Sunday, January 29, 2017

Notes on the new camera. . . . . . . . . .


You may recall my very quick note regarding a new camera on the day I was 
leaving for Europe in December. Here I'll explain what happened and why I 
found myself at the camera shop at the last minute. Definitely not planned but
it was the only way I could see myself gathering photo memories of the trip
with a good camera.
On Thanksgiving Day, somehow the new Canon Power Shot SX530HS camera
 I'd purchased in September was splashed with the turkey gravy as it was passed
 around the table. Can you believe that, and me being vegetarian and not even
 eating turkey let alone drowning my veggies with gravy, haha!
I was able to wipe the camera off and it worked OK that day and on the beach trip
 which we took the weekend after the holiday. I didn't use the camera again until I took
 a few packing pix as I readied to cross the pond. That's when I realized the zoom
wasn't working and I could see a sticky substance down in the zoom lever. 


Hells bells. . . . . . a mad dash to the local camera shop, although
 I didn't buy the Canon there (purchased it from B&H in NYC).  The shop advised
 it would have to be sent away for repairs, so that day I bought another camera, 
this time a Sony, a first for me, as they didn't have the same Canon. I liked the 
Canon except it didn't have a viewfinder which I truly missed as I find it hard to
see well on the LCD screen. 
I decided to bring the broken camera home and send it off through the local
 camera shop when I returned from Europe. Later however, on checking my
 paperwork from B&H I found I had 2 years of insurance coverage, which
 included drops and spills, from SquareTrade as part of the camera purchase. 
Sent it off, described what happened, within a week or so it was returned,
 no charge, and working perfectly again. 
Amazing, and I highly recommend SquareTrade for their easy and excellent
 service - everything was done via a smoothly run online process and it didn't
 cost anything - they even paid the shipping both ways.


















These test photos were all taken around the cottage this week with the new
 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX400V which I'm really liking. 
It was highly recommended by my local camera store staff
 whom I trust, and although more expensive than the Canon it does have more
 features including a Zeiss 50X optical zoom lens, 20.4 mega pixels, a full 3" tilting
 LCD screen, and a great electronic viewfinder - when you put it to your eye it
 automatically opens rather than having to view your composed shot on the screen.
 There are a lot of features I've yet to learn so I need to spend time with the camera
 in the coming weeks. I did enjoy using it on the trip, it's a wee bit heavier than the
 Canon but very comfortable to hold.

Quite honestly, for me, and maybe for you, these new bridge digital cameras are
 amazing. I see them perhaps eventually taking the place of the huge, heavy
 DSLR's which require lugging those bulky interchangeable lenses, adding so
 much more weight and taking up a lot of space in luggage when traveling. 
I think professionals will always require those monster cameras, but for the likes
 of us, these smaller, lighter versions can do what we need at a much lower price,
 can be charged through a lap top, often have great pre-set scene options, and
 are definitely much easier to handle for we amateur photographers.

 I realize we all want to take great photos and that a DSLR with the option of
 changing lenses and settings will always give the best - once you learn how to use
 it and hold it steady. That was not easy for me with my huge DSLR, the Canon 7D,
 but my granddaughter loves using it and is taking great photos with it. 
Young people have good eyesight and nimble fingers. 
Just watch them with a smart phone!
 I'm quite happy with the photos I get with this camera and, in all honesty, with
 today's editing options - I use iPhoto and PicMonkey - we can all tweak our shots
 and make them even better, just as the professionals often do.
Cropping, sharpening and a little cleanup can work miracles.
Some may call that cheating, I call it being creative!

Wishing you happy days with your camera - and looking forward to seeing your
photos on your blog. The sun is shining here, a bit chilly but I think I'm heading out 
for a walk in the woods later - and of course I'll take the camera.



8 comments:

  1. I call it creative, too! You had me cringing with the gravy story...so glad that everything worked out and that it was under an excellent plan. Loved seeing these beautiful photos of items in your home.

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  2. I am glad I read this. I have been wondering whether I should get a DSLR but always held back because of all the lenses and things you have to carry around. I have a bridge camera and find it quite enough for my needs. So I was happy to read that your beautiful photos are taken with a bridge and not a DSLR.

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  3. In my desk drawer, I have been keeping a "new" digital camera given to me two years or so ago but never got the hang of it; I am so used to by old one. I keep telling myself I should play with the newer one and get accustomed to it, seeing as it is lighter and smaller and more handbag-friendly, but I've not done it so far.
    What a weird scenario is playing out in my head - how your camera got splashed (!) with gravy (!!!) on Thanksgiving...!

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  4. I have a Sony Cyber Shot too but mine is a simple compact - I need it to be small so that it is always to hand in my pocket or bag. Mainly, I think that photos such as yours, are the skill of the operator not the camera, it takes a particularly good eye to take a fine photo and to know just how and where to crop them perfectly as you do.

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  5. Those pictures are wonderful Mary. That camera sounds great!

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  6. Oh my, what a camera story and gravy too. Whew! Glad it all came out OK in the end. Beautiful pictures, but part of a good picture is the photographer that know how to be an artist. You have an artists eye. Those plates are to swoon for. What we would do without our cameras, especially on a trip. I had to buy a camera when we were headed for Yosemite 2 years ago,I was so glad I noticed before we arrived there that my old camera wasn't working.

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  7. I have a DSLR (which I rarely use - it was passed down to me by my photographer son) and my phone camera. That's it - no in-between camera. Nor do I want one. I'm too lazy to lug it around and take photos when I have my phone with me all the time. I suppose if I traveled, I'd get an in-between camera. I've always meant to truly learn how to use the DSLR - I even have a couple of books - and I've just never done it. And Tim's too impatient to teach me how to use the camera! ;-)

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  8. We've debated getting an actual camera as Alex and I both like to take photo for our instagrams in particular, but relaly, all we need is low res for that and blogs as they are on computer. We've stuck to our phones which are great but we would never be able to enlarge one for a bg print or anything. If I get one, I think it has to be that Cony or Canon then. And good to know about SquareTrade! Ive heard of them before.

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