Fieldnotes do capture what happened, right?

Now we focus on the fieldnotes and the many facets of transcription and meaning (or constructing). Hammersley (2010) is thorough in his description about how easily fieldnotes could be misinterpreted, or even "constructed" as if that is only what took place in the observer's mind, and the events aren't truly what happened (Denzen, 2005?) However one wants to examine it, it can be daunting for a novice researcher such as myself. In my view, I realize that my presence alone will alter the events taking place, and people observing me writing the entire time I'm in a room with them will of course influence their actions, consciously or sub-consciously. I was murky on the idea of your fieldnotes possibly being constructed or created, as if the events did not happen in the way the researcher reports. Yes, you choose what pieces to add, and you choose what to get out of the "data", and you are the instrument of measurement, but labeling those events as practically ficticious? I disagree. However, I do believe that the other points Hammersley makes are valid, especially asking the questions such as, "Where do you start when reporting the findings in the data?", "How do you transcribe in order to capture what happened?" Hammersley takes fieldnotes as deep as last week's authors discussed the nuances of interview transcription. Of course, I see the connection, but I am extremely inexperienced, and it makes me second-guess my techniques of interviewing and taking field notes even more. I try my best to be thorough and thoughtful in my transcription and note-taking, and I try to take many things into account (the space, the actions of the people, my own feelings within that space, etc.). I have not yet used an audio or video recorder for fieldwork. I think that using those pieces are more invasive than writing in a notebook or on a legal pad, because people know that digital technology captures everything, whereas a person can't. Although I truly believe that my presence alters the environment, and I am forward with that in my fieldnotes, adding technology alters it further. I suppose, though, if you state that in your work, then you account for things you record and collect in the data. This week, I'm brining in typed up fieldnotes of one of my observations in my so-called "pilot study" that has not gone nearly as far as I'd hoped for this time of the semester. I am curious to see what my notes will bring, now that we've read this piece. I am also curious to see how different my fieldnotes are from those in my group, since we all have various levels of experience with fieldnotes.