BIOGRAPHY
I’m Bob Stine from San Mateo, CA (about 20 miles South of San Francisco). After working as a lead aircraft technician at United Airlines for 33 years I retired in December, 2002. When I was in the Army in Germany in 1964 I took a correspondence course with the School of Modern Photography and got quite involved with shooting and darkroom work. After my discharge and starting my career, photographic endeavors were cast aside. Shortly after retirement I discovered the wonderful world of digital photography and I relapsed into my addiction to the medium.
RALPH’S TAKE
Having had the opportunity to go out and shoot with Bob both in Chicago and San Francisco, I feel like I’ve gotten to know him fairly well. Bob has such a zest for life and as an amateur enthusiast, he’s not caught up in the idea of necessarily making money from his work, and this really shows in his sincere interest in improving his craft for his own satisfaction.
The image that Bob chose to submit for this feature is well composed and shows this monarch butterfly and flower, his main subjects, in sharp focus. The beautifully blurred out background demonstrates skillful use of an extremely shallow depth of field and is a classic technique that artfully sets his subject apart from an otherwise busy background. The fact that the image was made in downtown Chicago is in high contrast to this otherwise natural scene.
TESTIMONIAL
“My first experience with Ralph Velasco was his photo walking tour of the Golden Gate Bridge and Ft. Point in San Francisco, after attending his travel photography class the previous day. Ralph stressed the importance of looking all around, rather than concentrating on a pre-conceived idea of what you want to shoot. I’ve taken that suggestion to heart and I’m always looking for unique angles or close-ups in my subjects and the surrounding pictures that most people don’t see.
I joined Ralph and his other students again in Chicago. His knowledge of the area and technical experience really inspire his students to outperform themselves.” ~ Bob Stine
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