Confessions of a Photographer's Wife

Two years ago when hubby and I were in the middle of an event in Cebu, our point and shoot camera suddenly died a natural death. Probably due to old age or to the numerous bruises it got due to misuse (hehe..i have the habit of dropping it when i have something exciting I want to take a picture of), at that time, it just decided to stop working. So on the spot, we decided to purchase a DSLR camera, but later did I discover that hubby has been researching the net beforehand about photography and using a professional camera so you can imagine how good he was at that point in convincing me to buy that dslr cam on the store window we were looking at. And I guess after that, you can say the rest was history...

I am writing this for all the ladies out there who has her man hooked into photography and doesn’t have an inkling about it. So here are my takes on the different issues and lessons i learned along the way...

• Photography as I figured has a lot of different facets. There’s macro photography, seascape and landscape photography, portraits, events photography, underwater photography, among others. If your man is hooked, understand which facet he is interested in. It will give you an idea on what to expect.

• Macro and underwater photography, I’m not that familiar with since hubby has not taken an interest in it yet (Thank God! Since I heard the gears can be really pricey!). Now landscape photography is different. When hubby tells me he’s going to shoot landscapes… I always make sure he brings his telephoto or his wide-angle lens. Without it I’m not sure because he might be shooting “other” landscapes I’m sure I wouldn’t like much...hehe! With his telephoto (this is the long lens that looks like your office thermos) I am assured that he can’t take shots up close as in a portrait shoot since he must be really far from his subject to use it. :D

• Photography is a hobby that requires talent and a good eye in the artistic aspect of framing a subject, so the more I keep on limiting his subjects, the more he looks for even more interesting and exotic things to shoot! So I figured, why not let him choose whatever  he wishes to concentrate on, at least I know he's shooting something he is happy about and when your happy with your subject, the better output he comes up with.

• Photography can be a really expensive hobby. Taking really artistic photos means being equipped with the best gears available. If your man is uber rich then I say why nag him about it since you obviously have extras to spare. But if not, then discuss how he can profit from his hobby. You never know, he might even rake in a lot of moolah with this hobby especially if he's gotten really good at it.

• What's up with all these models posing for my hubby's cam? At first I don't feel comfortable with hubby taking pictures of others besides me and myself (since we always believe that our hubbies should only have eyes for us diba?). But then I realized, what the heck, why not be your hubby's make-up artist! At least besides him saving money on MUAs, you get your eye on him all through the entire shoot! hehe..

• Don't fret, portraiture in photography is not just about taking someone's profile or so pictures in exotic poses. Its an art in itself. Often times, the photographer should be somehow in touch with their feminine side to take really artistic pictures that are worth keeping. They invest in time not only during the shoot but during post processing so their subject comes out looking really good in their portraits. In short its not personal so don't take it personally.

• Last off but definitely worth mentioning.. photography is a hobby that's also a good stress buster. So if your man lives a stressful life on the job, just understand that this hobby takes worries and future heart attacks off his mind. Its definitely a better distraction for him than most, believe me. 

My advise for you -- the male photo hobbyist...

 You know how women often find it difficult to digest why the interest in shooting models? Before you earn the support of your partner in pursuing your chosen hobby in Portraiture photography, I highly recommend taking good portraits of your partner first! Your lady might not admit that she wants you to take a photo of her but seriously, underneath all the pretense she really wants you to take her portraits! Believe me, it is flattering for a wife or a girlfriend for that matter if you insist on taking their portraits or practice your craft on them first. What more can I say, vanity is somehow inherent among our species. So produce portraits of your partner that are worthy of praise, then I'm sure the green monster won't bother you again every time you shoot models' portraits no matter how vavavooom they are :)

Postscript: of course these are my opinion and it happens to be my blog, so for violent reactions, please address them to my hubby. Since i major-major support him, he'll be more than willing to answer you in support of my blogging hobby. hehe.. have a nice day!