Through the Eyes of the Tribe: Vacation Photography
A while back I blogged on MeRa Koh’s site about handing my camera over to Ty and having him photograph his world. Well, during our recent Spring Break trip to Whidbey Island, I decided to try this again. I guess I just wasn’t in the space to get outside and shoot lots of pictures. But I didn’t want our wonderful vacation to go by undocumented (GASP!), either.
This time, I put some restrictions on their photos. I told them they could each take only ten pictures. I wanted to focus their eye — so instead of just random, scatter-shots, the kids would really think about what they wanted to document and preserve.
I think you will be pleased with the results. Here are some samples:
First up, Lily (10).
White Shell
"Destroyed" Crab in Pirate Fort (actually, its plastic)
Next is Izzy (12):
Shoes, Sand, and Seaweed
Self Portrait
Next up, Jade — our resident teenager (14):
Sunset over the Saratoga Passage
Sister at Sunset (sounds like a Magic Treehouse book!)
I’m actually really impressed with Jade’s photos. Due to a fluke, she ended up shooting her photos on “Aperture Priority.” Which means, the photographer sets the aperture or F-stop (or controls the BLUR in the background) and the camera will select the shutter speed. It’s not terribly advanced, but it is a step up from shooing on automatic. Here’s another one:
Garden Outside Bunkhouse (where the TV fell on her).
And last, Ty (4). Okay, so he was in a hurry that morning.
Jade's Leg and Back Patio Tile
What was the most fascinating for me was that each child took a completely unique set of pictures! So, I ended up with 40 pictures of our little vacation spot and I got to do THIS while they “Slaved Away”:
Picture by Grandma Bloo. Don’t you just LOVE my flirtatious pose?
Wow—pretty impressive! I love the idea of giving them a certain number of photo shots. I’m sure that they were so proud. I hope that you gave them a goofy face when they asked you to smile—as a little pay back. Thanks for your great ideas!
Aw lovely! What a great idea to give them a limit too. :) Once I let Nik take my camera on Thanksgiving and though there were about 55 pictures to sift through of socks and backs of necks, I saw his potential. Especially with his close up of a ninja. (himself)
Anyway, glad you had a good vacation! We all might copy you and start going to this little town too!
xoxoxo
What a FANTASTIC idea!!! I’m gonna hold onto this one until my munchkin is old enough to understand that there’s more to pushing a button than just pushing a button ha ha!