I am not Disabled but not very abled!!!

DayDreamer

DayDreamer

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John
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I am beginning to wonder if there is any point in upgrading to a DLSR or not? Compared with this time last year I find myself less able to walk very far - about 100 yards maximum and with walking stick. So looking for some inspiration from those, who may be like me, or those who feel you can still get to places to take some shots.

I no longer drive so it means me being very reliant on my wife who is SO not into my 'faffing' around taking pictures :D
 
theres always macro and still life etc - which doesnt need you to go anywhere

that aside what about joining a group or looking on here for tog buddies and people you could go out with without needing your wife to take you - theres a fairly active group of south devon TPites if you look in the meetings thread , and i'm sure someone would pick you up for meets (for a start i would occasionally if you are in the seaton/sidmouth area)
 
big soft moose said:
theres always macro and still life etc - which doesnt need you to go anywhere

that aside what about joining a group or looking on here for tog buddies and people you could go out with without needing your wife to take you - theres a fairly active group of south devon TPites if you look in the meetings thread , and i'm sure someone would pick you up for meets (for a start i would occasionally if you are in the seaton/sidmouth area)
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Thanks so much for the offer. Sidmouth is a place I like and enjoy going to for a day or even a week even though we live only an hour away in Totnes.

I am new to the forum and clearly need to read it more but there is so much to read - so didn't realise about the groups :bonk:
 
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Thanks Big Soft Moose.

Sadly for me there is more to my health than only being able to walk 100 yards which I didn't really want to moan on about in my OP. I am in bed 16 hours, on average, per day with a only a small window in the morning where I seem to have a bit more zip.

My laptop is my good friend and I love fiddling around with photographs in the software as I am not able to spend too much time taking them but I am quite happy and accepting of my lot :thumbs:
 
Fair play - in that case what you really need is my other suggestion , get a macro lens, or if you cant run to that a set of extension tubes and look for compositions in home and garden - I got into macro originally while temporarily houesbound after a bike crash - theres an amazing range of stuff you can do just in your own house

look at the threads on water droplets for a start

also if you like post processing , have a look at the "how would you edit this photo" game (fun edits) , and " the PP game" (serious edits) threads in the processing forums
 
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If you have a bit of space in the garden, how about getting a wild flower patch created ?? Then no need to go out ...
 
Daydreamer, I know how you feel. I have MS and my mobility has been greatly reduced this year (although I start physio this week so hopefully it will improve). I actually can't use smaller cameras as my hands don't work very well so it has to be a DSLR for me. One thing it has made me do is to travel light so I'm often out with just a gripless body and a prime lens. I'm lucky enough to be able to drive though so I can see why you are frustrated.

Unfortunately, I live on the other side of the country otherwise I'd be glad to help out. I love your part of the country, we visit every couple of years and always stay in Totnes.

All I can say is to keep positive and, at those times when you really can't get out, try some of the options mentioned above. There's a world of photographic opportunity at home.
 
Forbiddenbiker said:
If you have a garden and the cash to buy an very expensive long lens, you could try shooting garden birds in beautiful compositions. from a chair in a pop-up hide maybe. … Its quite a skill to conquer and supremely satisfying because of it I find…not that I’ve actually conquered it.
:thumbs:
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come to that you can get decent garden bird shots with an inexpensive lens like a 90-300 , the trick in the garden is to get the birds to come close
 
fabs said:
Daydreamer, I know how you feel. I have MS and my mobility has been greatly reduced this year (although I start physio this week so hopefully it will improve). I actually can't use smaller cameras as my hands don't work very well so it has to be a DSLR for me. One thing it has made me do is to travel light so I'm often out with just a gripless body and a prime lens. I'm lucky enough to be able to drive though so I can see why you are frustrated.

Unfortunately, I live on the other side of the country otherwise I'd be glad to help out. I love your part of the country, we visit every couple of years and always stay in Totnes.

All I can say is to keep positive and, at those times when you really can't get out, try some of the options mentioned above. There's a world of photographic opportunity at home.
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Hi Fabs

And sorry you seem to be in a similar position to me. Reading this forium has been a real inspiration. I wish Ihad found it sooner.

Best wishes and hoping your treatment works for you.

DD
 
Thank you all so much for taking the time to reply. Oh how I wish I had found this forum sooner. I had been looking at DPreview but found it a much more serious place to be. Must be the difference in culture.

Some really good advice from you all and I will force myself to (absolutely seriously hate this expression) think outside the box. Ugh said it but it does sum things up quite well.
 
hi

Stealth Gear hides are good...''link''..if you can sit for extended periods you could have one in the back garden with some nearby bird feeders

may be a touch expensive though

I have thought of draping army camo netting over a lounge window with a hole for the lens...stay inside warm then..:lol:...and can move about inside unseen

good luck..............john
 
Yardbent said:
hi

Stealth Gear hides are good...''link''..if you can sit for extended periods you could have one in the back garden with some nearby bird feeders

may be a touch expensive though

I have thought of draping army camo netting over a lounge window with a hole for the lens...stay inside warm then..:lol:...and can move about inside unseen

good luck..............john
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My problem is a backyard with no garden but I have a small one at the front.

But I have a fantastic river view 50 paces from my front door.

