Return to 35mm Photography

I studied black and white 35mm photography as graduate student at Pratt Institute in 1981. However, my love for photography began when I was three years old. One day my Dad showed me how to use his Kodak Brownie camera, and I attempted to photograph cows in a pasture. I was hooked. I loved taking pictures on family trips. Later I received a Nikon 35mm camera as a gift and used it for my photography class.

I learned how to both operate the camera and film development. Wow, this sounds exciting. So I started photographing in my neighborhood. I searched for interesting patterns and textures to photograph. Now it’s time to develop the film. I didn’t have a film changing bag, so I used a “light tight” closet instead. The first roll was a disaster. I wrapped the film around the development reel too tightly. Okay now I learned what not to do. My next roll was a success. Next, I made a trip to the darkroom on campus with my developed negatives. I exposed them onto my photo paper. Then I placed my paper into the development tray, followed by the stop bath and fixed bath.

Years later, I was a Civilian Employee for the US Army in Fulda, Germany and I took many color photos. Sadly, I never learned how to develop color film. But that didn’t deter me from taking photos.

In 2007, I studied digital photography at CDIA at Boston University. It was great. Instead of film, the pictures were recorded onto a card. I took photos of the Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad in Portland, the Green Mountain National Forest in Vermont and Lowell, Massachusetts.

But I missed my “old school” camera and its fond memories. So, I received a used Nikon 35mm camera as a gift and started shooting.