Chimping Exposed

John Mueller

http://www.sportsshooter.com/special_feature/chimping/index.html

Nir

!!

ginger_55

I didn't have my hearing aids on, so watched a bit and figured to come back later. I now have them on, but something is coming on TV, too.

Just a comment on chimping................having figured out what it is on my own a few weeks ago. Been doing it since going digital. One of the joys of digital, is it not.

Curious as to why it is a "word", "jargon", that is used, never explained and appears to me to be seen as less than "honorable": "chimping" is, or seems to me.

I kept asking what the word meant and no one told me, that is unusual here.
I did figure out when a photo of Andy "chimping" was posted. Laughing at them, they were. (And that is a good thing, just don't know why chimping would be fodder for laughter, haha)

ginger

Shay Stephens

On chimping
From what I can discern, there are two sources of scorn for chimping, one legitimate, and one illegitimate.

Legit:
If you are shooting any type of ongoing action, stopping to look at the LCD will take your eyes off the action. You may miss something that is going on now looking at what has just happened. So taking time to chimp may harm your ability to get your job done. You would be best to chimp when the action dies down or limit it to very brief verifications.

Illegitimate:
An elitist attitude that says that the photographer should know that what they are getting is pure gold and there is no need to look at the LCD, ever. In fact, they may go so far as to eschew even editing on the computer. I am surprised they *ever* look at their work. I categorically reject this attitude. It is dangerously and insanely prideful and will hold a photographer back from making real progress.

My take on chimping as an event photographer:
Balance is needed, if the action is hot and heavy, you are better off not chimping unless you can afford to miss something important happening. Before the action gets heavy, I do some confirmatory chimping to make sure I am ready, then once the action has died down, I do a little more confirmatory chimping to make sure I got what I needed. When the action is dead, I will do heavy chimping and on site content editing prepping myself for the next round of action. This helps my confidence level, and keeps the camera memory load a little lighter. I probably delete 15%-20% while in the field.

Chimping, and the ability to chimp, has been one of the biggest benefits to me as a photographer. I can get verification, I can correct mistakes because I can spot them sooner, while I am still on-site, and have the ability to get another chance at getting it right. If my shutter or something else dies on the camera, I am going to know about it a lot sooner than the film photog or the snobby elitist. It is insurance and a way to reduce risk, which is vitally important to anyone who relies on what they shoot to put food on the table.

So ya, I chimp, and I am proud and happy to say so. It is a benefit to me and my clients. And the name is funny, and makes me smile, so whats not to like

ginger_55 wrote:

Curious as to why it is a "word", "jargon", that is used, never explained and appears to me to be seen as less than "honorable": "chimping" is, or seems to me.

I kept asking what the word meant and no one told me, that is unusual here.
I did figure out when a photo of Andy "chimping" was posted. Laughing at them, they were. (And that is a good thing, just don't know why chimping would be fodder for laughter, haha)

ginger

Nikolai

Hilarious!

John Mueller wrote:

http://www.sportsshooter.com/special_feature/chimping/index.html

thanks for the link!

Nikolai

Shay, I agree!
One of the greatest benefits of shooting digital is an ability to quickly check your results and, if needed, make a correction and reshoot. Of course, during the live and very dynamic action it's pretty silly and wastefull behaviour to verify each shot taken. However, if you spent two days getting to some hard-to-reach location, then taking a shot and NOT verifying its outcome right there and now IS silly and wastefull behaviour...
As the young guy in this clip said: "chimping is great if taking in moderation"..

Just wanted to "chimp in":-)
Cheemps!

Angelo

great fun. thanks for sharing that.

tlittleton

Well, you learn something new everyday....:D

Dee

Too funny
and a great explanation.

I chimp and I'm glad I do. Caught many "mistakes" I was able to correct on the spot -- bad lighting, bad flare, change my EV setting, change my auto balance, etc.

davemj98

Chimping is caused by a person being wildly impressed with the fantastic shot just taken, which is so over the top that he starts pointing and saying "Oooh, Oooh" before he can make words about the shot, to any and all nearby. The simian sounds being the root 'chimp' and the actions (pointing) adding the -ing. Right? been doing it for a while but now it has been given a name.:D