Dubai Diaries: What was your first camera?

As I was scrolling through Instagram the other night, I came across a handle that posts vintage photographs, which got me thinking about how the art of photography has evolved over the last few decades. The first camera I ever owned was a parting gift from my mother when I left home for college in the early ‘90s. A Minolta Riva AF35, it went on to become one of my most treasured possessions. I began taking pictures of college events, hostel life with roommates, and some family occasions as well. At times I even fancied myself a ‘nature’ photographer.

Working a vintage camera required skills — like how to load the film correctly. Many a roll has been ruined by clumsy fingers. It also required a certain aesthetic sense. Unlike today, when one can take countless shots by just clicking on their phones before narrowing down on the most flattering, back then a considerable amount of thought went into each photo, as with a film camera one couldn’t click indiscriminately. It would be a waste of film roll that cost money to buy, as well as develop in a photo studio.

Also, unlike today when you can delete pictures of yourself that you don’t like, back then you would tear them up quietly (a wise choice, in retrospect) or relegate them to a box of unwanted stuff that unfortunately rears its head when you least expect it to — like when a visitor to the house years later is treated, over tea, to a host of hilarious teenage pictures of you and your friends.