I love photography. My interest in photography has transferred from my father. He had this wonderful camera he received as his wedding gift.
It was a Nikon Nikkormat FT series which he received in the early 1980s.
The Nikkormat FT has a full metal body which feels great in your hands. As a young kid, I relished each time my father would allow me to take some photographs with that camera. I was too young and naïve then, to understand the nuances of photography but that camera had left its mark. I was going to return to it later in life.
I rediscovered the photography bug in me in my early 20s with the help and guidance of a very close friend of mine. The Nikkormat which was not in much use then was still as sturdy and still worked like a charm. It had been over 2 decades since that camera was built. The light meter had stopped working but you could not fault it for anything else.
I used it in quite regularly in the early 2000s. I was trying to learn how to take good portraits. I must admit I am what you would call an amateur, I still am and would be a proud amateur forever. I would have loved to take photographs in B&W but did not have the resources to do so and had to be happy with colour films. But it was a good learning experience.
Then I moved to Australia got busy in other things and had to leave the Nikkormat back home. Fast forward to 2014; Finally, the Nikkormat has found its way back to my hands. The camera is over 30 years old now. It shows some ageing but it still works. I marvel at the excellence in the manufacturing process of the 70s and 80s. I believe they do not make cameras these days that last a lifetime.
In the last few years, I have started making pictures more regularly with a newer digital version of the Nikon SLR camera. But having the old camera back in my hands is like going around a full circle.
I would someday like to take some photographs with the Nikkormat but having it with me is a constant encouragement to make more pictures.
You can check out more of my photographs here.