After spending the first week of working looking like a poodle-sheepdog hybrid because of all the rain and no umbrella, I invested a whopping $9 on a Wal-Mart deluxe umbrella and I carry it, daily, along with my heels, in a small, reusable bag from Jacob. Daily, except, of course, on the days when it actually rains. Because I am super on top of things like that. I am also soaking wet for the second time this week. But I guess all of the people who complained about the heat can stop whining and complaining now because it has turned wet and cool in Toronto today. So..silver lining? The lady on the subway this morning who was clearly over 60 and clearly dressed unironically as a Baby One More Time Britney Spears, complete with tied white blouse, grey cardigan, and plaid skirt, didn’t seem to mind being wet. It probably added to her ensemble. I guess I should be thankful she wasn’t wearing a snake? Another silver lining, perhaps?
I reeeeeeally wish my iPhone hadn’t been tucked so inaccessibly in my purse.
Which really brings me to the point of this post. I may not be great a carrying an umbrella, but I am certainly good with the segueway. And not the Gob Bluth kind.
Wheee!
So. I have been spending my spare time (Spare time, Ali? You have three kids and a husband and a dog and a full-time job and a several-hour-a-day commute and you are starting on book 3 of the Harry Potter series…what spare time do you have exactly?) (You know. The time that I would normally be doing 8 loads of laundry daily. Thank the good lord for my lovely, lovely nanny who does lovely, lovely laundry) taking online photography tutorials and actually, you know, LEARNING. My camera hasn’t seen the AUTO or the P mode in a long time, and I am super excited about it. I am learning what the camera does and how it works.
You see…this is how I learn things. When I learned to drive stick-shift, because my husband thought it would be a wonderful idea to buy a car that I didn’t know how to drive, I downloaded information on HOW A CAR WORKS, because once I understand what gears were and what they did and how they worked, it made it easier for me to learn to drive. (Although for anyone learning: Do not let your father-in-law teach you how. It’s just never a good idea.)
I am learning all about cameras. I do use a lot of trial-and-error and experimenting with lighting and settings, but I feel like when I have a grasp on WHY certain settings do what they do, it helps me take better photos. But what I am also learning is that I am only as great as my weakest piece of equipment. And while my lenses are truly, truly amazing (I shoot with a 50mm 1.4 and a 24-70mm f2.8) I am still using my Canon Rebel XSi, which was what I could afford at the time, and has served me more than well. But, it’s time to upgrade.
(It’s really, really too bad that my birthday is in May.)
I have started an ALI-NEEDS-A-NEW-CAMERA fund and am putting my ad revenue into it each month. Read: It will be a long time before I can afford this camera.
I have started my research.
And this is where you come in. The only two things I know for sure are these: I will be buying a Canon and I don’t care one lick about video. But that’s, um, about as far as I had gotten in this process. I am overwhelmed by options. I am overwhelmed by bells and whistles.
Help me please.
What do you shoot with?
What do you wish you shot with?
What is more camera than I will ever need?
What would you recommend for someone who loves to be behind the camera and kind-of-maybe-sort-of is learning what to actually do with the camera, but, you know, is still very much an amateur?
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