Self-Timed Photos

A couple of weeks ago my sister and brother-in-law visited me. We did some sightseeing in the Marin Headlands, Golden Gate Park, and Big Sur. I took some great photos that I look forward to scrapbooking. It wasn't hard taking good photos because these areas are so incredibly diverse and visually interesting, and there were three of us to take shots of each other.

At the moment, I am at my family's summer place on a lake in New Hampshire. I come here every year, and I love this place. It's very different from California. Being here alone, I often face the challenge of documenting my visit using photography in more creative ways.

The day I arrived here was beautiful, sunny and warm, just about perfect. I struggled with a way to express this other than just taking the usual shot of the lake and mountains – lovely, but basically the same since I was a child.

Finally I remembered the self-timer on my camera. I positioned the camera to get a shot of me laying on the deck with the water in the background, set the timer, scooted into my pose, and voila! A perfect shot. I used the feature again to get a shot of me reading a book after the weather turned rainy.

I'll be thinking of other ways to use this feature during this trip and incorporate it into my bag of tricks. Yes, my layouts of my vacations alone can include more photos of me. This will be the Year of the Self-Timer.