I Give Up!

 Robbie and Tatum. Taken with my iPad Air 2.

 From time to time I've had a few things to say about cell phone cameras on this blog. If you read carefully, you probably caught my attitude that they are not really suitable for serious photography.

That attitude hasn't changed, but non-serious photography is another story. As in family snaps.

Last Saturday, we went to Lexington, Kentucky to the home of our second grandson, Michael and his delightful wife, Jenn. Jenn is a chemist, and Michael is working on his PhD. in marketing at the university there. Also present for the weekend were our son Rob and his wife, Bonnie and our oldest grandson, Robbie, with his wife Bailey and daughters Madilyn and Tatum, flown in from Houston.

For years I documented family gatherings with my cameras. In film days I had 4x6 prints made to send around, and when I switched to digital I emailed photos and/or made DVDs to send out.

Digital is quicker and easier than film, but still, I had to download the SD cards to my computer, edit the files, and send them out by email or WeTransfer (depending on quantity of photos). By the time various family members received their pictures, days may have passed. (Often more, I'm sorry to say.)

I came to this family event prepared with cameras and lenses. Serious cameras and lenses. Ready to document the day.

But when I got there, everyone was busy snapping photos with their devices and sending them to each other.  

With cell phone cameras, immediacy is the name of the game. I capitulated. I surrendered, and to my shame as a professional photographer, began snapping photos with my iPad. 

But you know what? I don't even care. It's quick and easy, and very few of those photos will be made into prints. If they are, they probably won't be printed larger than 4x6, or at most, 8x10, and at those sizes they look about as good as they would if they had been made with my professional cameras.

The picture below is a cell phone photo of our great-granddaughter Maddie in the pasture of our old farm. Our granddaughter-in-law Bailey, had it made into an 8x10 canvas panel that currently hangs over the desk in my study. It looks great.

Madilyn in the pasture at our farm. Pigeon Mountain in the background.

So, I give up. From now on, it's serious cameras for serious work and cell phones and iPads for family snaps. (I prefer the iPad because the screen is larger.) 

Signed copies of the new second edition of Backroads and Byways of Georgia are available. The price is $22.95 plus $3.95 shipping. My PayPal address is djphoto@vol.com (which is also my email). Or you can mail a check to me at 8943 Wesley Place, Knoxville, TN 37922. Include your address and tell me how you would like your book inscribed.

Check out the pictures at my online gallery: https://davejenkins.pixels.com/  Looking is free, and you might find something you like.

Photography and text copyright 2023 David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo -- For the glory of God alone.

Tags:   photography   cell phone photography     iPad Air 2