"photopassion"
August 6, 2001, 10:00 p.m.

I have not taken out my real camera in ages. Real = non-digital, non-automatic.

It's an old Canon AE-1 which I got in 1977 and still use and works wonderfully except I haven't used it in over a year. I also have a digital and an automatic, plus a polaroid somewhere and of course a Sony vid to boot.

Sometimes though I just want my Canon.

There's a building downtown - or rather - there WAS a building downtown that was recently demolished. It was such a cool building - the Energy Building - which has stood vacant these past 20 years. It was designed wider at the top than at the bottom which may be why the thing stood vacant for so long. May have been deemed unsafe or something. In any case, It was really unique.

But they tore it down and while driving to and from work, I would pass the building in its various stages of demolishment. Each day offered a new angle and composition and I'd wished I had my camera with me.

But I'd forget about it by the time I'd get home or get to work and I only thought about it when I saw the building.

Now the building is gone. And my camera is in the cabinet of the armoire in the front room without having shot one single frame of film.

Need to take it out and clean it.

Need to use it.

Need to keep it handy like all those years before when I kept it handy to take shots off the cuff.

The lenses I have are old too but they're all good. The huge 90-205 zoom weighs about 3 pounds and I need to brace it when I use it, but damn its good lens.

I ventured into the camera supply store in '98 and I was amazed at all the fancy features on the SLRs and all the things they do for you like focusing on what your eye focuses on and how automatic and expensive they are. Amazing. And the lenses are so lightweight too.

But...I couldn't bring myself to buy one.

I love my old camera.

It's been my passion all these years.

Time to stop ignoring it.