.how i started photography

The Sony.

Having started graduate school nearly a fortnight ago gives me the opportunity to take my camera out on a daily basis. I have been making the effort to take my heavy duty DSLR camera out on days when I would catch the train, just so I could start snapping away with the camera when something catches my attention.

Majority of you may not know how I started photography so I thought I'd blog while I'm at it.

It was March 2006 when I decided to go on to Canon Australia's website to look at DSLR cameras. I don't remember what made me interested in a DSLR all of a sudden. I knew nothing about DSLR's back then and the first model I was on the website was the 30D and then I said, "Okay, I might get this one."

Everything I bought depended on portability and size (lighter/smaller the better). SF and I finally dropped JB Hi-Fi along Elizabeth Street two months later. That was the first time I saw the 30D in real life and I immediately thought that it's a little too big for me. A couple of friends recommended the 350D and Nikon D40 so I thought I'd have a look at them too. I decided to go for the 350D because.. uhh.. because it's smaller than the 30D. *sheepish*

Since the 350D doesn't come with the body kit lens (I have no idea why) I had to buy a lens separately. So next day, SF and I went in to Camera House to have a look at lenses. Again, I had no idea what 18-55mm or 70-200mm or 35mm meant.. But I knew I wanted an all-rounder lens, something that I can use for pretty much any occasion... And so it goes on and on, and I left the shop with an ultra-wide lens – the Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 EX DC HSM.. The very lens that has been giving me all these amazing HDR results over the past year.

As a noob who knew nothing about photography, I didn't enjoy the Sigma 10-20mm very much... I actually swopped the lens for a body kit (18-55mm) with my brother in January 2007*!

And finally, in May 2007, I got myself a Flickr Pro account. I have been on Flickr since April 2005, when I thought I'd sign up for fun and post up photos of random daily stuff, like food and things. That was when I started taking photography seriously.

In November 2008, I bought my first prime lens, the very affordable and light-weight EF 50mm f/1.8 II. I love that lens and I probably should have bought that for a first lens rather than the 10-20mm.

I took the 10-20mm back to Melbourne with me in February 2008 and started enjoying it heaps – It's a lens that must be taken along for road trips!

In April 2008, I bought my first and only "L" lens – the EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM. It makes a good all-rounder lens and I have been using it for everything since. Today, I am using it primarily with the full-frame 5D Mark II. For my next "L" lens, I would like an EF 16-35mm, an ultra-wide suitable for the 5D.

I must have taken well over 10,000 photos in 2008 alone and posted 1,900+ on Flickr that year. I am hoping to post well over 2000 shots by end of this year and so far, I've only posted approximately 800 photos in the year 2009 set.

I do have to admit that I am not putting in as much effort with photography as I did last year, due to other commitments, so I guess the only way to continue photography is for me to take the camera everywhere I go and make the effort to take at least 5 photos a day.

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I shall take the prime lens and 350D with me to uni tomorrow and see what I can come up with. :)