--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My stepfather gave me a Kodak camera when…" description: "\"My stepfather gave me a Kodak camera when I was 17 years old. I started working at a local photo store in Le Havre, France, taking passport pictures an..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/723/patrick-demarchelier-22577_camera_my-stepfather-gave-me-a-kodak-camera-whe_2858820.png" --- # My stepfather gave me a Kodak camera when I was 17 years… ![“My stepfather gave me a Kodak camera when I was 17 years old. I started working at a local photo store in Le Havre, France, taking passport pictures and photographing weddings.” quote by Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/723/patrick-demarchelier-22577_camera_my-stepfather-gave-me-a-kodak-camera-whe_2858820.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/723/patrick-demarchelier-22577_camera_my-stepfather-gave-me-a-kodak-camera-whe_2858820.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/723/patrick-demarchelier-22577_camera_my-stepfather-gave-me-a-kodak-camera-whe_2858820.png) > “My stepfather gave me a Kodak camera when I was 17 years old. I started working at a local photo store in Le Havre, France, taking passport pictures and photographing weddings.” [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A camera given by his stepfather sparked a lifelong career in photography, starting with modest jobs. **In simple terms:** A gift sparked a career in photography. Key Takeaway Recognize early opportunities that shape your path. Themes career family influence photography growth Mood reflective inspirational Type biographical motivational When to use this quote - Teenage job - photo studio work - travel photography Key Concepts Mentorship skill development career trajectory Questions to Reflect On - What early experiences shaped your profession? - How can a simple gift change life direction? A Different Perspective Early exposure may not guarantee success without perseverance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Camera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/camera/) [Cameras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cameras/) [France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/france/) [Gave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gave/) [Gave Kodak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gave-kodak-3846654/) [Kodak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kodak/) [Kodak Camera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kodak-camera-3846655/) [Local](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/local/) [Locals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/locals/) [Marriage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marriage/) [Me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/me/) [Old](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old/) [Passport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passport/) [Passport Pictures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passport-pictures-3846657/) [Passports](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passports/) [Photo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photo/) [Photographing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photographing/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Pictures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pictures/) [Pictures Photographing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pictures-photographing-3846656/) [Started](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/started/) [Stepfather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stepfather/) [Stepfathers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stepfathers/) [Store](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/store/) [Stores](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stores/) [Taking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/taking/) [Weddings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weddings/) [Working](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/working/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [Most passport pictures are good likenesses, and it is time we faced it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-brush/most-passport-pictures-are-good-likenesses-and-it-is-time-we-faced-it/) [Katharine Brush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-brush/) > [Here’s a current example of the challenge we face. At the height of its power, the photography company Kodak employed more than 140,000 people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaron-lanier/here-s-a-current-example-of-the-challenge-we-face-at-the-height-of-2/) [Jaron Lanier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaron-lanier/) > [In 2009, I went to Cannes with a short film in the Kodak emerging program at the American Pavilion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-coogler/in-2009-i-went-to-cannes-with-a-short-film-in-the-kodak-emerging/) [Ryan Coogler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-coogler/) > [Even a fellow with a camera has his favourite subjects, as we can see looking through the Kodak-albums of our friends. One amateur prefers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/even-a-fellow-with-a-camera-has-his-favourite-subjects-as-we-can-see/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [My protest against digital has been me saying, "What's going to happen to film?" The result is that Kodak is out of business. