Shooting with a Compact Camera

This past Sunday afternoon was a beautiful day so I asked Mindy if she would like to go for a walk.  I wanted to take her to a place she's not been to and watched to see if she'd grab her camera before heading out.  Alas, she did not.  So I did not, which is very rare.  Well, when I speak of 'the camera' it refers to the DSLR.  However, my compact camera was in the car so I consoled myself that it would have to do.

The compact camera in question is a Panasonic DMC-ZS7 that I've mentioned in an earlier post.  To its credit it is small, light, unobtrusive (stealthy) and does a pretty good job producing pictures.  However, on this particular afternoon getting any action shots was quite the challenge because of not being able to see the screen in the bright sunlight.  And shooting static subjects sometimes (like the scene above) was just guess work, again, because I simply could not see the screen because of glare.

I have to admit, though, it was nice to carry such a small camera around as opposed to the bigger and heavier DSLR's.  I am of the firm belief that a good image is made by the photographer himself/herself apart from the equipment used and that's why I've challenged myself having purposely chosen this camera over the DSLR a few times in the past.  And yet, each time I review the images on the computer screen I'm always somewhat surprised at the nice images because it's just a compact after all (read a little sarcasm).

One of things I've come to appreciate with this camera is the black and white conversions I'm able to produce from it.  I certainly claim no expertise here but do like the tonalities that come about without much effort in post-processing.  The image above has only a few minor adjustments that are applied when importing into LR5 and nothing more.

Okay, be sure to click the photo above for a larger view because it's of a frog in water covered in little green seeds.  This was one of those times I had to simply guess at the shot placement because the image on the camera screen was completely washed out in glare.  And don't be fooled into thinking I simply pointed the camera, pressed the shutter and nailed the subject.  No, I pointed the camera in a few different areas and took several different shots and when reviewing them on the computer screen later this is the one I kept of the frog.  Some of the images didn't have the frog in them at all.  So while this is a nice compact camera that fits in a pants or shirt pocket, having one with a viewfinder would sure be nice.

How's this for stealth.  Mindy and I attended a wine fest last weekend and I had taken this camera along instead of the big 'look at me' camera.  When we sat down for a bite to eat I snapped these photos without her knowing it even though we were at the same table and a foot apart.  Now, I didn't know that she was unaware at the time.  It was only later when viewing the images on the computer screen at home that she reacted with surprise, noting she had no idea I took these.  So, all in all, it can be pleasing and liberating having only a compact along for the ride at times.  Anyway, I'd like to hear your experiences and stories in the Comments below.  Thanks for reading.