snap snap snap

Can't remember if I mentioned it here or on Facebook, but after the death of my camera (a Pentax Optio point-and-shoot) I was dragging my feet about researching new ones. I finally decided to put some feelers out there and posted an inquiry on the Etsy Forums asking for suggestions. (Which, by the way, is an EXCELLENT place to get all kinds of advice on nearly anything related or not related to selling on Etsy.) I was surprised to get a lot of people responding with Nikon as their camera choice. I see so many Canon cameras that I was actually expecting to get a lot of recommendations for Canon. I was happy to see that Nikon came so highly recommended because my very first, what I like to call REAL, camera (because it wasn't simple point and shoot) was a Nikon. My parents gave it to me for my high school graduation. By getting a Nikon I sort of feel like I'm coming full circle. Found several wonderful reviews on CNET.com for the Nikon D40 - "a good introduction camera to the SLRs". It's priced good and seemed to be a good transition from my very simple Pentax. So I had some fun experimenting with it this weekend...

At first I was a little intimidated. I wasn't used to having to use the viewfinder for taking a picture. The digital camera has spoiled us by not forcing us to look in close but instead frame our subject in the window of the digital screen. I didn't think I was going to be able to adjust to this. But once I started snapping photos and discovering how, without even trying, the quality and clarity was incredible I was hooked. And lets face it, I need something to capture my goofy guys. These expressions happen in a span of a few seconds and I don't have time to set up the scene in the digital screen, zoom in and out by push push pushing that zoom button and then waiting for the auto focus to do it's thing. With the SLR I can zoom in, see EXACTLY what the camera sees and snap snap snap. Oh snap! I think I am in love.