Christmas Gift for Me

After church on Sunday I walked over to Henry's on Church Street and bought a lens. My friends and I are thinking about visiting the Faroe Islands next summer and I figured I'd need a lens to shoot birds there. The westernmost island, Mykines, has puffins and other seabirds nesting there.

I settled on the Canon 70-300 mm f/4-5.6 IS USM mostly because it was the right price. Canon had it's annual Best in Glass Sale and it was reduced $250 to $399.99.

Of course there are higher quality lenses, but I didn't feel like breaking the bank for a lens that I wouldn't be using an awful lot (my primary lens being my 10-22 mm f/3.5-4.5 USM). It had reasonable reviews which was good enough for me.

I only took a few shots in the store. I'll practice with it sometime when the weather is nicer outside. I'm sure it'll suit me fine.

My New Toy

... Well, not exactly a "toy", but you know what I mean.

I had been looking to replace my aging Canon 20D (that I bought in 2006) with the latest version, the 60D (which is actually on the verge of being replaced having come out in September, 2010).

Prices have dropped significantly since that point in time. The original MSRP for the body was $1,099 (U.S.). I believe I saw it advertised for as low as $900 last Christmas/Boxing Day (2011).

This year the trend continued. One of the first advertisements I saw was from Aden Camera. It listed the body for $834. Not bad. Vistek countered next with a price of $799. Aden then upped the ante at $769.

I took this flyer to Future Shop and they said they would beat the price. Turns out they didn't have any 60D bodies in stock, only kits (with cheap kit lenses). They did have an open box body though. The manager offered to sell it to me for $700.

I thought about for a bit and decided to go for it. The sales person put a lens on and I tried it out in the store snapping a few test shots. It worked like a charm. As well, it came with the same manufacturer's warranty as a new one.

I'll be looking to give it a workout a my next get together this coming Saturday. Stay tuned for more pictures...

My New Lens

Yay, I got a new lens. My cousin, Donna, bought a new lens for me. It's a 50 mm f/1.8 Canon lens. In the U.S. it was advertised for about $95. Up here in Canada it ranges from $130-$140. Though I did see it on sale at one store for $120 not too long ago. Anyway, I asked my cousin to buy it for me. After tax it ended up being $103 (U.S.). With our dollar being as strong as it is now, it was almost at par. My eldest cousin, Zena, brought the lens up this past week when she flew here to visit.

I had always wanted a fast prime lens to add to my collection. I only have two other lenses that I use. My 10-22 mm f/3.5-4.5 and 24-105mm IS f/4. This new lens should be good for portraits and other shots where I want a really shallow depth of field. Joy.

Canon 50 mm f/1.8 Lens

Shot of Canon Rebel T1i with Canon 50mm f/1.8 lens.

I went to the Henry's Camera Show last weekend. It was quite good. Much better than the other photo show I went to before. They only had two areas for seminars while the Henry's one had five. As well, the Henry's show had a lot more products for sale. It was just a lot bigger.

I didn't attend as many seminars as I would have liked at the Henry's show. But, the ones I did go to were good. I attended a couple on studio lighting for portraits, another two on photo manipulation software (Aperture and Photoshop) and one on the merits of RAW vs. JPG format. They were all really insightful.

As well I got to try out a lens I was interested in, the Canon 50 mm f/1.8. It's a low-end Canon lens. But, for the price (about $130-$140) it's a reasonably good deal. I like that it's a fast lens. It's good in low light situations and has a shallow depth of field.

I also tried the Lensbaby Muse on my camera and the Lensbaby Composer on the Nikon they had there. I've always been interested in it. You can get some neat-looking shots. I couldn't figure out exactly how to focus it properly though. It was hard. Maybe I just need more practice.

Anyway, the show was good. I'll attend again in the future provided I get a free coupon somewhere.