Let’s see some of the earliest photos you’ve made —

[x-ray]

I’ll kick it off with some imagages I shot with my first camera, a Brownie Star Flash I received as a birthday gift in 1955. This camera started my love of documentary photography and often carried it to school to photographed my friends and teachers.

 

[Pál_K]

Great topic! You’ve made some nice photos back then!

When I go home today I will have to go into the shoebox to find some of my earliest.

 

[x-ray]

Great topic! You’ve made some nice photos back then!

When I go home today I will have to go into the shoebox to find some of my earliest.

Thanks! At 7 years old it’s just luck. It’s kinda like what Imogen Cunningham said, “ I didn’t know I didn’t know enough”. But how much do you need to know with a Brownie.

I had a great mentor, my dad was a very good photographer and I just watched him and tried to copy what he did.

It’s hard to look at ones own work but I think I still see and compose like I did back then. The way I shot then is pretty much how I see now.

 

[Erik van Straten]

At the age of 5 I had a box camera too, but no pictures taken with that camera did survive. My oldest picture that I still like is the one made on New Years Eve in 1971 in Utrecht.

gelatin silver print (nikkor h auto 50mm f2) nikkormat ftn

Utrecht, New Years Eve, 1971

Erik.

 

[neal3k]

These two are from 1961 when I bought my first 35mm camera, a Tower 57A.

Still life of a quarry in Crisp County, Georgia

My first "Artistic" photo 1962 by Neal Wellons, on Flickr

My first long exposure night exposure, Lake Blackshear, Georgia

First Night Exposure 1961 by Neal Wellons, on Flickr

 

[Glenn2]

A couple years ago I found a packet of my late fathers papers. Inside was an envelope of negatives, what a surprise when they were scanned. It was the first roll from my fathers new Rolleiflex 2.8 C. We were living in Calgary Alberta and had gone for a walk beside the Bow river. This would be early fifties perhaps 1953.

The first is me at around 9 years. My father was still figuring out all the knobs as focus appears off. He probably said " Oh yea, you've got to turn the knob on the left side until things are sharp". I must have been a real Denis the Menace type, check out the slingshot in the back pocket. ;-)

The second photo is the one I took of my father with the focus corrected.
In a few years I'd borrow the camera for school photos and soup negatives in the school darkroom. Father ended up giving me the camera as I was the one using it the most. At basketball games I seemed to get more photos of the cute cheerleaders than the players.

I foolishly much later traded it for more Leica gear but finally fixed that with another Rollei a 2.8E with the 80mm Planar. Unfortunately it doesn't get enough use these days.

 

[Mackinaw]

My dad bought me a 126 Kodak Instamatic probably back in 1966. I took this on Isle Royale National Park (an island in Lake Superior) in 1968. I was still in high school.




Jim B.

 

[x-ray]

A couple years ago I found a packet of my late fathers papers. Inside was an envelope of negatives, what a surprise when they were scanned. It was the first roll from my fathers new Rolleiflex 2.8 C. We were living in Calgary Alberta and had gone for a walk beside the Bow river. This would be early fifties perhaps 1953.

The first is me at around 9 years. My father was still figuring out all the knobs as focus appears off. He probably said " Oh yea, you've got to turn the knob on the left side until things are sharp". I must have been a real Denis the Menace type, check out the slingshot in the back pocket. ;-)

The second photo is the one I took of my father with the focus corrected.
In a few years I'd borrow the camera for school photos and soup negatives in the school darkroom. Father ended up giving me the camera as I was the one using it the most. At basketball games I seemed to get more photos of the cute cheerleaders than the players.

I foolishly much later traded it for more Leica gear but finally fixed that with another Rollei a 2.8E with the 80mm Planar. Unfortunately it doesn't get enough use these days.

View attachment 4820599

View attachment 4820600

Excellent photos.

I was 5 in 1953 and was more into rubber band guns. A piece of L shaped wood, spring clothes pin and a rubber band was all you needed.

Great shots.

 

[Keith]

This black and white portrait was taken with my first rangefinder, a Fed 2, of my neighbour Helen at about the time I joined here ... around 2006.

 

[Keith]

This was one of my early attempts at developing C41 colour film that I under cooked severely ... the film scanned strangely and post processing bought out this interesting result. The subject was a friend I was very close to who subsequenly left Australia to live in England .. leaving me wondering what could/might have been.

Taken in about 2009 with the first OM SLR I bought off eBay on a whim one night having read all the posts about them here.

 

[x-ray]

I’ll go back in my drives tomorrow and pull a few of my first images from 1953. I got ahold of my mothers Ansco 620 box camera and made my first images. Actually they weren’t all that bad.

Like Erik my moms camera eventually wound up in pieces. I was just too curious about what made things work but not so good at putting them back together again.

For those interested, verichrome film in those days was orthochromatic not panchromatic and could be processed under a red safelight. In the late 50’s I didn’t realize it had changes and ruined a roll of prized images by trying to tray process my 127 film under a red safelight.

