Photographic Memory

Claire was up sick several times last night. Which meant I was up most of the night. Every time I would clean her up, and then I'd have to wait out the adrenaline rush that hits whenever one of your children wakes you at night.

Thankfully, Tracey posted this question today over at Picture This:

How is it that YOU came across your first camera and when did you discover that photography was something you loved??

Ahh, that makes today's post easy to write.

I remember a Christmas when I was young - my guess would be fourth grade or so - when my older sister and I each received a 110mm camera. You know - they were just black rectangles, and you stuck a flash thing in the top, and every time it flashed a lightbulb in it would pop, and after you used four you had to take it out and turn it over to use the other four? Yeah, one of those. In boxes and albums downstairs I have some very old and fuzzy pictures taken with this camera. I remember specifically that we got the cameras from Santa and then film from my Uncle Barry, or vice versa. At any rate, it made me curious as to how Santa and the family each knew what the other was giving us for Christmas. Suspicious to say the least. This was one of the few (only?) Christmases that all three of my grandparents were with us for Christmas. It is the only Christmas that I can remember spending with my Nonna from California.

From there I remember trying to take as many photography options as I could in school or in camps. I attended a Saturday school where I took a class where we made our own pinhole cameras. I am also nearly certain that I took at least one photography class at either College Gate or College Academy (summer camps that we used to attend). In high school I fit in as many photography classes with Mr. Berube as possible given the rest of my schedule.

I can remember using my dad's old 35mm. Then at one point there were at least three members of my family who owned (still own probably) a Canon Rebel. I used my Rebel a lot, even after we had a digital camera because I preferred the quality of the prints over those initially available from digital cameras. Then when Claire was born we purchased an Olympus Camedia digital, and moved almost exclusively to digital photos. Now that I have the Digital Rebel I can't imagine why or when I would go back to using my film camera.

Claire already pretends that her viewmaster is a camera, and will point it at you and tell you to say cheese. Then she will offer to show you your picture on the back of it. I imagine that before long she will have her own digital camera to mess about with.

And that's my photographic memory. What's yours?