The Making of "Ready for Practice"

How the winning photo of the "My Hobby" contest was made

By Geodude in Photo Contests on Jan 25, 2021

"Ready for Practice" by Geodude

To my Pentaxian friends,

I was simply flabbergasted that my entry in the “My Hobby” contest received enough votes to be the winner. I had really not expected to do anywhere this well, with so many other great photos that had been submitted. There were quite a few that I thought were just outstanding and would have been well-deserved to have won. I’m just astonished!

I built the dulcimer that’s leaning upright in the chair back in 1972 while a student in college. I learned some old Richard Farina songs on it, but later put it away for a long, long time. I rekindled my interest in playing the instrument in the early 90s, and ended up winning the Grand National Mountain Dulcimer Championships in 1996 (the other dulcimer was my first place prize). For about a decade I performed in a Gaelic band at Scottish and Irish festivals and dances. Again, I eased away from that and began pursuing an interest in photography, acquiring my first Pentax in 2011.