Pictures of "the photographer"

[jaydesi]

<p>I am usually the one who takes pictures at events, on vacation, etc. Which means, of course, that because I'm usually behind the camera, there are very few pictures of me...if you look at our vacation pics, you might think my wife hired a photographer to follow her around and document her vacation (not that I have illusions of being as good as a pro, but you get my point). She's more or less intimidated about using a DSLR, so handing the camera to her isn't necessarily going to work, except if I switch it to full auto. She does have a point and shoot, but since I have the DSLR, she doesn't take it out much and relies on me for the photography. I've tried to teach her a bit about settings, but she's really not interested and doesn't retain anything since she doesn't apply what I tell her.</p>

<p>Does anyone else encounter this? If so, how do you resolve it, if you do? I usually don't carry around a tripod unless I'm expecting to use it, so setting the timer is probably out, and I don't like the idea of handing my camera to a stranger.</p>

[Matt Laur]

<p>[P]rogram auto mode is all about a [P]eaceful marriage.</p>

[phule]

<p>So, really, what you want is a professional photographer to follow you around photographing you (photographing your wife)... :) </p>

<p>I would simply ask her to take the point and shoot more often and when you want a photo, ask her to take a picture of you with it. And if it turns out terrible thanks to full-auto mode, then you're no worse off than you are already. </p>

<p>Of course, you could always carry a point and shoot in your own pocket, setup how you want, and then hand it to her. </p>

[jaybee]

<p>When my wife and I travel with our adult children or with friends, we come home with photographs of us as a couple. When we travel alone, we look for other couples who are experiencing the same thing that we are. I offer to take their picture if they'll take ours. It's always worked for us, and I've never had a problem with a stranger using my camera.</p>

[jack_fisher1]

<p>We do what Joel said. One caution: When handing your camera to that other person, be sure to put the neck strap around his/her neck to avoid a disaster if the camera should be dropped.<br>

Another idea we use when a tripod is not wanted: Keep a bean bag in your case; and use it to place the camera on a stable platform while using the camera on auto while taking a picture of both (or all) of you.<br>

Both of these ideas work for us.</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>I usually tke care to do as Jack says, make sure the strap is around the person's neck first.</p>

<p>Usually do this when riding a camel or some damn fool thing, so often am not entirely disposed to show the pictures anyhow.</p>

[richard_cochran]

<p>Yes, I've run across this. There are a couple of possible solutions. First, there's nothing wrong with switching the camera to full auto (or even appropriate manual settings) and handing it to a non-photographer. Back in the day, with my old fully manual film-based Nikon FM, I'd preset the exposure and zone focus, selecting a fairly small aperture to cover focusing errors, and hand the camera to someone. ANY camera can become a point and shoot if you set a couple of things up beforehand -- and it's really easy with a modern DSLR. </p>

<p>Second, encourage her to get out that P&S camera. Realize that, for most "remembering our vacation" snapshots, you don't need a whole lot of megapixels, nor do you need absolutely perfect technical quality. And for the lighting situations of a lot of vacation snapshots, P&S cameras do provide excellent image quality. P&S cameras work pretty well for a lot of situations. Encourage her to use it and give her lots of positive reinforcement when she does. And if some of her pictures have technical issues, resist the temptation to point out how your camera could have done the shot better.</p>

[jaydesi]

<p>Thanks for the responses! I definitely have some hope to appear in more than one or two of our photos now.</p>

<p>My concern with strangers using my camera is less of breakage and more of theft, although the end result is the same in either case, no camera. I guess I can choose people who look like they can't run faster than me!</p>

<p>Richard, good advice about not being critical of the pictures she takes, and not saying how my camera could do better. She's actually pretty good at taking snapshots with her P&S, so I usually don't have anything to say against them. It's more of a "why should I take my camera when you can just use your nice one?" Maybe if I just stick it in my camera bag to make sure it's along, I can avoid that problem.</p>

[976photo]

<p>If you're willing to let her take pictures of you with her point and shoot, I don't see any harm in setting your DSLR on full auto and letting her take some pictures with that, since you already have it out. It's the same thing as having her use the point and shoot, and in the long run she may start to feel more comfortable using the DSLR after she's used it in "point and shoot" mode for a while. She may be less hesitant and start asking you about the settings on her own once she gets a "feel" for it.</p>

[john_h.1]

<blockquote>

<p>She's actually pretty good at taking snapshots with her P&S, so I usually don't have anything to say against them. It's more of a "why should I take my camera when you can just use your nice one?" Maybe if I just stick it in my camera bag to make sure it's along, I can avoid that problem.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>There you go. Just hand it to her at the proper time and explain the first time or so that its nice to have pictures of the two of us together.</p>

<blockquote>

<p>When handing your camera to that other person, be sure to put the neck strap around his/her neck to avoid a disaster</p>

