One of the best things about writing for this periodical is the trip I often take as I try to find a subject that might peak your interest. Take last week, when I wrote the column, I was just trying to remember some of the times that made me smile. I might have been inspired to write about things I know, but it would be a short column.
Last week I got an email from a reader who pointed out that one man I mentioned had passed on from this orb, had not. That is a mistake a person who writes should not make. But I had a man who knew to point this out and gave me inspiration of another time.
I was writing about the adventure that Sam, Richard and I took to the Firearm School in Arizona. Col. Cooper had built the school so men and women could learn the intricacies of firing weapons the correct way. The school is still in Prescott, Ariz., but run by others who keep Col. Cooper’s vision alive.
I had mentioned that we were flown to our destination by Richard Green, who was the proprietor of Green’s Camera store. To be fair, it was about two men who share a name. One owned a camera store, the oldest camera store in Monterey County. May he rest in peace. The other is still with us, doing what he is famous for, taking superb photos.
If I was a little smarter, I could have turned around from the computer and seen a photograph displayed in the living room of my home. It is of me, Lorraine, Francis Muma, along with Stephanie McFarland, taken by Richard Green during a function at the Corral de Tierra Country Club. Stephanie received recognition on behalf of her husband, Jerry McFarland, for his contributions to Monterey County wine grapes. It was a great evening and another time I was rude enough to ask Richard to take a photo of the group.
Richard Green, the photographer, was as cool as could be and even showed us where to pose. I’m sure he had been hired by the folks throwing the party to take photos of the evening. But I still asked him because I was standing there with three beautiful women on my arm. This is something I do as often as I can, that is asking someone to take a photo.
My love for photography came from my friendship with Richard Green of Green’s Camera. I had closed my gun store and I was looking for something to do that would benefit me and he needed another hire for his store. I had been spending a lot of my time hanging around Green’s after my store closed and so he offered me a job as a salesman. I’ll never know what prompted him, but I was quick to say yes.
He would spend a little time with me each day showing the functions of the cameras he had for sale in the store. Then, one day he suggested that I take a class at Hartnell College. I was fortunate to take a class from Eric Bosler, a photography professor at Hartnell. He too helped me to understand the nuances of photography. He became a very good friend and I spent a lot of time listening to him. He taught me about light and time, both necessary to photography.
This leads me to another great photographer I knew, his name was Clay Petersen. When I was married to my first wife, her mother owned a pet store on Monterey Street in Salinas. They would allow some of the more exotic animals they had to just run around on the floor. This was before people sued if the bird pecked them or the ocelot they had chained up would maybe nip on their heels.
Anyway, there was a tortoise that walked around the pet shop and Clay took a photo of my 2-year-old daughter riding its shell. That photo was seen all over the world. People would send us copies of the papers in which it was shown. Clay won several awards for this photo, which was originally featured in the Salinas Californian newspaper. I hang it proudly in my home.
There was a time when I was going to be a professional photographer. In those days, Salinas was a Mecca for photographers. There was Richard Green for sure and wedding photographers on almost every block. Dolly and Bob, Ed Avila, and the King and master of Photographers, Ken Cook.
My friend and teacher Eric Bosler encouraged me to work on my photography skills. So, when Lorraine and I moved to Gonzales, I was fortunate enough to be hired by parents looking for memories to be made at weddings, quinceañeras, anniversaries, etc. I stayed with that for a long time, but my stomach could not stand the pressure.
In case you didn’t know, there is a lot of pressure on a photographer. The customers are stressed at how much everything costs. It’s up to the photographer to capture the perfect moment. It’s all pressure. When people ask me about doing a wedding, I just tell them my heart is not strong enough. I loved what I was doing, but my brokerage business was just getting started and I couldn’t do both.
I will never forget how kind Richard was to me to take a candid shot that he could probably get money for and giving it to me. To all the photographers I have known, thank you. You have been my friends, teachers and inspirations. I will be forever grateful for what I have learned and hopefully passed down to others. I guess I should close this by telling you that you should listen to those who teach and to never give up your dream.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours. Take lots of photos, I know I will.
God Bless.
