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kamaeru
構える
Suppose that the hero in an action/adventure movie is waiting for the villain with his pistol ready. How would you express this in Japanese?
主人公はピストルを構えて待っていました。
Shujinkoo wa pisutoru o kamaete matte imashita.
The hero was waiting with his pistol ready.
The word kamaeru often expresses the idea of being ready, or being in a defensive posture. In the sample sentence below, a photojournalist who is visiting Vietnam has his camera ready:
ホーチミン市内をタクシーで走っているときである。ちょうど学校から帰る女生徒の流れに遭遇した。思わず、手にしていたカメラを構えてタイミングを待っていると、ドライバーは勝手に車を道路の脇に止めて、ドアを開けながら「美しい顔は、きちんと撮って下さい」とのことである。
http://www.bukkyo-u.ac.jp/mmc01/takashin/Vietnam/index.html
"I was traveling through Ho Chi Minh City in a taxi. We encountered a stream of schoolgirls who were returning home from school. Without thinking, I readied my camera and waited for the proper moment. Then the driver stopped the car on his own accord, and opened the door, as if to say, “Be sure to capture some beautiful faces.”
