introducing my new Canon 7D...

What a BIG DAY!!! My first new camera and lens since October 2007--the Canon 7D digital camera and the Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 lens. What gave me the impetus to take this monumental step was my ever-deepening desire to create true multimedia, ie., stills, video and audio. If you Google "Canon 7D, reviews", you'll see why I chose this particular camera. And I chose the 15-85 mm lens because I've used an 18-55mm exclusively since 2007. I know it suits the way I like to shoot.

By the way, I bought the camera, lens and assorted accessories online from B&H Photo in New York. They carry everything any photographer or videographer could ever want, and are independently-owned as well. Now maybe I paid more than if I'd bought at Best Buy or Costco, but in my opinion it's worth it. We need to support independently-owned businesses whenever possible. I lost my favorite local camera store to the tanking economy in 2008. Don't want to lose another precious resource...

This is a test photo I took of Ed watching "Seinfeld" on TV after dinner tonight. What impresses me is the crispness of the details, accuracy of the color and really high quality of this and the other photos I took today. To see it in a larger format, simply click on the image. And I did NOTHING to this image in Photoshop--this is how it came out of the camera! I couldn't be more pleased.

As for my learning how to shoot video, I feel so fortunate to have heard about a 3-day online workshop Vincent Laforet is giving April 30-May 2 through CreativeLive. It is called "An introduction to HDDSLR Cinema" and is designed for first time filmmakers and photographers making the transition into video. Sounds perfect to me. And get this--it is FREE!!! You can register by going to:

http://creativelive.com/courses/vince_laforet/

Even if you can't make the workshop, you can still order a DVD of the entire weekend by clicking on that link. The DVD costs $$ but if you order now, you'll get a discount.

Hey, maybe I'll see you there...