rants of a failed amateur photographer

lugging the extra 5 kilos of deadweight everywhere, aiming the lens here and there in a pathetic attempt to freeze the moment and capture the beauty, i looked every inch the professional photographer. it wasn't easy though, with one kid hanging on each hand and literally tugging down hard on it, trying for some unfathomable reason to make my hands stretch to the floor. not the easiest task, juggling two deadweights around your hands and one around the neck, not to mention my own deadweight too. the group seems to always be in a hurry. to where, i have no idea since we are supposed to be on vacation. wow! beautiful scenary. aim, zoom, click......look around, they have disappeared, leaving me gasping for breath as i hurry to catch up with them. this is not turning out to be as romantic as i pictured it. no leisure stroll, admiring the beauty as we go along, stopping once in a while to capture all that is beautiful. kneel on the floor, bend right a little, maneuvering for the best possible angle; the satisfaction of being able to bring away a piece of something that is so beautiful. what i am getting is gasping, rushing, frustration, muscle exercises and sore shoulders.

it doesn't seem like i'm doing a very good job with this phototaking thing either. muddling it up as i go along. changed the aperture or iso for a certain environment and forgot about it when i moved on, leaving unusually dark photos on bright sunny days. maybe i don't have the right frame of mind with the two young ones going 'mummy, mummy' like a broken record.

the joke perhaps is on the passerbys who thought i looked very professional with my telezoom lens and big camera, stopping me every now and then to take a shot for them. with the misleading stylo equipment, i was targeted more than the rest of the group. maybe i looked like i knew what i was doing. i only hope they won't be too displeased to go home and find photos of themselves, blurred and off-centre. ahhhh, the artistic version, i will say.