The Camera talk

                         

I have vowed to myself while in secondary school that I will never buy a DLSR camera. I have admitted that I do not have an eye for photos that I will never be a professional photographer and that I will never need such an expensive tool in my life. 

After joining bookstagram I have used my android phone to take photos. I did flat lays and it was enough. I focused on other things. I focused on composition. How to arrange items to work together on the photo. I learned the importance of light. How artificial light turns your photo into a grainy yellow mess and how natural good light makes even horrible camera take an amazing sharp photo. 

Then I decided to buy a camera. I wanted to let go of my phone and I wanted to get better quality photos. So I found a cute little camera that was under 200 euros and I went to buy it. It was a compact Canon PowerShot 430SX. I have rarely used this camera for my Instagram or for any photos in that matter. It didn't do anything else than my camera already did. It provided slightly better quality photos but I paid a price of moving photos from the camera to laptop or to my phone which eventually required more effort so again I slipped into using my phone.

I am on bookstagram for two and a half years and now I am struggling to achieve a photo I have imagined. The blurry background is not happening in my phone so I took my forgotten PowerShot and tried it. I dedicated days to learn how to use it well and it was great fun! I went outside and took pictures of ducks and plants. But what I realised was that long ago when I bought this camera I didn't look at what I do as a photographer and what the camera I am buying is meant for. 

The result was that the PowerShot is great for zooming in, it is great for videos, but I don't need any of those properties. So I went to electro shop and I went to look at cameras. I didn't intend to buy one, but just look and play with them... I picked one in my hand and almost like a miracle, it did exactly what I tried to achieve with my phone and my PowerShot. It was like the camera read my mind. It new what to focus on and blurred the background in one second. 

The decision was made. I started the research that took 3 days, 20 coffees and one sleepless night full of strange camera dreams. In the end, Wookie helped me with a decision because I was so confused and overwhelmed with all reviews, information and videos that I watched. 

I ended up buying a DLSR - Canon EOS 250D with 18-55 mm lens. I have it for almost a week and I am so happy. I take photos of EVERYTHING (mostly Luna) but every time I click the photo I instantly think: "I love this camera". The photos are amazingly sharp and even with bad light, I am able to take beautiful photos. The background is soft and blurry exactly as I want it. The point of focus doesn't need to be in the middle, I have so many options and so many different settings to play with and discover. This camera is great for any photos I am taking now and gives me enough space to improve, experiment and involve my photography skills. 

So what is the lesson I learned here? 

A professional camera is not going to make sure your photos are amazing. But your phone camera will only get you this far. You really need to evaluate what you want from your photography and then get a camera that fits your needs...