Making That Cell Camera Practical

We are checking into a busy RV campground on our bicycle adventure across America and the clerk asks for the license number of our truck which is parked quite some distance away. Another person in line suggests that we take a photo of the plate and carry it in our cell phone. Duh! Why didn’t we think of that?

Head out to any public place and observe how many phones are being used as cameras? It will astound you.

Now observe what people are photographing? Is it a selfie? A Sunset? Kids at play? Your meal at an Irish pub? Or do you notice people using their camera like a notebook to refer to later?

There are many fun applications for cell phone usage, but that camera can save you a lot of time and make life a whole lot easier. Here are some ways to use your cell camera to save time later.

Photograph your

• License plate for checking into hotels and RV campgrounds.
• Recipes so you can purchase all the ingredients.
• Recipes so you can make it at your cabin or campsite where there is no internet and you don’t want to carry a bulky book along
• An envelope for sending a thank you note later
• A website that you notice when out and about and want to check out later
• A gray arm chair at IKEA to see how it will go in your own sunny sitting room
• The cover of a book your friend is reading and highly recommends
• Notes from a class for studying without dragging along your notebook
• Favorite quotes you see hanging on the wall at your favorite coffee shop.
• Model numbers from a broken appliance so you can take the photo to the parts store and secure the replacement part.
• A broken piece that needs replacing. Match it up at the hardware store
• Your chandelier so you can go to the lighting store and buy additional lighting to match the finish and style.
• Picture frames that you have at home so you can buy the same style at Hobby Lobby
• A wild flower in the forest so you can identify it later
• A photo of a home construction project so you can send it to the handyman to see if he’ll take on your project.

Recently at a dear cousin’s memorial, the family passed around his well-marked Bible. I grabbed my cell and began snapping pictures of page after page to ponder at a later time what touched him at a deeper level.

While writing this, I was talking with my daughter about a small remodeling job needed for her craft room in the garage. She is replacing a small high window with beautiful french doors salvaged from an interior designer’s current project. We found a connection to a remodeling hotline. I suggested my daughter snap a photo of the project that needs to be done inside and outside and send it to the hotline. That way hopefully a handyman match can be made sooner rather than later.

Consider your cell camera a tool to make your life easier. It will save you time and frustration.

And if you have some other applications not mentioned above, please leave them in a comment below.