Use the Camera You Have on You

Technology is changing.  New digital cameras offer some amazing and state-of-the-art capabilities.  Do we need to buy the latest and greatest?  Ann has a wonderful and up-to-date camera for her studio work and this is perfect for what she does.  I have a years-old digital camera that replaced my film camera.  It is great for vacations and outings, with digital zoom and video capabilities.  But, it isn’t what I find myself using when I choose to take a picture.  I suspect you are experiencing the same phenomenon. 

“The best camera you have is the one that is with you,” says Chase Jarvis, Camera Pro.  He goes on.  “Photography is becoming a huge part of our culture incidentally because the capture devices are getting so cheap and so available, and the opportunities and means by which we share that material is so much at our fingertips.”

Jarvis refers to a series of photos taken with your phone’s camera as a “great visual journal”.  He is excited about the artistic quality that can be achieved by a simple motion paired with pushing one single button.  He says that the convenience of his camera phone has him looking for pictures.  In this video,, he walks through the city and finds many interesting and, for him, inspiring shots. 

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buDa-m65RyA&feature=youtu.be

Perhaps more important, the stories we capture on our cameras are priceless.  “It’s not about megapixels or dynamic range or any of that stuff.  It is about moments and stories,” he says.  Take a look around you at the next event you attend, whether it is your child’s concert or ball game, or a family outing.  Everywhere people are using their camera phones to simply record a memory.  

Have fun and play around with the camera you have with you to figure out how you will best use it.  The key is, USE IT!  When you look back on the images you capture, it won’t matter how many pixels they are made up of, just that you have that picture, and that picture, and THAT picture. 

At JMC, we say it often and we’ll say it again… Memories Matter!  Keep on using the camera you have on you.