Average age of BCG members?

[tomfranic]

As I see here, I am almost newborn 51 years old.

I started shooting in 1986 with a "stolen" film camera from my dad. I was shooting my schoolmates in the local ZOO.

You can only see EXIF info for this image if you are logged in.

 

[Micky]

…. still remember when every image cost real money only to find most were poorly exposed and otherwise not very good. To this day I still feel reluctant to delete any image that is not technically flawed and I’m sure that it’s a hangover from paying for developing them!
…

Haha! I thought that I was the only one that struggles with that.

 

[Box Brownie]

Suffice to say.....

I think I took my first picture using my dad's box camera when I was around 4-6 years old. The B&W pictures always came back from the chemist shop with deckle edges

The next camera I recall (might still have it in a cupboard somewhere?) was a present from my parents. My older brother & I got identical presents around 11-12 years old. It was a Kodak(?) roll film camera with built in flash using the magnesium blue bulbs. Again all developed & printed via the local chemists shop.

My brother was more the photographer than me........and was pivotal in setting up a darkroom in the (unventilated )bathroom.......it was a marvel watching the prints develop in the dish. I learned about dev & print back then but never used it afterwards. NB my brother on the other hand went into a commercial colour printing lab for a few years and then became a professional medical photographer for his whole career/working life.

Oh, my dad also bought cine 8 and later Super 8 cameras plus the projector & screen.....as well as the editing viewer and splicing tools. Looking back I did enjoy the experience of the editing & splicing to join up the ridiculously short running time of the Kodachrome super 8 cassettes. NB also watching the 8mm movies e.g. laurel & Hardy that my dad bought

Cameras wise.....

Exa1a with waist level VF (I could never afford the pentaprism (my bro bought an Exa500 IIRC)
Yashica MG1 range finder
Pentax P30 followed by a P50
Yashica 635 TLR
Canon EOS 650 (this was in 1988-9)
Rollei T TLR
Then came digital....
Kodak DC210
Canon 350D
Canon 40D
Canon 7D
Canon 5D3
..........now, since 2016, Olympus/OM gear.

 

[Patty]

I'm in that 60+ range. So glad to see many others in the same age group or a bit older. My interest in photography started when I was a child and my parents' trusted me with their brownie camera when my class went to the zoo for a field trip. My husband and I really got into it when we discovered the Pentax K1000 and we even set up our own dark room. The local adult education programs at the public school helped us with that. When the kid came along it was point and shoot. I just got serious about digital about seven/eight years ago. I currently have a Nikon D810, Z7II and a Z8. I gave my D5600 to my husband. BTW, I just received a firmware update for that D5600 and have no clue what that's about. I enjoy pet photography but for this year coming up I want to do more wildlife and landscape. I had purchased the Z mount 180-600mm and would love to do more with it even if it's just taking pics of the backyard squirrels. I love this forum. I love Backcountry Gallery. Thank you all for helping me on my photography journey!!!

 

[Rixpx]

I’m 75. I started my photography journey around 1960 as a Cub Scout project. I used my dad’s old twin lens reflex camera and set up a darkroom in the basement. My first SLR was a Pentax ME that I purchased around 1980. I eventually gave that camera to a friend’s granddaughter.

I fiddled with a few digital point and shoot digital cameras. A Nikon 8700 was my first venture into RAW and HD, as well as Photoshop. I worked my way through a D200, D7000, D800 and an assortment of lenses. I currently use a Nikon Z7, and last month traded my last two FX lenses and FTZ converter to on a 180-600Z zoom. That trade confirmed that I’m all in on the Z system.

I’m not entirely surprised that the over 50% of the members are older than 56. Photography can be an expensive hobby. Most of us have worked and saved, and our kids are self sufficient at this time in our lives. I also think that younger generations are more likely to use cellphones for taking and sharing photos.

