I love taking pictures, but lately that hobby had become more of a burden – both financially and in the literal sense. When I was in college, I sprang for a Canon SLR. It was probably the single largest purchase I’d ever made on my own at the time, and I never once regretted it. The pictures were always clear and crisp, the color amazing, and the manual features let me be more creative. Later, Lee got me another lens which let me zoom in so much further to capture close-ups of animals and such.
The camera served me very well in Europe, Alaska, Virginia, and on several trips to the zoo. But there were 2 downsides. # 1 – I photograph everything in sight at least 50 times. If there is a pigeon, I will take its picture. And I’ll take it again. And again. The camera wasn’t digital, so every attempt at the perfect shot used another bit of film. Developing the pictures began to get expensive, because we’d have 46 pictures of one sea gull because I was trying to get the perfect angle with sun and sea, and have to pay for all of them. # 2 – Lee had a great digital camera too, and I also like getting video. That meant when we traveled, we carried my SLR, two lenses, film and batteries, Lee’s digital camera, and my video camera. I’d like to get a macro lens eventually, but I’m afraid that would’ve pushed us over the edge and we’d have to bring a pack mule on all outings just for our photography equipment.
But a few weeks ago, Lee surprised me with an early anniversary gift – a DIGITAL SLR. It’s a Canon, and very similar to the camera I’ve been schlepping around for years. My lenses fit on it perfectly, and I am so excited! The new camera takes wonderful pictures, and I have thoroughly enjoyed snapping away without worrying about “wasting” film. We’re going to sell his older digital camera, and now when we travel, we’ll have one less camera weighing us down.
Take tonight for example. The weather is beautiful, so Lee and I decided to have a picnic in Forsyth Park. I brought along the new camera, and the two of us managed to take 37 pictures. In digital-land, that’s no problem. If that had been flim, I’d have been in trouble.
We got this fun one of our food – I like the color contrast:

A shot of Millie asking “is there any more?” We don’t usually let her lick our plates, but we didn’t want to put chicken-coated plates back in our bag, so she cleaned them up for us with a quickness:

And I love this photo of Lee and Millie rolling in the grass:

I just adore this camera, and I’m also very glad Lee got it for me before our child arrives, because I know she’s going to be very extensively photographed. And in digital-land, that’s just fine.