Our phones have amazing high-quality cameras.
The need for a separate device to film events, trips, and priceless moments is long gone.
The smartphone brought many devices to old school level or made them simply obsolete.
Combine that with the fact that a smartphone is not as heavy as a 90s camera, and you understand why people can hold smartphones for hours just to document every single second of an event.
A few years ago when I went to Coldplay’s concert, I noticed how many fans were filming with their device.
That didn’t surprise me, what did was for how long they were actually filming.
There were fans who felt the need to document every single song for at least a few seconds.
When you add up all those minutes, you realize how much of the performance was witnessed through a screen.
You’re there, with all the people around you, listening to music and watching a performance, but then decide to experience all that glamour through that little screen.
I totally understand when you want to record a moment or two with your smartphone, but why focus on documenting the whole thing?
Not only that, some decide it’s a good idea to share all these moments on social media right there and then.
One post okay, but 10?
I wonder how many times someone will look back at those videos.
It’s fun for the first few days, but anything that I film personally I don’t look back anymore.
In case I want to watch the concert back, I’ll just go on Youtube and find a professional or at least a better quality video that I can enjoy.
When you’re witnessing a breathtaking one-of-a-kind event, you don’t want to be thinking of tech for more than 5% of your time.
Enjoy and savor the moment.
Allow your eyes to witness the magic and be in awe of the energy that you feel around you, that you are participating in.
Don’t disconnect yourself from the collective experience.
Don’t disconnect from that moment you are sharing with your friends.
When you use your smartphone, you don’t experience that level of immersion your friends are experiencing.
They will have both hands in the air to enhance the immersion, not because they want to document anything.
Don’t think too much about “I need to share this” or “I need to save this”!
Take a few clips and put that device away.
Do both yourself and the artist a favour: don’t have it in your hands the entire time!