Steve Huff
My name is Steve Huff and I run and own SteveHuffPhoto, a camera and lens review site that I started 5 years ago as a way to provide real world use results of cameras and lenses. Today it has spawned to so much more than that and has become my passion, my baby and part of my life. Before I started the website though I was heavily into Photography. I always had a camera with me, even as a teenager when I was shooting Polaroids of my family and friends. For me, there is something very special about capturing that one fraction of a second of time, forever.
A smile, a laugh, a tear or even your child as they grow from baby to teen to adult, it is all special to me and well worth the snap because it is more than that, it is a memory you can cherish forever. Many people shoot today but some forget the importance of why we are taking photos. I like to walk with my camera and selectively shoot scenes or faces or situations that I want to remember 10-15 years down the road.
I shoot mainly with a Leica M and Leica 50mm Summicron. For me, there is nothing quite like using a rangefinder and one prime lens as I feel it allows you to concentrate more on what you are doing rather than stressing about what lens to use or what camera to take with. One camera, one lens. That is my motto for personal use these days.
I am lucky because I get to try and test just about every camera ever made and I enjoy many of them but I always come back to my Leica for the simplicity, the beauty and the history of what the brand stands for. Sure, they are insanely and outrageously expensive, but for me it what I enjoy to use most of all. We only live once, so I intend to live life to the fullest and partake in the things that make me happy.
A few years ago I was lucky enough to fulfill a photographic dream of mine and that was to go on tour with a musician and shoot the shows and even an album cover. I remember saying when I was in my 20’s that one day I would shoot an album cover, and by some odd twist of fate, I did. I shot that album cover for Seal with a Leica M9 and Leica 50mm Noctilux f/0.95.
In fact, I shot the whole tour with that setup, all manual focus. Was a challenging but rewarding experience which is another thing a Leica M will give you. Imagine shooting a constantly moving performer at f/0.95 using manual focus? The great thing is that when I nailed the shot, I nailed it.
I also enjoy shooting abandoned houses and taking day treks to find them and most of my work on these old houses and buildings were done with a Leica M8, Leica M9 or Leica M240. When I am out and about, sometimes walking on a trail or street I come across people. I normally will stop and talk if they look like they need a friend and I will also ask to take their photo.
I love shooting portraits of people on the street instead of just blindly snapping away or shooting from behind them. I feel we should take the time to interact with our subjects as they really do appreciate that much more than stealing a quick pic of them when they least expect it. For me, shooting a photo of a person should try to tell a story. Even though I fail many times to accomplish that, I try to make it a goal and it is always a challenge, but I love it.
I will keep on living life to live my dreams, as I feel that is the only way to be. Other cameras may come in, and other cameras may go, but there will always be a Leica in my heart.
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