I learned early on that I could make money by selling my photography. My 6th grade English teacher paid my $5 to photograph her son with his accordion. They came out great and I still have the negs.

In high school I photographed rock bands and sold photos to them. I had a new Pacemaker Crown Graphic by then and used that plus borrowing my dads Rollei.

A group called The Soul Survivors hired me to photograph them at the train station. I wasn’t old enough to drive and had to get my dad to drive me to the job. I took my dads Rollei and 1 roll of film and got 12 out of 12 keepers. I truly didn’t know I didn’t know enough and they came out.

Here are 6 of the shots from around 1963.

 

[x-ray]

This was one of my early attempts at developing C41 colour film that I under cooked severely ... the film scanned strangely and post processing bought out this interesting result. The subject was a friend I was very close to who subsequenly left Australia to live in England .. leaving me wondering what could/might have been.

Taken in about 2009 with the first OM SLR I bought off eBay on a whim one night having read all the posts about them here.

View attachment 4820614

That’s a gorgeous shot! Both are very nice.

When I got into photography for fun color film was processed in C-22 chemistry. It was a good process but film wasn’t very stable then and faded. Slides were E-3 process then and had been E-2 just shortly before.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

No words, they are at the link.

Empty bottle, full live by Kostya Fedot, on Flickr

 

[raydm6]

These are some of my earliest. My Dad bought me a Polaroid Model 420 Packfilm Land Camera which I still have. I shot this image array recently. The photographs have been stored in the dark and have withstood the test of time so far. These are from early/mid-70's.

1970’s Polaroids by rdc154, on Flickr

 

[lynnb]

One of the first pictures I ever took with artistic intent, aged around 8, with a Kodak Brownie C 620 box camera on Kodak Verichrome Pan film.

BrownieC_VP620_1963_841-800-RFF by lynnb's snaps, on Flickr

Around the same time, my dad took this photo of me using the Brownie in our local area with his Yashica Electro 35 on Panatomic X

Dee Why c.1963 #056 by lynnb's snaps, on Flickr

 

[Dogman]

My first camera was a Kodak Brownie Hawkeye but I have no photos from that. Eventually I bought a Nikon F...and then a second one. Photography had then become a passion for me. I have very few scans from those negatives but this one I call "The Rat Patrol" because we were a ratty looking group back in 1974 when it was taken. That's me on the far left with a Gossen Super Pilot hanging around my neck. One of the Nikons on a tripod with Tri-X film and I probably used Rodinal developer. Pretty awful scan of a pretty poorly exposed negative but it's dear to me.

 

[p.giannakis]

Greece - August 1994
Praktica BMS - Prakticar 28-70
Kodachrome Elite 100

 

[p.giannakis]

Greece - August 1994
Praktica BMS - Prakticar 28-70
Kodachrome Elite 100

 

[x-ray]

My first camera was a Kodak Brownie Hawkeye but I have no photos from that. Eventually I bought a Nikon F...and then a second one. Photography had then become a passion for me. I have very few scans from those negatives but this one I call "The Rat Patrol" because we were a ratty looking group back in 1974 when it was taken. That's me on the far left with a Gossen Super Pilot hanging around my neck. One of the Nikons on a tripod with Tri-X film and I probably used Rodinal developer. Pretty awful scan of a pretty poorly exposed negative but it's dear to me.View attachment 4820625

I especially love this one. It’s so 70’s.

Since you showed this image I have to show one from the same period. This was a group we formed called Tangent Photographers. We got together over a beer several times a month and put together shows that we actually got into a few galleries and museums. We later had a gallery of our own in downtown Knoxville and sponsored lectures and shows by a couple of well known photographers. Earnest Hass was one of the lecturers.

Not an early photo but a group selfie. I was 25 at the time (1973) and I setup the shot in the studio of the ad agency I worked for at the time. It was shot on 5x7.

I’m the tall guy on the left back row second from the left with the Luna Pro and around the neck.

 

[raydm6]

My first camera was a Kodak Brownie Hawkeye but I have no photos from that. Eventually I bought a Nikon F...and then a second one. Photography had then become a passion for me. I have very few scans from those negatives but this one I call "The Rat Patrol" because we were a ratty looking group back in 1974 when it was taken. That's me on the far left with a Gossen Super Pilot hanging around my neck. One of the Nikons on a tripod with Tri-X film and I probably used Rodinal developer. Pretty awful scan of a pretty poorly exposed negative but it's dear to me.View attachment 4820625

Man, this shot is classic! I was from the same era. This could be an album cover!

First thing I thought was you guys might be in a band. I was, playing rock covers and originals around that time. Always going into Boston to see rock concerts and bands at the clubs. Brings back many memories. I would love to go back to that time. Nice capture @Dogman!

Did you have the camera on a tripod and use the self-timer?