Friday, August 10, 2007

Napping, Camera Reviews & Cards

Did you even know that Squirrels napped? I certainly never did. This little girl made her bed in the crook of the tree right outside my kitchen door yesterday and just snoozed away the whole afternoon. I thought at first she was just taking a "cat nap", but then she kept turning around from side to side, rolling over on her back and snoozing along. So I guess it's true what they say "you learn something new every day". And look at those feet! No wonder the poor gal needed a nap. I'm anxious to see if she returns today and if she actually builds her nest there. It would be wonderful to watch baby squirrels growing up.

So I was so "hot" for a new camera when I bought my Kodak P712, just because I had the Kodak DX6490 which I absolutely loved, loved, loved! The P712 is a 7.1 megapixel, compared to the 4.0 that the DX6490 is. So of course I thought I would be able to take much better pictures [right]. Wrong! Actually, the DX6490 took much better close ups than my new camera was capable of. For some reason, the P712 only allows you to be about 6 inches from the object before it starts losing focus. The DX6490 would allow you to practically put the lens on the object and never lose focus. So now I have to use PhotoShop and literally "adjust" every single picture I take of my jewelry before I can list it on Etsy {pain in the butt}. But, the P712 does take awesome pictures of everything else and does allow "RAW" format, panoramic and lots of other things that the DX6490 did not have, so it was a justifiable investment. However, the closeup shots were really starting to bother me and I longed for my little DX6490 back that I had hastily given to my Sister for her Birthday! I miss that little camera terribly. So while I was mourning for it, I just started looking around for information about the P712 and close up shots and ran across the "Macro Lens" that a company called "Opteka" makes. It only cost $29 {on sale}, so I figured what the heck, I don't have anything to lose. Wow! What a difference! This lens is amazing. I took this picture of my little African Violet yesterday afternoon with it and I can't wait to start taking pictures of my jewelry with it, too. If it saves me 1 hour of time, it will more than pay for itself. I just wish I would have gotten it sooner. The picture of the violet is totally untouched ~ no critiquing in PhotoShop at all {which is my goal}. So, if you are not getting those closeup shots you are yearning for with your camera, try surfing the net and see if there are macro lens available for it. Chances are there is and, you won't be disappointed!

As promised, I have to share this awesome little card that I bought for my Mom from "Crankbunny". It's just the most precious thing I've ever seen. If you are ever in need of a unique greeting card, please do check her Etsy shop out ~ I promise it will get you a higher ranking on your "friends & family" list, guaranteed!

Well, I need to go get some orders filled, but I'll leave you with this awesome little necklace I made yesterday. It's another one of those that I dreamed about and then got up and made it while it was still fresh in my mind:
And, I named it "Windsong" ~ I know, it's kinda hokey, but that's me. I still love the necklace, though.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend & don't forget to take my "Poll" at the top of my blog page. I'm trying to see how many people buy Christmas gifts on the internet. You just have to click one of the little buttons, you don't have to sign in, or anything like that, so it's easy sneazy.

xxoo & peace ~ Kathy

Happiness is as a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you. ~ Nathaniel Hawthorne

4 comments:

  1. Love the quote at the end.

    Nice lens you got there! I need something, number one being a new camera as I have 'dead sensors' that cause bright green and pink spots/pixels in my pics.

    I remember the perfume Windsong. My sister used to wear it all the time. And the commercials too. I can still remember how it goes. "Your Windsong stays on his mind."

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  2. Great necklace... love the dragonfly. The name is great!

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  3. Thanks ya'll. Yes, I'm loving my new lens. I'm getting ready to go take some pictures right now, as a matter of fact. Have a great weekend!

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Thanks for your comments ~ ♥