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bessie_smithSo, I took a frivolous dip into my savings and bought a used Canon 24-105mm IS L series lens. The price was not too much over half what the list price is new, and a good bit less than I've seen from reputable sellers for used. The seller got himself a new camera which came with that lens standard (he bought himself a Canon 5d Mark 2. Must be nice to have money to burn), so he didn't need his old lens. It looks new and works perfectly. As was the case when I bought the 70-300mm IS lens a couple of years ago, I will be working on creative ways to prepare ramen noodles for dinner for the foreseeable future as a way to save money to make up for my latest bout of retail therapy.
This lens replaces a Canon 28-105mm lens I had, that was the first or second lens I bought after I got my first DSLR. I thought about selling it, but then decided, instead, to give it tothe_ogre, who has a Rebel, a gift he gladly accepted, and which arrived on his doorstep a few days ago. That lens was good to me, so I hope he enjoys using it.
Saturday, I was at one of the local camera shops to buy a filter, and the fella behind the counter asked me what camera I had. I told him I had the Canon 40d. He asked me if I had checked out the 50d, I told him I had, but that if I ever get the desire and the money to upgrade, I would go for the 5d Mark 2 (like the guy who sold me the lens). He asked me if I had tried out the Mark 2, at which point we both had the same covetous grins on our faces. We talked cameras and locations for a little while. We both agreed on the total awesomeness of the Canon 10-22mm wide angle lens, and he recommended the Canon 24-70mm as a very good, though expensive, portrait lens. I certainly can't afford that lens, so I'll stick to my nifty 50mm for portraits.
Turns out the clerk is a rail fan. I mentioned to him some stories I've read about rail fans being hassled for taking photos of trains and railroad tracks, which led to a discussion about being hassled in general when out taking photos. Brett mentioned the time the security guard at L.A. Live got on us for taking photos of Staples Center, and the clerk suggested that one way to avoid that would be use a monopod instead of a tripod, as it's less noticeable than a tripod, and the average security guard is likely to believe you when you tell them that it's just a walking stick. We chuckled at that, but I'm gonna take his advice.
Right now, Brett has my Canon S3 IS and accessories, including a set of recharbale batteries and charger. He's getting pretty good with it, so I'll probably give it to him. His digital camera is a little point and shoot that doesn't have the options the S3, a more advanced point and shoot, has, and he's talked about getting more ambitious with his photography, and wanting a better camera for when he takes photos of his model friends, which is why I loaned it to him in the first place, and is something I can completely understand. I was very happy to have a DSLR when we went out to Venice/Malibu a couple years ago to shoot his friend, Asia.
Brett and I went to the L.A. TImes Festival of Books Saturday, where I gave my new to me lens a bit of a workout, and it performed very well. The book festival was very crowded this year. Being a free event, I imagine a lot of folks came out because it's entertainment that can be had on the cheap for the whole family, you can hear free music, attend free readings, see famous people, and attend free lectures and panel discussions from famous writer and celebrities. We didn't stay as long as we have in the past. There weren't really any authors there that we wanted to see, plus it's a bit sad now that Golden Apple Comics no longer has a booth at the festival. They stopped going when Bill, the original owner and long time friend of both me and Brett, died, and his wife and son have really cut back on the stores exposure at those types of events. That's too bad, as GA Comics was one of the original exhibiters at the first L.A. Times book fesitval, and their booth always had fun stuff going on.
This lens replaces a Canon 28-105mm lens I had, that was the first or second lens I bought after I got my first DSLR. I thought about selling it, but then decided, instead, to give it to
the_ogre, who has a Rebel, a gift he gladly accepted, and which arrived on his doorstep a few days ago. That lens was good to me, so I hope he enjoys using it.Saturday, I was at one of the local camera shops to buy a filter, and the fella behind the counter asked me what camera I had. I told him I had the Canon 40d. He asked me if I had checked out the 50d, I told him I had, but that if I ever get the desire and the money to upgrade, I would go for the 5d Mark 2 (like the guy who sold me the lens). He asked me if I had tried out the Mark 2, at which point we both had the same covetous grins on our faces. We talked cameras and locations for a little while. We both agreed on the total awesomeness of the Canon 10-22mm wide angle lens, and he recommended the Canon 24-70mm as a very good, though expensive, portrait lens. I certainly can't afford that lens, so I'll stick to my nifty 50mm for portraits.
Turns out the clerk is a rail fan. I mentioned to him some stories I've read about rail fans being hassled for taking photos of trains and railroad tracks, which led to a discussion about being hassled in general when out taking photos. Brett mentioned the time the security guard at L.A. Live got on us for taking photos of Staples Center, and the clerk suggested that one way to avoid that would be use a monopod instead of a tripod, as it's less noticeable than a tripod, and the average security guard is likely to believe you when you tell them that it's just a walking stick. We chuckled at that, but I'm gonna take his advice.
Right now, Brett has my Canon S3 IS and accessories, including a set of recharbale batteries and charger. He's getting pretty good with it, so I'll probably give it to him. His digital camera is a little point and shoot that doesn't have the options the S3, a more advanced point and shoot, has, and he's talked about getting more ambitious with his photography, and wanting a better camera for when he takes photos of his model friends, which is why I loaned it to him in the first place, and is something I can completely understand. I was very happy to have a DSLR when we went out to Venice/Malibu a couple years ago to shoot his friend, Asia.
Brett and I went to the L.A. TImes Festival of Books Saturday, where I gave my new to me lens a bit of a workout, and it performed very well. The book festival was very crowded this year. Being a free event, I imagine a lot of folks came out because it's entertainment that can be had on the cheap for the whole family, you can hear free music, attend free readings, see famous people, and attend free lectures and panel discussions from famous writer and celebrities. We didn't stay as long as we have in the past. There weren't really any authors there that we wanted to see, plus it's a bit sad now that Golden Apple Comics no longer has a booth at the festival. They stopped going when Bill, the original owner and long time friend of both me and Brett, died, and his wife and son have really cut back on the stores exposure at those types of events. That's too bad, as GA Comics was one of the original exhibiters at the first L.A. Times book fesitval, and their booth always had fun stuff going on.
