A picture paints a thousand words

They say a picture paints a thousand words, so in Derek Foster’s case that must amount to millions and millions of words!

That’s because in his working life, Derek was a professional photographer.

He set up his own photography business with a partner in Hereford 1954 and it was major success, with turnover increasing from £4,000 to £25,000 per year in just four years – that was a lot of money in those days!

Derek’s love of the creative medium began when he attended art college and this subsequently led to a job at a local photography studio.

His photography skills served him well when he joined the RAF to do his National Service and one of his jobs involved taking aerial pictures. On one occasion, he took pictures from the air of Queen Elizabeth’s coronation.

He then set up his own business and subsequently became a photographer for the Hereford Times newspaper, initially on a part-time temporary basis but ended up staying 33 years until he was aged 73.

But photography wasn’t the only love of Derek’s life.

Another was his interest in model engineering, and this led to him featuring in the newspaper he worked for as a photographer.

Derek explains: “The story was about how I realised a dream of building a model train which would carry people, and this happened in a garden site near Hereford.

“I carried 10 passengers, including my daughter and grandchildren, in an engine called Elan and it really was a dream come true.”

Another love of Derek’s life was his beloved wife Doreen, who worked as a physio. The couple had two girls and whilst Doreen sadly passed away, Derek now has four grandchildren and one great grandchild.

Derek moved to Brockington House in 2022 and describes it as a “good place to live”.

He enjoys taking part in activities, particularly watching our entertainers, and his room, not surprisingly, is full of old newspaper and magazine cuttings, which helps him to reminisce.