My family is spread over Southern California. I'm the only one who lives in the northern part of the state. So at least once a year we pack up the car and pilgrimage south for a visit with the clan.
That's right, the family road trip.
Normally on these adventures, I don't get to engage in much photography beyond snapshots. Except when we're actually on the road.
My good news is that Theresa loves to be behind the wheel. Fine with me. I get to play navigator/window seat photographer.
I'm the shutterbug version of a dog riding shotgun: head out the window with a big smile on my face and a camera in my hand. If it's cold, I have to shoot through the glass. (An ardent request from the backseat inhabitants.) That's OK, I clean my window before we leave. This is much better than those messy airplane portholes that are rarely up to my optical standards.
Road trips are my opportunities to play with new cameras I'm testing, try out those built-in creative filters that never seem appropriate during "serious" photography, and experiment with slow shutter speeds and special effects. The longer the trip, the wilder I get.
In my opinion, if you always insist on driving during family vacations, you're missing out. Let someone else be in charge. Riding shotgun with a camera case at your feet is where the real action is.
-Derrick