The art of photography with your spouse

This past week my husband Michael and I were celebrating our one year anniversary. On our honeymoon we discovered that we both have a passion for photography and discovering new places to take photos. So, for this trip we decided on a road trip to the Redwood Forest in Eureka California. Along with the redwoods we learned on-line that there were several lighthouses in the area that we could also photograph, along with the majestic redwoods. Allowing us to check two major things off of our bucket list we created when we were dating!

Upon arriving in Eureka we discovered that our hotel and Eureka was not quite what we expected. After discovering this, we quickly canceled our reservation and found a new hotel and re-planned our whole vacation, which made it into a whole new adventure. We decided to stay two nights in Eureka, visit the Redwoods and two lighthouse an then move on up the coast into Oregon where there were 7 more lighthouse for us to visit. This also allowed for us to end our Anniversary trip in Cannon Beach, where we began our journey last year!

On our honeymoon Michael mostly used a GoPro for his photographs occasionally borrowing my Nikon to shoot a few photos he thought would be captured better without a wide angle lens. This proved challenging if a few aspects. First, I had to be willing to give up my camera for a time so he could shoot the photos he wanted. Second, we only had one memory card so remembering which photos were mine or his proved difficult. Upon thinking about this I decided that purchasing Michael his own camera as his anniversary gift would not only make our road trip easier and more fun for both of us, but that it would provide us with a way to enjoy this common interest together more often. It work wonderfully! Micheal loved having his own camera and being able to shoot a photo the moment he saw it. The only complication we ran into was being able to tell the cameras apart when getting them out to shoot or downloading photos.

A a few tips on the art of photography with your spouse:

• Buy different colored straps for each camera to keep them identifiable.
• Discuss what types of things each of you would like to photograph before heading out to take pictures. Knowing your spouses goals for the day will help you be on the look out for opportunities to help them reach those goals.
• Be patient with each other, as one of you might take more photos at one location than the next. For us, Michael seems to take a lot more pictures everywhere we go than I do. So it is important that I be patient and let him know that I am not in a rush to move on to the next location.
• Be willing to stop at a moments notice if one of you sees something they want to try and capture. Rushing through a photography day from one location to the next might cause you to miss some great opportunities you never even knew about.
• Be excited for the other person when they capture a great shot you did not see or think about.

Finding a common interest with your spouse can be one of the most wonderful gifts in marriage if you allow it to draw you closer together rather than become a competition. Learn from each other. Enjoy the time your spending together no matter what the hobby is. I encourage you to start brainstorming today what activities you have or could have in common with your spouse. It will bless your marriage in ways you can't even imagine.

Here are some photos from our trip for you to enjoy.

Coming Next Week: Olive Oil: The art of flavored oils