Cue gollum style stroking and hissing.
When I first started this blog I was making do with the camera on my Samsung smartphone, and while it took pretty decent pictures in good light, it just wasn't up to much for anything else. At the time spending money on a decent camera just wasn't an option though. Blogging was just a hobby (and one I didn't even know if I'd keep up!) and the budget really didn't have any room in it for expensive equipment to support it. So I muddled on, and it was fine, I learned a bit about lighting and editing through trial and error and my pictures weren't too bad. I even started to get interested in photography in general and I was enjoying seeing what I could achieve with just what I had to hand.
But then, it came to taking pictures of my kitchen makeover, the biggest thing I had done blog-wise, and my friend offered to lend me her Canon 600 DSLR to take the photos.
Game. Over.
My poor smartphone couldn't compete, and something like that, when you see it it can't be un-seen. So I did what any good friend would do.....and kept her camera for two months! And when I gave it back and had to use my phone again it was really terrible. Suddenly I knew exactly how good my photos could be and it was killing me to post my crappy, blurry smartphone photos. So I started saving and researching cameras myself....and in the meantime my incredibly awesome friend took pity on me and let me continue to use her camera.
Seriously, I owe you big time, you have but to call in the favour! :)
What I found when I was looking at all the options was that Canon had moved on from the 600d to the 750d, which was selling at over €800 anywhere I could find it, but the equivalent Nikon 3300 was under €400....and was topping all the comparisons of entry level DSLR's I could find!
I was a little apprehensive as most people I spoke to who had cameras recommended Canon, but then I spoke to a professional photographer who told me that the difference is really just a matter of taste and what you are used to using, so for a complete novice like me either one would suit me. If I'm starting from scratch I may as well go with the cheaper (and supposedly better) option!
If you want to see the comparison I found most helpful it's here.
So when I saw the Nikon on sale in Argos of all places I bit the bullet and bought it (thank you conveniently timed tax refund!) and so far I'm really happy with it. Like I said, I don't know much about cameras, but so far I'm finding the Nikon a lot more instinctive to use and easier to understand than the Canon, which, for someone who didn't know how to do anything except point and shoot in automatic mode is pretty fantastic!
I'm going to do an online course asap so that I can really make the most of what I'm working with now, but so far I'm really happy with the upgrade. It's great to not be completely embarrassed by your photography! :D
