Whilst I’ve been making photographs with intention for perhaps 12 years now, it took me a while to get to a place where I was proud of a photograph I’d made.
This image from 2009 stands out in my memory as one that took my approach to a different level.
Rather than just taking snaps of pretty flowers, dew dropped spider webs and sunsets, this was one that had more thought and, for me, more emotion behind it. I even titled it, something I rarely do now.
There’s not a great deal I remember, other than I was travelling on a train away from someone I’d previously had an intense relationship with, and which was now falling apart.
Focusing on the dirty window and forcing everything in the background to blur mirrored my state of mind (this was before I had any idea about aperture and depth of field – I just experimented with locking the camera(phone)’s focus until it looked how I wanted it to).
Though my image of this person and our relationship had become tainted (like the dirty window), the feelings were still vivid enough for them to be at the forefront of my mind, and force all other thoughts into the background.
It’s also a reminder to me now that once again you don’t need sophisticated and fancy kit to make photographs you like. This was taken with 5MP Sony Ericsson camera phone (the predecessor even to this one), years before I even bought a “proper” camera.
What was the first photograph you were proud of?
Please let us know – and share a link to the image – in the comments below.
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35hunter 
Dan, the first and last photos I was ever proud of was a series of photos I took of my eldest nephew when he was about 18 months. They were just such beautiful photos of a child at play and the main colors were turquoise which is a color I love and of course I love my nephew. I have always enjoyed candid shots of people rather than staged xoxo susanJOY
They sound like lovely photos Susan. Have you taken any more of your nephew (or his siblings?) since?
Dan, I took photos of the family, of my nephews etc in the early years but don’t do it anymore. I realised I wasn’t looking back on the photos in any way so stopped. I now prefer still life xoxo susanJOY
Hi Dan, for me it was a portrait of a classmate in high school. I was impressed that I could actually take a photo like that. This was back in the day when I had to process the film, make the print, etc. It took a lot of films to get to that point.
Did you make further portraits after that Jon?
Not any posed portraits like that, more like snapshots.
The first image I was proud of? Probably this one (if the link works):
Not necessarily the best picture ever but the first that came out looking how I wanted it to. Taken with a Lomo LC-A I’ve long since sold and moved on from, I took three pictures of the same subject and this is the one that worked.
The link works!
So what was it about this image that worked where the other two didn’t? Or put another way, what did you learn?
The exposure was off on one, because of the composition the LCA metered on the sky – giving a much darker tree and paler coloured sky. The other ad too much in the image, it felt too busy to me.
I guess what I learned was to work with the camera I am using, accepting that they all work differently and not necessarily how you think they should. It also helped me learn more about the compositions I like, a long and ongoing process!
Is this a photo of bird boxes? What birds would roost in them? I am from Australia but still curious as I love bird life regards from susanJOY
Yes, they’re bird boxes. They’re in a park in Islington in London on several trees. Although a lot of the birds in London are pigeons these boxes are too small for them, I would assume they are for some sort of finches as we have a lot of them in London too.
C. T., thanks so much for taking the time to reply. I have never seen so many bird boxes in one tree. Happy little finches regards from susanJOY
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