May 30, 2016

I really should dig out my camera.

One of the things that I am trying to do is reconnect with past interests, and one of my earliest interests was black and white film photography.

As it turns out, my dad was interested in photography as a young man. He even had his own set up for developing and printing his own film.  I suspect that is a part of what motivated my brother to have an interest in photography. And, because I wanted to be like big brother, I gained an interest too.

Some of my earliest memories involving pictures include standing outside with my brother while our grandmother took our picture. I still have some of those pictures, on our trikes, standing side by side in the yard, and first day of school pictures.

My other early photographic memories involved looking at pictures stored in a box. Pictures of family members when they were younger, some pictures of me as a baby, and pictures of my brother.

So, when my brother joined the high school photo club, that was something I wanted to do too.  In time, we both had cameras and took many pictures with them.  My brother was more interested in photographing nature, I was more interested in people. Our dad helped us by building a small darkroom in the house - a place where we could develop film, and make our own black and white prints.  When I finally got to join the high school photo club, I was already able to do the basics.

I never did get into doing my own colour work, although my brother did some of his own. I shot and printed a lot in high school, cut back a lot in university, and since then, have been sporadic in how much work I did with a camera.

My dad and brother are both gone now, but I still have their cameras - as well as a lot of equipment that we gathered over the years. Cameras range from half frame to four by five sheet film, as well as an enlarger that will handle those formats.

In addition to the equipment, I have what is most valuable to me; memories, and many pictures of my dad and brother. And the skills they taught me.

I think it's time to bond again with photography and, in do that, bond again with my dad and brother.

Now, where's the camera... and do they still make film?