Peek-a-boo butterfly – Zibello, July 2009
I got my first camera when I was 11 years old, a little Kodak Ektralite compact that had a cover that pivoted round to become grip. I had wanted a camera for a while and used to sit in the car on long journeys and pretend that I had one, composing shots of distant mountains or flashing trees framed in the window, or the ribbon of road stretching out behind the car, or even my brother sleeping on the back seat beside me. I remember the thrill of finally being able to take all these photos, first with this little camera and later with a Kodak Disc camera. After that came a Chinon compact and then my dearly beloved Pentax Espio 90, which was the last film compact I had before moving on to Canon Powershots and from there Canon EOS DSLRs.
The hours of joy that these cameras have given me are immeasurable, so I was thrilled when, on my recent trip to Italy, my six-year-old nephew wanted to walk around the village with me and take photos with my camera (and a good eye he has too!). While looking for things to photograph, we came across a patch of ancient, gnarled lavender bushes ablaze with flowers and abuzz with happy insects, including this coy butterfly hiding its face behind a flower.
Saturday Snapshots is a series of non-food photographs published every Saturday on CookSister. Previously featured photographs can be viewed on the Saturday Snapshots archive pages. Many photos featured in Saturday Snapshots are available to buy as high-quality greeting cards or prints in my RedBubble store, or even as high-quality A3-size calendars. If you want a custom calendar with your own selection of photos, starting with any month (not only January), please e-mail me and we can discuss your requirements.