Who is bopphoto?

Jan 10

Hey again! I bet you’re wondering who the lady behind the camera is and what she’s all about. Or maybe you don’t give a flying fart. But guess what, I’m going to tell ya!

My name is Sarah Bopp, I’m a long time lover of photography but also a long time avoider of doing anything about it. Well, it’s about time that changes. While most of my day is spent in the grind of university work-life, I spend all the other parts of the day working to learn and grow in photography. Although I am still new to the photography game, I’m so excited to take it all in and share everything I absorb with all of you along the way! So let’s learn about me and how this whole photography thing came to be.

Where did it all begin?

Ever since I was little, my mom was there ready with her film camera to snap those moments and memories of my brother and I. The drive and passion it took to load and unload all the rolls of film, to get two rambunctious kids to sit for a picture, and developing all those snapshots into prints, was truly inspiring. Perhaps she really just loved us and didn’t necessarily love the art of photography . . . huh. But either way, the drive she had to get out there and take photos, day after day doing the dang thing was so inspiring to me.

Now when I was five, or ten, I probably wasn’t thinking about my mom’s love for photography. But looking back on all those many many pictures taken of us in the not-so-digital age as a somewhat older human, made me pretty darn excited about this art form. Seeing the many photos all those years later, it was like looking at our childhood through her eyes.

Each of those photos was captured with her eye and her artistic flair. There was just something about experiencing the world through someone else’s eyes that was so captivating. Of course, this same idea applies to other art forms like painting, sketching, etc. But with photography, it amazes me that two people could use the same exact tools, looking at the same exact subject, and in an instant arrive at completely different results. I was HOOKED!

Tell me more!

By the time I got to high school and noticed the option of taking a photography class, I jumped on the opportunity! From there I developed (hah!) a real love for this beautiful art. Learning to work with film cameras, being intentional about each and every shot, really taught me a lot about composing an image.

If you’ve never worked with film, let me tell you, it is loads of fun! I know you may be thinking it is outdated or too much work in the digital age. But it is worth your while! Anyway, enough about you, back to me (haha). Here is the kicker, I went to college and let photography take the backseat. For a while. But thankfully I have the most caring family and friends. My brother knew how much I loved it and saw it getting put on the back burner. So when I graduated from college, he took it upon himself to change my life.

What did he do? He bought me a camera!

You guessed it! I have the best brother. Having people in your life that believe in you and want to support your dreams is so special. If you are thinking about starting your photography hobby, go tell everyone. Seriously, get your friends and family on your team, not for the free stuff, rather because they are your cheerleaders. Now here we are, five years and about a bazillion photos later, taking an even deeper dive into it all.

Let’s keep peeling back those layers a bit more, shall we? We’ve got the who factor, a bit of the how factor, and obviously the what factor of my relationship with photography, but where is that why factor?

Why bopphoto and why photography?

Great question! All this diving headfirst into photography stuff and learning all the things I can whatnot got me to thinkin’…why don’t I teach what I learn!? But also for somewhat selfish reasons, it seemed like a neat idea to be able to create this beautiful history for my own photography, and I guess writing, so that one day I can look back and (hopefully) see how far I’ve come.

Now, I’m not comparing myself to the greats here but bear with me. Think about your favorite photographer/artist and all the wealth of knowledge they must have, or have had, in those creative minds of theirs. How incredible would it be if there was a log of information from iconic photographers like Ansel Adams. That would be bleeping sweet! Unfortunately, I can’t get that information for you and share it on this here blog. Nor can I EVER compare myself to those amazing photographers. But what I can do is ensure that whatever skills and knowledge I do gather over my time practicing gets shared with all of you reader folks (mom) and remembered for years to come.

Thanks for reading, catch ya next time!

Hey there! It’s bopphoto, aka Sarah Bopp, your internet pal and photographer. Lover of coffee, plants, nature, and old cameras.

Here you will find everything from my photoshoots, posts on tips & tricks, things that inspire me, and some behind the scenes content.

Peace & love,
Sarah