Hello - From Amarillo, TX

joshua_ · Nov 20, 2012

Hello everyone,

I've talked about getting into photography for a long time and just finally decided to jump in. I had a hard time choosing the camera, but in the end I went with the Nikon d3200. There seemed to be a lot of good choices in this price group and I got a little locked up in choosing. I almost started off a little deeper but I really am a noob so I'll start with this one and then move on if/when needed.

I tried to get a lot of the basics, but I haven't even started looking at lighting or software. I'm mostly interested in taking pics of my family and then some wildlife photos while I'm out hunting - I get to see a lot of fun animals, landscapes, and sunsets/rises, etc. I really enjoy looking at beautiful photos so I hope to enjoy taking them as well. I seem to enjoy so many different sorts of photography; plants, sunset/rise, water, bugs, wildlife, people, art, etc. I even think the 'levitation' photos are fun. I seem to really enjoy all sorts of different photos and I hope that stays true. I'd like to practice in a lot of different styles.

The lenses I started with are real basic. I hope to start learning on them and then move into whatever I seem to need once I find a direction. I went with Nikon lenses - 18-55mm f3.5-5.6G, 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G, 35mm f/1.8G. I realize I'll have to grow some, but wanted to wait until I read some books and really had a good working knowledge (from practice) before I bought anything else so I could better decide how much to invest and where.

I've done a lot of online reading and I've spent a lot of time looking through photos from folks who are kind enough to share. I read a lot here before signing up and I believe I'll be able to learn a lot here. Seems like a lot of folks are willing to share and help out here. Once I have anything to share I'll do my best to help others where I can. I have another major hobby and I'm able to help lots of folks there - here I'm a total newb and really do appreciate any help. I've found a lot of good online info, but I'd take any suggestions for good online sources or books. I decided to start with three books and see where that gets me; 'Understanding Exposure' by Bryan Peterson, 'Tony Northrup's DSLR Book: How to Create Stunning Digital Photography', and 'David Busch's Mastering Digital SLR Photography'.

Thanks - and I look forward to learning and sharing here.