 

[Rohinton Mehta]

Im Rohinton Mehta from Mumbai, India. I will be 80 years young in six months from now. I started serious photography in 1975 and I have been teaching photography since then.
I started with black & white, developed my own films and also printed the good shots. Have shot lots of slide films and also indulged in processing a few Cibachromes. I made my own 4 x 5 " technical camera (wooden), copying a design of a then well-known make. The lens and film holders were of course from the manufacturers. I do my own digital editing in Photoshop.

 

[Keithmac]

I'm almost 77 and got interested in wildlife photography when I retired from the Fire Department. I was out for a walk with my wife at one of our local wildlife areas and I noticed a guy setting up a camera with a long lens. I got talking to him and after about an hour talking to him I thought it just might be the hobby I was looking for during my retirement years. I went out the next day and bought a camera and lens, nothing exotic, but over the years I have spent considerable amount of money on gear and have not regretted on cent of it. I have gotten so much enjoyment out of wildlife photography and I hope to be able to carry on for many more years. It is also a great way to keep active and stay in reasonably good health. All of my photography friends are all over 65.

 

[DavidT]

This is interesting but not surprising. If you’ve spent enough time around here and read threads you can tell it has an older person bias. Threads often come up around weight of gear which tends to lend itself most important for those who are not in their prime anymore. It’s one thing we all at one point or another will reach.

It’s also telling when you look at switching systems or even moving to the newer tech. If you’ve been around long enough you are likely pretty invested in an echo system as where a younger person may not yet. Also, retired often have possibly a tighter budget so making massive swings in gear cost doesn’t make much sense.

What I’d be worried about if this poll is a trend in the industry is for the non professional market is it sustainable? If the younger generations for whatever reason aren’t getting into photography when does the music stop?

I do get kids and disposable income however most of us started when we were younger and had the same challenges. The numbers might be bigger but so is today’s pay. I wonder if a more connected world and the smart phone have changed the appeal to taking photographs at an artistic level.

If I was in charge of marketing for one of the camera manufactures I’d be digging deep into understanding the generational divide.

 

[Andy A.]

I'll be 66 in a few short weeks, so I've stuck myself in the 66-75 bracket!
I've been making a living from photography since 1979, and can confirm the OPs astute belief that you never get it all figured out - even though Wade is only just out of short trousers...I wish I was 36 again!
I fell into photography by accident, then did 3 years on a City & Guilds 744 General Photography course. I then spent a few years working freelance for a couple of Manchester-based newspapers, then in 1988 I opened my own studio doing the usual portraits, weddings and commercial work. This was not the best idea I've ever had because I despise people who hire me to do a job they can't do themselves; then proceed to tell me how to do it!

My Uncle Jim was a keen hobby photographer, and he bought a Kodak DC120. He brought it to my house one day wanting my thoughts. I remember getting quite excited about it's potential for replacing Polaroid sheets for studio test shots - but I was convinced this digital malarkey WOULD NEVER CATCH ON...........how bloody wrong I turned out to be!

Back in my press days, I was taught how colour scan. Once I'd had enough of weddings and closed my studio, I got into colour repro, just as the DTP revolution began. I got introduced to this thing called BarneyScan - for those that don't know, this is the thing that morphed into Photoshop, well, sort of.

I'd always been into the huntin', shootin' and fishin' scene, and on the side, I was supplying the field sports magazines with 35mm transparencies - weapon of choice, Canon A1.
Then very early in 2000, someone showed me a Nikon D1, and how easy it was to get the images from it to my crappy HP PC - but I still resisted!

But summer 2003 I could resist no more due to the performance of the D2H, and I've shot Nikon in the main ever since.

Shooting birds in flight on film was possible, but it involved a lot of luck and a lot of waste.
The Z9 allows me to do things at 20fps that, less than 30 years ago, I might have managed a single frame of in day - if I was lucky.

Not bad, for something I thought would never catch on!

