Published Thursday, January 24, 2008 2:38 PM
Updated Thursday, January 24, 2008 2:43 PM

 

Frankly Speaking

A hobby, and a passion


Ron Faretra, the City of Goose Creek's Finance Director since 1998, has always enjoyed taking pictures. Eight years ago, his hobby became a passion.

"Pictures are my thing," he said recently from behind his desk at the municipal center. "It's a fun hobby, it really is. It's a good stress relief."

Faretra was casually taking pictures along the coast nearly a decade ago when something clicked - on the camera and in his mind. "I guess it was when I was down there," he said. "I took this one picture, and it really came out great.

"I thought, 'Wow, this is pretty cool.'"

The New Hampshire native and former United States Air Force member has been taking pictures ever since.

"It kind of went from there," he said. "I upgraded my camera, and moved forward."

He estimates that he's taken over 12,000 shots with his latest Nikon digital camera.

"I just enjoy taking pictures," he said. "I enjoy going out there and relaxing ... and trying to see things in a different light."

As the framed images on his office wall demonstrate, Faretra enjoys photographing a wide range of subjects, from tranquil nature scenes to Braves' baseball games.

One of his goals is to return to many of the far-away lands he visited while in the Air Force, including Zaire, Mali, Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam. "The list is kind of long," he said with a laugh.

"I'd like to go out and shoot some of the more underdeveloped areas of the world. I don't think we have a good understanding of how well we have it (in the United States)."

His 21 years in the Air Force may also play a role in what Faretra would consider a dream opportunity.

"As strange as it sounds, my dream job would be a combat photographer," he said. "Because I really don't think the American public realizes what it is like to be in the military.

"They only focus on what some people feel is the bad that the military does, instead of the good. You don't see a lot of the positive results that are done."

A recent trip to the nation's capital was a memorable one for the city administrator.

Faretra and several members of his family traveled to Washington, D.C. to take part in a name-reading ceremony at the Vietnam Memorial. Not only was the event dramatic and meaningful, it also provided a wonderful opportunity for photographs.

"It was Veteran's Day weekend, and the 25th anniversary of the Wall, and it was only the third time that they've read all of the names (of fallen soldiers)," he said. "They read all 57,000."

Faretra does not have a set schedule for when he's ready to shoot - but his camera is always at the ready.

"One wonderful thing about Charleston, is that there are a thousand places to go," he said. "Sometimes I'll go down to Shem Creek at sunrise, and just take pictures."