sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

I need my camera to remember where I put my coffee cup and glasses.😁

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

But where'd you put the camera?

I had a friend who needed his glasses to find the camera.

User ID

Just scatter lotsa cameras all over the place. Works for me. Mini sensor, big sensor, 12MP, 50MP ... turns out it doesnt matter too much which is which. Just grab whats grabbable.

Orphoto Loc: Oregon

I maintain that once you achieve mastery of your camera that you can do both at once. At least as to viewing and enjoying. Getting in and joining an activity requires setting it aside.

cmc4214 Loc: S.W. Pennsylvania

Red6

This is interesting as I have heard this from several people in my life who had felt the need to document with cameras, both still and video, every aspect of their children growing up. I have several friends with hundreds of hours of video and hundreds of still images stored in boxes that have not seen the light of day in years. Since much of this video is on the older VCR format, there is a good chance it will never be watched again unless someone spends the money to convert them over. Plus, almost all of these people lamented the fact that they felt they had missed a lot of the joy and excitement of their kids growing up while they constantly fiddled with filming it and trying to get the best angle or shot.

I realized this a decade or so ago when one of my friends went to Alaska and took many hours of video. He told me that he had invited people over to watch them but no one really wanted to spend 4-8 hours at a time watching videos. That is when I decided I would NOT buy a VCR recorder and carry it around. I have heard this story many times.

I too experienced this when my wife and I started traveling after retirement. I carried a full kit of cameras and lenses for the first few trips. But, I found that I was missing out on seeing and experiencing the things I was paying to see and ignoring my wife while trying to "get the shot". I now travel with a compact travel camera and iPhone. Soon, I may trim that down to just an iPhone. If those are the only images that are viewed then why bother with any other equipment to weigh us down?

And to be honest, with all the access we have on the web to near-perfect images of just about anything on the planet and beyond, no one is really interested in looking through dozens of my images. However, friends and family are often interested and will view iPhone images, or "selfies" that my wife has taken of us in various places we have traveled. And, since most of these are still on her iPhone (and backed up) she has them with her all the time. In fact, of all the images taken during our travels, these are the ones most often viewed.

While I still enjoy photography, I gave up the idea some time ago that I was any good at it and would someday produce "National Geo" level images. Most of the images I make still fall into the category of snapshots and the iPhone produces those quite nicely for me. In fact, the current crop of cell phones, Apple and Samsung, when properly used will make shots equal to or better than many DSLRs.

Red6

My thoughts exactly. Several years ago, as I have always been interested in astronomy, I started looking into astrophotography. I researched it, read some blogs, and viewed a lot of Youtube videos. But, then when I started looking into the equipment and time that it would require, I decided that was not for me.

Now with NASA's new telescope in space, images are available I could never achieve, no matter how much time or money I spent. And, as I mentioned in another response, images of almost every tourist area, beach, whale, etc. is available just a key click away on the computer.

Jimmy T Loc: Virginia

A Very Interesting Question . . .

I Love Art yet I can't paint, sculpt, or draw, and my color perception is pretty darn bad.
I always carry a phone with a camera and interweb capability mostly for the safety of the phone and to catch a fleeting pic by chance.
Now when we travel I rely on my iPhone to capture the "Magic Moments" so that I can focus on both my bride and capture the moment at hand.
I only carry my "Real Camera" when I have something specific to shoot.

I can look at pics that I took decades ago and tell you all about why I took them, how I felt, and where they were taken.
A day of shooting with a real camera requires all of my attention. Any golfer can tell you how a lapse in concentration can be catastrophic.

Back in 1969, I shot (35 mm) for a whole year in B&W because it was cheap so, I shot a lot.
Now, I'm glad that I shot in B&W because it accurately displays and tells a lot about that period of history and my life in general.
I can still tell you a lot about each B&W pic and the people in them. Yes, and a few of the B&W pics still make me . . . .
Smile,
JimmyT Sends

PS: I'm sorry if I strayed too far off course.

DickC Loc: NE Washington state

I don't think i've left the house without a camera of somekind!!

wmurnahan Loc: Bloomington IN

I can't, that is why I've always had a small camera I could keep with me. In the 70's I had a Minolta 16, now I have a Sony RX100.

b top gun

Just back from my first Alaska adventure; had a Nikon D850 with 24-70, Nikon Zed 8 with 70-200 and a Samsung S22+; used all three depending upon the situations. Will say this, took a wildlife/glacier cruise to Kenai Fjords Nat Park, came away with very few images; circumstances forced me to "sit on my hands" for most of that experience. I did enjoy that cruise, only wish I had seen more wildlife, especially puffins. You can only take so many pics of a tidal glacier also. I was glad I had at least my cell phone handy during the last hour of flying into Anchorage because glaciers and large rivers of ice from 35,000 feet are quite impressive.

b top gun

I will add this, I have seen sooooooo many images of Yosemite and Monument Valley on the Internet that I have lost all interest in visiting either. THE highlight of my Alaska adventure...at Denali, seeing a grizz in the wild at no more than 150 yards away! And seeing the mountain itself on a clear day!

ELNikkor

My wife won't go with me to a wedding or party if I take my Nikon. Once too often, I left her sitting there so I could "get a few photos".

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

I do both ‘at once’.

ricosha Loc: Phoenix, Arizona

I live the moment, I didn't in the past. I was the guy that always tried to "get it all". Now I get involved with my weddings, events, children and grandchildren. I do carry a camera and use it more for the one moment that jumps at me.