New toys, and a long awaited shot....

In these times of careful spending where the cash is reserved for needs rather than wants new toys are few and far between, but maybe that makes us appreciate them even more ?. However have recently had 2 that have made a bit of an impact.

First was a long awaited upgrade to Lightroom 3, have been running v1 since it was released (before that the Beta). Did try v2 as a trial and Gill runs it but it didn't really give me anything that I needed but v3 has a few features that are both for me really help me improve my final images, and save me some time so will boost productivity. Main improvements for me are the image processing features including 'post crop vignette' so I can make final post edit previews for web without using Photoshop, no plans to replace CS for finishing and prints but its great to be able to prep images for either print preview or client proofs and sample prints. One reason for taing so long to upgrade was thta I needed to upgrade MacOS and again, have the policy of only fixing things that are broken, but had a few apps that would not work below 10.5 so time was to move up :-(

Second toy was a compact camera as an xmas pressie from Gill, have been looking for something to keep with me at all times but struggled with accepting something that would not stand up to my Digi SLR - always feared that I would grab that winning image with an inferior camera and be frustrated that it will not print up, but then thats better than no camera at all, that's been the dilemma !

So, looking around there were a few that might fit the bill, one being the Panasonic Lumix 5 as I always wanted the Lumix 3 with its f2 lens, the Lumix G2 (but thats a 4/3rd camera so bulky and needs lenses), Maybe the Samsung EX1 which is well rated ...or the Nikon P7000 as I am something of a Nikon guy. No, it had to be the one that many Pro's keep in their bag and has a pedigree as a quality workhorse, the Canon G12.

Why ?, well it scores very high in all reviews, has a real 'Rangefinder' viewfinder backed up with a flip out screen, real big dials for the main controls on the top, and takes great pics ... oh, and it looks like a real camera !

But, will it do the job ? (don't worry. this will not turn into a full review). In the short time that I have had it found the low light capture more than acceptable so lots of spontaneous arty portraits, quality is as expected ... and it's easy to take full control - really hate fiddly bits of technology where design overtakes functionality !

Final test was to grab some images for possible big print - scary. Was out a few days ago and the light and mist was just incredible, and what was in the car, yup, my new friend.

I have been trying to get this shot for ages, a favorite location, an old castle ruin near Killin but never seen it in the mist and with good light. So, a few tests in Av and manual modes, sooo impressed how well the shots were captured, sharp (enough) and well exposed - phew !!
Then it was down to the end of Loch Tay where the mist was lying on the water, and the edge still icy.
last was a grab shot up the estuary of the River Dochart, even shooting into the light failed to upset the G12, these web copies do not do the shots justice as this shot is crammed full of subtle detail.
Back home RAW images taken into Lightroom for some simple processing and hey presto !! - got some very impressive results without an SLR or Photoshop layer in sight.

Oh, and no way, will not be putting my D3 or CS onto ebay as they will always be my toys of choice but for when time is not on your side at least I can produce more than acceptable shots.

Also I now have a quality camera that can use to grab some decent candid portraits, nothing kills the moment like dragging a big pro camera out the bag - street photography here I come.

Thanks Gill :-) - yes you can borrow it .. if I am not using it...