Tuesday, April 26, 2011

A new toy

After taping my camera together since the last time it was broken, I really thought I could get by with it.  It still took photos. The camera was just ugly.  Then, the last straw:  The shutter button fell off.  I tried to repair it with rubber cement, but the mojo was gone.

So goodbye Dear Sony, who got me through 2 NRBNF, and 2 trips to New Jersey, countless bird walks around here, and some good years with the girls.

But I shall not mourn.  Because I got a new one.

A Nikon P500.  This is a point and shoot camera that thinks its a DSLR.

I still have to figure out all the settings, the bells, the whistles.  But I'm very happy with it.
36x zoom. Crazy macro.  It's just overwhelming.
Here are some preliminary shots:
(We haven't had any sun for about 2 weeks, so the light has been BLAH.)


beginning of a serviceberry
The beginning of a serviceberry


blue jay
Blue Jay (from about 30 feet away)


carpenter bee
Peek-a-boo carpenter bee on the mailbox


Jake!
Jake, my favorite Starbucks barista


girls scooters
The girls at the end of the driveway (they were about 100 feet away)


frog isabelle
Kermit


macro white pink
Spring-Beauties


garter snake maybe
Garter snake, I think....he didn't want to be photographed


bee and grape hyacinth
Honey bee on grape hyacinth


prothonotary warbler singing
And a Prothonotary Warbler, singing his bright yellow butt off at Lake Isabella.
SWEET SWEET SWEET SWEET!!!

11 comments:

Cindie Ulreich said...

That camera kicks butt! The colors are so vivid and crisp. Love the bee on the grape hyacinth. Can't wait to see the pics from New River!

Elizabeth said...

The Blue Jay shot is especially impressive knowing you could capture such clarity from so far away!

Pat said...

Wows! Those are really nice shots. You and your new camera make a great team!

Lynne at Hasty Brook said...

It's not all the camera, it is YOU!

amarkonmywall said...

Wonderful! Great shots, great subject matter.

Kelly said...

...your new toy is taking some nice photos! Love that snake. Looks like he just had lunch! I'm going to have to head over to Lake Isabella. I haven't been there for a while.

Beth in NYC said...

Really good zoom on that thing! Nice quality images. Subjects are pretty good, too. ;-)

denapple said...

There's nothing like a new camera to bring you back to the blog...

Amila Salgado said...

Neat captures. Your initial results look promising.

dguzman said...

I'm with Lynne: it's not the camera, it's YOU! -- remember when I tried that 26X zoom camera, and I couldn't get decent shots because my hands are too shaky, so on full zoom it wasn't sharp? You, my friend, are a ROCK of steadiness. Great pics!

And a Prothonatary, dangit! I want to see one soooooo bad!

Dawn Fine said...

Steve Ingraham gave a talk today on point and shoot cameras for birding. He spoke highly of your camera..I Want one..Do u still love it?