I’ve always loved photography. I remember the day, when I was about 14, that my dad allowed me to play around with his old Canon 35mm SLR. This was before the internet, so yes, children, I had to go to the library to learn about f-stops and depth of field, aperture and shutter speed. But I was immediately smitten. The first thing I did was long exposure, night photography. And it worked!!

Living in Colorado I learned that a half-blind monkey with a $5 disposable can take incredible pictures there because everywhere you look is there’s something incredible to see. On a trip to Aspen, Tammy convinced me to shell out $400 for a Canon Rebel G 35mm. What a great investment. Keep in mind, this was before digital cameras, so I also spent piles of cash on film and development. I have literally hundreds of prints of streams, mountains, flowers, trees, and other things of beauty that don’t exist in Texas. (Oh, come on. It’s just a joke.)

When we bought our first digital, it was the death knell for the Rebel G. It’s been gathering dust in my closet for years. I’d see it on the shelf above my t-shirts and my heart would sag a little. But who’s going to pay to have film developed?! You have to wait a week to know if the picture even came out! Psh. Are you nuts?

When Canon came out with their first digital SLR, it cost around $2000. It was a dream to dream, but nothing more. I’ve waited for years for the cost to come down and, thanks to eBay, the market finally came to me. Last week I received my very own Rebel XTi. All my old Canon lenses and accessories work on it! And at 10.1 megapixels, it takes incredible pictures (See below).

Still, there’s a whole new set of things I have to learn with a dSLR. White balance, sharpness, and ISO settings are all new to this old 35mm boy. The best part is that this time, I can take thousands of experimental pictures for free and know instantly what works and what doesn’t. It’s a brave new world!!

P.S. If anyone’s interested, I have a really nice Canon Rebel G 35mm for sale. Seriously!