The Ritual
Have you ever found yourself losing interest in a hobby not long after starting it? Yeah, me too. Following the initial creation of this site, I’ve added a couple of new pages. Before I introduce you to one of them, a bit of context is required.
The Ritual
For longer than I can remember, I’ve always been a bit too good at finding new hobbies. Take sports, for example. When I was a young child, I played many. Cricket, followed by tennis, rugby, football, badminton, and various others which I can’t recall. Upon discovery of each one of these sports, a ritual would take place.
- I’d discover the new sport.
- I’d watch my friends play and feel left out.
- I’d want to join in (mostly so I could have all of the cool equipment).
- I’d dream about owning said equipment.
- After months of begging, my parents would buy it all.
- I’d be thrilled.
- I’d play for a few months.
- Then I’d get bored and quit.
The image below gives you an insight of how excited young James was when step five took place.
In summary, I'd go through hobbies and "interests" like they were going out of fashion. That said, there were a few which stuck. For instance, I loved computers, and now work in cybersecurity. I loved motorsport, and still attend car shows and geek out over old Land Rovers.
I also really loved photography.
When I was growing up, quite a few people around me had cameras, and, naturally, young James was interested in all the shiny tech. To my delight, I'd sometimes be allowed to take photos on these cameras. I distinctly remember going out for Sunday lunch with my Grandmother's friends, Sue and Dave, for her birthday.
Around the same time, Dave had just purchased a new Panasonic DSLR, and kindly offered me the chance to use it for the day. I didn't delay in taking him up on the offer. In fact, I don't think I put the thing down once. I loved it. Snap, snap, snap. All day.
A few days later, to my surprise, they kindly delivered a book which contained every photo I took on that day. While I'd hardly display them at the V&A's photography centre, they really weren't bad! After this, my sights were set. I wanted my own camera.
Now, I know what you're thinking.
James, it's happening. This is the ritual all over again. You just want a shiny camera.
Yes. BUT. While I'm not going to deny that I clearly wanted my own camera, I didn't even have to ask this time. You see, something unexpected occurred. Sue and Dave, for whatever reason, and on their own accord, decided I should have my own camera. So, out of nowhere, they purchased one. I didn't even have to ask! I was over the moon. I was taking pictures of anything that moved... and anything which didn't.
Obviously, once the excitement wore off, step eight took place and I parked it that interest for a couple of years.
Resurrection
The next time I was interested in photography was when I was selecting my A-Levels. Like most other teenagers at that age, I wasn't really sure what I wanted to do with my life, so I decided to enrol onto courses I thought I'd enjoy. Alongside subjects such as computer science, I also chose to take photography.
This meant I had to buy a camera for the course. But, this time was different. The ritual had changed. Rather than "after months of begging, my parents would buy it all", it was now "after months of researching, I would buy it with my OWN money".
So, off I went.
I watched an unhealthy amount of YouTube videos, and read countless articles. Long story short, I picked up a Nikon D7200, and it was great. I really enjoyed the course, and took some pretty decent photos over the two years.
The problem is, once I left, I stopped taking photos. There were two reasons for this. Number one, having been "forced" to take photos for two years straight, the passion for doing so had been numbed somewhat. Secondly, the camera was huge.
See, I told you. Not pocket sized. The D7200 body isn't a small camera to begin with. But James likes gear! So, me being me, I added a huge battery grip and another lens. What a moron.
This resulting in me having to take a camera bag with me any time I wanted to take the camera with me. This got boring very quickly. Result: camera stayed at home in the bag, and I stopped using it.
Modern Tech, Enter Stage Left
Once I left school, I got into my first job, where I met a guy called James. James is now a close friend of mine - great guy. James also loves photography, and encountered the exact same issue.
He'd spend a ton of money on a stack of fancy (and rather expensive) Fujifilm gear, but realised that it was a total burden to take it anywhere. This led him to look for a smaller camera, which was still capable of taking amazing shots.
This is when he discovered the Ricoh GRIIIx.
We spoke about his experience at length, and, after he explained his experience to me, I chose to join him. I bought a GRIII.
I've had the camera for a couple of years now, and the verdict is clear. It's amazing. Truly amazing. To make sure this post isn't too long, I'll write a review another time. Just take my word for it.
If you read reviews online, most people will claim the best feature of the GRIII is the great images it captures.
It's not.
It's the fact it's a proper pocket sized camera. This thing takes amazing photos, and still actually fits in the pockets of my jacket or my jeans.
This has resulted in me taking it with me nearly all the time I leave the house, which is where this new page comes into play.
Frames
Now I carry the GRIII with me daily, I love to document what I come across throughout my day. I also really enjoy looking back at pictures I've taken, as I find they remind me of so many great memories.
The idea for the new page is simple. Every day, I select one of the many pictures I capture and add it to the top of the page. Not only do I then have an easily accessible timeline I can look back on, but you also get to see what I've been up to. I'm really looking forward to start building it out, and I hope you enjoy the page as much I do.
Thanks for reading.
James