Leaving Your Comfort Zone.

Reed's 'Being Open'

This past weekend I gave Emily a new prime lens for her dSLR. It's not exactly new, I've had the Minolta 50mm f1.7 lens for a while.  Well, I thought to myself, 'If  Emily is going to use the prime, I'm going to get out of my comfort zone.'.  I don't have any primes for the Pentax yet, but I do have a 80-200mm behemoth that I shy away from (Mostly due to weight, but an  8ft minimum focusing distance also make me nervous).

Emily's 'Talking in the Sand'

The day was nice enough to merit a trip to Sandy Hook. We planned on going to the lighthouse but as we drove by the base of the structure, we decided to continue into Fort Hancock; to the old weapons testing grounds and beach.

Emily's 'Rays of Hope'

Watching Emily deftly use the 50mm prime and accurately framing the various subjects impressed me. When I started photography, I couldn't afford a prime and at fourteen bought a Canon 28-80mm.. I sacrificed sharpness for convenience. Now over 25years later I realize, that the lenses I use are much better but, I rarely stray from my wide to mid range zooms. 

Reed's 'Guiding Light'

 When we got home and downloaded the photos from our various cameras Emily's shots were amazing. Any questions as to whether I should have given her my old DSLR were visually answered. My shots with the 80-200mm tank were no slouches, but I had come to expect less from Emily's shots. What I had thought was her disinterest in photography was simply her disinterest in lugging heavy equipment around.

Emily's 'It Seems A Shame To Play Them Such A Trick...'

Emily rightfully beamed over her pictures. She explained how much she liked the lighter faster lens. I guess sometimes we impose unnecessary restrictions on ourselves and those around us based on our personal biases and past experiences.

Lizzy's 'Sand Crab' (Color Enhanced )