Depth is not something that everyone easily sees or consciously recognizes, but we all notice when it is there.

We also notice when it is NOT.

In my spare time I take pictures.  I come by the hobby honestly; my mother is Japanese (“Ooooh, taykoo peecktcha?”) and there are no less than twenty cameras at every family function no matter how many people show up.  In addition, my dad has always fostered a passion for photography.  Between the two of them, I grew up with a lens in my face most of the time.

I got my first SLR camera when I was 25.  It was a Christmas gift from my dad.  I “SQUEEE”d when I unwrapped the gift, opened the box immediately, and I never looked back.  I loved that thing.  It shot film, though, and after the first roll came back from the store I realized “WOW, I have a lot of learning to do.”  The pictures weren’t BAD, they were just “….meh.”  Uneventful, uninspiring.  They were pictures of events and the SURFACE of life, but no more than that.  A person could look through my photos and say “Oh yeah, I remember that, I forgot that guy was there, what was I thinking wearing that shirt?” but that’s about it.  My pictures did not tell a story, they did not inspire.
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