Hello Stephen,
I started in photography in 1963 because I got turned on through an art history course. Not having - or not having developed - much that would produce a lot of confidence in other media, I thought, as so many do, that since photography was such a universally accessible medium it might be a way in. Specifically, the images that really had got to me were Chinese landscape paintings on silk, but also, there were examples in many other media, not all strictly 2d, that had inspired me.
Having worked in photography only a few months, really, I felt the need for experience in other media. It was not just photo that attracted me. I applied for admission to the Portland Museum Art School (Oregon) which had a highly structured foundation program, with the first years being mainly tons of drawing and design. They also hosted workshops with Minor White in the summer, so I took those prior to the start of the regular school year and again the next summer. After one year there, I went on to San Francisco State, because the art school, besides the seasonal workshops with MW, offered no photography. At SF State, I majored in photo but took courses in other media. Because the art school, despite its excellence, was not accredited in a system that SF State recognized, I needed to take all of the requirements. This amounted to one full year of mostly duplication. The following year, they recognized my prior credit. I don't regard that year as a loss at all; it was a net gain.
Subsequently, more school, more work in other media. I spent a number of years working in application of photographic imagery to metal (in making jewelry and small sculpture) and intaglio printmaking, as well as silkscreen printmaking with photo imagery. I still draw some, and, like you, now retired, I'm becoming again a lot more interested in drawing. I've been making my own charcoal in the BBQ while cooking, and have acquired a portable french easel rig for travel. I've done some painting (love it) in the past few years, but haven't done a lot of anything - even photography. Now that I've quit the art education racket, I have some more time and hope that I'm capable of shifting my focus back into artwork.
I've never been just a photographer, although that has consumed most of my working life as freelance editorial photographer and college photo teacher.
Your exploring drawing/painting can be nothing but really good, as far as I'm concerned. Nowhere near enough photographers have the spirit to do that, and I think they don't know what they are missing. There is an added dimension that comes of working with the hands in service to the eye. Photographers can become rather parochial; it often does not serve them well. Experience in other media tends to open the mind; the world gets bigger.
If I can suggest one thing, it would be drawing from the figure in a managed drawing group using models and varied timed poses. Short poses (you use a lot of newsprint fast) help train the eye to discern the important formal/gestural elements quickly. The longer ones enable one to develop a vision that perceives how forms work together and acquire a more subtle understanding of the relationship of surface and form, as well as detail. Working from still life is important too, especially if you have someone available who really knows how to set them up. I'd strongly recommend that you take some courses, because in doing so, you can learn from other students' work and the guidance of an instructor. Of course, you'll be dependent upon what's available in your area. I know that around here, we "seniors" can take courses for the fees and maybe $5/course. I'm thinking about doing that myself. I can take courses from my former colleagues!
I wish you great success with it. I know it will enrich your life, both in itself and in how it helps your vision grow, which is really useful for a photographer.
Larry
). I'm looking forward to enjoying it since I'm retired and have the free time to explore, and I also expect that it will only help my photographic eye as I proceed.
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