How old were you when you took your first picture? By yourself, I mean, not while an adult was looking purposefully over your shoulder. If you remember that moment then you know how exciting and meaningful it is for youngsters to begin taking pictures at an early age.
A couple years ago I bought a used Canon EOS D30 for an article I was doing for Shutterbug. To be sure it’s an EOS D30, not a more modern EOS 30D, and it’s “only” 3.1-megapixel—it produces images that are a modest 2160 x 1440 to be exact. I paid around $300 for it secondhand. It cost $3000 when it was new back in 2000.
October sneaks in wearing muddy, wet boots. Some trees are beginning to blush, showing a tinge of red and orange, but most are still wearing summer’s green uniform.
Vanguard, one of our favorite photo accessory manufacturers, has a slug of new stuff you should know about. Why do we favor Vanguard? In addition to their impeccable high quality, Vanguard creates and supervises the concept, design, manufacturing, distribution, marketing and sales of every product they sell—unlike many other camera gear wholesalers. This means the price you pay at your local photo retailer or when you order directly from Vanguard tends to be below market—saving you money and delivering greater value. And we're all in when it comes to getting more for your money.
In school we learned it’s polite to share. Loaning a digital camera to a comrade is commendable, but never, ever loan anyone a memory card unless you’re aware there’s a risk that the borrower can view the images that you think you’ve deleted—even if you formatted the card.
Olympus was kind enough to lend me a 150mm f2.0 Zuiko lens for some personal shooting. I recently bought a new E-520 at an incredible price because it’s a discontinued model. Even so, it has a rich feature set, Image Stabilization and weighs slightly more than a well-dressed chicken taco. It also offers Live View, Dust Reduction and Wireless Flash. On close-out, this DSLR body cost me about the same as a high-end point-and-shoot.
Here’s a new accessory that definitely falls into that “Why didn’t I think of that?” category. Olympus’s MAL-1 Macro Arm Light is a pair of bright LEDs attached to the end of flexible, gooseneck arms. They connect via the camera’s accessory port/hot shoe, and are powered by the camera (no extra battery needed).