To capture or experience?

One issue I found myself struggling with on this trip is when to put the camera down and simply experience the moment.

This is a new issue for me.   Until recent years, I was definitely a proponent of live-the-moment don't just capture-the-moment from behind a lens--much to our family's chagrin.  We rarely force our kids to sit down and smile for a picture (and it shows in all the holiday pics).  And it doesn't help that I simply have a preference for candid photos which developed in the course of my journalism degree.

But the tables turned a bit on this trip.  I wanted to capture EVERYTHING.   As a result, I spent too much time feeling disappointed/frustrated about my lacking photography skills, missing the timing of a particular shot or the inconvenience of lugging my big camera around.  But I just wanted to take it ALL with me when we left.

For example, the last night of our beach house stay we realized we could see the daily fireworks display at Seaworld from the back balcony.  Now this was exciting for two reasons.  It felt like a closing celebration of our whole trip AND (because of the Texas drought) we have not seen fireworks in two years.  I was wowed for about 30 secs then remembered, "Zoom lens!!"  I raced through the house, grabbed the lens, stumbled on to the porch and set the camera to rapid fire.

My pictures sucked.  I know nothing about night photography and basically missed the whole display in my zoomy-zoom fervor.  I totally missed it; all I captured was my failure to live the moment.  See:


So to those of you who have a camera as an appendage, how do you navigate the live-the-moment vs. capture the moment dilemma?




Now here are a few I definitely do NOT regret :)

Rest...

...Play.  That pretty much sums up our trip.

I did have fun with my zoom lens.  What better way to look directly at the sun?

Soar

Snuggles in the sunset glow.

The Sparkler with her first sparkler.

Fire dancers.

At the beginning, Hannah insisted on mom for everything.  By the end, only Mimi would do.  I can't imagine how that must feel for a grandparent.

Beach-tired is the absolute best kind of tired.

The last day, I took Elia for her first roller coaster ride on a beachside wooden coaster. We got to sit in the very front. 

Afterward, we bought souvenirs and ate ice cream.  She was so completely happy it brought tears to my eyes.