blackest Loc: Ireland

What do you do if you have caught a bad one? I was shooting an awards ceremony yesterday there is maybe 20 seconds to get the photo as each person comes up and chimping between shots means no time for getting another. Hopefully with 3 shots of each person 1 will be ok. The biggest issue apart from low light was the balcony windows being reflected in peoples glasses. I had measured the light before it started so I had iso
shutterspeed and aperture preset. So it was mostly trying to hit focus and getting a good angle where the glasses didn't reflect the windows.

Chimping in those circumstances would just cost me good shots.

So saying it is a good idea to review and see who you didn't get after and take some more informal shots... That's not chimping it's reviewing.

advocate1982

Is that the $6000 camera with the 20 fps and battery charge is good for 480 exposures?

Marionsho Loc: Kansas

I chimped my first shot at the parade Sat. night, and boy was I glad I did. Even with glasses that wash out the screen I could tell it was waayyy underexposed.

aellman Loc: Boston MA

I also find myself frequently chomping. It's probably why I am overweight.

agambrell

It depends on what I'm shooting. If I'm out shooting birds in flight or action sports I will take some test shots and "chimp." After that, I seldom look at the back of the camera, in fact review is turned off. There's too much chance of missing a better shot while chimping the last one. If I'm doing landscapes or architectural shots, then I will check after each shot, primarily looking at the histogram.

JohnSwanda Loc: San Francisco

For award ceremonies, I ask the person giving the awards to hold the person getting the award until I can check for eye closures (I still shoot about 3 shots). If they aren't willing to give me the extra time, at least I have warned them about possible eye closures - and I have had the rare person who manages to close their eyes for all the shots. For glasses, it helps to ask the person to tilt their head down slightly to avoid reflections.

timepass Loc: Yardley,PA

Agree!

mdalbertson

I admit to chimping at times, but I've found that I've sometimes missed the "real" shot doing that. Here's an interesting blog post on the subject: http://erickimphotography.com/blog/2011/10/24/10-reasons-why-you-should-never-chimp-while-shooting-street-photography/

edrobinsonjr Loc: Boise, Idaho

Jmichaels Loc: Roberts Creek,BC, Canada

At the risk of being a chump, WTF is Chimping? Maybe I do, maybe I don't, but since I don't know what it is....

I was a film user for donkeys years

Michael

rscholl Loc: Menlo Park, VA

I check the histogram. Practically never chimp. Not a problem, so I consider it a waste of time.

GENorkus Loc: Washington Twp, Michigan

This ranks right up there as one of the most stupid terms that people use.

Consider this. If you have ever taken "people" shots, you should look at your screen if for nothing else show the person and help them pose a certain way. So tell me, is that chimping? (Who cares?)

Have you ever taken shots of animals, of nature, of landscapes, or whatever. You drive part of the day, hike a few miles, maybe camp out to get nice photos, then get home and relies something went wrong or you tell yourself, "I wish I included..." (You fill in here.) Then there are the cellphone addicts taking a selphy. (But that's another story.)

Have you ever heard of tethering? Isn't that a form of what others call chimping? Truth be known, those who use tethering have probably sunk so much cash into their system, it would be embarrassed to simply call it chimping.

Personally, I think of chimping as when someone gloats and dwells over a former shot but then who cares? (I do if it means a stranger decides to buy it!) Those who say they never look at their screens, (anti-chimpest?), are either those who don't care about the outcome or are just plain fools!

Hey, let use a more pro-like term. Let's call it "cable-less tethering"! (As long as you don't gloat over it at least.) LoL

billgdyoung Loc: Big Bear City, CA

technology is ever-changing...I can't see any reason for NOT using all of the tools available to get right shot...

JuxtaposePictures Loc: San Diego

It all depends on what you are shooting and how much time you have to capture your subject. Keep in mind chimping is usually considered checking every single (or nearly) shot right after you take it, not an occasional check. It's not a problem to chimp if your subject is static and unchanging but there are instances where it can really hurt you.

If you are photographing a person it really breaks up the connection you have with them and you risk missing great poses or expressions while chimping. It takes you out of the scene, not concentrating on your subject. Whenever you are chimping, that might be the time the best shot had occurred and you would have missed it. It can even be a problem for landscapes. If you have a scene with rapidly changing light you might miss the best shot while chimping. Certainly for wildlife it would be a problem, or sports, or really anything with action.

Again, this doesn't mean checking your images when there is a pause or break. That's totally fine and useful. Also, checking your histogram occasionally is very helpful. If you are dependent on chimping to know if you are getting your exposure correct for every shot though you probably need to work on your camera and photography skills because you probably aren't very good with exposure, reading your scenes light levels, metering, and understanding the dynamic range of your camera.

sirlensalot Loc: Arizona

DSLR - yes. Mirrorless - not needed.