Suffering in Secret... A Reflection on Scott Bourne's Post

I am a penchant follower of Scott Bourne. His websites can be found here and here. One of his blog entry discussed the "Photographer's Secret - Pain and Injury". After reading that entry, I started to reflect on my own plight. I began to asses how "fit" I am when it comes to photography.

My DSLR is now heavier than the one I had before. Add to that the lens, the flash and the grip and I have a set up that can be quite daunting. I used to not think about this, but after reading the article, I suddenly focused on my own mortality, so to speak. I have a bad left shoulder, a bad right wrist and the back of my neck is constantly aching.

I recently watched a youtube video by Yuri Arcurs on how to instruct a model (link here). I learned a lot from that video and the wife agreed when, on one afternoon, I used the "hand" technique when I was instructing her on where to look. But, another thing I took from that video is that Yuri was using a monopod during the photoshoot.

I am not one to complain but the pains that I feel cannot be disregarded. I might even be doing myself some harm by ignoring them. It's time to admit that I feel the pain.



I think that, for an extended photoshoot where one cannot use a tripod, the monopod would serve as a photographer's best friend. Also, using a full load messenger bag, in my experience, does not bode well for my back. A backpack may still be the best way to carry stuff around. And the reason why I have the Blackrapid strap is to relieve the back of my neck when I shoot. And lugging around a DSLR everyday might not be a really good idea anymore. A really good point-and-shoot, like the Canon G12, might be a good bet when I just want to have a camera on me all the time.

However, the G12 is still far into the future and the reason why I use a messenger bag is because of the convenience of being able to get the camera quickly. Also, the monopod that I have now can no longer accommodate my heavier set up.

So I guess I will just have to make do with what I have now...

(On a related note, when I went to the Canon Expo I made the mistake of carrying with one hand a Canon 1Ds Mark III mounted with a Canon EF 200mm f/2. I felt the pain on my wrist for several days and I had to ice it until the pain subsided. I'll never make that mistake again.)