Week #1 has passed, and unfortunately no donations have been made. However, there have been over 100 views, and quite a lot of shares, so it's something! I'm not complaining, I knew when I started this that this campaign might not get many donations or anything else. Rather than getting upset or disappointed, I tell myself to try harder, to keep going and to never give up. After all, isn't that what you should do if you want to achieve your dreams? I'm choosing to keeping going, even if it takes a very long time.

When I first wanted to become a photographer, it kind of came to me unintentionally. I remember my parents' Polaroid Insta-Matic, with the magical image appearing almost instantaneously with a click of a button. I played around with that camera more often than my parents did, but even then I hadn't realized my passion. When I was 9, I had gotten my first camera - this ugly pink colored Concord 110 camera - the Neon Lites that were ever so popular with the kids at the time. The 110 film was awkward to get into the camera, and the photos I took then were crazy. I had a lot to learn about lighting, keeping lens flares out of the picture, focusing, and much more. Being a kid, you just couldn't resist the urge to just point and snap that button. But these were the old days when film had to be processed, and the wait was horrendous.

Then as I got older, the disposable $10 cameras became popular, and I loved them for the time being because they promised 27-30 photos on each film. Still, the waiting for the pictures to be developed was irritating, but as I was now a teenager, my skills had improved quite a bit. I learned about keeping the subject of the photo in good lighting, focused and without lens flares and straight instead of crooked or off-kilter. I used these kinds of cameras well into my early 20's, and by then the Photo Centers in my local town knew my name, as I was there every other day.

It wasn't until I had my son, that I had gotten a semi-decent camera - a point and shoot digital camera that wasn't the best, but it did its job. This was when I realized that my potential for photography was getting much better, and thus my passion begun. My son Louie became the main focus of many a photo, and this was how I bettered myself in portraits. Poor kid suffered countless clothing changes, props and much more. But it was because of this passion of mine, our mother-son bond became stronger together, because not only did it teach me, it taught my son at an early age that having a mindset on something you're passionate about, you keep trying no matter how hard the effort.

In my mid-twenties, my passion flared a lot. I started taking road trips everywhere and this was becoming an obsession. It was at this time, that my eyes really opened up. I started seeing empty fields as a wonderland for flowers, birds, animals, mountains and more. I started to see small towns, rivers, lakes, old buildings as something more. More importantly, it was the unexplored regions, the ugliness of falling down factories, a dead tree, a road sign that became something beautiful to me. And that ugliness that most people saw, that unknown region - people began to see what I saw, and realized I brought out the beauty in a way that most would call stupid, ugly or boring. I brought life to objects, in a roundabout way.

In conclusion - I just wanted to share a piece of my history with you, and once more, I ask if you could please donate or share my story. I know it's going to be tough, difficult to get things going - but I assure each and everyone of you that this is a legit story, a real reason why I'm doing this. I've always dreamed of having a great camera like the Nikon or Canon - because not only are they the best of the best, but I know they will help achieve my goal as a photographer, and give me photos that I've ever dreamed about!

For those of you who do decide to donate, I am humbly grateful. To those who view this and share it wherever, thank you!