News with Richard Bleil
Well, THIS is annoying. Such a gorgeous day today (as of the writing of this blog; I don’t know about when it posts), and I don’t have my camera! Well, to be fair, I ordered it online yesterday, so, there’s that. But it would be a perfect day for pictures.
Lately I have gotten into the habit of buying top of the line, if I’m going to buy at all. This philosophy started when personal computers were just starting to be the big thing. My thought was that, if I buy the reasonably best available (without going to the ridiculously expensive) then I will spend a little more money up front but save in the long run because I won’t feel like replacing it for a very long time. As I write this, I’m listening to music on a computer I purchased, believe it or not, about thirty years ago. It’s too slow for anything online, but I still store my music on it, and it still works fine for things such as this because, at the time, it was one of the best. And, actually, I still play some of the games I bought for it that are on CD’s. No, the graphics don’t hold up to modern computers, but they’re fine and it works just as well as it ever has.
So the camera I bought, which I’ll tell you is a Nikon D7500 DSLR although I normally try to avoid brand names in my posts so as not to be accused of advertising for them, but you can look it up if you like. I’ve heard it advertised as a professional camera (because you can go fully manual if you like), or high-end beginner (because you can go fully automatic), so for me it’ll probably be perfect. I bought a bundle that comes with two lenses, three filters and several other fun little things.
Let’s get this out of the way. Yes, I bought it on Amazon. I know some people will be upset by this for supporting one of the wealthiest men in America, but I did try to buy local. Unfortunately, the store where I discovered it had a floor display but none for sale. I compared this camera with a brand-name comparable competitor camera, but the other camera just felt cheaper. This one was more expensive, but just by feel you could tell it was worth the extra expense. When I learned they had none for sale, well, let’s be honest, Amazon is the quickest and easiest way to find and order products. What’s more, although part of the commission goes to Amazon, many of the vendors (like the one I purchased from) are independently owned as well. They’re just using Amazon for advertising and organizing.
My dad had a great camera. Now that I think about it, I should have asked for it when he passed (the only thing I did ask for, and received, was his drill). It was, of course, an old-fashioned film camera so I’m not sure I would have been able to use it, but it always reminds me of him. I had, at one point, a high end (for the time) Kodak digital camera, but, of course, my ex-wife has it now. When I divorced, I decided that anything I’d have to replace would be a step up, and this Nikon is definitely a step up.
A good friend of mine who teaches photography has promised to help me learn how to use this camera, so, although I did spend more than sixty dollars (had it been available in 1821), it’ll serve, I hope, several purposes (provided I don’t let it gather dust). First, I’m very excited to take photos. I am something of a nature buff and I can’t wait to know enough to be creative with them. Which brings us to our second purpose, namely, it’s an opportunity to learn something new. With my friend helping, it’ll inspire me to experiment and remain active with it and keep my mind working, something that I so desperately need.
Third, it’ll get me out of the house. Today is just stunningly beautiful, and yet, here I am, indoors. Yes, I’m writing a blog post, so I am being at least somewhat productive, but I’m not outside as I really should be. I’m so pale right now that a 747 thought I was a landing light. It landed safely, but those fines were enormous. And, of course, there’s exercise. Even if I only go to the zoo I’ll be out walking, but honestly, I’d far rather go on nature walks at some of the local parks.
By the time these posts, I should have my camera in hand, and enthusiastically unboxed and broken because I’ll try to do something stupid without reading the instructions. So once it’s repaired, you know I’ll be out enjoying it!
Bleil's Banter 