cheese...

Since I've come back from my trip overseas, I've felt the need to bring my camera to more places more often. I got a digital camera for my 21st, and it feels like a waste if I don't use it. After browsing all the photos I've taken in the last 5 years or so, a pattern seems to emerge:
Birthday cake photo,


special occasion (formal), special occasion (wedding), photos of family holiday, another birthday cake photo,



people's 21st, another special occasion (wedding), and yet another birthday cake photo.


It seems weird to just take photos of the same thing every year when heaps of other stuff happens as well. Next thing you know, people you normally see are going overseas and now the opportunity to take photos with them is gone. So at first, it seems like a good idea to take photos of everything.

Unfortunately, I've found the two major problems with my plan:

1. I don't want to be that guy. You know, the guy who takes their camera everywhere and insists of taking photos of everything you do. While we all appreciate the photos after they're taken, no one relishes the time they are exposed to an unrelenting barrage of blinding flashes. Soon enough, people develop a greater resentment towards the guy taking photos of seemingly menial things. Me living in constant fear of being the guy with the camera means I only take a few photos at the start of the night, and the rate of photo taking quickly dies down. And all the interesting, photo-worthy stuff happens later in the night anyway...
   
2. The "good" photos are the ones with a group of people smiling, or doing something interesting or whatever. It requires a lot of effort to take these good photos, and for me, most of my photos end up looking like this:

I think next time I'll just leave the task of photo taking to that camera guy and leave my camera at home.