What do you do with your hiking poles?

Gene, I had the same issue. I move around quite a lot to get the angles I want, so having poles in hand is a major PITA. If its a really photogenic area, I'll probably just stow the poles, which is thankfully quite quick with the BD ultra distance z poles that I use. But, when I'm just shooting intermittantly, I have a pretty simple system, that may or may not be like osprey's, but i find it works pretty well without the need to compact the poles.

I attached a loop of shock cord toward the bottom of the left side daisy chain of my pack. This is just a simple loop that you knot closed, which you may have to cut a couple of times to get the right diameter, so I'd start longer than you think you'll need. Then I added another loop of cord onto the daisy chain of my left strap, except this time with cord lock. The bottom loop is just to keep the poles from moving around too much, while the top one is what holds them in place with the chord lock tightened just below the grip of the poles. The bottom loop needs to be loose and stretchy enough that you can get your pole tips through without much struggle, but not so loose that the poles are moving around a lot. This system works best with light weight poles, for sure.

The only other thing that I'll add, is that for some of the reasons you mentioned, my enjoyment of photography while backpacking has gone up a lot since I ditched my DSLR and went with the sony rx100. This is a camera that you can easily snap away with one hand and the image quality rivals most DSLR's with decent quality lenses (not pro or prime glass of course, but hey, it fits in your pocket). Its just much more fun and seamless, but you can still take some 'serious' landscape shots and print big(ish).

edit: and here's a good place to order shock cord and cord lockers if you can't find them locally: http://www.zpacks.com/accessories/spectra_cord.shtml
and here's a good

I don't use an SLR, but for quick on the hoof snapping I just let the poles go, and grab my camera from a pocket (clothing or pack), and use the camera. The poles just dangle from my wrist by the straps.

If you use the straps correctly, you can do many things while they hang from your wrists. When finished, a quick flick, and the handles are easy to grab and carry on.

del

My poles came with a little plastic clip that holds them together very securely. I keep it attached to one of the poles all the time. With a snap it turns poles not in use into a solid unit much easier to store, lean against a hip or a tree or whatever instead of two gangly poles one always fighting the other.

Take three steps away and stab them into the ground, into a bush, or lean them against a branch.