My first camera was given to me when I was around 8 years of age. It wasn t flash and it certainly wasn t of digital camera quality but those shots taken all that long ago are still among my favorites. They were taken on a little Kodak brownie and the prints were no bigger than around 2 inches by 3 inches in size. But the story they tell is fantastic.
As a child I tended to photograph anything and everything and there is a lot of history caught in the frames of some of them. Special sporting events, the Queens tour of our suburb, Bondi, and even neighbors mowing the lawn with the old fashioned push mowers were items of interest.
Aside from that there are shots of family members who are no longer with us. Holidays and the big fish my mother caught from the pier, the outside dunny and the cottage where we stayed on holidays that has been replaced by a multi million dollar dwelling. That is because it is almost a water front property in one of the most sought after areas. But at the time it was a long way from Sydney, had few facilities and was a little fibro house with practically nothing out of the ordinary.
Those photos were stored in a bundle with a rubber band holding them together. There was no other way to save them. One day I found many of them in the incinerator where my father threw the bundle to burn. The ones rescued are precious and some have scorch marks on the edges. It was beyond me to know why he did that but obviously because having been taken by a child they were not considered that important.
Children should be given the opportunity to take photos and to preserve them in a proper manner. With the wonderful technology available today there are so many ways to set up albums, journals, and diaries that it is almost a no brainer to preserve the precious memories of childhood.
Children of any age can gain enormously by the things they are encouraged to do. Taking an interest in the things around them and in nature will develop their brain, build their self esteem, increase their popularity among their peers, and fill their lives with the dreams and expectations for the future.
Many professional photographers start young and establish a portfolio of pictures to take into their future careers. You never know when that amateur shot will be the one to earn its owner a million dollars.
Instead of plastic toys or something that may delight for a few weeks, even months, why not give a present that will last a lifetime. The memories of a child are precious enough but the way they look at the world is a joy for all of us. Digital cameras make photography an easy hobby and inexpensive as well. There really is no excuse not to go down this path. Make every day great and important enough to remember for children.
Author Resource:
My recent report on photography and how to store photos http://www.squidoo.com/photography4U is well worth a read, especially if you rare looking for an unusual Christmas gift
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