten.

Deep into my 50’s I took my best friend’s old cameras out of storage almost a decade after his passing.  Paul was his name and he died at age 50.  I tested his Nikkormat FT2 and Canon AE-1, wrote articles about his cameras, and they will never leave my home or my family.

So in some mystical way, and old friend brought me back to photography.

Haiku Poetry is a Surprising Joy

In high school I was the “C” student in Honors English.  I certainly could write prose but certainly wasn’t good at poetry.

And then I discovered haiku.

I don’t try to write haiku, it just comes to me in snatches.  It’s supposed to be based in the nature around you.  You have 3 lines to build with a syllable count.

1. 1st line:  5 syllables.
2. 2nd line:  7 syllables.
3. 3rd line:  5 syllables.

Street Photography in Kilbourn Park, Chicago, IL

In my late 20’s in the Truman College library I remember looking at photography books dreaming about taking great photographs.  I no longer dream.  I just take photographs when I can.

On this summer day, June 19 2012, four men in their 30’s were playing some basketball in Kilbourn Park.

Sitting in the Shade, Cool Breezes, Writing Haiku

I sat in the shade reading a book on meditation.  The breezes were cool.  I shot a photograph or two.  Then a line or two of haiku came to me.  I counted the syllables with my fingers.  I had no paper, I had to memorize the haiku immediately.

Sitting in the park.
Watching a basketball game.
Cool summer breezes.

Do you see the shirtless man dribbling in the photo below?  I walked up to him before they began their 2nd game and asked if I could take some photos.  I showed him my old Mamiya 135 EE camera and my digital camera.  He didn’t say much, but he did say, “Yes.”

Sitting on the Edge of the Basketball Court, Taking Photos

Get closer, get closer.

I could have used my telephoto lens on my Canon SD880 (digital) but chose to just sit on the edge of the basketball court.  I always shoot with a 35mm camera and a digital camera for backup (sorry folks, I shoot both film and digital).  The photo shown above was taken with my 35 year old Mamiya 135 EE rangefinder.  It’s kind of like a Canonet, only not as good.

After the Photos, Say “Thank You”

And don’t forget, when you finish taking photographs, offer a thank you and a good-bye.  That’s what I did as I walked away from the basketball court.

What My Dad and Photographer Nevada Weir taught me about Photography

Strangely, my father and photographer Nevada Weir are linked together as photography mentors (hope you don’t mind Nevada).

Talking to Strangers with Dad

Decades ago my father dragged me along on Saturdays to Amundsen Park stadium (Chicago, IL) to watch soccer games.  He would peek through the canvas on the outside of the stadium and after halftime we would enter the stadium for free to watch soccer.  (Sorry dad, I hated soccer.)

I watched my father as he easily walked up to people and started conversations.  Dad could do that with anyone, anywhere, anytime.  Apparently I learned that skill from my father.

What Nevada Weir taught me about Photography

In a photography book I gave away to a young photographer, I read a one page article by Nevada Weir on how to take photographs of strangers you meet.  She’s a world class photographer and was kind enough to exchange emails with me a few weeks ago.

I can’t remember what she said exactly about photographing strangers on the street, throughout the world.  But this is what I learned from her, in my words.

Don’t just sneak your photos of people.  Try to engage people.  Say hello and strike up a conversation.  Engage them as human beings, not as subjects.  Ask them if you can take their photo.

Sorry Nevada, I can’t remember your words exactly.

Take your Camera with you and Take Photographs

It’s true I may have missed 4 decades of photographs.  I’ll never know how good those photographs might have been.  But today I took some good photos in Kilbourn Park, Chicago, IL.

But these days, I carry a camera with me always.  If you’re in Kilbourn Park, Chicago, IL, don’t be surprised if someone walks up to you, starts a conversation, and asks to take your photo.

Thanks for visiting What is a Film Camera today.