Are you sure the attractive neighbours don't think you may be the neighbourhood voyeur :lol:
 
Yardbent said:
hi



I have thought of draping army camo netting over a lounge window with a hole for the lens...stay inside warm then..:lol:...and can move about inside unseen

good luck..............john
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Oi, I will have you know that come winter that's exactly what I do!! Seriously, too old and creaky to spend hours in a freezing cold hide, so open window, camo net, 120-300 and bird feeder near the house! :D

To the OP...yes its a horrible expression 'think outside the box' but it really does sum up what you need to do. Whether you do that with a smaller camera or with a dslr is up to you, but it is very much about what you can find to point the camera at. I have seem some amazing 'still life' pictures that would come under the category of 'abstract' simply because they are views of every day household objects photographed from an angle you wouldn't normally view them from.

You can also take heart from the fact we have several members here, as you are finding out, that also have limited mobility, including wheelchair bound, etc, so you are very much not alone.

If you have to be in bed, do you have one of the tables that sits over the bed or over your legs? They make great starter macro tables! You can also learn a lot about arranging still life settings on them. Also have a peek around the forum at the stuff people are doing with toys, things like lego men and the likes, basically making up a adventure stories with the toys and instead of a cartoon strip, a photostrip of the story. Some are absolutely inspired and the photographer hasn't moved from home. :thumbs:

Whatever you do, have fun doing it and post your pics :D
 
Thanks so much Yv as you talk a lot of very good sense.

I can see I do need to think away from 'where I was' towards 'where I am' now. I may have enjoyed walking around the towns and fields taking architectural and landscape shots but now will get my thinking cap on.

Thanks again :thumbs:
 
have a look at Ian Candlers Gallery and threads ...brilliant stuff
 
DayDreamer said:
I am beginning to wonder if there is any point in upgrading to a DLSR or not? Compared with this time last year I find myself less able to walk very far - about 100 yards maximum and with walking stick. So looking for some inspiration from those, who may be like me, or those who feel you can still get to places to take some shots.

I no longer drive so it means me being very reliant on my wife who is SO not into my 'faffing' around taking pictures :D
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You say you walk with a stick , but would you be able to cycle , my dads got a collapsed arch in his foot & walks with a severe limp & he cant manage to walk more than a few yards without having to hang on to something

But he cycles miles with ease, if your legs are up to cycling then thats maybe another way of getting about to take pics
 
Dermots Spirit said:
You say you walk with a stick , but would you be able to cycle , my dads got a collapsed arch in his foot & walks with a severe limp & he cant manage to walk more than a few yards without having to hang on to something

But he cycles miles with ease, if your legs are up to cycling then thats maybe another way of getting about to take pics
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Thanks for the thought - a good one as well.

I have a number of health problems - none terminal -well if they are my GP never said so ;) Including CFS/ME, chronic vertigo, peripheral neuropathy of the feet and legs so really feel a bit buggered. A bike I would fall off in next to no time :eek:
 
Forbiddenbiker said:
Chuck photo astronomy into your new ideas list too :thumbs:… hobbyists are leading the way nowadays . Some of the guys here do stunning stuff, lost of layering and processing involved, . …sounds like it might be up your street . ... have a search. :)
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Good idea and thanks for the suggestion :thumbs:
 
i cant walk great distances either,but what ive found is i see much more than those rushing through.
take time and adapt to your surroundings, i can examine a small garden and find lots of things in it to photograph/investigate.
same anywhere i go i observe everything and take it in.

the other thing is buy your other half a camera and share the fun.
 
straycat said:
i cant walk great distances either,but what ive found is i see much more than those rushing through.
take time and adapt to your surroundings, i can examine a small garden and find lots of things in it to photograph/investigate.
same anywhere i go i observe everything and take it in.

the other thing is buy your other half a camera and share the fun.
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Good points in that since reading this forum I am starting to look at things in a different way and which I need to keep doing. I have been looking at members galleries and realise there is more to a good photo than a landscape, streetscape or seascape.

My wife had a cast off Nikon compact from my son and kept it in her handbag to use 'as and when'. BUT the 'as and when' never happened so she gave it away.
 
you can try asking her oppinion on photographic things.
if she shares the passion it makes it easier for you and show her how your camera works but be careful you might not get it back.
 
DayDreamer said:
Thanks for the thought - a good one as well.

I have a number of health problems - none terminal -well if they are my GP never said so ;) Including CFS/ME, chronic vertigo, peripheral neuropathy of the feet and legs so really feel a bit buggered. A bike I would fall off in next to no time :eek:
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Mobility scooter time! Would be ideal to zip about your local area on. You could even mount the camera on the front with a tripod mount and make it adjustable so you could take photos easily while sitting down.
 
srichards said:
Mobility scooter time! Would be ideal to zip about your local area on. You could even mount the camera on the front with a tripod mount and make it adjustable so you could take photos easily while sitting down.
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Now you are talking - F1 style scooter and wooooosh I'm off!!!

A year ago I could walk with a limp and now need a stick and I must admit to having looked into the shopmobility schemes, to give a scooter a try, but I guess, being proud, I'm not there in my head --- yet.

Great idea though :clap:
 
straycat said:
you can try asking her oppinion on photographic things.
if she shares the passion it makes it easier for you and show her how your camera works but be careful you might not get it back.
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She has about as much interest in any Hi Tech item as I have in trying to cook my dinner - a big fat zero.

Now is this the oven? Or is it the washing machine. Or is it the tumble dryer. :thinking:
 
DayDreamer said:
but I guess, being proud, I'm not there in my head --- yet.
:
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low cc quad bike - same mobilty , same principle, no stigma, simples
 
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