Moving into the DSLR world

In light of my recent birthday, I got an upgrade on my camera as a slight early gift. I’ve had my eye on the Nikon D90[wiki] for a matter of months now, but the push of going into the DSLR side of photography is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. As I said to Rebecca the other day, I’m back in the remedial class in terms of what I know, what I think I know, and what I don’t know. The last statement is vast, but I’m already in good company.

(The wise) John Biehler told me that once I got the model of camera that I wanted, there would be a lot of opportunity to meet plenty of other like minded folks who were eager to share their knowledge and insight on gear, techniques, and everything else you get yourself into when you make this kind of upgrade.

So just a matter of days after my purchase (of which Rebecca was in near constant contact with John via SMS), we had a birthday gathering at our place last Friday night, inviting John, Peter[flickr], and their collection of lenses and flashes for me to try out and get a feel for.

Still being a newbie, I’ll post a few of my favorite shots from the night with no edits or crops. Going through my own sense of discovery with this amazing apparatus and what it can possibly do. Click any thumbnail to see the full image.

Really liking the camera so far. I’m not sure how long it will take for me to get into purchasing extra lenses for it, but these trials have me gunning for a 50mm f1.4 lens, which many of the shots above are with. My only other goal with lenses would be to shoot some more concerts with. It’ll also be great for many photos that I’m sure you’ll be seeing on miss604.com, starting with a recent post where I shot George Stroumboulopoulos chatting with Rebecca.

Just for kicks, this was my favorite shot I took from that interview.