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-stone/my-protest-against-digital-has-been-me-saying-what-s-going-to-happen/) [Oliver Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-stone/) > [Bin Laden was very keen to point out to me that his forces had fought the Americans in Somalia. He also wanted to talk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-fisk/bin-laden-was-very-keen-to-point-out-to-me-that-his-forces-had-fought/) [Robert Fisk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-fisk/) > [ The \[Kodak is\] the only witness I have encountered in my long experience that I couldn't bribe. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-kodak-is-the-only-witness-i-have-encountered-in-my-long/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [I cry at Kodak commercials.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-ripley/i-cry-at-kodak-commercials/) [Alice Ripley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-ripley/) > [I called it Kinko’s because of my nickname — because I had this really kinky hair. If you think about it, the first thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-orfalea/i-called-it-kinko-s-because-of-my-nickname-because-i-had-this-really/) [Paul Orfalea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-orfalea/) > [I listen to Meek, Blac Youngsta, Playboi Carti, Lil Uzi Vert, Kodak, Lil Bibby of course.I listen to pretty much everybody I like different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-herb/i-listen-to-meek-blac-youngsta-playboi-carti-lil-uzi-vert-kodak-lil/) [Lil Herb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-herb/) > [I listen to Migos. I listen to Drake a lot. Also 21 Savage, Kodak Black, XXXTentacion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ozuna/i-listen-to-migos-i-listen-to-drake-a-lot-also-21-savage-kodak-black/) [Ozuna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ozuna/) > [Previously, even in Egypt, men had not learned to see straight. They fumbled in the dark, and didn't quite know where they were, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence/previously-even-in-egypt-men-had-not-learned-to-see-straight-they/) [D. H. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence/) > [Almost any fool can paint an academy picture, and any imbecile can shoot off a Kodak.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/almost-any-fool-can-paint-an-academy-picture-and-any-imbecile-can/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [Kodak is hard. 'No Flockin' is an amazing song.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle/kodak-is-hard-no-flockin-is-an-amazing-song/) [Kyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle/) > [Photojournalists know the horrors of war can only be exposed at close range. Kodak Film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nachtwey/photojournalists-know-the-horrors-of-war-can-only-be-exposed-at-close/) [James Nachtwey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-nachtwey/) ## More by Patrick Demarchelier > [Photography is like a moment, an instant. You need a half-second to get the photo. So it's good to capture people when they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/photography-is-like-a-moment-an-instant-you-need-a-half-second-to-get/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) > [Photography is an accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/photography-is-an-accident/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) > [Take pictures all the time. Don't worry if you take a bad photograph; you learn more by taking a bad picture than a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/take-pictures-all-the-time-don-t-worry-if-you-take-a-bad-photograph/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) > [The movie that you'll be in is a new challenge. Photography is just the shot - one day, two days - and the next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/the-movie-that-you-ll-be-in-is-a-new-challenge-photography-is-just/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) > [When you are a photographer, you work all the time, because your eye is the first camera.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/when-you-are-a-photographer-you-work-all-the-time-because-your-eye-is/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) > [Fashion is the opposite of the real, its worst enemy. Fashion photography is subversive; it makes you believe everything is true, whereas this could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/fashion-is-the-opposite-of-the-real-its-worst-enemy-fashion/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) > [Every day is a dream, every day I spend with my wife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/every-day-is-a-dream-every-day-i-spend-with-my-wife/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) > [My dog, Puffy. The dog is the perfect portrait subject. He doesn't pose. He isn't aware of the camera.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/my-dog-puffy-the-dog-is-the-perfect-portrait-subject-he-doesn-t-pose/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) > [The dog is the perfect portrait subject. He doesn't pose. He isn't aware of the camera.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/the-dog-is-the-perfect-portrait-subject-he-doesn-t-pose-he-isn-t/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) > [When you grow up in the country in France, you have small horizons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/when-you-grow-up-in-the-country-in-france-you-have-small-horizons/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) > [I don't take the camera out with me. My eyes are the camera for me every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/i-don-t-take-the-camera-out-with-me-my-eyes-are-the-camera-for-me/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) > [When you're a fashion photographer, you must inspire a dream,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/when-you-re-a-fashion-photographer-you-must-inspire-a-dream/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) > [I