An Interview with Serg - I

I sat down today to ask myself some questions.

Sergey: "You seem to be getting a lot of questions about your passion for photography. Tell me, when did you first discover photography?"

Sergey: "I got my first digital camera in late May of 2003. My friend owed me some cash at the time, and rather then paying me back I asked that he get me a digital camera. Digital cameras were becoming rather hip and in order to maintain a "cool" status I thought it would great to have one.

Sergey: "So the moment your camera, you were hooked?"

Sergey: Laughs* "Honestly the first real photo I took with it was not until the first of June...I mean took the camera out of the box and was a little intimated by it so I charged the battery

and took some shots that were greatly underexposed...I felt a little disappointed with it at first but then I went to a museum with two friends and photographed their sneakers. For some reason I still wasn't feeling it. I didn't touch the camera for about two weeks, until I went out again and decided to bring it along for the ride. It was at that moment that I started to really develop a relationship...heh...develop...eh, not funny; ok stick and move, Serg, stick and move. So, as I was saying...I started to enjoy carrying the camera with me and taking photographs of whatever I found interesting. Over the summer, when I worked as a freight elevator operator, I would bring it to work with me everyday. The job was lonesome, but my camera kept company. I recall exploring and photographing every inch of that building...there were even times when I would sneak up on the roof and just be mesmerized by the buildings.

S: "So what kept going? Were you taking any photography classes in college?"

S: "I wanted to so badly...but beginners photography class was an easy A class in college. And any easy A class gets filled up quick. Sure there were some people who genuinely enjoyed the subject, but others took it to bump up their GPA. But looking back at...I'm glad I didn't take the class. I took the time to explore the path of photography they way I wanted to do it. It was healthy outlet for me. Looking back, I think it helped me appreciate life."

S: "What were some things you enjoyed photographing?"

S: "At the time I was photography whatever came to my mind. I didn't really have a subject, I just grabbed my camera wherever I went. If I was going for a hike, I would bring me camera; sometimes I would drive in my car at odd hours...exploring every inch of a small town....I recall photographing some fog on a field at nighttime and then thinking...how creepy would it be if I saw someone out there. So I did it. I set my camera on a timer and ran into the field to take a picture of my thought."

S: "Well I know we are out of time, thank you for answering a few questions. I would love to have you back to continue our discussion."

S: "It was no problem at all..hey I love talking about photography so lets definitely continue this."

Some photos Sergey decided to share with Sergey

first photo I took

sneaking on to rooftops

sometimes I would have to jump from one rooftop to the other

here we are discussing photography at the freight elevator job

another rooftop pic

Erie gave me a chance to get away from the city and explore nature

the shadow figure

Lake Erie was amazing during the summer and winter

i recall chasing this squirrel until it finally told me to bugger off