Last fall, I started a series of posts called “Untangled” that described small ways I’m trying to become less reliant on my smart phone. The purpose was to create more margin in my life and restore habits that foster creativity. (Good-bye Facebook, hello daydreams.) You can start reading the series here.
Two years ago, I lost my camera—and more than 900 vacation photos—on a windy beach near Seattle. I placed a Craigslist ad and repeatedly called the park’s ranger station but it never turned up. At my next phone upgrade, the phone’s camera quality had improved so much that buying a separate gadget seemed redundant. Not only that, but I liked how convenient it was to have a reliable camera on my phone because I’m rarely without it. As I eventually came to see, that was also the problem.
By now we’ve all seen the poignant commercial that shows people toting their iPads along as they have beautiful, meaningful experiences such as hiking the Grand Canyon. What the commercial doesn’t show is the person off-camera who’s sitting on a stump hunched over her Facebook feed. More often than not, that’s the reality of having ever-present digital devices. My constant connection to the online world doesn’t enhance my experiences and it certainly doesn’t improve my relationships. I’ve never come home from a camping trip or birthday party wishing I’d spent more time on my smart phone.
But when your camera is your smart phone the temptation to be distracted by it is always there. For me, I thought it might help if I separated the two. I wanted to take photos without being tempted to read a blog or scan Pinterest afterward. Before our trip to the San Juan Mountains last summer, we bought an actual, stand-alone camera. As we traveled, our phones were still with us, but they spent much more time turned off and stowed safely away.
This is a habit I’m still working on. In my daily life, it still makes more sense to use my phone’s camera. But it’s the big moments, the special experiences, that I want to approach differently. Not with the internet in my hand, but with my eyes up.