 

[Oldnintheway]

As my handle implies I'm in the geezer bracket. I'll be 70 in April. My first camera was an Argus hand me down, mid 1970s/late teens. I've always been an outdoorsman and capturing (or at least trying to) the beauty around me is what got me going. I've owned a few cameras along the way. I chose Nikon early and have stuck with them. F90, Fe2, D100, D70s, D90, D7200, D500, and now a Z8. Still have a couple of D500s that are in use. Time spent with cameras has ebbed and flowed through the years. I'm now retired and my most recent interest is chasing Orcas here in the Puget Sound. There is a fair sized group of whale chasers that I frequently run into and except for one other, I'm the old guy. Most are in their 30s. I should say that they are all avid photographers.

 

[HRB]

My dad was a part time photographer. Photographed weddings on weekends. I spent many hours with him in the darkroom running 8x10s thru the developer and fixer and slapping them on the dryer drum. Didn’t get back into photography till the next century! Started with a Canon 80d, moved to Sony and finally settled on Nikon. Now at 76 I plan to just enjoy this hobby!

 

[Larry S.]

63.

Started with an Agfamatic 2000 Pocket 110 cartridge camera for my 13th birthday. Unfortunately, the photos were grainy and it didn't inspire me, but also had little money to devote to it. In the summer of 1980/81 (Australia southern hemisphere) I took the Agfamatic on a driving trip to The Whitsundays in North Queensland (about 2000kms, 1200 miles) with my then girlfriend, now wife, but the photographic results were not great. Purchased a Pentax ME Super when we got back and then got into it a little over the next couple of years, purchased a couple of lenses, shooting slides and reading photography books. However, still didn't have a lot of money as we were then engaged and saving for a house.

Purchased a Pentax Z 50P AF camera in 1994, an upgrade to AF and to photograph our kids growing up using a mixture of slide film and print film.

First digital camera was a Canon S30, I think from memory. It was good for the time but I wasn't impressed with the point and shoot format and I lusted after a DSLR type camera, which were in the making. In 2004, a Pentax APS C *ist D was introduced and a purchased one as I had legacy Pentax lenses. I got right into photography again and purchased many of the top spec Pentax lenses. A progression of Pentax APS C DSLR cameras and lenses followed over the next 6 years, but I wanted a FF DSLR and purchased a Nikon D700 in May 2010 and sold off all my Pentax gear.

A succession of Nikon DSLR's and many top spec Nikon lenses followed. A D7000 for birding as an adjunct to the D700. Then in 2012, the D800 came out making the D7000 superfluous, then the D800E, then D810, then D850 and a D500 adjunct to the D850. In 2018, the Z7, then Z7II, then Z9 added the Z8 and sold off my F mount cameras and lenses as Z lenses became available.

Great journey Lance! Thanks for sharing!

 

[Larry S.]

36, been shooting for a living for 20 of them.

The only three things in life I know how to do is buck hay, shoot photos, and drink.

I’d say you’ve mastered the important things!

 

[FB101]

Based on this data I am looking forward to Steve’s sure to be instant classic videos such as “How I turned my walker into a tripod” quickly followed by “your walker, the blind you didn’t know you had” and “Cataract, Horton effect without a computer”.

Laughing about it sure beats the alternative

 

[Turberticus]

I'm 42. I guess I'm one of the young ones! I was inspired by my Dad who brought his FE2 to the Canadian Grand Prix with us in 1995-1999 and 2002-2003. I wasn't super interested at the time, but I did take a high school photography class circa 2000/2001 where we had to develop our own film, etc. A few years later (2005ish) I got in to photographing motorsports with the same FE2 and 80-200 F/4.5 Ai and 300mm F/4.5, then went on to photograph more motorsports with the same lenses but on a D40 starting in 2006 which continued for the next few years, then he gave me his D300 in ~2017 and I used that for a few years before buying my first camera in 2020 (D7500). Around that time I got in to bird photography, and here I am.

