Archive for December 2010
Cedar Creek
Cedar Creek, Queensland, Australia after extensive rainfall
Photographer: Gavin Crook | Thief Images
3 Simple rules to buying a DSLR
You want to buy a DSLR Camera either for yourself or for a loved one. What I am about to tell you is the best piece of advice that you will ever get about buying DSLR Camera.
There are many people out there, including amateur or pro that give advice that you should buy a Canon, Nikon, Sony, Pentax etc. Most Photographers buy a certain brand. That’s because they have used that brand for a long time and have had very few, if any, problems with that particular brand. So they unknowingly promote that brand. There’s nothing wrong with that either.
But you need to remember that you are buying an investment which you will hopefully use for quite some time.
When you go to buy your camera, you need to follow a few simples rules:
Rule 1: Don’t let emotion sway your decision. I know this is hard because by the time you get to the shop, you might have a preconceived idea on what each camera brand is capable of or favour one over the other. You may have been given a lot of advice from friends and family about which brand to buy. Check them all out, play with them all, then walk out and get a coffee or come back another day and then buy it. You need to make an informed decision not an emotional decision or an impulse buy.
Rule 2: The camera should be an extension of your body. What I mean by this is that the camera should feel comfortable in your hands. Have some understanding of where the controls are and how to use them, be happy with the size of the LCD Screen. If you are a little senior, a good size LCD screen is a must.
You should be happy with the camera because it is an investment.
Rule 3: Buy what you need, not what you want. There are so many temptations when buying a camera. Some camera’s come with dual lens kits, but you need to ask yourself the question what else do I NEED not WANT. You may need a tripod for those group family shots or that landscape shot and you will probably need a bag to carry your camera in. Ask the shop assistant if they will do a deal for a camera with a dual lens kit and a bag. In todays financial climate you may be pleasantly surprised.
Now if you remember these 3 simple rules when buying a DLSR camera you should purchase an investment that will last a life time.
Happy Shooting
Make no little plans
This guy is amazing. Please check out his Flickr Photostream His name is justinwkern
The city is Chicago
The Importance of a Blog
For some reason I am not 100% sure of why I need a blog. Now I currently have one on Tumblr (thief image’s Tumblr blog) but Tumblr has become unstable due to technical issues so I went in search of somewhere new for me to blog. Don’t get me wrong, Tumblr is pretty dam good but they are having some tech issues of late which have become annoying and frustrating, they will fix it that’s for sure but I also felt as though that I needed something to stand on its own and be professional at the same time. The Thief Images blog on Tumblr will be fazed out over the next week or so. Some posts migrated over to here, some deleted for ever.
Still I am not entirely sure why I need a blog, many people actually do quite well from having a blog and that is how they make a living. Me, on the other hand, work my butt off all day and some times way into the night, I come home and feel the need to blog, write about photography, hand out tips and tricks that help people and answer questions etc. Why I don’t know. I am always concerned about getting my photography, stolen, if you will off the pages of the blog and then used somewhere else on the web and thats because I spend a lot of time, money and resources capturing that moment in time. Not something that you want splashed around the net and they do say, once its on the net, it’s there forever.
But to be somewhat successful at having a web presence you need to have a blog, and be good at it. You need to write some good stuff to have people navigate towards you, read your stuff and then come back. So there is no pressure there at all. On top of that the web presence is ever increasing, apparently I need to have a Facebook page, I have no idea why but I think its called social media. Sorry, no Facebook page for me as I am definatley not a fan of that medium. But Social Media doesn’t stop there, there is Twitter, LinkedIn, and so on. It becomes a full time job just managing all of those social media pages/ apps. and to be frank. I was around when the computer first arrived in schools here in Australia. Until then we spent ALL day outside with your friends doing stuff. So I am not one to sit and manage “Social Media” as I have other things to do normally outside but there is also the need to spend time with the family and do things with them.
So ultimately, I need to have a web presence, I already have a web presence with the Thief Images web site, I have a Linkedin account but I haven’t used it in a long time. The wife manages any Facebook presence that I have because I can’t stand that app but a blog is something that I can manage. I can write on it or post to it anywhere in the world. and its me, its me expressing myself (something the wife says I struggle to do), get to show the world what I am capabale of and letting people see my successes and of course my failures.
I think this is something that I will be looking forward to doing on a daily basis and I am sure I will work out what the importance of having a blog is…..
Welcome and Hello (or G’day to the Aussies)
I wanted, probably felt, as though I needed somewhere I could write my thoughts, ideas, reviews and technical info about photography. I needed somewhere that is professional but at the same time reflects what I am thinking, feeling and what I am about. So welcome to the Official Thief Images Blog.
Here, I hope to post photos, tech stuff, hints and tips, and many more. I have several planned already. So here goes. Enjoy the ride