</blockquote>

<p>I won't give a camera where I fret much about its safety to strangers but bring a spare point & shoot and sometimes some other smaller expendable set up. (I use holsters instead of straps so no one could put one around their neck anyway) I find that setting something up for someone is too much production and even if its done quick the framing will be off even if I suggest how to do it. Its just too much and a point & shoot is just easier and gets the job done even if not perfect. On a few occasions people have done a good job composition-wise. </p>

[JDMvW]

<p>I will confess that sometimes it occurs to me that I am handing over camera equipment to poor people whose annual income is probably less than the cost of the camera and lens. Use your judgment, but I've not lost a camera yet. It doesn't hurt if the area is one that is well policed.</p>

[CoryAmmerman]

<p>Jay, I can do you one better. My girlfriend refuses to use my camera (regardless of how many times I explain that it's easy to use) and she won't let me take her picture either (I always get the "I don't look good right now" excuse). So I don't get any photos of either of us. On top of all of that, she has a perfectly nice P&S that she never takes anywhere.</p>

<p>I find it amusing how intimidated many people are by SLR's when, really, they're easier to use than some point and shoots, in my opinion. At a recent family outing, I asked my brother's girlfriend to take a picture of me and him with my camera. At first she refused, but then agreed when I told her all she had to do was push the button (set the camera to A and had 50mm prime attached, so no zooming involved). Of course she asked me how to zoom out and made a rather funny face when I told her she had to back up.</p>

<p>One thing about handing your camera to a stranger, if you're somewhere where there are a lot of people taking pictures (like the zoo, or the beach, or the grand canyon, or something like that) you can always look for someone who has a better camera than yours. They are less likely to steal yours. If you have a really nice camera this might be harder, but I have a D50, so it's not much of a problem for me. </p>

[pbalko]

<p>Slightly on topic: It's disconcerting when downloading a memory card to discover that someone has picked up my camera and grabbed a few snaps of some chubby, balding old fart. "Who *is* that guy...oh."</p>

[Lou_Meluso]

<p>I can understand not wanting to drag a full sized tripod on vacation, but have you considered a small one? A Slik Sprint Pro ( or similar small tripod) or even one of those Gorilla bendy pods can be pressed into service without much weight/bulk penalty. Plus when that remarkable sunset happens you still have some measure of support with you.</p>

[nathangardner]

<p>I'm the same way. My fiancee and I ususally plan on taking tripod self timer shots of ourselves once on each vacation. A few weeks ago we were in Hilton Head and had a little photo shoot on the beach one evening with the tripod and S/T. Just find a god location and plan on doing this ahead of time, that way you don't have to carry the tripod around waiting for the right moment. You can both wear something nice, go to the spot, get the tripod out, shoot off a few pics, and pack it up. My fiancee is the same way about the camera so when were just out walking around she'll ask to use the camera to take a photo of me so I set it on Av and get it all ready to go. I will say when she's holding that big camera with the nice lens she sure looks smokin' hot. :)</p>

[kendrawise]

<p>I'm a fan of the "put your arms around each other, hold the camera out in front of you, lean your heads in and take a shot" school of self-portraiture. Invariably cheesy. Fabulously touristy. And when you get home and show your friends your pictures you can say things like "here's my chin/nose/forehead in front of the Eiffel Tower/Chichen Itza/Great Wall of China!"</p>

[richard_mudd]

<p>When I am at a party or some event where I can safely store my laptop, I usually ask my friends who have brought their cameras for their memory cards which I down load onto my laptop. I then burn all the pictures, mine included, onto a CD or DVD and give them a copy. This way I know I will be in some of the photos and I get pictures of things that I might have missed.<br>

Richard</p>

[railphotog]

<p>As Phil B. said<br>

"Slightly on topic: It's disconcerting when downloading a memory card to discover that someone has picked up my camera and grabbed a few snaps of some chubby, balding old fart. "Who *is* that guy...oh."</p>

<p>Same here, one good reason why I don't mind not being in family photos!</p>

[mike l]

<p>Someone once kindly offered to take our picture at scenic location in Arizona with my recently acquired, brand new and expensive digital camera. I was horrified to notice, after I had accepted, that he had no hands, and them amazed when he handled the camera at least as well as any other non-handicapped person. </p>

[GerrySiegel]

<blockquote>

<p>I've tried to teach her a bit about settings, but she's really not interested and doesn't retain anything since she doesn't apply what I tell her.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Now I ask you, is this marriage destined to last?( kidding, but there is a germ of truth). <br>

If she wants any permanent memories of you and statistically she is going to be around longer than you, advise wifee she must make the effort . Get tough, gently though, and mean it. Of course, a tripod and an IR remote are useful, but a pain in the gazoo.</p>

[hjoseph7]

Jay do yourself a favor an go see a professional photogrpaher once a year and have your pictures taken. I also have that problem, not seeing myself in any of my pictures, but that's because the FBI and the IRS is after me.

[p_hanson]

<p>We laugh about this too as evidenced by the "note" in the mirror.<br>

</p>