A Tale of Two Cameras

My new camera and my old camera.

A couple days after Christmas my camera broke.  The shutter button (plastic???) snapped off. This camera and I have been close companions since 2005. We have covered a lot of miles (back and forth across the country) and taken some awesome photos along the way. How could I even function without my camera?

My first response was to look everywhere for the broken button. I'd just taken some photos out by the sound, so it was working just minutes before. Well, I found the button, a cheap little piece of plastic, and discovered it was definitely broken off and couldn't be reattached. So my camera died just like that. Thankfully it didn't happen on Christmas, so I got all those wonderful photos of my grandkids opening presents. But I still wasn't prepared for the sudden demise of a camera I loved.

I've been in love with cameras since practically forever. I remember my grandfather, Pop, taking photos of me when I was a little tyke.  I must have been around seven when I asked Santa for a camera and received a Brownie Instamatic. Those were the days of black and white prints. When I graduated to color photos it was awesome.

Well, through the years I've gone through many cameras: Kodak, Nikon, Canon, Sony and others. I had an underwater camera way back when, but it didn't last long. My 35mm Nikon only lasted a few years before it died. My 35mm Canon Rebel has been sitting unused ever since I got my Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H5 digital camera. I love this camera and definitely wasn't ready for it to give up the ghost.

The logical response was to see if I could get my camera repaired. I took it to the only local camera shop that does repairs and was told it would cost $192. OMG! That's the price of a brand new camera. My husband found someone online who claimed he could fix the camera for $70 plus shipping and handling. Still pricey for a tiny little plastic part.

I spent a week researching digital cameras. I wanted high-speed so I could take action shots of my grandkids and my dogs. I needed a good zoom for vacations and trips to the zoo. The ability to take digital movies was a plus. I read zillions of reviews and checked out cameras online and at local stores. Wow! I had no idea there were so many to chose from. Finally, I decided on a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX20V.

Size and price played a big part in my final decision. The HX20V is considerably smaller than my old H5.  It fits in the palm of my hand and I can carry it easily in my purse, something I couldn't do before. The cost was $299 at Walmart (up to $399 elsewhere) and they just happened to have one in stock in my local store. I got a three year replacement warranty for only $28 (higher elsewhere).

My H5 is 7.2 mp, 12x optical zoom and took 720p movies. My new HX20V is 18.2 mp, 20x optical zoom, high speed for action shots and takes HD 1080p movies.  I still miss the ease of my old camera. This new one does all kinds of things that I've yet to try out. I actually have to read the instruction manual, which is something I hate doing. My new camera and I are still getting acquainted. We've only been together for a couple weeks. I'm hoping this will be a love-match, we haven't reached that level yet, but it's looking good so far.

Well, for those who follow my blog, you know how I love to put together lists of books. This time I was surprised to find a treasure trove of fiction that has photos, photography or photojournalism as part of the story. I haven't read any of these books, except for The Bridges of Madison County, but they all look like great reads.

Here they are (in no particular order):

The Bridges of Madison County by Robert James Waller
One Summer (A Shelter Bay Novel) by JoAnn Ross
The Bronzed Hawk by Iris Johansen
Dead Aim by Iris Johansen
Picture Perfect (The Wilsons) by Alicia Roberts
Camera Action ... Murder! by Faith Mortimer
Photo Finished (A Scrapbooking Mystery) by Laura Childs
From a Distance (Timber Ridge #1) by Tamera Alexander
The Camera Never Lies (Hometown Mysteries) by Elizabeth Goddard
A Tale of Two Vampires (A Dark Ones Novel) by Katie MacAlister
What's Cooking? (The Rose Cottage Sisters) by Sherryl Woods
Air Dance Iguana (Alex Rutledge Mystery) by Tom Corcoran
To Tempt the Wolf by Terry Spear
Camera Shy by Lauren Gallagher
Darkscope by J. Carson Black
Loving Luke by Suzanne Barrett
Caught on Camera (The Davenports) by Kim Law
Triple Exposure by Colleen Thompson
Snowed by Pamela Burford
Josh (A Wyoming Sky Novel) by R. C. Ryan
Pagan's Paradise by Susan Connell
Matters of the Heart by Danielle Steel
A Time to Love by Barbara Delinsky

Note - There were so many books to chose from that I'll do another list later.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read my post. I hope you'll stop back from time to time. Don't forget to smile and say "Cheese!"