The picture that got away

[paulette conlan]

Hi
As I mentioned in the thread " you know when you are addicted to photoshop", I was hosting a family gathering in a Westchester County( NY) restaurant( Rudy's Beau Rivage in Dobbs Ferry for those who know the area) along the Hudson River last weekend. Apparently it's been raining just about every weekend up there and our Saturday afternoon was no exception. It honestly did not affect our function( other than some people encountering bad driving conditions) although I admit it would have been nice to see the river and palisades from the picture windows.

Anyway, our affair was winding down around 5 and (always camera in hand) I was bidding everyone goodby from the lobby. By that time the drizzle had turned into a monsoon and everyone was hurrying to their cars. All of a sudden a bride and her attendants come through the front door-she looked towards the outdoor tent on the verandah overlooking the river ( where her wedding was going to be held) - and went over to sit at a stool at a small bar in the lobby and just stared down at the floor. The look on her face was heartbreaking.

She must have planned for this wedding at this beautiful location well in advance and now it would all have to be in an enclosed tent that could have been in the middle of a parking lot for that matter. All of the indoor rooms were totally booked for that evening so there was no alternative.

If I could have taken the picture unobtrusively I think I would have but I was using a new digital camera and I wasn't certain I could disable the flash and change the iso for low light quickly enough. I have the picture of her so vividly in my mind that if I knew how to sketch, I could do so.

Well that was my picture that got away from me although I realize it was by choice. Perhaps I could have pretended I was taking pictures of my guests leaving but I didn't think about that at the time.

What would you all have done?



Paulette

[kathleen]

paulette,

i would have done what you did.

i think you are casting about for creative alternatives, wish i had one, but i think the better part of wisdom was to avoid doing anything that would add to her misery. hope someone photosmarter has a good answer.

[Ed_L]

Good to see some of the old timers here. Wow Paulette! Sorry to hear that one got away. It sounds like it might have been a winner. If I had been the one with the camera, I think I would have disabled the flash, and if I didn't feel I had enough time to alter the exposure settings, I would have taken the shot without changing anything else. You might have been lucky, and got the shot anyhow. The other alternative would have been (depending on just how depressed she was) to ask her if she would mind if you took the shot with her knowledge, while offering posing suggestions to get the shot you had in your mind.

Ed

[Foreign]

Heh... I'm not sure what i would have done. My digital has a an auto feature with a one touch flash shutoff so I probably would have attempted that.

ALTHOUGH!! I was shopping one day, looking at the scenery inside a store and felt compelled to take this girls picture. I thought I had the flash off but no. that was pretty embarrassing. I said I was sorry and walked the other way. *smack head*

[Toad]

You did the right thing - the image was not worth adding to her misery.

You would have looked like one of those jerks taking pictures of grief-stricken parents at a disaster site.

The image might have been cool - but it's not life.

[PamT]

I admire your restraint.. hope you can replace the feeling of disappointment with one of warmth, knowing you did the right thing in considering her privacy and dignity. She made a place in your heart sounds like

Pam