I got a new camera for Christmas! It is a Canon 600D SLR. I was exceedingly happy to receive it, it was a complete surprise and also something I really wanted. I had talked about it all year but I didn’t think I’d actually get one! It’s not brand new, but whoever owned it before must have really looked after it because it’s so lovely and spanky.

So I’ve been playing around with it. At this stage I still haven’t plucked up the courage to read the manual. I’m using the excuse that it’ll be full of gobbledegook that I don’t get. I know nothing. I have managed to turn it on and Husband has pointed out what a couple of the dials and buttons do (he did a photography module at university). When I first got it I didn’t even know how to put the lense cap on and I still don’t know what “aperture” means.

I’ve been playing with the manual settings because the auto function flashes at everything. I’ll find out how to switch that off. What a twonk, sounds pathetic. Before the end of the year I will be a super expert and then I’ll stamp down on my current self in great shame and anger.

I find the lighting confusing too, I know the dial which lets more light in or reduces it and that’s helped for some of the macro shots I’ve tried. The two pictures above were taken about an hour apart. By the time I’d taken the second picture, the sun had started to come round to the front of the house and whilst neither of the photos are any where near perfect, you can see the the sun makes it have a nice glow. Anyway I shan’t discuss it more for fear of sounding like a fool. Practice practice blah blah.

So I went round the house taking pictures of things (whilst Toddler was at his very first pre-school session!). The Ladybird books are on the other side of the house so I twiddled the dial to let in more light but the picture is still not crispy, as I’d hoped. I can’t work out how to get it done right. Is it the light or my trouble with the focus? Or something else? Er, I dunno. Yet.

Another place in the house. Lego. Lots of Lego.

The first weekend of the year was spent playing with all the Lego. Eldest boy and Daddy found some X-Wing instructions online and spent hours and hours building a hotchpotch Star Wars starfighter! I know with absolute certainty that Eldest is very pleased with it. I know this because it is still intact. No Lego builds ever stay together for this long.

Anyway, that is what I got up to yesterday. Onwards and upwards and all that. Will try not to tread on any camera peeps toes. 😛