 

[Hooligans Imagery]

I have enjoyed reading all the responses so far! My wife and I have two young children (ages 4 and 1) so I certainly understand the time constraints involved with parenthood that many of you speak about. Realistically, I’m lucky if I get out twice a month to do wildlife photography, so I have to be very intentional when I do. I am envious of the folks that are able to go out several days per week! My oldest seems to be genuinely interested in my photos though, so I’m hoping there are some opportunities to get her involved one day.

You got young kids, get a Plena or save for a Plena, and you will have plentiful pics of the youngsters.

 

[Larry S.]

Thinking @Wade Abadie deserves a round of applause from forum members. .. More important than this survey is the sneak peek into member’s background, if not life, that lead to photography. This has given relevance and identity to who “XYZ” really is and generates familiarity and respect. That‘s a good thing.……..

 

[Jo Wuori]

I am 77 and got my first camera, a beloved Kodak Brownie for my 7th birthday. I still have it! I got into more complex photography when auto focus became available. I have astigmatism and could not ever get those circles to match up in the viewfinder. I now shoot OM system and love it

 

[Hooligans Imagery]

My first camera came when my parents looked at me with that WTF and NO F*ing WAY stare when I asked for motorcycle for my 15th birthday. The PICK something else was Nikkormat FTN. I shot and edited my senior year book. Enjoyed using digital for my kids, with various Nikon's and Olympus Tough cameras. Picked up a Z5 to check out this new mirrorless thing and in 2022 with a trip to Africa got the Z9. Now at 66 immersed in just being creative with the cameras, lens and software too.

So since the poll is leaning the way it is, I will call upon my wonderful mother's saying - "getting old isn't for sissies" so get off your arse and go shoot some images.

 

[Crr008]

I’m 55 and have been a photographer for over 40 years now. My father really liked photography and I wanted to do whatever he was doing. First camera I remember was one of those Kodak flat instamattic cartridge cameras with a flash cube in the late 1970’s. When my parents realized I was serious about photography, I got a used Pentax K1000 for a present in the early 80’s. I still have it. I used this camera on all my trips throughout high school. I had the ugliest brown camera bag that I carried everywhere. My dad’s work had a camera club and we would do workshops together. He had a Nikon that he loved. In college, I used my Pentax when I became the yearbook photographer and photo editor. The following year I was the yearbook editor but continued photographing events. It was during the university years I learned to develop black and white film. Tried a few other cameras after that but always went back to the K1000.

Around the time I got married, digital point and shoot cameras were starting to go mainstream. My husband wanted us to buy one so we could take it on our honeymoon and share pictures of our Jamaican beach vacation with the family back home. It worked well but we had no internet in Jamaica. Had a family and mainly had point and shoot Canon cameras for years. Very easy to pop in purse and take pictures at events to share with relatives. Tried one of the first Nikon digitals and hated it.

Worked for the state government in Texas for nearly 30 years. Continued as hobby photographer but really had no time to shoot. As I neared retirement, I decided I wanted to get a DSLR as a gift to myself. I researched and started saving so I could get exactly what I wanted. After I retired in 2019, I purchased a Nikon D850 and various lenses. Upgraded to a Z8 in 2023. Now I take pictures of wildlife at our ranch and on our coastal vacations. Also, I volunteer my time photographing musicals/shows for my church’s children’s choir and a local high school theater group. The past few years I added family portraits and senior/graduation photos to my skill set. Whatever I do though, I do for fun. I don’t want photography to become a business and lose the joy of it all.

 

[EarthImages]

I started off in 1964 with a 4" x 5" Crown Graphic taking pictures for my high school. I had six film holders so I was limited to 12 exposures at each event. I also used an early electronic flash powered from a 7 pound lead acid battery. In 1966, I purchased my first 35mm camera, an Exakta vxiia.

 

[Antonia]

I picked up photography again. I'm 65 now and have a bit more time. I bought my Z8 last year. I mostly use a 100-400 or 180-600. Always been involved in animal rescue and animals is what I photograph. It brings me so much joy. I can seriously say I got very passionate about this hobby. It truly gives me a happy feeling.

