Photo advice for the Type A momtographer

Something about my perfectionism Type A personality, and need to be in control gets me into trouble sometimes.

Especially when it comes to photography.

Last week our family took a lovely week long vacation to Disney World. I was excited to record every little reaction and detail of our daughter living her first memories of ‘the most magical place on earth’. I left my pro-grade, humongo Nikon D3s at home and instead opted for my more compact but still powerful Nikon D90 and 35mm/1.8 lens.

My husband I think is beginning to resent being the husband of a photographer because our trip went a little something like this…

Me: This is not a good time to take pictures in front of the castle. There is a frickin’ construction crane behind it (Fun Disney Fact: the crane was there to take down Christmas lights.  LAME.). It’ll take me hours to Photoshop that thing out of a picture!!!

Me: I can’t take pictures now…there are too many people crowding this area.
 
Me: Nope, no photos. It’s too dark on this ride….the sun isn’t facing the right way…the light is terrible!

::::insert HUGE eye roll from Brendan here::::

Brendan: Can’t you just stop being a photographer for a minute and not survey every little detail. Take a step back for once and just enjoy taking a few snapshots of our family vacation!

Ouch.

Sometimes the truth stings, yes?

But once you’ve been bitten by the ‘bug’ as I like to call it, I find it hard to shake seeking out the right set ups for photos, because you’re constantly in search of that ‘perfect’ image. 

Don’t lose sight though (like I did) of that reason WHY you’re taking those photos in the first place.

Being in Disney where beauty is all around, the idea of taking ‘just snapshots’ was totally off my radar. Which did allow me to set the stage for photos like this:

Day 1: I was THRILLED when around 5pm the crane had been removed and there was NO ONE crowding the castle around the side. Being that it was around sunset we were also given the perfect light to set the scene for this family photo I’ll forever cherish. I still can’t believe we got everyone looking (and smiling even!!!).

Day 2: Money watching and meeting one of the animal experts. Earlier in the day we encountered a monkey pooping in the pond. This may have been the highlight of the entire Disney trip for Brie. She is STILL talking about that monkey!

Day 2: Monkey watching and meeting one of the animal experts. Earlier in the day we encountered a monkey pooping in the pond. This may have been the highlight of the entire Disney trip for Brie. She is STILL talking about that monkey!

Day 3: This might be my favorite photo of all time of my daughter and I. I’m not even sure what we were giggling about, and I’m pretty sure 30 seconds earlier she was trying everything in her power to STOP posing for photos in this spot. But everything from the expressions, to the light, to the fact that we caught the monorail riding by makes my heart happy.

Then Day 4 happened.

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I woke up Wednesday morning with a chill in my bones and the intense urge to puke up everything I had for dinner in Epcot the night before.

Which I promptly did.

Four times.

In a row.

Confined to sleep the last day of vacation from the discomfort of our hotel room, Brendan and my mom swept the excited toddler back off to the Magic Kingdom for one last day of fun.

They left without the DSLR camera.

Leaving me with the guilt that my child wouldn’t have her mommy there to record our final magic making day together.

When they returned home that evening I could see a sparkle in their eyes. They were so excited to tell me something.

Brie got to DANCE with her FAVORITE Disney character of the moment: Stitch.

::::Enter cranky sickly guilty controlling perfectionist momtographer::::

I missed it.

I didn’t capture it.

But they did.

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I spent the evening thankful that I was able to relive this special moment through their iPhone snapshots and THIS insanely cute video of Brie learning to Cha Cha slide.

No beautiful trees. No magical castles. No signature monorails.

Lesson learned.

I hate to admit it, but looks like Brendan was right on this one.

This momtographer needs swallow some humble pie, practice what she preaches a bit more often, give herself a break, and just allow the snapshots to happen sometimes.

As much as I am proud of my ability to stage the gorgeous, frame worthy shots I took on Days 1, 2, and 3, there is something about the snapshots from Day 4 that make them some of my favorite memories of our entire trip.

What about you? Are you a Type A Momtographer like me? Anyone else constantly seeking out the best scenarios for photos and forgetting the notion that snapshots are ok too? Tell me your Type A photography stories in the comments below so I don’t feel so alone. Let’s fill this comment space with stories of the crazy things we’ve done to set up a shot and the things that have later made us realize we must appreciate the snapshots in our lives too.