Australia, 21, first camera
The first time I really took photos was when I was 21 – I was traveling in Australia at the time, working and traveling, and I traveled for a while with a German who had an SLR camera with him. I’d never held one before, but I was allowed to take photos – and I really enjoyed it. I then quickly bought my own camera and I’ve been taking photos ever since. Not all the time and not super professionally, but it’s somehow part of me.
Madeira: Simply so beautiful that I take photos all the time
Since I’ve been in Madeira, my desire to take photos has become much greater again. I just love it here so much that I’m constantly taking photos – of the sea, the sunset, plants, doors, waves, whatever. I don’t always have my camera with me, but my cell phone is often enough to capture beautiful moments.
First idea: Maybe someone wants to buy my pictures?
Especially in the early days, I took a lot of pictures. And because I’m always looking to see what I can try out, at some point I had the idea of perhaps selling my photos – to Airbnbs, restaurants or just people who fancy a bit of Madeira on their wall.
Attempt in the restaurant: hung up – and nothing happened at first
Then there was this fish restaurant in my town – Sabor e Mar, really tasty grilled fish, nice atmosphere, but one of the stone walls was still a bit empty. I asked if I could hang up a few pictures there in the hope that someone might buy something. I chose a few photos, had them printed, framed and hung them up.
The pictures then hung up for quite a while. Nobody bought anything at first, but the staff told me that the guests thought the pictures were beautiful. At some point, I actually wanted to pick them up again – but then the owner said that he couldn’t imagine the wall without the pictures. And then he bought them from me. That was a really nice moment for me.
Recognition – and a wonderful feeling
And recently, a couple who did yoga with me and had also booked “Kitty goes hiking” told me that they had seen a great photo somewhere on the island. When they described what it looked like, I knew straight away that it was one of mine.
I’m not a professional photographer – I just like taking pictures. And it’s a nice feeling when my pictures hang somewhere and catch someone’s eye.
I now also sell a few of my photos as postcards here on the island. And I’ve had a little Instagram account for a while now where I show my pictures – now I mainly post photos of Madeira there. If you’re curious: just have a look.
And if you fall in love with one of my pictures, you can also buy them digitally – just write to me.
This post is also available in: German
