A Suggestion Of Two Worthwhile Things To Do While Stuck At Home During These Trying Times

Shiprock, San Juan County, New Mexico (click to enlarge)
Fujifilm X-T2; 50-140mm f/2.8 lens @ 87mm; 1/350th sec. @ f/11; ISO 200

It's not easy.  It's not fun.  It isn't what we want to do but it is in the best interest of all of us to follow the guidelines from the health care professionals for isolating ourselves,  staying at home, staying away from crowds and not chancing acquiring this virus nor spreading it.  Lots of people have died across the globe and I would not want to think I was unnecessarily responsible for causing harm to anyone during this Covid-19 crisis.

So, what to do photographically related while sitting at home?  I have a couple of suggestions.

First, this is a great time to do something I bet almost none of you have done.  If you haven't already done it, download your camera's user's manual.  Now start slowly studying it.  Don't just glance through it.  Don't just read it.  Actually study it.  Have your camera right there with you so you can change settings and look at menu items while studying the manual.  If you are one of those individuals who hasn't thoroughly studied your camera's manual, you will be astonished as to what you will find your camera can do that you now don't know about.  If you have multiple cameras, do this for each of them.  You won't regret the time spent.

After you've thoroughly read the manual and studied all of your camera's features and settings, each day, pick one of your camera's features then take measures to master it by practicing finding the settings and making images in or around your home utilizing all of the different options for the feature.  In the past while in the field, I've found myself wanting to use a specific feature on my camera and struggled to figure out where in the menus it is, just how to engage it and how to best set my controls to make the images I wanted to make.  If you master each feature, you won't have that kind of problem.

Second, take everything out of your camera bag(s), lay it all out in front of you and decide what you actually need to put back in and what you need to keep out.  Also, figure out what isn't in your bag but should be and lay it out with the rest of the contents.

After everything is out of your bag, clean it all.  Wipe each piece down, dust it, blow it off, vacuum it, etc., whatever is necessary to eliminate all dust and debris.  Clean your cameras, lenses, insides of your lens and body caps (sneaky way dust gets on to the sensor), insides of your lens hoods, everything.  Then, before putting anything back into your bag, vacuum out the inside of the main compartment and inside all pockets, slots, cubby holes, etc.  After that, take a soft damp cloth and wipe everything down.  Keep all compartments open for a few hours until everything is thoroughly dry.  You will be surprised how much dust, dirt, sand, lint and other debris rests in the nooks and crannies of your camera bag's compartments—all waiting to "jump" onto a lens surface, work itself into your lens' focusing mechanism, get under your camera's dials and buttons or attach to your sensor..  

Only after you do all that, repack the bag in a logical manner leaving out stuff you don't need and including those things that you should have had in it in the first place.

One last suggestion.  Photography is the perfect solo endeavor.  I don't think it is dangerous for you and I don't think you would be a danger to anyone else if you go out to photograph by yourself by getting into the countryside, the woodlands, desert, beach, drive back roads or wherever there is no one else around.  Just someplace alone.  Then enjoy the peace and quiet and the solitude.  Contemplate and appreciate the fact that you can still be out there practicing the craft you love.  This may give you a short respite and allow you to physically and mentally escape the stress of this pandemic and economic meltdown.  It has been proven that getting out in nature is healthy and restorative.

However, if your locality is under a "shelter-in-place" or "lock down" order and it is illegal even do that, or you can't go out to places in which there is no one else, don't go.  Don't chance being part of the problem rather than the solution.  Stay home and practice some tabletop macro photography, still lifes or something like that.  

My idea for this is to keep the creative juices flowing, at least a little, and also fill your time with something you love doing.  Good luck!

Join me over at my website, www.dennismook.com. 

Thanks for looking. Enjoy! 

Dennis A. Mook 

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