I was reading G. Dan Mitchell’s photography blog today. He posted a really nice shot of rocks surrounded by a lovely flowing river. After describing the shot, he said:
There is a funny story to add to this. As I was shooting, as often happens when one sets up near a roadway with a “pro-looking” gear (hey, all it really seems to take is a tripod), other visitors began to pull over to see what the photographer was shooting, jumping out of their cars with cameras in hand. This in a very dark section of the canyon. With me using a very long lens. Pointed straight down at some boring rocks in the river. Quite a few just shook their heads, looked at me like I was nuts, got back in the cars, and drove on.
This struck me as enormously funny for two reasons. One, I’ve seen it all the time, especially when driving through some of the more scenic state parks. Someone will stop and get out of the car with a camera (especially a “pro-looking” camera), and everybody else will then follow suit like a herd of cattle. The second reason it amuses me is that my mindset was always that I steadfastly refused to go along with the crowd, no matter how spectacular the view. If by chance (or parental stopping) I got drug into such a scene, I always felt kind of dorky – like I knew there was a better shot somewhere off the trail that none of the other dorks would ever find, and why in the world did I have to get stuck following a herd of dorks who didn’t know what they were doing, anyway?
Okay, so I’ve revealed my innate lack of humility.
Enjoy some of Mitchell’s photography. His aspens are really nice.
They do look like a herd of cattle! Too funny.
Angie
Hi! I saw the trackback link and read your comment on my post. I’m glad you enjoyed my little post. I liked both of your points.
I suspect that just about all of us have seen this little bit of social behavior at work – either as the photographer attracting the swarm of folks hoping to capture the same shot, or as members of the swarm!
I can relate to your reaction of refusing to go along. I cope with it in three ways depending upon the situation. Sometimes if I see a lot of people stopping to photograph some subject I just keep going. At other times I’ll stop and think about what I’m seeing and then make a point of producing a photograph that focuses on some element of the scene that is not obvious, perhaps some detail that could become a photograph itself. On occasion, I’ll admit that I just have to give in though. On some rare occasions there is a reason why everyone is stopping and it is worth joining the throng.
By the way, I love the photo you included to illustrate your piece. There’s more going on in that image than might initially meet the eye.
Take care,
Dan
That was quick! I just transferred from Blogger to WordPress the other day. The new site is still very much a work in progress. Thanks for visiting and commenting.
I have to be honest. I don’t remember where I found that particular photograph (or I would give the photographer credit), but it’s not mine. It just illustrated the concept so perfectly . . . .