One summer day in my early 20s...
When I passed in front of a nearby “pawn shop,” a cool camera inside the showcase caught my eye.
It's a Minolta single-lens reflex camera. It was sold with a lens.
It might be called a thrift store now, but back then, in the 1990s, it was a pawn shop.
“I want to take a picture with a camera like this...”
I was looking at it with such a light feeling
did an old man from the pawnshop come out of the back
and
“This is a bargain!” said Ochan with a smile.
Furthermore, “you can take pictures from a distance ~ 30,000 yen is cheap now!” and...
Wow, is it a bargain...
I had a personality that didn't think ahead, so I made a quick decision that I might be able to take good pictures with a camera like this.
So, pay 30,000 yen and yes, buy it!
I immediately took that camera and went to Minamiboso in Chiba...
A cat crossing the blue sea path, a cactus with two red flowers side by side
cute! beautiful! What caught my eye was that I cut the shutter right out of the blue!
But... the shutter won't go off, why? I've been worried about it dozens of times
I'm not in focus when I say Jeezy...
After all, I bought it at a “pawn shop”
There are no instructions, and Ochan doesn't really understand how to use it
I wonder if they said something like “this is the switch and the rest will adjust the focus without permission”? I only remember saying that.
I fiddled with the dial and tried moving the buttons with M or A written on them...
Somehow the shutter went out and I was able to take a picture of one film.
Then, when I saw the finished picture... I was so surprised.
The blue sea is a sad gray sea and the red flowers are odorless black (you will learn the term under later)
The spiny cactus is out of focus and booms.
And what is your biggest impression
“Even so, single-lens reflex cameras are insanely heavy.” It was.
That too should have been attached to the Minolta α
It was Tamron's 85-300mm super telephoto lens. (That's why it's heavy)
It's impossible when I think about it now (laughs) it's super telephoto and there's no way I can focus on the cactus in front of me...
It's true that I was able to shoot so far (laughs)
Make such a big mistake
How can I take beautiful pictures? I want to take a proper picture next time! That feeling springs up...
Go to a bookstore to gather information (I think cell phones and computers existed at the time, they are luxury products. (The heyday of pagers)
There were camera introductory books, etc., but “Monthly Cameraman” became my textbook.
Then I learned about the existence of a “used camera shop,” and Minolta went to sell it to a used camera shop instead of a pawn shop...
And then, there
A fateful encounter with the new and used Canon EOS 55. I still have it on hand.
The journey to becoming a professional photographer from here on... continued when we met after receiving your request!
