Embracing Imperfect Photos

The problem with being the one who takes the photos in my family is this: I'm not in most of the pictures. And when I am they aren't as great as the pictures that I have taken. The composition isn't the way I would've done it, the exposure might be off because I couldn't see the meter to correct it, or even in the worst case scenario my head is cut off.

This picture was extra frustrating to me, because it was the one where we both looked the best and the dude was looking at the camera. But I am partially headless. Someone invent a time machine in my camera so I can go back and fix it.

I have sort of learned to accept this, but there is still a huge perfectionist part of me that wants more. I want to be in some of the pictures. I want to have pictures of me and my little dude,without having to ask someone to take my complicated and giant camera and just wing it. I want more pictures where I'm not just holding the camera at arms length, hoping I don't look like an idiot even though I usually do in these types of photos.

I have a remote, which helps. And I have a tripod. That helps too. But the main problem is that I still have to set the camera settings, so if they're off when I'm on the other side of the lens I can't change them. I just have to wing it, crossing my fingers and hoping for the best.

These pictures aren't always perfect (see Minnie Mouse on the floor crashing that picture?) but they prove one important thing: I was there too. Someday, when I'm not there, I want my kids to have pictures of us together. Pictures that really solidy to them how much I love them, not just pictures of them smiling at me while I'm behind the camera.
Sometimes I even let Ava have the remote. She thinks it is awesome, but she gets really close to the camera with it and sometimes bumps into the camera. Then things are blurry. I'm blurry. Oh well.

But then my photo crashing girl clicks another one and it turns out to be a keeper. Even if I had to crop Witten's feet out of it. Sorry dude, catch you on the flip side.

The entire point of pictures, the entire point of this fancy camera, is to catch moments and things I want to remember. Someday this dude will be taller than me, not anytime soon, but someday. But right now I want to remember that he is still a little nugget. A cute one.

My quest for photographic world domination continues. Even when imperfect pictures strike.

Like ones where his expression is spot on, but his wobbly head combined with the low shutter speed I had the camera set at made him a little out of focus.

Or ones where my camera was at a different angle, so my computer insists on making them upside down. This is only a problem online though, a printed picture can be turned much easier.

Sometimes the squirmy dude is moving his hands AND his head, resulting in some crazy motion blur. He's just so fast! AND the picture is a little overexposed because of the bright light from the window. Whoops.
Other times though, he cooperates. He holds still, he looks at the camera. He maybe even cracks a smile. That's when it totally pays off, all of this photographing of people. The girls always look, they always smile. That's why my dude is the ultimate test of my patience. So I know I'm doing something right. And that all of these pictures I'm taking are worth it. Cause I froze this exact moment in time and hopefully I will remember it. Spit bubbles, crazy hair, curly toes and all.