I've been taking photographs for over 50 years, which at least makes me persistent. Initially attracted by black and white and the magic of a print appearing in the developer tray I now use mainly digital. Photography gives me an artistic outlet (somehow the skills needed to paint and draw passed me by despite being prevalent in other family members), it creates family memories and a record of my exploits in the outdoors.
I was given a Kodak Brownie 127 camera around 1962 - I remember shooting the first roll in an afternoon in my Nan's garden including one of her washing on the line - it didn't get much critical acclaim. When I went to secondary school I joined the school photographic society and acquired my first 35mm camera, a fixed lens Halina Paulette electric. Although a basic camera this produced much better photos and I even managed to use it to shoot some vintage car racing. The school photographic society gave me my first experience of developing and printing made more exciting because we mixed our own chemicals from raw materials and stored them in large glass demijohns.
After school I purchased a Pentax Spotmatic 1000 (the screw thread forerunner of the more famous K1000) when this was stolen in a burglary I replaced it with a second hand Pentax Spotmatic F. Initially these were just used with the 50mm standard lens but later I added a Vivitar 200m lens and then 3 Tamron Adaptall lenses: a 28mm, SP90mm macro and SP35-80 zoom.
Being interested in walking and cycling and, looking for something lighter, I supplemented the Pentax with a Rollei 35TE. This remains my most loved camera and the one with which I shot the most rolls of B&W film easily recognisable because, as the film is loaded upside down, the frame numbers appear on opposite edge. A secondhand Olympus 35RC offered the benefits of rangefinder focusing, and now has something of a cult following, but I have never loved it or the results it gives as much as the Rollei.
Moving to Digital
After experimenting with a Minolta film scanner and battling with the slow speeds and dust I bought a digital camera in 2002. Knowing that I would get more use out of a compact camera, I bought a Canon Powershot S50, described by one contributor on the luminous landscape website as being the digital equivalent of the Rollei 35. This is true from a size perspective but, with a zoom lens, exposure modes and autofocus, it was a much different user experience. For colour I immediately found it gave superior results to 35mm where I'd always found slide film tricky to exposure correctly and prints often disappointing. The S50 succumbed to water damage in the bottom of a leaky dinghy and was replaced with a Canon S80.
As digital interchangeable lens cameras became more affordable I was attracted to the smaller size of the Micro Four Thirds system. I bought the original Olympus E-M5 a small and rugged camera which served me reliably for 9 years. Fitted with the Panasonic 20mm F1.7 it fits in a coat pocket whilst a full kit with 3 or 4 lenses ranging from 8mm to 300mm (35mm equivalent focal lengths: 16-600mm) is still easy to carry over the hills. After damaging the Olympus beyond repair in the bottom of a canoe in 2022 (do you spot a theme here} I moved to a Nikon Z5 but missing the compactness of the Olympus this is now supplemented by an OM-5.
For small part of my photography I have gone back to film mainly using a Pentax MX or a homemade pinhole camera. I am also experiementing creating anthotypes and cyanotypes.