After leaving school at 16, I tried to join a film crew as assistant to the assistant tea-boy - to become a cameraman eventually, and even though I had a job offer I couldn't join and was turned away because I didn't have a Union Card (Ticket).   I worked for six weeks in a cinema projection room and 2 years in a J Arthur Rank office in an attempt to get that 'Ticket', but no good. After two years National Service in the RAF I came out, and studied to get HNC in electronic engineering whilst working for the Rediffusion group as an electronic engineer.  During the few years there I became first a report writer, than a test procedures writer, then a manuals/technical author ... then joined a Technical Manuals specialist company for a year and then at 24 years old, was head hunted by an Advertising Agency - where early campaigns won awards and I was quickly offered a job in a major London agency.  I spent the next 40 odd years in advertising first as a Copywriter/Group Head and then as Creative Director, working on Press, Radio and Television Campaigns.  I made only family movies with a wind-up Deko camera at that time.  When I retired my wife (2nd) bought me a video camcorder - a JVC VHS-C model - and my movie making went into overdrive.  That was in 1996. Since then I have chaired a club, chaired the local region of the IAC Film & Video Institute, won numerous trophies (hundreds.  Well, over 40...) at Regional, National and International Amateur Film Festivals, write for the Society's magazine and other Regional film magazines, and was recently made a Fellow of the IAC.  Camcorder wise - I started with the JVC VHS-C, followed that with a Canon Hi 8, and then the Sony TVR900 miniDV (which still works well), a Sony HC7 (which I do not like), and my current cam - the FX1 which I thoroughly enjoy using even though it is out of date.  Editor wise - I started with VCR-VCR, moved to stand-alone 'DirectEd', from there to Studio 200: it was getting that one to work and communication with the Pinnacle people that I was offered the chance to Beta test Studio 400.  I Beta tested all Pinnacle Studio releases through to S14. I also Beta tested Liquid from Version 4 through to V7.2, and more recently Avid Studio 1.  I used Pinnacle Studio as an editor through to V8, then switched to Liquid, and used that until its demise when i took up the MC offer.  In Q1 of 2011 I bought another PC fully specced to run MC properly.  I have my own movie making group (Footprint Productions) which concentrates on movies of historic interest which we do sell, and after chairing one local Video Club for 5 years, joined a larger Video Club also fairly local in order to widen my film making experiences.    I can honestly say in retirement I'm busier than I ever was when I worked in ad agencies.  The difference is now I don't get paid, preferring to retain the 'amateur' status.  Hooray for the pension!