 

[Gov]

73. My father liked photography and I don't remember a time I didn't have some kind of camera. In junior high school I used my dad's 4x5 Crown Graphic to take star pictures for a science project (showing their movement around the North Star). I had my own darkroom which I took with me from home to college to summer jobs, etc. In high school I was the yearbook and newspaper photographer using the first camera that was my own--a Minolta SR-T 101. In law school I used my entire earnings one summer to buy a Nikon F2 and a couple of lenses. I regret that because of many moves, basement floods, etc., I have very few of the prints I made during the early part of my life. Having come into a small sum of unexpected money, I had the bad luck of buying a number of good nikon cameras and lenses (including my dream lens, the 600 f4) right before the mirrorless revolution, many of which I have now sold for big losses to help buy into the Z system. I am fortunate to have a son who likes photography and has some use for it in his work. I passed on my Nikon F2 to him a few years ago and it still works like a charm. Its photos have ended up in some of his company's advertising. More recently I passed on to him a couple of my better F lenses that I had held onto (200-500, 500PF). Today I am sending my last F lens, the 600 F4, home with him to see if he can use it. It is hard to bring myself to sell it for a huge loss. I wish he could afford a Z8 or Z9 to make better use of these lenses. There is comfort, however, in passing along some of my gear (and recognizing the inevitable, at some point, all of it) to the next generation.

 

[carbon]

I’m mid fifties. First camera was a flat 110 format jobbie (Kodak?). Loved the form factor of that thing. Pocket-friendly!

First “serious” camera was a silver Nikon FM-2 with 50mm f/1.8. Man, I loved that thing! Prototypical cool motordrive sound with the MD-12 at a blistering 3.2 FPS, I believe. Really enjoyed the Nikon 8008s for manual focus as well…what a great viewfinder in a small package. AF was poor (as was the burly Nikon F4’s).

Shot sports and reportage in college. Ah, I sorta miss manual focus, am I right? Was going to be a photojournalist! Luckily I changed course because I wanted a family. Oh, and also because I like to actually eat lol.

Was a ski bum, adventure low-budget tour leader, cold-weather car tester, jeep guide, t-shirt salesman (lol!) and XC ski instructor among other weird jobs. In a crazy ski accident, I blew apart my spleen/broke 5 ribs/collapsed lung. Almost died as I lost 3500cc of blood internally, which is ten pop cans. Obviously I made it.

But a career change was in order! Adventure is fun but money must be made. At least I did the crazy stuff when I was young, while I still could.

Assisted some pro commercial photographers and saw the serious butt-kissing needed to court art directors for continued business. Not for me.

Shot weddings solo in my thirties. Rarely have worked so hard in my life! It was like getting married each weekend all year. Ooooffffff said the feet! Used a Canon EOS 1n/1v and a Leica M with a Noctilux f/1.0. Oh yeah, also used a Konica Hexar AF 35 2.0 camera. Quietest film cam I’ve ever used with a lens equal to a Leica.

Dabbled in large format 4x5. Adore Polaroids. Own a modern SX-70; forgot its model name.

I work in the so-called “creative” fields, kids are starting college, and apparently I’m an eighty year-old inside a 50 yr old man! Among other things, I had double cataract surgery last year, quickly followed up by double retina detachments. Curses!

Luckily I can still see!

Still in the DSLR-land (Canon 1dx III) and am waffling mightily as to which brand’s mirrorless system to head into. Fun to listen to and partake in this site’s discussions.

 

[joe43]

I am 81. I started shooting in 8th grade with a 35mm made by Bosley. I cannot remember the model number. In high school my dad bought me a used Rollleicord , a twin lens reflex camera, probably in 1956. I developed black and white film in my basement from both cameras and took color slides with both cameras. I bought my first Nikon camera around 1967, a Nikkormat FTN. My Bosley and Rolleicord were ruined by flood waters from Harvey in 2017. I have used Nikon cameras ever since I got my Nikkormat.