4-23-2021 10:38am

Merge Wright: Picture This

Rick Amburgey Neighbor

Picture this.....

Growing up in the 1940’s and 50’s you had to picture everything in black and white and hope you remembered to remove the lens cap. Then head to the drug store with your roll of film to have it developed. A week later you’d pick up your results and most of the time be upset with your professionalism. Out of 12 only 7 turned out and 3 of them were not very good. The object moved, you moved, the sunlight was too strong, and you forgot to take off the lens cap on 5. You’d do it again every week sometimes. This was not a hobby I really wanted to get involved in. When color and instant pictures arrived via Polaroid I accepted the new technology with cheers and excitement. I wanted pictures of everything.

The color and resolution was very poor I found out. Nowhere even close to 780 or 1080 the norm of today. Then in the mid nineties digital pictures arrived. At the time I owned two entertainment companies one for night clubs offering popular music videos on a 100-inch screen, karaoke, and dancing from 9 till 1. The other was Professional Music Hosts doing weddings, special events, anniversaries, birthdays, Miss Ohio Contests, and many other unique events in a five state area on weekends. I was free during the day after arriving home at 2:00 am from my different night club events.

One Saturday I just happened to glance at the Dayton paper’s job opportunities and saw an add for professional photographers. Wow, that’s me I thought. I called the number, was enlightened to the opportunity and told the gentleman I was very interested. A meeting for the whole Miami Valley area was scheduled for Saturday at a hotel in the Dayton area. They were looking for 3 or 4 professional photographers to do drive by shootings. Yes! They would provide brand new digital cameras for us at no cost. The pictures would be for homes for sale. You pull up across the street at the addresses they give you and take a professional picture. On certain homes you would need a picture of the backyard too.

Being I lived in Springboro I would be responsible for Warren, County. Pay was $7.00 per picture and $3.00 for the backyard which did not happen often. I averaged 30 shots at $7 in Warren county, maybe 4 or 5 at $3 for the backyard. All done in an hour or less. Get home load them on my PC and send them out to the company in Kansas. $220 or more for a total time of 2 hours. One picture I did of a backyard had two dogs that escaped when I accidentally left the gate open after entering. They weren’t after me they had a plan and didn’t return for three days. The husband thanked me when they ran away. The wife called me every name in the book. Called the company I was working for and was ready to sue them. But they came back after a fun three day romp through the neighborhood. It was exciting and my digital pics were all awesome. This fun time drive by shooting position only lasted a couple years.

Technology was going crazy in photography. Who would have ever guessed we’d have smart phones with thousands of beautiful high Resolution color pics of family, friends, events and more. Today my wife and I were shopping for our son in Denver for a couple pair of jeans and a sweater. We sent him multiple pictures of different brands from Kohl’s and finally got his approval in about ten minutes of the ones he liked best. Our pics are all saved on line too. In case we lost the ones on our phone to some horrible mistake or problem.

Can you picture this 20 years from now.

Mergewright@yahoo.com is open 24/7 for your comments, ideas, and input. Drop me a note and I’ll send you a great picture.