Shutters, Apertures, ISOs and Macro: An intriguing new present.

With the money from my birthday I decided to invest in a new digital camera. I've had some great times and gotten some great shots with my old Olympus camera, the one from the advert where the little kid throws the camera and the dog fetches it and brings it back. I bought that one because it was "drop proof" and "water proof", knowing I was probably



going to need both those features.

It took some great pictures, given it was relatively inexpensive point-and-shoot camera, but as the flash now often fails onit, I decided it was time to purchase an upgrade.

Deciding what to buy though, was a feat in itself.

I trawled through review after review, comparing dozens of options and hundreds of features. It didn't help that I really wasn't sure what I was looking for. A compact system camera? An SLR? Another point-and-shoot?

I've always loved taking pictures and experimenting with shots, but I don't really have a clue what I am doing. I would like to learn properly eventually but for the time being I am content just playing around and experimenting. Thus I decided an SLR would be too expensive, too complicated and just too big with all the extra equipment needed. I did however want a little more manual control than just a simple point-and-shoot, and so I ended up going for what's called a bridge camera; as in a bridge between a point-and-shoot model, and an SLR. It has a fixed lens, and is easy just to turn on and take a quick snap, but it also has a number of features and manual controls which can be regularly adapted and changed.

So I can perhaps learn how to take some better pictures, while still have a camera at the ready whenever I need it. Only downside is, it doesn't fit in my pocket. However, it's probably best that I'm not ramming it into my jeans alongside my phone, ipod and any number of random paraphernalia. And, the size makes it feel like a "proper" camera; in true geek fashion it looks cool around my neck!

 

These are a few pictures I took recently while experimenting. More can be seen on Facebook; to access the public link to view the album (you don't need a Facebook) just click here.

Oh, and the modal of camera I bought in the end? It's a Panasonic Lumix FZ40/45, and I highly recommend it!