Hey, look! I'm posting...

[ses_gatergirl]

No, I haven't dropped off the face of the earth just yet :)

It's been way too long since I've posted a message, I know. And I haven't been able to keep up with the f-list either. So how has everyone been? Did anything spectacular happen in your life over the last few months?

Comments

[amanda_is_wacky]

OMG. It's Vicky! :-O

[ses_gatergirl]

OMG, it is me, yes :D

I haven't commented on it, but I have been checking out your travel journal. You've got some awesome photos on it, wow. And seriously? Bungee jumping AND sky diving? You're nuts! (And way braver than me. Though sky diving does sound really cool.)

By the way, I saw that you have a Canon 400D as camera. My brother has got the same one and he's looking into buying another lens for it. I gave him some links to your photos and he's very impressed by them :D
And he's wondering what type of lens(es) you're using for that camera and how you like them, etc? Poor boy can't choose from the huge list of lenses available and he could use some advice ;)

[arrietty]

I'm half way saved up for one of those cameras :D

[ses_gatergirl]

*ahum*

I may have accidently bought me a Canon EOS 1000 SLR :-"

I wanted to get me a new digital camera, so I went looking for one during the sales. And the more 'regular' cameras I was looking for were actually the same price or more expensive than that SLR. So it didn't take me long to decide :D

Just to give you an idea: my brother paid over twice as much as I did now for his SLR when he bought it two years ago. Is that a good deal, or what? ;)

[amanda_is_wacky]

Awesome! Have you taken many photos with it yet?

What's the 1000D ike compared to the 400D? I know it's the most "basic" of the Canon EOS range, but that's literally all I know! LOL.

[ses_gatergirl]

I don't have it yet, since I had to order it. I hope I'll get it next week. *fingers crossed* I could order it at the sales price so...

My brother read somewhere that the 1000D really is a mixture of the 350D, 400D and 450D. And that is all I know :)

[arrietty]

Yeah that is an awesome deal... hopefully by the time I've saved enough the prices will have come down.

[ses_gatergirl]

They should come down at some point. Especially on the older models. The Canon EOS 1000D I bought is a model from last year. And that model was a bit cheaper to begin with. According to my brother Canon made this model to try to make SLR cameras more popular with the 'regular' clients.

I'd suggest to look at some prices during the sales period. Maybe you'll come across a good deal.

[amanda_is_wacky]

When do you reckon you'll have the money to buy one?

[arrietty]

Year 2020 at the rate I'm going *sigh*

We'll see after Christmas and my birthday next year how much I have.

[amanda_is_wacky]

Heh, sky diving was awesome. Bungy jumping was terrifying but awesome (once you'd reached the bounce anyway!). If you check out this tag on my LJ, I've actually been posting more photos from my travels there recently.

I have the kit lens that comes with the camera (18-55mm).
I also have a Tamron 55-200mm f/4 lens, which is my only zoom lens (examples are this and this). It's not the best zoom lens out there, but I got it on special offer (£99 instead of £199) when I bought my camera. One that goes to 300mm might have been better really, but I've never had a problem with it and I make do with what I have.
The other lens I have is the Canon 50mm f/1.8 lens, which is the cheapest Canon lens out there and it is fantastic. If he's into portraits, then he'll love it. Examples are this and this.

[ses_gatergirl]

Wow. Those photos are really gorgeous. Especially the animal ones. It's not everyday you get a chance like that to take photos of lions, hippos, rhinos, etc. Though I do have to ask: weren't you scared to take pictures of the lions? Because I guess you were standing right in front of them?

Thanks for the info on the lenses. I forwarded it to my brother.

[amanda_is_wacky]

Thanks! And no, not really. We had lion handlers with us, were in a group where everyone was keeping an eye on whether the lions would want to play with you, and I felt fine crouching down in front of them. We just didn't crouch too close to them (as your height makes them have to respect you) or when they were in a playful mood.

[ses_gatergirl]

My brother was wondering if you would want to share a copy of the original of two photos. You know, a pre-Photoshop version. He'd like to take a more detailed look at your photos ;)

It's these photos:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wackymanda/3558254478/in/set-72157618690749760/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wackymanda/2628748585/in/set-72157603735028148/

If you're willing to share them and you still have the originals in the first place, you can send them to ses_gatergirl@yahoo.com

Thanks a lot for the pointers!

[amanda_is_wacky]

Sure, I'll send them tonight. Though please remind me if I've forgotten to do this!

and you still have the originals in the first place
*gasp* Oh the horror! I never ever get rid of the original of a photo. That's oh so wrong on so many levels! lol. I don't think there'll be a huge difference, as I'll generally only play with the contrast (usually via the curves) in a photo as jpgs are very flat otherwise. But I'll see if I also have the psd file or can at least guess what I did and try to include that in the email with the photos.

[amanda_is_wacky]

I've emailed them to you now.