Nod to the Camera in my Phone

At one time, I bought a camera just for my van. Based on the advice of a reputable store it was a simple point and shoot 35mm with a simple flash. It was the workhorse for real estate agents. And in keeping with that, I stocked it with fast film of 8 frames to the roll. If I did a safe job or needed to document anything else, I could grab some shots and have the film off and developed by the next day without wasting too much film. Also, it could sit in the van, get cold and still work -- something digital cameras do not do well mostly due to the batteries. I am unsure if I will ever use it again and they no longer stock the 8 exposure film where I was buying it.

Since then, cell phones have included cameras and the picture quality is mostly acceptable. With practice you can document most difficult hardware and since I always carry it, it is handy and stays warm enough to always work. At this time, I have a Motorola i580 phone with a 1.3 megapixel camera. Full resolution pictures are 1280 by 1024 pixels and run just under 100 KB depending on content. Even better, the photos are moved to a microSD card and can be moved off to any computer with any reader and the holder for the micro card which makes it fit into a standard SD slot. You can also email them off the phone but the handshake is unreliable and you sometimes get 3 or 4 of the same item at the far end since the phone was not told by the server that the server had the whole attachment. I have mostly stopped doing this. (I never was given a price per photo when I did email them back to the shop. I hope it did not cut into my Christmas bonus!)

Why take pictures you ask? Just do the work!!!
Sometimes they are critical to document what the door looked like when you arrived when all the client booked was a simple key change. Other times, you need hardware to match what is there. Of course, you have to leave the lock on the door since it needs to secure now. It amazes me companies will make glossy advertising and slick web sites for expensive hardware and not label it with a brand or model somewhere. Here is a nice example. The client is taking over the rest of the floor and wants the same looking hardware in the new doors. I was sent to see it before ordering. No name at all. I know from experience it is probably European. You draw a sketch and take a photo. The next day it is the shop managers problem.


Its not art. LOL.
Its a tool to help me do my job.


Perhaps another day I will pick up on some sketching techniques.

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Laux Myth ... Thoughts From a Locksmith
By MartinB, Found @ http://lauxmyth.blogspot.com/