Distillery District - Toronto, ON

© Christine Mastroianni, all rights reserved

I shot this on the night that I learned how to use my camera.

I didn't own a tripod at the time so most of the handheld pictures I took were, to be nice, technically inadequate... the lines almost indiscernible, splaying all over the image with a complete disregard for aesthetics and reason.... the lights erratically exploding and dominating the image, completely altering the mood it was intending to portray. However, I have retained all of the shots from that night, even the duds, because they illustrate my foray into night photography, documenting my attempts at better understanding aperture and shutter speed and the intimate relationship they share. I am finally able to absorb and manipulate what my light meter has always been trying to tell me instead of brazenly overlooking it yet again. I just hope that it can forgive me for ignoring it all of these years.

My love affair with light was intensely elevated on that night and I do believe that it marked the beginning of a exquisitely renewed and potentially fruitful relationship with my Nikon.