Out with the old and in with the new! At least the positive spin I’m running on having to replace several broken pieces of my kit recently! It’s hard to imagine photography as a risky activity, but an accident took it’s toll on one of my most important pieces of gear recently- wiping out my wide-angle lens, that truth be told, is responsible for probably 80% of the shots on this page.
But don’t despair, the silver lining came in through a curious chain of events which landed me a brand new body and lens- a Nikon D700 with a 50mm F/1.4 lens. This camera is now puts me into the realms of professional level equipment and understandably I am very excited to be able to use it, even if it means going without a wide-angle lens for a while!
Fast-forward to this morning- 6am just outside Luna Park. The weather is cold, rainy and dawn is still nearly an hour away. Luckily for me I was joined by a group of nearly 50 people who were taking part in the second annual Google + Global Photowalk. The event I attended was hosted by Rob Potter (of Photography Hotspots) and Ben Fewtrell (owner of On Three Legs), who for the sake of the greater good even arranged a coffee van for the event! Photographers might be morning people, but research has shown that you need to add coffee to ensure best results!
The combination of new equipment, lack of a wide-angle lens and particularly unfriendly weather all combined to bring me a particularly challenging morning, not helped by further breakages to my equipment, however I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge and I am happy to say that pushing the envelope led me to grab some shots I would probably have not snapped on my old gear or in more pleasant weather!
