He wanted to join the Army and take photographs.

Now he's doing both - in Cyprus.

The only drawback is that he's had to temporarily leave behind his wife, Lesley, and six-month-old son, Jack.

"It had always been an ambition of mine to become a photographer for the Army," said Steven, 32.

The young Army sergeant is now on United Nations peacekeeping duties in the former British colony - taking shots of his regiment, the Highland Gunners.

But nothing could have prepared him for caring for his camera films in a foreign land.

"I have to keep them in the fridge because of the temperatures outside," said the former Knutsford High School pupil.

Steven's mum, Jean, said he was keeping up to date with Jack's progress through telephone calls and letters.

But he'll have to wait until December to see them again.

"I miss the green countryside of Knutsford because everywhere here is brown because of the heatwave," said Steven, who joined the Army in 1983.

was a member of the Army Cadet Force before joining the Army in 1983.

During his school days he looked forward to the opportunities the Army would offer.

"When it came to choosing a career at school the teachers called me and said that the only thing he was interested in was the Army," said Jean, who brought her son up in Longridge.

Steven, who has served in Germany, Denmark, and America, comes home in December.

Converted for the new archive on 13 March 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.