Camera Specs and Linden’s Specs

What better way to start my photoblog than to describe the hardware I’m using.

First of all, I have to admit that, unfortunately, I am not using an SLR. I know that one day, I will need to make that investment, and I look forward to the day when I will have the control over the images I snap that an SLR offers.

The SD900’s Specs

Okay, here’s what I do have. I am using a brand spankin’ new Canon PowerShot SD900 Digital Elph. It has “a 10 megapixel imager, and a Canon-branded 3x optical zoom lens covers a fairly standard range of 37-111mm equivalent, a moderate wide-angle to moderate telephoto.” It also has a 4x digital zoom. In the manual mode, I can set the ISO from 80 to 3200, so I can use that ISO 3200 mode to take pictures inside without using the flash.

One potential downside to this camera, if I want to learn what I consider the “real” tricks of the trade, is that it does not offer me the control over shutter speeds and aperture priority.

Linden’s Specs

Okay, now onto my specs, if I may call them that. I have loved taking pictures since I was in high school, but I really discovered what all is involved with photography until I took a 1-hour intersession course after my sophomore year of college. It was from 9 until 12 for five days. That just ain’t a lot of time to learn–and internalize–all I need to know to become a good photographer. So here’s where I tell you what I don’t know know.

I know of aperture settings, of shutter speeds, of ISO, and I think I understand what they mean, but I do not yet fully understand how all these settings come together to create interesting photos. I am certain there are many more important details of cameras that I don’t know, but… I don’t know about them yet! There’s an “email the author” link at the bottom of every post, so if you know of something I need to study up on and why, please email me.

I do know, however, that knowing all these things about how cameras capture images does not make a person a good photographer. A good photographer also has a good eye. A good photographer takes time setting up a shot (even if she does happen to be using a “point and shoot” camera!). A good photographer takes several shots of the subject, from different perspectives. Now I’m not going to say that I have a good eye, but I think it’s not bad. I try to look at as many good images and figure out why they are so good. In other words, I believe that my eye can be trained and I am doing what I can to train it. I think this website should also help that end, as real, professional photographers make suggestions.

One last thing: I have a basic working knowledge of Photoshop (I’m using CS2) and I’m not afraid to play with it. I also use Picasa for some light image editing.

My Photos on the Web

I have started uploading what I feel are some of my best photos to Flickr, so before I start posting pictures with questions here, you can look at what I’ve done there and comment there as well.

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