To be a Photographer...

"A mad, keen photographer needs to get out into the world and work and make mistakes."
Sam Abell

(This is a l o n g one)

A couple of Saturday mornings ago, I had the photographers dream - great overcast but bright skies - great for an early morning family session. Then, right after my session came the Photographers' worst nightmare. Or one of them. No, I didn't drop my camera in the sea. Nor my lens. My memory card was not corrupted. My camera turned on fine.

No, for me, it was this:
I get home. I grab the USB wire thingy and plug in my camera. My photos from the 2nd half of the session come up. Great! I go to my camera bag (I know any photographer reading knows whats coming...) and I grab what I think is the other memory card from the session. Insert it. Blank. Pull it out, insert again. Blank. Rub eyes. Go to the bag. Start throwing things around like a wild banshee. I count 4 cards now. I own 5. At this point, knowing, just KNOWING, that when I ran over to my bag and swapped memory cards mid shoot, that memory card did not get secured somehow (I forgot the zip, I thought I was throwing it in the bag but I actually threw it in the rocks, etc).

Back to life, back to reality (unfortunately not the Soul to Soul lyrics). I FREAK. I tell the hubby and kids, I RUN out of the apartment, down the stairs, in the car and I am back at the location in less than 15 mins (it normally takes at least 20!). I know EXACTLY where my bag was. I arrive. There are 3 teenage Okinawan teens getting ready to go snorkeling. I look all around the area. I even ignore the seaglass, which is hard! NOTHING. 'OH, MEMORY CARD WHERE ART THOU' (LOL) A thought pops in my head to ask the boys, but I think 'why, it's not here'. Then I remember, that often I don't listen to my instincts and later I find out that whatever I thought I should or shouldn't do at the time would have worked out better if I had or hadn't done it at the time...(!)...

"Sumimasen". They look. Did you see a camera memory card (I make a square shape with my fingers). "Oh!" One of them exclaims and runs to behind the rocks and produces my MEMORY CARD. I say 'Arigato Gozaimasu' and I hug the one who brought it. This part didn't make them feel so comfortable and they waved my bye-bye like I was slightly insane (which might be true!). These nice guys had found my card on the rocks near the water and picked it up and moved it to a high rock further back. Can you believe that? And imagine if I hadn't asked them. My card was there, just somewhere I would never have looked and I would have lost half a family session shoot. YIKES. Photos like these:No, that would have not have been cool...
We had a lot of fun. I met Mum, Earlene, through Loubie's preschool, Sunshine Montessori. We went to her daughter's birthday party at Mona Kids Jungle and I have to say, Earlene makes the best Cesar salad I have ever tasted, even making the croutons and dressing. YUMMY!
I LOVE this photo of Dad and son...it's priceless...What a great shoot and a lovely family. Glad I could show them!!! PHEW!