A broken camera is like PD

During the March Break, my much beloved camera was broken. (I won't go into details explaining how this happened.) It's an expensive camera and one that I've had for a long time (a Canon Power Shot S3, if you were wondering). I had planned on just running to the store and getting it repaired but the cost of getting it fixed wasn't worth it. I balked (okay, my husband balked) at spending the same amount of money on a similar make and model without investigating all the other options, so I turned to the husband of a good friend of mine who is a big photography fan. He was absolutely fantastic. He interviewed us about the type of pictures we take, the settings we used, the things we liked most about my old camera. I went to his house and he lent me two other cameras. They're a lot smaller than my old camera.

"Try them out for a while," he advised. "You are used to the weight and feel of your old one, so unless you take some pictures with these, you'll never be able to make a balanced decision".

I've taken his advice and snapped many photos. I thought I'd never get accustomed to such a puny little camera. I enjoyed the "handle" on my old one and my familiarity with the controls so that I could take a "sports" or "macro" shot. However, as I've toyed with the "loaners", I've begun to see the advantage of their compact size (which fits easily into my purse). I've discovered a grip that allows me to take photos without getting my fingers in the way. I think, when I finally make my camera purchase, I can fairly judge the different types of cameras and make a sound decision.

I realized, as I made the final preparations for my presentation tomorrow with the Dufferin Peel Catholic District School Board, that my experience with my broken camera is a lot like professional development. How?

• We can't and won't give up our old ways of doing things unless we think they are "broken".
• We need wise mentors to help us sort things out and discover what we need from what's out there.
• We require time to play with the new methods so we can decide for ourselves what path to choose.
• We must see the benefits before accepting a change

I hope my workshop goes over well with the group. I haven't yet figured out how to upload the photos I've taken with the new cameras, so my blog will be image-less for a while. Hopefully I'll be a camera owner again soon.