Let’s start with this:

I have no idea what I’m doing with a camera.

That’s right. Sometimes my shots are fuzzy. And dark. And I’m sure the composition is a mess. If I even really knew what the composition was supposed to be.

But I’m learning. And I love it.

I love taking pictures of my leading lady and my leading doggie. And even my leading hubby and myself (!) on occasion. I love it when I take like twenty shots and one actually happens to turn out pretty cool. And, more importantly, we love when we capture a moment that is funny. Or sweet. Or silly. Or once in a lifetime because everyone really does grow up too fast.

This is all an adventure and this is my playground. I’m glad you are all here so I have people to play with.

But in case you are hoping to start a camera adventure of your own, here is what I do know. Maybe it will help!

It All Starts with a Camera

Alot of bloggers start these days with an iPhone. Or a point and shoot. But often an iPhone is alot better / easier / more convenient than a point and shoot and takes great pics. I do this sometimes when I’m out and about. But mostly I like to look all hip and cool with my fancy camera so I use that.

And About That Fancy Camera

I use a Digital SLR. This is one of those fancy looking cameras that is all old-schooley with a real lens and a viewfinder that you actually look through to take a picture. Most of them allow you to take automatic pictures or semi-automatic or totally manual. I’m slowly inching my way towards full manual but tend to bop back and forth between manual, semi-manual and auto these days depending on the occasion.

Canon and Nikon tend to be the brands of choice. I fell into a Canon camera so that is what I use. A Canon EOS Digital Rebel to be exact. I got it used off Craigslist which made it more afforable. (Shh – don’t tell Canon.)

And Then There’s The Lens

What I’ve learned is that the lens is more important than the camera body. My camera came with a “kit lens” (read standard manufacturer lens) 18-55mm. This served me well for a while but, as you will probably read lots of other places, the kit lens is generally best put away and forgotten about. I recently upgraded to a fancy portrait lens (Canon 50mm 1.4) and it’s kind of rocked my blogging world. This is a “prime lens” (i.e. it doesnt zoom in and out) so it takes some getting used to but it takes great pics so it’s worth the effort. (There are a few different versions of this with the Canon 50mm 1.2 being high end and the “nifty-fifty” Canon 50mm 1.8 being apparently a really good low end option.)

I do miss zooming sometimes though so I’m saving my pennies for a somewhat decent second lens. The Canon 24-70mm 2.8 is supposed to rock people’s worlds but it costs as much as a small country so I’m thinking I won’t be getting that anytime soon. I recently found out about the Tamron 28-75mm 2.8 lens that might be a bit more of an affordable option.

And Then There’s the Editing

No matter how good the image, they usually need a little bit of love in the editing process before they are ready for prime time. Otherwise known as “processing”. Most photographers use Photoshop but again that’s pretty pricey. And since my loaded laptop just died a timely death (it was 7 years old) I’m trying out some new options. My latest obsession is editing images on my iPad through Filterstorm Pro. At $14.99 I figured I couldn’t go wrong and it does do a pretty decent job at editing.

But Really the Most Important Thing is Taking Pictures

Lots and lots of pictures.

I learn so much from each and every pic and really its the only way to grow. So click away and you’re sure to get better eventually. At least that’s what I keep telling myself!