Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Some say it is talent.......I know better .......it is the camera.

In 2009 I bought a point and shoot or "handheld" Panasonic Lumix camera for around $250 USD.  Several friends had the same camera and all were happy with it.  I had always used an Olympus, but, since others that I knew had it, I thought that if I had problems there would be a source of assistance if necessary.

That never came to pass as I'm pretty much just a "point and shoot" person who modifies the photos by
cropping or enhancing on Picasa before posting here on the blog.

It is a great camera for a technologically challenged individual such as myself.  It modifies and adjusts the lighting, the distance and who knows what else before it allows me to take the photo.  IT hardly ever takes a bad photo unless I jiggle the camera as I take it or forget to change the setting at night for a night shot or something silly like that.

This was all brought home to me on Sunday when the grandkids, Matilda and Sebastian came over for a few hours.  I always have the camera in my pocket, just in case.  That is another thing I like about this camera.  It is small and fits in a pocket.

Sebastian, age 6,  was fascinated with the camera and I told him I would show him how to use it.  This consisted of showing him how to use the little lever to pull the image closer or farther away (zoom) The button to push down to take the photo. How to see the image after finished taking the photo.  Here is the result of the few minutes of instruction:




The photo above was two post-it  love notes from Matilda.  I did not even know he took a photo of these!





It was fun to see what he noticed and photographed.  All this was accomplished in less then fifteen minutes.

It appears that it is about time for me to get a new camera and pass this one on to Seb to enjoy photographing things he sees............it is easy to download them to the computer as well.  And, since I've used it all these years, even I can help him with that.

Any time I see someone with a Canon and lots of lens, I have camera envy.  Two of my grandchildren and my son have them and I would love to have one.  But, truly, would I carry that heavy thing around with me?  Would I take the time to learn all the things you have to learn to take the great photos that they take?  Doubtful on both counts.  Therefore it appears that I'll be getting another pocket size camera since it is not about talent, but about the quality of the camera, IMHO as I'm a documenter and not really a photographer.

It will be interesting to see how Sebastian develops with this.  I'll certainly enjoy having this to do with him as he grows older.


 
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5 comments:

Retired Teacher said...

Yes, you DO have talent, Barbara. Regardless of how sophisticated the camera is, it takes an artistic eye to capture a pleasing composition. And from looking at your grandson's first attempts at photography, I think he may have inherited that talent.

Caddie said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Peter Kouwenhoven said...

Giving Seb your camera is a great idea. I got my first camera at age ten, it was my mother's Kodak Retina and I still have it. With today's digital cameras there is not the expence of film and processing, so Seb can point and shoot all day long. His captures are well balanced and this could turn into a great hobby for him, if not a career...

Babs said...

Peter, thanks for the comment. Sebastian is only 6, but, he is a smart as can be.
I laugh at your comment about digital cameras as I did NOT want to give up film processing because I so love looking at albums..and loved sharing photos with friends. Of course I can still do that less the hassle of development and the cost.
I'm such a dinosaur - I need to get over that. And, I am, bit by bit.

Babs said...

Bill, thanks for the compliment! I just found your comment in SPAM with many more from others on other blog posts. Sorry I did not comment sooner!