{"id":7717,"date":"2017-03-21T09:10:00","date_gmt":"2017-03-21T09:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.apogeephoto.com\/?p=7717"},"modified":"2017-03-21T15:17:48","modified_gmt":"2017-03-21T15:17:48","slug":"my-own-personal-darkroom-visually-impaired-photography","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.apogeephoto.com\/my-own-personal-darkroom-visually-impaired-photography\/","title":{"rendered":"My Own Personal Darkroom – Visually Impaired Photography"},"content":{"rendered":"

Photography can be difficult enough to master at the best of times…but how much more difficult when you are seriously visually impaired? \u00a0Tammy Ruggles shares with us her journey from a creative person, having to contain her desire for photography due to her impairment….to eventually mastering the art and discovering the real photographer within herself…..\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

I remember darkrooms from my early college days. I so badly wanted to take a photography course, but night blindness, a feature of my visual impairment, RP, prevented me. A small voice of logic said, \u201cForget it. You can\u2019t see what\u2019s going on in there, so what\u2019s the point?\u201d<\/p>\n

I stuck to art classes instead, deciding I would continue to take pictures that were developed at the local shopping center.<\/p>\n

This was before the point-and-shoot cameras came along, and in-camera development.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Three barns. Tammy Ruggles<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Technology made photography possible. And not only photography, but reading, writing, and art.<\/p>\n

But by the time I bought my first point-and-shoot camera, I was afraid to use it, because my eyesight had declined to the point of legal blindness. I simply couldn\u2019t see as well as I used to. Not that I could see well to begin with, but my vision had seen better days. There was a time I could drive a car, see the North Star, and read regular print.<\/p>\n

Again I asked myself, \u201cIf you have trouble seeing your surroundings, what\u2019s the point? Why do you want to do this?\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Side Of Mountain. Tammy Ruggles<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The answer was easy, but difficult to process. It was an art form that I loved but was reluctant to admit, because the idea of a legally blind photographer sounded absurd. And didn\u2019t you have to have good vision to do this?<\/p>\n

After some time of wondering whether to take my new camera out and use it, or send it back, I gathered the courage to try it out, telling myself that if I could finger paint without much vision, why couldn\u2019t I take photos? I would let my camera do the work.<\/p>\n

It would see for me. If someone accompanied me on a photo adventure, they could give me a little guidance, and I would use my blurry vision, but for the most part I would rely on my 47-inch computer monitor to see what I\u2019d captured. I also relied on my four years of high school art education, two to three years of college art courses, and experience as a sketcher.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Sunset. Tammy Ruggles<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Art was in my blood, so I had an idea of what an aesthetic picture was supposed to look like, at least to me. Something like Ansel Adams, who was my artistic hero growing up. I was inwardly thrilled whenever I saw one of his black and white landscapes.<\/p>\n

This is how I unearthed my deeply-buried desire to become a fine art photographer. To me, there is as much beauty and art in a photograph as there is in a painting. In fact, the kinds of photos that appeal to me most are ones that could themselves pass for paintings.<\/p>\n

As with my finger paintings, when someone looks at a photograph of mine, I would like for them to experience something, whether it be a mood, an idea, a memory, a thought. I don\u2019t take pictures just for myself; I take them for others to enjoy.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Night Glow. Tammy Ruggles<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When it comes to photographs, I prefer black and white, because I see best in high contrast. I love color, but when I look around at colors in my world, they all blend together in a blur. Black and white stands out in stark contrast, and it\u2019s easier for me to see.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the distinct areas of black and white composition I look for when I have my images up on my large monitor. If I don\u2019t see enough contrast, I can\u2019t tell what the picture is about, and I delete it.<\/p>\n

Photography isn\u2019t just a whim I decided to act on one day. It\u2019s been bottled within me for many years. I was content to take family photos, and it was enough, then. But as an artist, creativity can only be contained so long before it has to release, and I wanted to share it with others. Especially the visually impaired, who may be wondering if they should or should not pursue a particular passion.<\/p>\n

Article By Tammy Ruggles. See her portfolio here<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Photography can be difficult enough to master at the best of times…but how much more difficult when you are seriously visually impaired? \u00a0Tammy Ruggles shares with us her journey from [read more]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7721,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[],"tags":[7],"yoast_head":"\nMy Own Personal Darkroom - Visually Impaired Photography - Apogee Photo Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.apogeephoto.com\/my-own-personal-darkroom-visually-impaired-photography\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"My Own Personal Darkroom - Visually Impaired Photography - Apogee Photo Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Photography can be difficult enough to master at the best of times…but how much more difficult when you are seriously visually impaired? \u00a0Tammy Ruggles shares with us her journey from [read more]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.apogeephoto.com\/my-own-personal-darkroom-visually-impaired-photography\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Apogee Photo Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ApogeePhotoMagazine\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-03-21T09:10:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2017-03-21T15:17:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.apogeephoto.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Night-Glow.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"383\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"ApogeePhotoAdmin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Apogee_Photo\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Apogee_Photo\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"ApogeePhotoAdmin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.apogeephoto.com\/my-own-personal-darkroom-visually-impaired-photography\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.apogeephoto.com\/my-own-personal-darkroom-visually-impaired-photography\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"ApogeePhotoAdmin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.apogeephoto.com\/#\/schema\/person\/69a5e0f5a887d801d897680713aae3aa\"},\"headline\":\"My Own Personal Darkroom – Visually Impaired Photography\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-03-21T09:10:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2017-03-21T15:17:48+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.apogeephoto.com\/my-own-personal-darkroom-visually-impaired-photography\/\"},\"wordCount\":795,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.apogeephoto.com\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"Photographer profiles\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.apogeephoto.com\/my-own-personal-darkroom-visually-impaired-photography\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.apogeephoto.com\/my-own-personal-darkroom-visually-impaired-photography\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.apogeephoto.com\/my-own-personal-darkroom-visually-impaired-photography\/\",\"name\":\"My Own Personal Darkroom - 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