Pictures for party of 2

Most of the time we do okay taking pictures of ourselves as we travel, but when we visit really cool places, it's nice to have a picture taken from more than an arm's length away.  I've learned there's a talent behind asking the right people to take your picture.  Because sometimes you get this:


"Could you take a picture of us with the Arch of Constantine?"
"Sure... but let me cut out most of the arch that you wanted in the picture."

"Could you take a picture of us with the Trevi Fountain?
"Sure... but let me cut out most of the beautiful fountain just to make sure I can squeeze your pants into the frame."

Or ironically at the Pantheon, we asked someone to take a picture for us, and they cut the top off, so we decided to take a picture ourselves.  Not too bad, right? 

Then a random guy passing by said, "no, no, no, you need a picture of the whole Pantheon.  Let me take one for you."  He spent about 30 seconds contorting himself backwards (why don't people just move their feet??)  claiming he was going to fit the whole thing into the picture.  So I'm not sure why we ended up with the top of the Pantheon cut off...

As I scan crowds for someone to ask to take our picture, some things I look for are:

--are they young?  This usually means they'll speak some English, or at least understand what we're asking. 

--how nice is their camera?  I always hope nicer cameras correlate to better pictures. 

--Are they already taking pictures of the same place?  If yes, they hopefully have seen what angles are good and what angles aren't so good.  

--Are they a couple?  I can offer to take a picture for them in return.  And if there's two of them, usually the one with better photo skills takes the picture.  Better odds. 

Occasionally, it works, because we got some nice shots in Rome.  

Victor Emmanuel Monument- taken by a young Asian tourist

Colosseum- taken by a young couple with a really nice camera

St. Peter's Basilica... can't remember who took it

St. Peter's Basilica- taken by a young tourist we saw taking pictures for someone else.  He took about 4 shots from several angles.  Above and beyond!