Hamilton Exposure

1. How did you develop your style? There are a lot of long exposures, night shots, urban/industrial landscapes.
I stumbled onto my style I’m afraid to say…and it came from two directions. I don’t remember how or why, but I came across some remarkable Milky Way photographs taken with regular SLR cameras while searching for something online at work. I was hooked and immediately had to research gear and technique on this amazing subject. Growing up with Star Wars, Star Trek, Close Encounters, you name it…the thought of being able to capture the heavens so effectively with the camera I already owned proved too enticing to ignore.

Secondly, my style was largely determined by work schedule. I run an entertainment fabrication company in Dundas that keeps me hopping, and my wife and I have three kids. I didn’t want to end my workday and skip time with them by heading out snapping photos, so it worked out that “daddy me-time” started after 9 PM, which suited me just fine because I am a night owl. Clients know not to bother calling my shop before 9 AM…not if they want to talk to me.

Good clear dark skies are a must for this type of photography and I found myself head- ing towards Lake Erie on a number of occasions during the spring and summer. There is something really special about staring up at those skies on a quiet warm summer night and I found that when the clouds were too heavy or the moon too bright, I would stay much closer to home and experiment with what the city had to offer and apply what I learned out in the country. My techniques were the same, bring a good tripod, set the camera shutter open for 30 seconds and let the glow of the city work its magic. My first outing around town was Eastport Drive facing the factories and I was not disappointed. Over 30 seconds, the fire, the glow off of the water, the smoke made for an incredible scene…one that you could never appreciate with a quick look or a fast snapshot. From there I ventured further into the city and haven’t stopped.