The question was posed to someone else but I absolutely do understand what you're saying Greenpete.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfjkiTB1fHQ
Ben Stiller: When are you going to take it(picture)?
Sean Penn: Sometimes, I don't. If I like a moment, I mean me, personally, I don' t like to have the distraction of the camera. I just want to stay...in it. Yeah, right there. Right here.
Sean is there, in it, absorbed, connected in the moment. Did you feel it? I did. I felt like I was having the moment with him. I could see through his eyes, having the experience as he did. That's connecting in different aspects. RICH!
Consider the worth of those pics? Consider the effort in getting to that place in the world and into that situation to locate, clearly frame, the lighting, and get a front cover Nat Geo cover shot of a snow leopard as a professional photographer? Yet Sean didn't lose himself in technology. He even pulls back from the camera having the profound moment for himself. Look at his face. Hear his voice. That's being there in the moment ported on film!