School photos, a ritual,

cherished likenesses of ones' self,

thumbnail prints placed on a shelf

or mantelpiece with pride;

matter of obligation for parents

a record of proud growth. 

 

Cameras with their elephant memories

blinked portentously,

nothing personal.

 

We were rounded up by disreputable fellows

with a taste for pin-ups,

stage-sets, black cloths,

revealing lights;

prints sent to dodgy magazines of the time:

Health and Efficiency,

Spic and Span,

Lilliput and their like.

 

After puberty came realisation,

a meeting of minds;

I bought a Kodak Retinette,

set up a darkroom in the bedroom,

moved on from the herding,

the framing with gilt.