Why photography? What go you hooked?

[Ian]

I suppose ever since I was a young boy - aged around 8 or 9, I was fascinated by my grandfather's folding Kodak roll film camera. Later, I wanted a dark room at home, but I would have to wait until my early teens when I was at senior school and we had a dark room there. The teacher in charge of the Photographic Society lent me a rather worn out Agfa Silette and the adventure began in earnest.

I have always loved the tonalilty of a good black and white print and that was followed by the challenge (and considerable expense) of developing colour slide film and later printing it. Of course the kit had a considerable allure, but I honestly think the images have always been primarily what it's been about. I went back to the old school for a reunion last year and it was great fun seeing some of my old pictures in the school magazines

How about you - what was the catalyst that got you interested in photography?

Ian

[Barr1e]

Re: Why photography? What go you hooked?

Early retirement and choosing a hobby we could both share.

I knew very little about cameras, settings and lenses.

Anne (Ann1e) had a good coach in her father and benefitted much over the years.

I think we learn more from the hobby through magazines and sites like dpnow.

Regards. Barr1e

[devilgas]

Re: Why photography? What go you hooked?

i tried to answer this yesterday, but couldn't really come up with an answer.

i first got interested in cameras when my father used to video weddings, then quietly forgot about it all. when i had my driving licence, i started going to car rallies (forests, not gatherings in car parks!) and started taking photos a bit more seriously then. lost interest in it again, then started back up when i began diving - taking photos mainly to show people what was under the sea.

in a perverse way, i'm enjoying the challenges of astro photography. sure, the images that are captured can't rival what you see in magazines / books etc, but it is nice when friends say "that's YOUR photo?"

i do enjoy the technical side of photography and setting up stuff that is a bit more involved than just pointing the camera & hitting a shutter button.

so, i think my answer is - being able to show people stuff they don't normally get to see.

[Pops]

Re: Why photography? What go you hooked?

It was early retirement for me as well. Around that time I started browsing around the internet and taking an interest in forums. I took the plunge and registered with a couple, started viewing personal galleries and it went from there.

[Ian]

Re: Why photography? What go you hooked?

As Pops and Barr1e have show, it's a perfect hobby for retirement. Julia's mum has become a keen photographer since doing an arts degree as a mature student. Photography is also so accessible these days. The gear can be expensive, but once you have a few memory cards there are no long term costs as there were in the days of film. On the other hand, I do feel that not enough photographers print their images - me included! I do print, but not as much as I should.

Ian

[David M]

Re: Why photography? What go you hooked?

A great aunt giving me a Kodak Instamatic 126 when she got a Polaroid camera some time in the early 70's. After that I saved up for a Zenit E that did me for a couple of years before saving up for an OM1 in '76.

Used to turn my parents bathroom into a darkroom and do my own black and white.

[Ian]

Re: Why photography? What go you hooked?

A great aunt giving me a Kodak Instamatic 126 when she got a Polaroid camera some time in the early 70's. After that I saved up for a Zenit E that did me for a couple of years before saving up for an OM1 in '76.

Used to turn my parents bathroom into a darkroom and do my own black and white.

By the time I was at senior school and had access to a dark room there, we had moved to a bigger house and I was able to convert my bedroom into a temporary dark room as it had a sink - which was very handy! We had a 126 Instamatic, too. A used a steady stream of different borrowed cameras, starting with the Agfa Silette, including an Olympus 35 RC, Zenit E, Praktica LTL, Minolta SRT-101. Eventually, I managed to acquire a Minolta XE-1. Later had a Miranda system with several lenses (genuine Miranda, not the Dixons branded stuff after Miranda itself went bust). Later I used Olympus OMs - mainly OM10s and a trusty Manual Adapter! Working in photo retail between 1980 and 1982 I was able to use a lot varied gear, including Hasselblads, old Pentacon Six roll film cameras, twin lens reflexes by Yashica and Mamiya (never really saw the point of these), etc. Later, when I switched to AF and wanted a camera just for occasional use I bought a Canon EOS 100 and a couple of lenses. I still have the body and standard kit zoom.

Ian