Melanie Watkins
melaniejwatkins.com
What do you do?
Art manager and photo artist.
Tell us about your camera.
This is my Yashica T4. She’s not super vintage but was made in the ’90s. I found her at a market in London in early 2009. I have quite a collection, however, she was a nice addition as she’s small, compact and easy to carry in my bag. I love the saturated shots that I get when using this camera. The colours she captures are rich and bright. Essentially, she’s a point and shoot camera, so there aren’t any manual functions to play with and she’s not particularly tricky to use.
Why is this your favourite photo?
It’s from a trip we took with two of our closest friends to Croatia last summer. The natural beauty of the Croatian landscape blew us all away and we loved discovering new places each day. I felt quite inspired when I was there and took many rolls of film. I took this photo of my friend whilst visiting a tiny island. There was hardly anyone around; we had that stunning view all to ourselves. There’s something so calming about looking out to sea. Whilst living in London I really missed the ocean. I missed having an uninterrupted view of the horizon and looking at the sea. Visiting Croatia was our chance to do just that. Whenever I look at this photo I feel a sense of calm and I’m transported back to that day on the beach.
Why do you take photos?
I’ve always loved taking photos, ever since I was given my first camera for my 10th birthday. I take photos to capture the beauty I come across in my everyday life. I always carry a camera as I never know when I might be inspired or excited by what I see. It’s my way of recording a feeling, a moment, that special something that grabs my eye and holds my gaze. Taking photos means I can collect this inspiration and this excitement and share it with others.
Tags: analogue, photography
