We got a new camera. We got excellent advice from a pro photographer we know, and from one of MABRA's favorite photographers, which helped us not be complete lunks in the whole process - thanks Jim. Both of our consultants are Canon users, as it appears that many higher order users are. The missus wants to take some cycling pictures and I want to take better landscape pictures. The Nikon we got (D3000) is positioned as equivalent to the Canon Rebel T1, which is the spot in the food chain where we were unanimously encouraged to go. We were told by all sides that there wasn't a lot between Canon and Nikon, especially at the level we were buying. What there was between the two was largely irrelevant to us for now - high end professional support and that kind of stuff. We can jump off that bridge if weever get to it. They were about the same in price but Nikon had a really good deal on buying an extra lens. The whole nut on this gear was not at all insignificant. In fact it rather sucked.
So anyway they both said get a good body but don't get swept up in a bunch of stuff, and that it's nice to be able to shoot raw footage (we can), and get good lenses. We got an extra, really good lens, thanks to the deal. I took both of the pictures above with the fancy lens. The surfer was about 250 yards away, and despite my absolute - absolute - lack of experience, talent or skill I was able to get him in focus and somewhat clear from a long ass way away. Please note that I am not now nor have I ever been hardcore enough to surf when it's this cold. Windsurf, yes, but I can do that for a long ass time and never actually go IN the water. Your hands get beat down with the cold though, boy does that suck.
The funniest piece of advice came secondhand from Jim, and lines up nicely with my views on a lot of things like this - "your first 50,000 shots are going to suck anyway so just get started and don't worry about it." 2 down, 49,998 to go.
I've been subjected to a lot of Fox News lately. My political views don't conform to any bumper sticker I've ever seen, but getting pounded for several days by one side of the blind dogmatists is enough to drive you up a tree.
It's windy as shit over here. If it warms up 50 or so degrees I might have to go windsurfing.
4 comments:
If you're out taking photo's and it's cold look for folks with beachfront property who left their sprinkler timers on. You can get some beautiful shots with the ice and the ocean.
Beautiful shots, David! Great color balance, good framing ... Keep at it ... I think both Dillard and I would like to retire from bike photography ... it's great that you and yours are in the fray. -- Jim
Terry - No such luck.
Jim - Thanks! I was just thinking about how much harder it must have been to learn photography when you had to actually develop and wait for the pictures. Now, it's take the same shot a few different ways, check out how things change looking at it right there on the screen and off you go. Kids these days, huh? All right, still the better part of 50k to go.
With film and chemicals, we were a lot more careful, had to spend a lot more time with exposure and such. Still, I think some of my best shots were with film. Probably partly because I had better eyes and agility when I was a teenager/20-something. (I left-off photography for about 20 years after that.) Maybe it's just nostalgia, though.
The most important thing I think is getting into the interesting scene, and shooting, not much fear. Like the kids in Cairo, or the kids in Dukem (Ethiopia), shots my Dad took in Vietnam, shots my namesake took in Kenya, India, Russia and beyond. Outside suburbia.
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