This site serves simply as an archive, a place to document and share events, life and the world we live in. In the past, photography was simply a piece of happiness which I indulged in soley because I felt a need, however, very few photos ever saw the inside of an album, and even fewer were enjoyed by others. In comes Ireland, life changes and a large set of other factors, all of which have inspired me to no longer let photographs sit on an old hard drive or a decaying DVD. I've changed, my environment has changed, and therefore, so has my desire to document as I experience.
Photography is a love... what it provides is a joy.
Kimberly Lightholder, an american-born ex-pat, married to a musician, mother to miracle, sometimes musician, occasional designer, constant photographer and now proud to be Irish.
I have been on the net since 1994, becoming one of the first HTML code-rats of the fledgling internet in 1996.Along side this facination with the web, I have been taking photos since childhood, having first picked up a camera when I was very young to take a photo of my dad. I still remember the facination with changing the f-stop to match the light meter, and using the split-screen focus field in the centre of the lens to make the two pieces of his shoulder match.
I hail from San Francisco, California, spending most of my life soaking up the diverse and relaxed culture that can only be found in the central west coast. College years were spent in Monterey, one of the most beautiful places I've ever had the pleasure to call home. Post-college years were seen in Berkeley, no descriptives required. All this time, I had the fortunate opportunity to work for a dot-com in the city where I met the love of my life, who married me, and brought me to Ireland, fulfilling a childhood dream of mine. I now currently live in Athlone, Ireland, soaking up the greatly enjoyed rain... seriously...
I am inspired by many things, a large portion of which aren't even photography related. I've found a huge influence on my photography through music, and a majority of the freelance work I get is from photographing bands and live gigs.
There are a few well-known photographers whose work i continue to study and enjoy, amung them are Gertrude Blom, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Steve McCurry, and Walker Evans,. They do the kind of work I hope to some day be able to emulate.
In addition, I have found limitless inspiration by the influx of photographers or 'photobloggers' now on the internet, and while there are many I visit on a daily basis, there are a few friends who directly influence and continue to amaze me. Houser, Joseph Szymanski, Melissa Squires, and Carrie Musgrave to name a few.
"Sometimes
there's so much beauty in the world I feel like I can't take
it, like my heart's going to cave in."
- Ricky Fitts, American Beauty
I currently shoot with a Nikon D80, a Nikkor 50mm 1.4, a Tamaron 28-70mm f3.5, a Sigma 70-300mm f/4 and occasionally a Sigma 18-50mm kit lens. I also own a Nikkor SB-800 which I'm still leaning to use creatively.
I used to shoot with a Canon EOS Elan II and a 18-50mm kit lens until I retired them when I became flush enough to turn digital. Older photos on this site (pre-2005) were taken with a Sony Cybershot DSC P-series, first a 2mp version, then a 3mp version.
Lightholder.org is maintained and created by myself, Kimberly, commonly referred to as Kimotay.The functionality is powered by ZenPhoto, and the theme was coded my me. Lightholder.org was purchased in 2002, just after I got married and therefore acquired the name. It was orginally a design portfolio, but has now evolved into my photography archive. The partner site, Kimotay.com, was purchased by my husband as a birthday gift to me in 2003, as Kimotay was the nickname he created for me.
My photos have been published in numerous Irish newspapers, a few regional magazine circulations, and multiple music-related webistes. For a list of referrals, please enquire. If you are interested in publishing a photo from this site, please ask. All photos published on lightholder.org are under copyright, and those who publish lightholder.org photos on their sites or in their publications have approval to do so. photos for commercial use requires a usage agreement and payment for publication rights.
Lightholder.org aside, you can also find my presence in a plethora of other ways: kimotay.com (my blog),. lightholders.com (the family site), flickr, garbcloset.com (my growing collective), lightholder.org (my design portfolio), Captures Light (the old photoblog), kerside.ie (our band), or simply Google me: kimotay, lightholder.
Galleries: 8
Photos:
160
Comments:
3
Lightholder is an Irish-American dual-citizen living in the midlands of Ireland
One of the few photobloggers in Ireland, Kim has been online since 1996.
For all those looking for music/band photos, please go to my music photography site »