In The Beginning.


I felt it will be nice to share with you one of my stories.....


Way back when I was living in my home country town of Castlemaine 16 years ago, I was really enjoying, at that stage, my love of being a hobbyist photographer. I was snapping away within a community camera group, helping building a caravan darkroom, setting up my own little fashion shoots with friends or just loving taking portraits of friends, acquaintances and strangers.


For years, I had previously sold, broken or lost many manual film camera's and was in a quick hunt for a new one. Our local camera store had very limited secondhand camera's for sale....& one-day I saw this little OM10 film camera in the glass cabinet. I snatched it up quickly....most likely because it was payday....no questions asked.


I got my film roll inside- it as soon as I got home and, then occurred to me that the camera was in-fact auto-only....and the manual settings only worked with an adapter....What!?..this was an old camera....i would never find one!


The next day during my lunch break from work, I grabbed the camera from my bag and headed to the camera shop in hope to return it. I stood in the tiny shop one customer deep in line-thinking hard about how I was going to word my return pitch, without looking foolish....


"Um, I didn't realise this is an auto only camera without an manual adapter".....


......"Argh....YES" Said Ken (I'm sure his name was Ken....or do I just assume every male camera salesman is named Ken)?


Anyway, he starts telling me all the information I should've asked him the day before and, how he doesn't have the adapter.....NOOOOOO.


At this stage, I was about to do a sad walk out of the shop with my new auto camera, when a young woman behind me jumps in....


"I had one of those cameras years ago....and I actually think I have that adapter at home....I can go home now and get it for you if you like"?


Well you can imagine my appreciation...I was so happy and amazed at the small gifts that this world can give you. The shear luck of this wonderfully kind woman directly behind me in this tiny town camera shop offering to go home immediately and bring it back to the cafe that I worked at.


Cake and Coffee and $20 bucks was on me!