The World Within

Continuing the line of having fun with my photography I recently filled a gap in my lens collection with the addition of a Nikon 60mm f/2.8D macro lens. This type of lens is often referred to as the "Flower Power" lens as often reference shots are flower stamen or something similarly botanical. For me I just love the way the detail of every day ordinary objects is brought out that makes you look at them in a new way.

I went on a little spree taking some macro shots of "important" things - do click them for a better look:

1. Room Fan



2. Home Cinema Speaker



3. Liquid Refreshment



I am currently on the look out for the large gecko that lives around the villa. I think a macro shot of him will resemble something out of Starship Troopers

Super Zoomin'

I have mentioned before that since arriving in Dubai the number of photos I have taken has increased at a dramatic rate. This has also peaked my interest in photography. I was previously very happy with a combo of my little Canon 850IS as a "carry everywhere point and shoot" and the Sony R1 for anything more serious. Then I handled a friends Digital SLR in this case a Canon 350D....it was nothing short of a revelation. The sheer ergonomics of a camera that does everything instantly and a real viewfinder was marvellous.

The Sony R1 has an excellent lens and is capable of taking stunning photos - but it simply can not compare to the flexibility and speed of a Digital SLR camera. I was sold. After a lot of research on the web and more importantly going to a store and physically handling all the cameras with various lens options I chose the Nikon D80.

I wanted a camera with some "idiot" features which rules out the higher range such as a Canon 30D or Nikon D200. The Canon 400D felt a little small to handle for me compared to the Nikon D80, so it was a fairly straightforward choice. The downside of Digital SLR is the lens choice and sheer amount of accessories that are available are not only bewildering but become very expensive very quickly.

Over the last few months I have accumulated a good collection of gear. While no means complete meets most of my needs today. For those interested you can see the list of gear over at amazon.com here.

I had fun last weekend playing with excellent Nikon 18-200mm zoom lens. Here is a photo of a nice boat at 18mm:



Here is the same boat, moments later, with with the lens at full 200mm focal length - or "Extreeeme close up"- At 11x optical zoom this is more than twice the reach from my previous Sony R1



In the full resolution images it is actually possible to discern the cell phone and type of soda the passengers have. Remarkable.

It is quite rare to see many boats cruising around the Marina when last week there were suddenly three at once all looking to dock at the small jetty near where I live. Rather reminiscent of London buses:



It is a really fun hobby and I am now an ardent follower of the Digital Photography School blog to help improve my photography.

Eye Eye

With my new found hobby, photography. I am really starting to appreciate others work. My brother-in-law Keith has been a keen photographer from some years.

The other day I was browsing through his gallery and I was really impressed by his self-portrait. The eye featuring here is my sister/Keith's wife. I thought this was a wonderful picture and with his kind permission I thought I would post a great family photo:




I think it gives new meaning to being "A twinkle in my eye" - a favourite saying in my family.

Panorama

Rather than write about the BBC documentary I thought I would post here my first attempt at a wide-angled Panorama. I am really starting to enjoy learning the fundamentals of digital photography and have recently entered into the world of the DSLR (my thoughts on the technology to follow).

Here is my first effort of a wide-angle (using a 10-22mm Sigma lens - wide open) shot from my balcony - the exposure could use some work (but it is fun playing):

Marina By Night

With the purchase of my small Canon Ixus 850 it has more or less relegated my rather nifty Sony DSC-R1 to dust gathering duty, particularly on some of the 4x4/camping trips I have been on recently. It is just so convenient to have close at hand due to its size.

After a lot of looking at the photos on Picasa - I felt that there was something "missing" from these photos. On first impressions they looked good - however on real inspection they were somewhat disappointing. So the other evening in an effort to avoid upgrading immediately to some form of Digital SLR I dusted off the Sony R1 and took a few night shots of the Marina. For me the results were startlingly. Here is my favorite and currently my windows desktop:



This and a couple of other photos I took can be found here at their full resolution. In comparison with the same picture taken with the compact canon (it is here )- the difference is basically night and day. The megapixel count is not too far apart (10.1 vs 7.1) - but you just can not beat great glass.

(Prediction - I will be writing something similar about a Digital SLR vs a fixed lens digital camera in the not too distant future)