I traded cigarettes and coffee for a Zeiss role film camera just over sixty years ago and, as they say, never looked back.  It was very basic - fixed lens, 150th top speed and a miserable view finder, but I used it until the seventies.  In 1948 my brother bought a Gnome enlarger and I became hooked, and still like seeing prints come up in the tray.  Mostly it was family and friends, but I also made portraits using photofloods, and people photography remains an interest.  I still have some prints of church interiors and other subject matter from that time, all on 120 roll film or glass plates.  The opportunity for a retrospective at the Newcastle Arts Centre gallery earlier this year renewed interest in what has survived.

      Throughout the 1960's I lived without piped water or electricity so it was D & P, although I still did black & white alongside colour slides exposed in a Kodak Retinette.  In the early 1970's I moved to Newcastle, revived the darkroom (the bathroom) and joined Tynemouth Photographic Society.  A whole new beginning and the need for more flexible gear led to a Pentax Spotmatic.  Later I bought a Pentax MX, perhaps my favourite camera, although the Mamiya RB that I now use alongside 35mm takes a lot of beating.  I have also used a Bronica ETRS for some years, but have long believed that photography was in the head not the camera.  A recent 'Bert Hardy type' project I undertook using an old Box Brownie has resulted in one of the images being accepted in a couple of international salons!

      At one time I did slides and Ciba printing, but monochrome has always come first.  Among other things, I value the degree of abstraction, the wonderful tonal range and the control over the final image.  Although eclectic in choice of subject matter, increasingly I like working around themes.  As a by-product, this makes it easier because it takes the pressure off each image to deliver the full package, each being valued for its contribution.  Moving water, Appleby Horse Fair, Dancers and Nudes have been major themes in the last decade or more, but increasingly the nudes have dominated.  My work in this field meets three enduring loves, monochrome, natural light and human form.

      Moving south of the river in the early eighties I joined Whickham Photographic Club but for some years remained active in Tynemouth.  I have been President of both and have really benefited from membership, particularly friendship as part of a photographic community.  However, although I enjoy showing my work and have toured in Scotland and Ireland as well as visiting many parts of this country, I have steered clear of the 'judges list'.  I came to see club competitions as bad for my photographic health, and sometime feel they should carry a health warning.  This apart, personally I am more comfortable in a sharing, supportive environment without the intrusion of in-house competition.

      Joining the Royal Photographic Society helped widen my horizons and opportunities.  My Fellowship in 1994 brought particular satisfaction and the telephone call put a grin on my face that was certainly there for an hour or more!  Preparing the submission was a challenging experience that moved my photography forward.  From the start I saw the panel as a vehicle to present myself as a photographer, rather than an end in itself.  I put my heart into the enterprise and still love the panel.  This also proved my best single year with highlights including work in Photography Year Book and the first Best of Friends Annual, my first awards in international salons, a solo exhibition (at the Brewery, Kendal) and the first of many shared exhibitions with the newly formed Imprint Group that came to offer such a valued experience.

      Entering international salons I find rewarding and has become addictive, even though I am no longer collecting 'Brownie' points.  Perhaps it is the thought of one's work being shown around the world, and certainly receiving foreign catalogues.  Just sending four mono's at a time, it would take a lifetime to acquire the impressive statistics enjoyed by some, but I have over fifty awards including a London Salon Medal that, like my first 'gold', gave particular pleasure.  However, just an acceptance keeps me happy, especially if reproduced in the catalogue.  I collect countries and have acceptances in over forty - as many as I have found with salons taking mono.  For over three years I enjoyed writing 'The Making of............' column for Mono Magazine, and people still refer to it when I visit clubs out of the area.

      As for the future, I recognise and have personally enjoyed some of the benefits of the computer.  I would certainly not print colour again in the darkroom and at its best, the quality of output from inkjet printers has reached a good standard for both colour and monochrome. However, I have no plans to give up film.  Apart from the considerable expense of switching, I enjoy the whole process of monochrome photography including the traditional craft base.  That master of photography John Blackmore, referring to his love of the darkroom observed that, 'To make a print is basically a simple process.  One can teach its method in an afternoon, although its refinements can occupy a whole lifetime.'  Over the years I have travelled some way along that road, but am still learning. I hope to continue.

Roy Elwood