You carry the camera, do you stop anywhere while driving?

[smc1377]

I work downtown now and there are lots of great scenes in neighboring run-down areas that I'd love to take pictures of while I'm on my lunch hour, but there are no places to park at some of them, and the places aren't the safest of places to walk around with my DSLR. And it's not an irrational fear. I grew up poor and inner city so I'd like to believe that my fear of getting jacked is not an irrational one.

Ehhh, maybe one of these days I'll just suck it up and take some pics.

[jatsby]

Absolutely I do...then again, I have a Civic and it's fairly easy to tuck it off the side of even a narrow shoulder. Absolutely delighted to have come across this forum by the way; I've been taking photos for years just to entertain myself but have wanted to hear from others doing the same and get ideas and the like...looks like I've found that.

[Darryl]

I would stop at any time I felt the desire to, as long as I can see that I'm not endangering others or myself (in that order). Comes to mind that a traffic cone might not be a bad idea- stop, run back a bit, place the cone, go have fun taking shots. I've had the same experience- wanted to stop, nowhere to pull over, got a little ticked, got over it, didn't get the shot.

I like the idea of having a notebook to record the various things as reminders. I spent a bit of time locally on foot, looking for vantage points, and it would have been handy to refer to some notes on that had I made any. It would be good to be able to browse through the notebook and see various photo ops listed in some detail. When the time suits, you can just pick one and go do it, sort of a little project. On the subject of projects, since I do a lot of little jobs in my home shop, it would be good for me to have that list, which I'd add to whenever I came up with an idea. Whenever the time might be right, I could pick one and do it. If I'm browsing through it, I can add notes to existing entries, and maybe when the time comes to do one of them, there'd be enough information there that the job would get done easier, quicker, and or better. Or in NASA lingo, better-faster-cheaper.

No reason why photo-op projects can't be handled this way. I think I'm going to start this notebook myself. I'll have to carry it with me pretty much always, so maybe I can make it a little case with led reading light, a pair of seeing glasses (getting old can sure suck sometimes), the notebook and pen or pencil, and the pocket camera. Hmm.

[Cindi]

I carry my point and shoot in my purse at all times. There were too many times I wished I had it! My D50 goes with me 99 percent of the time also...
BUT I love getting someone else to drive lol....Hubby stops when told...adult daughter stops but tries to tell me what angle to take cause she didn't bring HER camera....son--no way will he drive lol....18 yr old daughter---she'll drive but doesn't like to stop as much as I ask....
I try to keep notes of sites and time that the time or light is wrong to go back later.
I have stopped on roads and had people pointing or stopping to ask if I need help. But at least I get my picture!
Biggest problem is people thinking they can invite you to parties just for your camera! Gets very aggravating lol...

[southernbelle]

I sometimes ride around town simply with the purpose of catching those kinds of shots. I always stop if I can!

[mbrassette]

I live in western Colorado and have about a 50min commute each way, along I70 which follows the Colorado River. I frequently stop to snap pictures of Bald Eagles, Elk, or just sunsets. Definitely have to be mindful of what's around when choosing where to pull off to take them, but overall it works. I need to dedicate some day rides to strictly photo shoots! Attached is one recent shot I took...

I use a Kodak Z612, looking to get a Tcon-17 to help capture some closer as well.

[Monoscopic]

I bought a high quality P&S just so I could carry it with me all the time. So of course as long as it is safe to pull over ( even just a minimal shoulder ) I will! A majority of my shots are just things I stumble across in along my journey.


You just can plan ahead for something like this.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/monoscopic/

[ShepArt]

I will stop if there is a place to pull off the road and park safely. The other day my husband and I were out walking along the seawall taking photos of the birds in the fog. As we were shooting, a car slowed down right beside us and parked (in the middle of the street) and the driver got out with camera in hand to get in on the action.

I don't have a problem sharing a photo opp, but it concerned me that they just stopped in the middle of the street without even turning on their blinkers when there was a parking area 15 feet beyond where they stopped.