It (was) a Snap

Ah, the blogosphere.  I am interested to see what comes of my adventures blogging with Patch.  As some of you may know, I am a freelance photographer for Patch, and a struggling freelance photographer-at-large (aren't most of us these days?).  I've even written a very short-lived column for the Oakland Twp. Patch called .  Go ahead, check it out... I'll wait right here.

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Well, weren't those great?  I actually had high hopes that the column would be revived, but for now I will settle for this new blogspace to discuss photography topics.  I suppose I should introduce myself briefly.

I'm Jesse, among other things.  I'm a father of two awesome sons.  I'm an IT guy by trade, but have had my own small photography business for a couple of years now.  I'm a student, attending Oakland University and working toward a degree in Writing and Rhetoric.  I'm a combat veteran.  But mostly I'm just this laid back guy from Royal Oak who likes to take random pictures, talk about cameras and lenses and software, and basically have a good ol' time.

I also have another photography blog, for those of you who may be interested.  I'm going to try to keep these things separate, but we'll see how that works out.

So, on to the first topic at hand... digital single-lens reflex (dSLR) versus point-and-shoot (P&S) cameras.  As a semi-professional photographer, I've become engrossed in a world of dSLR's, chock full of expensive camera bodies and lenses, high-end accessories, and ridiculous combination of settings.  I even enjoy jumping into brand debates, which can get pretty heated between a Canon shooter (me) and a Nikon shooter (someone else).  But a lot of my friends ask for advice on a new camera and don't have $1000 to blow.  So, recently, I've been looking at P&S cameras again and am really surprised by how far they've come.

For roughly $175, you can pick up a camera like the Nikon CoolPix S80 (yes, I know I just said I'm a Canon guy) which sports features like a 14.1MP sensor and a 5x zoom lens (equivalent to a 35-175mm lens on an SLR).  I couldn't even buy a lens for my camera with that kind of zoom for double that price.  And if you do have a little bit of money from that tax return, checking out an entry-level dSLR like the Canon Rebel XS or the Nikon D3000 is a great way to get into an expandable camera for ~$500.

In the end, there is absolutely nothing wrong with a point and shoot camera from your local electronics store, or even your cell phone in many cases.  Especially with apps designed to make photos interesting from your iPhone or Android device, creativity can be with you everywhere you go.  It's not about how much you spend on your camera, it's about how much you love capturing eternal images.

So...  armed with that knowledge, get out there and start shooting.