love all women. Women are sublime beings. I love all of it: their eyes, their noses, their bodies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/i-love-all-women-women-are-sublime-beings-i-love-all-of-it-their-eyes/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) > [When people ask me which is your favourite portrait, they expect it to be Diana, or someone famous. But the answer is my dog,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/when-people-ask-me-which-is-your-favourite-portrait-they-expect-it-to/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) > [With Dior Haute Couture, the dream is already there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-demarchelier/with-dior-haute-couture-the-dream-is-already-there/) [Patrick Demarchelier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) [Explore all 27 Patrick Demarchelier quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-demarchelier/) ## More Camera quotes > [Maybe law enforcement would like the ability to turn on the camera on your Mac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/maybe-law-enforcement-would-like-the-ability-to-turn-on-the-camera-on/) [Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/) > [I have a way to photograph. You work with space, you have a camera, you have a frame, and then a fraction of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastiao-salgado/i-have-a-way-to-photograph-you-work-with-space-you-have-a-camera-you/) [Sebastiao Salgado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastiao-salgado/) > [I started off as a model maker, so the first part of my career was a model maker and then a motion control camera…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-knoll/i-started-off-as-a-model-maker-so-the-first-part-of-my-career-was-a/) [John Knoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-knoll/) > [When I made my debut as an actor in 'Rock On!' I was confident to get in front of the camera.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/farhan-akhtar/when-i-made-my-debut-as-an-actor-in-rock-on-i-was-confident-to-get-in/) [Farhan Akhtar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/farhan-akhtar/) > [Since a camera is something too heavy for women and initially made for men, you need a good cameraman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitra-farahani/since-a-camera-is-something-too-heavy-for-women-and-initially-made/) [Mitra Farahani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitra-farahani/) > [To be honest, I don't know... something about the camera like turns me into such a diva. Like when it's on and I see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bretman-rock/to-be-honest-i-don-t-know-something-about-the-camera-like-turns-me/) [Bretman Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bretman-rock/) > [When the camera is on, I am an actor; otherwise, I am an ordinary person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nana-patekar/when-the-camera-is-on-i-am-an-actor-otherwise-i-am-an-ordinary-person/) [Nana Patekar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nana-patekar/) > [“A camera is an opening in a box: that is the best emblem of the fact that a camera holding an object is holding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-cavell/a-camera-is-an-opening-in-a-box-that-is-the-best-emblem-of-the-fact/) [Stanley Cavell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-cavell/) > [It's such a weird thing, because you have a whole crew of people standing over there, on the other side. There's a camera pointing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-faist/it-s-such-a-weird-thing-because-you-have-a-whole-crew-of-people/) [Mike Faist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-faist/) > [“The camera lets me see things in a different way. It's like I finally have perspective. I can't always say stuff right in words.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eileen-cook/the-camera-lets-me-see-things-in-a-different-way-it-s-like-i-finally/) [Eileen Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eileen-cook/) > [I was so green, and my background was mostly in theater. The only thing I'd done in front of a camera, besides an infomercial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-britton/i-was-so-green-and-my-background-was-mostly-in-theater-the-only-thing/) [Connie Britton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-britton/) > [As far as lighting and blocking, camera angles and facial expressions, all that stuff that has to be very specific in film, as opposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-torres/as-far-as-lighting-and-blocking-camera-angles-and-facial-expressions/) [Eve Torres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-torres/) > [It is the photographer, not the camera, that is the instrument.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-the-photographer-not-the-camera-that-is-the-instrument/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't like to move the camera that much anyway.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-tucci/i-don-t-like-to-move-the-camera-that-much-anyway/) [Stanley Tucci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-tucci/) > [I feel like 'Preacher's Daughter' was my Trojan horse, in a way. I'm excited to pull back, be behind the camera instead of in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethel-cain/i-feel-like-preacher-s-daughter-was-my-trojan-horse-in-a-way-i-m/) [Ethel Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethel-cain/) [Browse all 2,026 Camera quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/camera/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "My stepfather gave me a Kodak camera when I was 17 years old. 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