Column: The Camera

I’ve always found it interesting how different people deal with the same situation.

A few weeks ago, I was sitting at the office and Melissa returned volleyball game visibly upset. Somehow during the time she had left the office and went to the game, a very important piece on the inside of the camera had come loose and it could not be used. She was really upset because she knew just how important a camera is to a newspaper. To put together a paper there has to be a really good camera, that is just the way it goes. Cell phones companies are making better cameras by the day and are great for personal use, but trying to use that or a simple point and shoot for newspaper usage would be a nightmare. I sometimes cringe when people will submit horrible photos taken by a cell phone. If run them sometimes people will yell at me if they look bad. It’s not like I’m a wizard with photoshop. I can’t make a bad photo good. Once the zoom is hit on a cell phone say goodbye to it looking good in print.

As Melissa was upset, I encouraged her to settle down and told her it is just a camera. Of course I was mortified that we wouldn’t have a camera to use and had a football game the next day, but there are more important things in the world than a camera. She finally felt better and we found a replacement just in time for her to get some rodeo shots.

A couple days later showed me once again how two people can act in a different situation. I was trying to check a balance on a credit card and the website was not acting properly. I would be halfway to filling out my login information and it would redirect me to the homepage. After three times of this I let out a horrific shriek reminiscent of when I saw the ball go over Peyton Manning’s head on the first snap of the Super Bowl XLVIII against the Seahawks. I was mad. I just wanted the damn thing to work without calming down and realizing all I had to do was call the number on the back of the card. The look on Melissa’s face showed me she would have acted much different in the situation. So here I am acting like a spoiled five year old over an account balance and calm as a cucumber when a really expensive camera breaks.

As I was writing this article I found another perfect example of how two different people would react. A former co-worker I know well texted me about covering a high school regional tennis tournament. A tournament organizer told her that prior to taking pictures she had to get permission from the players and the coaches. She found this very strange, but told the organizer she will do whatever makes them feel comfortable.

I would proceed to take pictures knowing that was not a rule, it was just someone who did not know what they were talking about.

Would there be a chance I would get kicked out of the tournament and have to take pictures hanging from a helicopter above, but I would have taken my chances. I felt I know the rules of my job well enough to know that the organizer didn’t know the same. I do however think it might have been a riot to walk directly onto the court while the match was going on and tell them to take a time out so I can ask for permission. As silly as that may sound I’ve had a colleague that has done that. It makes for a fun story to tell but still makes me cringe.

While we all react different to a lot of different things, I think most people can agree that when you stub a toe it requires yelling, dancing, screaming for at least a minute.