Re: [Leica] dear god - do NOT photograph your child's birth!

[jkcampbell1@mmm.com]

Kyle, sometimes I think you are the only sane person on this list.

But just in case I'm wrong, here's a list of associated questions and
answers.
Hopefully by asking them all at once we can save a couple hundred replies
to this thread.

1. What is the best lens to use at a birth?
This depends on what city you are in. Check the LUG archives, there are
tons of questions
like "I'm traveling to Boston, what lens would be best for Boston?". If you
are giving birth in Boston
use the "Boston" lens, if your'e in San Francisco use your "San Fran" lens
(you might want to add
a polarizer, it's very sunny in CA). If you still don't know take my
advise, use a 90 or 135.  Trust me,
I been thru a couple of these events. This is not the time for "working in
close".

2. Which is the best Leica body for capturing the magic moment?
Any M camera will do, but don't show up with a CL or God forbid a Bessa!
Remember who you are
working with here.. Doctors! Everyone in the room owns a Leica and I'm not
talking about a "user"
M3 but M6Js and LHSA Black Paints.

My suggestion is to bring several bodies, the last thing you want to do is
run out of film at crunch
time. We all know how hard Leicas are to load. The little tyke will be off
to preschool before you
get that second roll into your M6.

3. What's the best film to use for photographing a delivery?
Tri-X pushed to 6400. We're going for emotion here not fine detail. Years
from now when you look
back at your prints you'll appreciate the grain.

Here's my last bit of advise. This is a very stressful process and
sometimes things are said during
delivery that we don't really mean. If in the middle of a contraction your
wife yells "You Son of a Bitch".
Don't take it personally, she's not talking to you but to the Leica
management for not having that
AF - AE - Digital M6E ready for this special event.

Best of luck jc





Kyle Cassidy <cassidy@netaxs.com> on 01/26/2001 09:19:57 AM

Please respond to leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us


To:   leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us
cc:    (bcc: John K. Campbell/US-Corporate/3M/US)
Subject:  [Leica] dear god - do NOT photograph your child's birth!



> In about 1 week I'm going to be a dad, I've been think for some time of
> how to best capture the moment and also not to be stuffing around with
> cameras at a time like that.

best capture the moment by being there WITHOUT your goldang cameras.

and to illustrate this point, i think back to my college days ... i'm
alone in the apartment one afternoon, watching television when the phone
rings ... it's mrs. goldstein, my roommates' mother.

"oh hello dear," she says, "i was just going through some things in the
attic and i found an 8mm film of adam's briss. i was going to throw it
away, but do you think he'd want that?"

"oh yes mrs. goldstein, he'd want that VERY MUCH, just send it on over,
but you'd better address it to me. some of his mail has been getting
misdirected -- some screw up at the post office. thanks a bunch."

"i'll put it right in the mail. good bye dear! and tell my sweet pea i
miss him!"

so 8 days later, a package arrives in the mail, addressed to me, with a
little 5 minute super 8 reel in it. i call all of adams friends and invite
them over ... we're still watching it (13th time) when adam gets back from
class.

believe me, your kid does not need events like this photographed. and
neither does your wife. hold her hand and give her some encouragement and
cut the umbillical cord if you have to, but don't photograph it. some
things are better left a private mystery.

kc