Feeling a little self conscious

[Christina]

i use to try to put my camera to the side, kinda embaressed. and sometimes it still bothers me to have people look, but hey look at it"hey here's my card" lol

 

[doobs]

I used to -- and infact still am at times -- but not because other people will think I'm crazy or something. Many people will come up and talk to me and ask me about photography, etc. (which can get annoying) and I've met a few other photographers on occasion.

But I feel self-conscious in fear that some arrogant photographer who 'knows-it-all' will come up and start talking crap -- or think that I have no idea what I'm doing (half the time I don't, lol)

I just think imagine people not being there. Do your own thing, and forget everyone else.

 

[Hill202]

Just have your camera with you all the time. Your friends and family will get used to it, and then strangers will bother you less.

I feel naked when I leave the house without a camera - the only question usually is "which camera, which lens?"

This is good advice. I take mine everywhere I go. It gets easier every day.

Now if only my pictures would get better!

 

[JerryPH]

I think the trick is not just to take it everywhere, though I carry one around a lot, but to use it every chance you can get... with a predefined goal before you press the shutter everytime.

I am at the point where even with tons of people all around me (like walking down the street), if circumstances permit, I always try to...

- find something that sparks my imagination or "eye"
- do a fast "think" about it
- decide what I want
- look at my settings, adjust of needed (try for manual, but I get caught using the aperture or shutter priority more often than not)
- frame, compose, shoot
- chimp a bit, look at the histogram
- retake if I am not quite satisfied

I realized that if I spend more time thinking about what I want to accomplish photographically at that moment, I spend less time wondering about the gawking crowd trying to figure out what I am taking a picture of.

I also find that since I went to the D200, I get waaaaaaay more people discretely bending way down trying to duck under my lens as they pass by, or wait until I take the shot, instead of walking right in front of me. I always thank them for their courtesy, and try to give them priority.