There are lots of non-profit organizations that benefit from help with technology. Find a non-profit that can articulate what it needs and is ready to adopt a new technology (most likely some kind of data-base driven website) and implement it for them. Keep doing this over and over again for diffferent organizations. What you get out of this is 1) a demonstrated list of projects that you can put on your resume; 2) lots of people connected with the organizations who can be part of your network, and someday may be able to help you find a job (just make sure that you know people really well and have demonstrated the value you add very clearly before you actually seek help from anyone finding a job).
Some useful non-profit technology organizations: http://www.nten.org/
http://www.techsoup.org/
http://www.organizenow.net/ (located in Boston)
Good luck!
I had a K-1000 that I used for over 20 years. It's a nice rugged camera. I also had a Nikkormat that I absolutely loved. Those must still be inexpensive on e-bay, etc. Also try keh cameras (keh.com). They have some phenomenal bargains.
I also recently went through the agony of deciding whether to go digital or set up darkroom. It is still prohibitively expensive for most mortals to get a digital camera that approaches the quality of film. So a lot of professionsal are still shooting film but then scanning and manipualting in an image editor and then printing in a laser-to-photographic-paper process (e.g., the lambda system). But a film scanner is still way expensive in comparison with setting up a good old fashioned darkroom. Moreover, a photorapher friend of mine who does 80% digital suggested getting started in the darkroom because you learn more that way.
Another consideration is that I spend all day in front of a computer and wanted to liberate myself from that entirely.
Know that there's a whole other geekdom that awaits you in the realm of darkroom chemistry, such as rolling your own developer and enhancing existing developers. Run, do not walk, to rec.photography.darkroom and feast your eyes. If you want to be a geek among geek of phographers, read _Beyond The Zone System_ by Philip Davies, and other similar books: test your own materials with a densitometer and plot the characteristic curve of your film with your development processes. This is _really cool_ stuff. (Don't believe anyone who says you can't do the zone system with 35mm.)
Good luck and for goodness sakes have oodles of fun!!!
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There are lots of non-profit organizations that benefit from help with technology. Find a non-profit that can articulate what it needs and is ready to adopt a new technology (most likely some kind of data-base driven website) and implement it for them. Keep doing this over and over again for diffferent organizations. What you get out of this is 1) a demonstrated list of projects that you can put on your resume; 2) lots of people connected with the organizations who can be part of your network, and someday may be able to help you find a job (just make sure that you know people really well and have demonstrated the value you add very clearly before you actually seek help from anyone finding a job). Some useful non-profit technology organizations: http://www.nten.org/ http://www.techsoup.org/ http://www.organizenow.net/ (located in Boston) Good luck!
I had a K-1000 that I used for over 20 years. It's a nice rugged camera. I also had a Nikkormat that I absolutely loved. Those must still be inexpensive on e-bay, etc. Also try keh cameras (keh.com). They have some phenomenal bargains. I also recently went through the agony of deciding whether to go digital or set up darkroom. It is still prohibitively expensive for most mortals to get a digital camera that approaches the quality of film. So a lot of professionsal are still shooting film but then scanning and manipualting in an image editor and then printing in a laser-to-photographic-paper process (e.g., the lambda system). But a film scanner is still way expensive in comparison with setting up a good old fashioned darkroom. Moreover, a photorapher friend of mine who does 80% digital suggested getting started in the darkroom because you learn more that way. Another consideration is that I spend all day in front of a computer and wanted to liberate myself from that entirely. Know that there's a whole other geekdom that awaits you in the realm of darkroom chemistry, such as rolling your own developer and enhancing existing developers. Run, do not walk, to rec.photography.darkroom and feast your eyes. If you want to be a geek among geek of phographers, read _Beyond The Zone System_ by Philip Davies, and other similar books: test your own materials with a densitometer and plot the characteristic curve of your film with your development processes. This is _really cool_ stuff. (Don't believe anyone who says you can't do the zone system with 35mm.) Good luck and for goodness sakes have oodles of fun!!!