No.200: My first ever photograph

I got my first camera for my 10th birthday; it was a Halina 110. That was a distant 33 years ago when films went into an envelope and in the post to be processed. Then, as a teenager, and with the same little camera, my interest in photography was encouraged by my art teacher (Mr Foster), and I remember winning the runners up prize in a school competition for a very dodgy photograph of the local rose gardens.

My camera has always been by my side, and a big trunk stuffed full of photographs is testament to this. I never followed a career in photography, but found myself working closely with photographers on many projects over the years.

Last November, my photography took a new turn. A friend of ours Chris introduced myself and Mr A to Blip. Little did he know what he was about to unleash as my trusty Minolta Dimage Z1 came back out of the cupboard on a daily basis. I stopped borrowing Mr A's Lumix and decided to get to grips with what was already an outdated DSLR. It takes a lovely picture, despite being a meagre 3.2 mega-pixel camera, and I'm reluctant to move on, but now feel it's time to 'up the ante' a little bit and upgrade. I'll wait a little longer...but I don't think it will be long before I get my new toy.

So for blip 200, I thought I would share this little insight into my passion for photography, along with the first ever photograph I took with my Halina 110 on July 2nd 1978. Thank you to everyone at Blip Central...you all do such a fabulous job. Thanks to Mr A for putting up with my 'blip moments' every day; to the kids and the dog who are often dragged into my images, and to all of you who stop by to comment. Your words are kind, your talents are huge and varied, and I feel like I have known some of you for a very long time.