The digital camera I own is a little Canon PowerShot A530 / 5.0 mega pixels. The lens cover door doesn�t close. Sometimes it doesn�t open. It takes decent snapshots but I want something a little more powerful. I�m going to be on top of the Eiffel Tower for goodness sake.
I went to the Camera Shop - http://www.lansingcamera.com/ - located at 6006 S. Pennsylvania Ave, Lansing, 48911. It was 5:42 PM. The store closes at 6PM on weekdays. I know how annoying it is when you want to close up shop and some newb bursts in messing up your �I want to get the hell out of Dodge� vibe. My desire was just to ask a few questions, test drive a few cameras and realize I don�t have enough money to purchase what I would want for a camera to use on this grand trip. There were a few people printing pictures at a strange looking conglomerate of machines with screens. Suddenly I felt overwhelmed and way out of my league. That is until the exuberant Woody asked how he could help me. I told him I wanted a digital SLR for around $500. He informed me that I won�t be able to get one for that price. However, I was in luck. I braced myself. I actually looked up expecting Terry Hanks of Sundance Chevrolet to pop out of the back room yelling �Have I got a deal for you!� That didn�t happen thank goodness. What did happen was that Woody reached into the display case and told me about a used camera that he �just got in� that he could sell to me for $450. He continued to inform me that the camera came with two lenses. Now I don�t know much but what I do know is that accessories are expensive and I�m getting two lenses to start off with, and that I may be getting something good for my $. Woody figured new with both lenses the camera would be in the neighborhood of $800. I know that a lot of cameras don�t come with any lenses and could cost a lot more. I told Woody that I am ignorant and asked him to show me some stuff with the camera. He said that it was a great camera for a novice and began to show me how to get started. It seemed easy enough to basically put the machine on automatic, wait for the beep � which means it grabbed a focus and push the button. �Look ma, I took a picture.�
Woody has a catch phrase. It is �I�ll tell you what.� And with that he said if I buy that camera that he�ll give me a little discount on the memory card. I asked about the foot for a flash. He said �I�ll tell you what I have a flash here that I�ll sell you for $???.??� Then he said that all I needed then was a camera bag to carry it all in. Insert catch phrase here and blammo he gave me a deal on a camera bag. Now there was a counter full of stuff and I turned into a 12 year old boy, with eyes wide, mouth gaping and reaching for my big boy debit card. He told me he would be glad to help me out whenever I came in with any pointers and advice that I would need in the future. Insert catch phrase he handed me a notepad with a case and calculator. Catch phrase again he gave me a pen. Yes, it got a little silly. Another customer stopped what he was doing to watch the spectacle of impulse buyer�s chaos. He nodded approvingly and said I got a good deal. I said either that or I got swindled. That is a lot of money for just coming in to ask some questions and look around. I imagined what images I would be able to capture while I was on the observation deck of the Eiffel Tower. My heart was racing, my breath was weighted but I was eagerly excited. The time was 6:05 PM when I walked out of the store. I guess I wasn�t an annoying window shopper after all.
I raced to my special lady friend�s house and her son was playing catch with a neighbor kid. Perfect, I thought. I get to test out my new toy. The problem was getting them to stop posing. Soon there was a balance of them playing freely and making sure I got that �cool shot�. It was fun. This is the kind of camera that makes a novice look like they know what they are doing when they get that awesome �lucky� shot.
I went to the Camera Shop - http://www.lansingcamera.com/ - located at 6006 S. Pennsylvania Ave, Lansing, 48911. It was 5:42 PM. The store closes at 6PM on weekdays. I know how annoying it is when you want to close up shop and some newb bursts in messing up your �I want to get the hell out of Dodge� vibe. My desire was just to ask a few questions, test drive a few cameras and realize I don�t have enough money to purchase what I would want for a camera to use on this grand trip. There were a few people printing pictures at a strange looking conglomerate of machines with screens. Suddenly I felt overwhelmed and way out of my league. That is until the exuberant Woody asked how he could help me. I told him I wanted a digital SLR for around $500. He informed me that I won�t be able to get one for that price. However, I was in luck. I braced myself. I actually looked up expecting Terry Hanks of Sundance Chevrolet to pop out of the back room yelling �Have I got a deal for you!� That didn�t happen thank goodness. What did happen was that Woody reached into the display case and told me about a used camera that he �just got in� that he could sell to me for $450. He continued to inform me that the camera came with two lenses. Now I don�t know much but what I do know is that accessories are expensive and I�m getting two lenses to start off with, and that I may be getting something good for my $. Woody figured new with both lenses the camera would be in the neighborhood of $800. I know that a lot of cameras don�t come with any lenses and could cost a lot more. I told Woody that I am ignorant and asked him to show me some stuff with the camera. He said that it was a great camera for a novice and began to show me how to get started. It seemed easy enough to basically put the machine on automatic, wait for the beep � which means it grabbed a focus and push the button. �Look ma, I took a picture.�
Woody has a catch phrase. It is �I�ll tell you what.� And with that he said if I buy that camera that he�ll give me a little discount on the memory card. I asked about the foot for a flash. He said �I�ll tell you what I have a flash here that I�ll sell you for $???.??� Then he said that all I needed then was a camera bag to carry it all in. Insert catch phrase here and blammo he gave me a deal on a camera bag. Now there was a counter full of stuff and I turned into a 12 year old boy, with eyes wide, mouth gaping and reaching for my big boy debit card. He told me he would be glad to help me out whenever I came in with any pointers and advice that I would need in the future. Insert catch phrase he handed me a notepad with a case and calculator. Catch phrase again he gave me a pen. Yes, it got a little silly. Another customer stopped what he was doing to watch the spectacle of impulse buyer�s chaos. He nodded approvingly and said I got a good deal. I said either that or I got swindled. That is a lot of money for just coming in to ask some questions and look around. I imagined what images I would be able to capture while I was on the observation deck of the Eiffel Tower. My heart was racing, my breath was weighted but I was eagerly excited. The time was 6:05 PM when I walked out of the store. I guess I wasn�t an annoying window shopper after all.
I raced to my special lady friend�s house and her son was playing catch with a neighbor kid. Perfect, I thought. I get to test out my new toy. The problem was getting them to stop posing. Soon there was a balance of them playing freely and making sure I got that �cool shot�. It was fun. This is the kind of camera that makes a novice look like they know what they are doing when they get that awesome �lucky� shot.
Soooo I bought a new toy, some kind of digital camera with two types of zoom lenses. An Olympus E-500 EVOLT 8 megapixels. I think it makes me look like I am some kind of picture taking guru. It will definitely make me look like a tourist. I have a month to learn how to use it so I can take great snapshots that no one will want to look at when I return from my trip. "All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up." � Sunset Boulevard
Please don�t go to the Camera Shop and tell them that Melik said that they will give discounts at the counter. However, I do encourage you to check them out if you are shopping for an inexpensive snap shot shooter to very expensive pro equipment, printing needs and equipment.
~Melik
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