My Date with a Rebel
I really, really , really, reeeeeealy want a new camera. A big girl SLR camera. I have out grown my trusty point and shoot that I’ve had since the summer of 2006. It’s been good to me, and we’ve captured some good memories. It’s been to Disney World, my graduation, Moanna’s birth, California and multiple holidays and birthdays. I’ve taken thousands and thousands of pictures with my camera. Like I said, we’ve been through a lot together, but I need more. I need more control of my pictures.
I have been researching and begging for months for a new camera. Because it’s such a heavy investment I will probably be researching and begging for several more months before I bring home a brand new camera. To hold me over, I borrowed a Rebel XTi from some friends the other weeks. I wanted a preview of what my relationship with an SLR would be like.
My date with the Rebel went something like this…
And then Steve intercepted my date…
I’m sure most people would be mortified to find a picture like this on the internet, but I’m amused by it. If we add lasers shooting out of my eyes it could star in a cheesy action movie.
And then I stepped back in…
Then I lost it again…
I had no idea what I was doing 99.9% of the time, and when I was starting to make progress Steve would take the camera and adjust the settings. I’m not at all versed enough in photography to deserve an SLR, but with most things in life I have no idea what I’m doing when I start a new adventure, I just make up as I go along until I get it right.
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Oh, you MUST get one. I LURRRVE my Rebel. (And I had NO IDEA how to use it for the first 6 months I owned it. But that’s ok.) The problem with owning a big-girl camera? You’ll want to take classes. (Classes are FUN.) Then you’ll want to buy toys to go with your camera. (Toys are EXPENSIVE.) But it’s awesome. Totally worth it. (Also… I love the squinty-eye photo. And lasers coming out of your eyes would be THE BEST.)
SLR’s are a commitment indeed. You want one lens after another and filters, and classes and editing software and so on…
We’ve got a canon 30D, if you want to use if for a few days to up your repertoire or SLR experience. Maybe it’ll help give you an idea of the different camera’s available? Just let me know!
I might have to do that!
Oh man, I’m so jealous of the time you had with that baby! I’m lusting after an SLR as well. Someday.
A girl can dream right? I want one so bad it hurts some days.
If (when) you get an SLR, you really can teach yourself. I learned so much just by spending hours on Flickr looking at others’ photos. A lot of times people will be happy to describe the lenses/settings they used when taking their photos. And, of course, you can buy (or check out) how-to books on photography. Finally…photo editing software doesn’t have to be super expensive. I started out using the free Picasa editing software. And then when I was ready, I bought Photoshop Elements. It doesn’t have all of the features of the full-fledged Photoshop, but it’s still really great software for a fraction of the cost. In general, the only things that won’t be very cheap are lenses. Except for the 50mm f1.8 Canon lens, which is great and relatively cheap. (Google “Nifty Fifty”.) Anyway, when you get that new camera, have fun!
I’m a make it up as you go kind of gal, so after getting to know what all the buttons mean and how the effect a picture, it’s all improv.
I got a Nikon D3000 over Memorial Day Weekend because Best Buy was having a good sale, and LOVE IT. It’s the lower end of the “affordable SLRs”, but I wanted to get something I could grow with, and maybe in a few years get a more professional version like the D60 or D90. For my super beginner/dunce skill level (and you can jaunt over to my blog to see some pictures taken by it, starting from my June entries–I’m getting ready to post a bunch more from a recent trip soon), it’s perfect and I’m glad I didn’t spend more than I did at this point.
Good for you, for remaining rational in your purchase. My fear is that I will buy a lower end camera in hopes of saving money and quickly outgrow it and want something bigger and newer. My theory is if I invest in something solid now, I will have it for several years before I get the itch for a new one. I’ve had my point and shot for what, almost five years now.
I cannot tell you how happy I am that I purchased my camera used. Seriously, I spent $275 on a Nikon D50 and it came with the SD card and not one, but two lenses. It works perfectly. I now think I am silly for ever thinking about buying my first DSLR new. It’s been about a year and though I originally thought I would graduate to a more fancy schmancy camera, I don’t even feel the need at this point.
PS. My friend bought her Rebel off of Craigslist too. She loves it. No problems whatsoever.
That is a fantastic deal! I’m jealous. I’ll have to look into that when we move to Atlanta next month. In this rinkadink town, Craigslist is next to useless.