I don't really make New Year's resolutions for all the obvious reasons but I do have some very achievable goals in terms of my photography. All that's required is some time, commitment and around £250 which isn't too excessive.
First thing I need is a flashgun. Photography is all about light and a flashgun just makes complete sense. I'm not talking about any majorly sophisticated lighting setups; just one flashgun to start with. It will open up so many doors for me. I can pick up a used flashgun for about £150.
Along with the flashgun I need a stand to mount it off-camera (and a sturdy swivel head), and either a reflective/shoot-through umbrella, or a softbox. Softboxes are more expensive but from what I've seen they provide a nicer sort of light. At a push I'll just get a diffuser which is cheap as chips. All these things can be done on a budget if you're willing to accept lower quality (which I totally am).
Lastly I need something to trigger the flash when it's not mounted on the hotshoe; either a cable or a wireless trigger. The cables I've seen seem very short, and I've been recommended a £12 infrared wireless trigger off eBay which I'm happy to try out.
What I'd ideally like to do is clear out as much as I can in the spare bedroom at home and set up a mini studio. Nothing too extravagant; a desk/table and some black, white and/or coloured vinyl backdrops will suffice. From here I can do a lot of still life and maybe even try out water droplet photography which looks incredibly difficult and rewarding.
Hopefully I should be able to achieve all this within the first six months of the year. I just need to get my finger out and really commit to the project as a whole. And motivation has never been a problem for me, has it???!
CANON UPDATE
Just as an aside, I used the Canon properly for the first time at a New Year's Eve party. As I was using the slow kit lens I boosted the ISO to 1600. Needless to say I was blown away by the results; with the NR on Strong the noise was negligible. Barely noticeable. I haven't looked at the RAW files yet though so the jury is still out. Fingers crossed.
Wednesday 5 January 2011
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2 comments:
Hi,
I just wanted to say that I've really enjoyed reading your blog. Been reading it while reading up on current cameras (as I'm upgrading myself).
I was also glad to see that you went with the same camera as I ended up choosing (my younger sister kept pushing for a Nikon, as she has one).
I'm currently waiting for my January pay to order a 550D, while trying to figure out if I want to go with the 18-55, 135, or 200 kit lens.
Unfortunately Canons 18-135 and 18-200 lenses received lukewarm reviews, so I'll probably go with the standard 18-55, and get a Sigma or Tamron zoom lens later.
Got a bit much me me me in this comment. Sorry. Anyway, loved the blog and really loved the pictures, and can't wait to see what's coming this year.
Hey, thanks so much for stopping by and for the kind words. :) Good luck with the upgrade, it's a big decision if you're into your photography but the 550D has been a solid performer so far.
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