It’s just 8 a.m. and the day is off to a most frustrating start.
We were early in our walk, just getting to the water after passing the last few houses on the Kaneohe end of Swanzy Beach Park. The sun was just coming up. I took a couple of quick pictures. Here’s the last photo in that batch.
After walking another hundred feet or so, I stopped to take another photo. Well, more accurately, I tried to take another photo and got an error message instead: “Lens Error. Will automatically shut down. Restart camera.”
I had this dreaded “lens error” on another occasion back when the camera was relatively new and under warranty. It required swapping out the lens assembly, and was a known problem at that time. Canon did the repair at no charge. That was then. I don’t know what will happen now. So there I was, walking along the narrow eroding shoulder on the ocean side of Kamehameha Highway holding an umbrella to shield myself and the camera, and worrying about when I’ll have time to go to the Canon office, figure out if it’s cost effective to fix, etc., etc.
That was frustrating, but little did I know the real frustration had not yet begun!
Just a little farther along, there is another set of houses before you arrive at Kaaawa Beach Park. Up ahead, a friend was out in front of her house taking photos. That’s when we turned around to see what she was looking at and saw the most amazing double rainbow stretching all the way across Kaaawa. The main rainbow was clear, sharp, and bright, while the outer double rainbow was not-so-bright but clearly visible. The full uninterrupted arc was visible. It would have been a wonderful photo, but I was now carrying a delicate paperweight rather than a camera.
Frustrating.
But the photo gods weren’t finished taunting me.
Those rainbows continued to strut their stuff during the entire time it took us to walk to the far end of the beach, turn around, and walk along the beach. The last remnant finally faded just as we got back to Kaaawa Beach Park.
That was a very long walk, and being accompanied most of the way by a perfect double rainbow was both visually spectacular and deeply frustrating.
Whew.
I hope the day gets better.
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When life hands you a lemon, make lemonade. Perhaps what happened is a blessing. It’s a lesson teaching you to appreciate what’s immediately around you instead of worrying about documenting it. The phrase is “every-minute Zen.” I’m reminded of the Japanese tourists focusing on taking pictures of something beautiful instead of focusing on the beauty itself. I’m reminded of people standing in the presence of the President or the Pope or Dalai Lama and viewing the scene through the lens of their camera instead of through their very own eyes, mind, and soul. Your memory of Thursday morning is now disappointment tinged with anger, instead of the awe and beauty you could have enjoyed if you had never taken the camera along.
Consider what you wrote previously regarding the dog attack. Someone suggested you take along a knife or pepper spray on future trips, to ward off possible attacks. But you said that carrying a weapon would change your attitude, focusing on negativity and fear, diminishing the enjoyment of walking and handing out dog biscuits. The camera is a kind of weapon to prevent forgetting what you see, but in fact the camera changes the experience itself and interferes with seeing and remembering. You concluded “That was a very long walk, and being accompanied most of the way by a perfect double rainbow was both visually spectacular and deeply frustrating.” Without the camera, there would have been no frustration.
Well said, Mr. Conklin. Agree completely.
Any day that starts with double rainbows is not all bad. And it will happen again
Conklin (and others) beat me to it . . . hey, you got to see a beautiful double rainbow. You got to walk on the beach. Enjoy!
If your camera is the Canon S100 Powershot, Canon should fix the recurring lens error under warranty. It happened twice with mine; the first time was in July 2012 & the second in December 2012. The first incident was handled without a hitch, but the second took some negotiation. After an exchange of several emails, Canon did send me a postpaid mailing label & repaired the camera under warranty. I really appreciated their follow-through but have to say that my confidence in Canon digital cameras – acquired over 10 years of use — was shaken a bit.
Ken managed to post without pissing anyone off. Good job, Ken! And well said.
Ian, open your eyes. 🙂