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Two years ago, after an inspired visit to the Rocky Mountains and taking fairly satisfactory shots with a glorified point and shoot, it was decreed that We Shall Have Us a New Camera. And so it came to be that we purchased a Canon 70D SLR. We still had our first DSLR, the 300D Canon EOS Digital Rebel, obtained in the early 2000’s in a wave of enthusiasm to Learn Photography. We soldiered on for awhile at that time with this new toy but eventually we both lost interest. For the sake of expediency and convenience, I later succumbed to a couple of small, point and shoot models. A few years later, in 2012, I bought a Canon PowerShot SX50 HS, an easy to use, dandy little camera that I still take with me when I want something more substantial than those smaller pocket units – but not TOO substantial. It’s what we used on our trip to Colorado and it served us well.

Anyway, to come full circle, that 70D that we bought after our visit to the Rocky Mountains reawakened my desire to dive in head first and learn, learn, LEARN ever more about this consuming passion for the pursuit of The Image. That 70D, however, at the time we purchased it, was to be my husband’s camera while I was content to explore with the PowerShot and I even dusted off the Rebel and began playing with it as well. But I became intrigued with the 70D and began using it pretty much exclusively on my photographic jaunts over time.

And my husband? Well, he mostly just escorted me on forays into the woods or along dusty gravel roads but rarely shot anything unless he (or I) wanted to include a shot of me along the way. Earlier this summer he surprised me with a 100 mm f/2.8 macro lens and now it was my turn to treat him.

So here it is. A present for his 54th birthday – come later this month but I just couldn’t wait to give it to him! – is pictured here: a Canon 6D full frame DSLR. We already have two lenses we can use with it – the macro and a 75-300 telephoto – and while I was at Ye Old Camera Store, I picked up a Nifty Fifty as well.

I’ve relegated myself to the shadows (for now!) and will stick to ‘my’ 70D so as to allow Bill the time and luxury to familiarize himself with his new toy. We’re both wondering, however, just how long it might take for me to commandeer the full frame for my own selfish pleasures?

Time will tell…

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My camera of choice, the one I use most of the time, has been the Canon PowerShot SX50-HS. I’ve gotten some decent captures with it over the years and I have no complaints. Our very first camera, however, was a Canon EOS Digital Rebel 300D. We purchased it in 2004 and later supplemented our tool bag with a 70-300 telephoto lens. After an eight week night class, taught by an old school film photographer (somewhat ignorant – as were we! – of the new digital technology), we enjoyed playing with the new camera and our ‘hunting expeditions’, driving rural country roads, was a fun activity for the two of us to do together on lazy weekend afternoons.

It wasn’t long, however, before I switched gears and opted instead for something a little more user friendly (read: basic point and shoot) and purchased a smaller pocketsize camera. It wasn’t until a few years ago that I stepped it up a bit and got the PowerShot. Occasionally, my husband and I would play with the Rebel, experimenting with night photography and using it for family photos. After our trip to Colorado last fall where the only camera I packed was the PowerShot, we realized an SLR camera (with a larger display screen and easier to manipulate buttons for my sometimes very arthritic hands) would provide us with more of what we wanted so we purchased a Canon 70D and, just yesterday, we became the proud owners of our first piece of ‘good glass’: a Canon 17-55 f/2.8 lens.

My husband’s worst fears are now coming to fruition for no longer am I content to (just) use our original Rebel with the kit lens it came with or the telephoto. Now that I’ve got a bit of a taste for the Caddy, the old Ford just won’t quite do – especially with the new 2.8 lens. Bill’s strength is his patience for mastering the technical aspects of photography (I’m workin’ on it!) while mine is composition and a more creative eye. So I’ll relinquish the 70D (soon enough) so he can figure it all out and then show me how it works.

For now, however, here’s a (very small) sampling of some of the photos I shot today. Lots to learn so nothing too special here but I’m having fun with the effort!