Sunday 24 February 2013

It is still winter in Zoetermeer, walking our dogs and feeding the ducks

We interrupt our Florida series for a weather update in The Netherlands. After weeks of snow and ice, we were hoping that the winter was over but this morning we received some fresh snow. Our dogs Tommie and Tessa were very happy, it’s time for a walk and they just love snow.

I have been thinking of buying a SLR camera to replace my Nikon Compact Coolpix P90. It is however very difficult to decide on such a purchase if you are a beginner. Jana, one of my blog friends borrowed me her Nikon D300 with a 18 to 200mm lens. I have experimented a bit and came up with the following pictures, I still need to practise but am now already convinced to buy a SLR camera.

We onderbreken onze Florida reeks voor een weerbericht uit Nederland. Na weken van sneeuw en ijs, dachten we dat de winter over was maar deze ochtend kregen we weer wat verse sneeuw. Onze honden Tommie en Tessa waren zeer blij, ze houden gewoon van wandelingen in de sneeuw. 

Reeds een tijdje denk ik er over na een spiegelreflex camera te kopen om mijn Nikon Coolpix P90 te vervangen. Dit is echter een zeer moeilijke beslissing als je weinig technische kennis hebt over digitale fotografie. Jana, een blogvriendin leende mij haar Nikon D300 samen met een 18 tot 200mm lens. Hiermee heb ik wat geëxperimenteerd en dit leverde de volgende foto’s op. Ik moet nog veel oefenen maar ben nu al overtuigd van de spiegelreflex technologie. 
 
Walking our dogs

Walking our dogs

Walking our dogs

Walking our dogs

Walking our dogs

Walking our dogs

Walking our dogs

Ducks in Zoetermeer

Ducks in Zoetermeer

Ducks in Zoetermeer

Ducks in Zoetermeer

Tommie en Tessa

Previous Zoetermeer article: Oosterheem “Centrum” is now open for business, Zoetermeer

Previous Dogs article: An extraordinary wine and cheese evening with romance

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22 comments:

  1. Very nice shots Filip! I know that you will be very happy if you get a DSLR. I have a Nikon 7000, and I just love it. It is the third Nikon DSLR that I have had, and just kept moving up. I love this camera above all of the other nikon's that I have had and it really has all of the bells and whistles. I have numerous lenses and the 18/200 is very versatile, but I have found that on either end of that range, it does not function as well as you would hope. I just got a new prime lens which I think is awesome... it is an 85/1.4. You definitely want a lens that the f stop will go down as low as possible ie 1.4 or 1.8. They cost a bit more, but you have trememdous range in lighting capability. You can practically take a photo without a flash in the dark. In fact, you can with no problem, as long as you have a tripod. You can hand hold though with even very low light, like in those old churches, etc. I totally love my camera, and as many photos as you take, know you would love the dslr. I also have a 50/1.4 which is great for close ups. My d7000 came with a 18/105 lens which was a great quality. I could go on for hours about my D7000.... but will not. You can also , at least here, rent cameras to try out. I have done that with some of the lenses before i bought them as they are a big investment, and don't want the wrong ones. Have fun with your shopping. Your puppies look very happy to be out in the snow. They are such lovely dogs. Happy day to you

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  2. 't Resultaat is mooi, Filip, en Jana..., ja..., zij 'kan' fotograferen..., toch ?!
    Lie(f)s.

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  3. Oh, you also in winter.
    Tommie and Tessa it very beautiful dogs.
    Buying a new camera is an exciting thing.
    Have a nice week.
    Regards
    Lucia

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  4. I have the Nikon P series and love it, I started with the P80, then moved up. I now have the P150...47 times zoom. I know several people who have an SLR and it is heavy and hard to learn and they have ended up going back to a small super zoom. But perhaps with you, there will be no problem!!!

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  5. A beautiful way to spend a relaxing day.

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  6. Voilà heel mijn commentaar weg! Herbeginnen of toch een stukje.
    Je bent al goed bezig met de spiegelreflex. Je zal er plezier aan beleven, zeker weten. De Nikon D800 is een juweeltje...

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  7. That night, winter came again to Brussels. You have beautiful dogs. I always wanted to have a labrador, but I have a beagle and a second dog, who was abandoned.
    Regards :)

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  8. Your dogs look wonderful, great companions. The dark all-over duck is unusual to me. Nice to see some of your home town and daily happenings, even if it's cold which is very different to where we live.

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  9. The only thing that I have against the SLRs is that they take up more space than I want to give them. I like my little camera as I can pop it in my pocket and it is with my when I need it without any effort. The only thing it limits me on is taking birds. I agree it is a difficult decision to make. Your dogs are very cute, but I am glad the snow stayed away from here.

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  10. Good luck on your camera searching! Yours dogs are just adorable!

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  11. Your dogs are just adorable!

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  12. You are at home now. With snow and gray weather. hmmm. Anyway, these photos are great.
    And your dog is cute.
    Have a nice week.
    orvokki

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  13. Et bien tu a raison!!! tu va te régaler avec un reflex beaucoup + de possibilités et je trouve que tu fais de belles photos!! Je pense vraiment que tu ne le regrettera pas!!!!les toutous ils sont trop mimi!!!Bisous

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  14. Oh dear me, it must be so cold, I just have no idea.
    I have a SLR Canon and use it a fair bit, but it's bulky compared to a normal little digital camera which is easier when traveling. Having said that phone cameras will improve with technology and time, so that may do the job in the future.

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  15. For 3 years I use the Olympus PEN cameras. At the beginning I had E-PL3, now OMD EM-5. Fantastic equipment, learn more about it.

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  16. Mooie foto's heb je gemaakt, en mijn spiegelreflex camera wil ik beslist niet meer missen.
    Groetjes Tinie

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  17. Awww so nice to see the rest of your "family"! They do indeed seem to be enjoying the fresh air. As for the camera, I love my DLSR and you can always get a more entry level one before you spend the money on a pro version. They do get a bit heavy to haul around sometimes so don't be giving up that point and shoot! :) Can't wait to hear what you decide to get. Cheers!

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  18. I'm glad I didn't have to choose a camera - mine was given to me for Xmas!!! There's WAY too much choice out there for me! Your photos make me feel cool - we are in the middle of a summer heatwave so it's nice to see the snow.

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  19. great to see some of your pics with my camera...when its white around you (with snow) one needs to udnerexpose even more (out it on "-1" instead of "-1/3") to get stronger colours;

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  20. leuk deze winterserie Filip, Aardig van Jana dat je haar camera mag lenen. Ik ben benieuwd welke beslissing je gaat nemen. Ik heb het al een keertje gezegd, prachtige honden hebben jullie. Groetjes Dietmut

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  21. Dit is heel wat anders dan Florida. Koude en sneeuw, brrrr....

    Spannend om een nieuwe camera te gaan uitzoeken.
    Ga eens te raden bij een fotografiezaak. Ik zie dat je in Zoetermeer woont. Zelf woon ik daar niet ver vandaan. Mijn fotozaak zit in Capelle aan den IJssel en heet Kamera Express. Ben er vaste klant.

    Het is altijd lastig om een keuze te moeten maken. Als je gaat beginnen met een spiegelreflex zou ik niet gelijk het topmodel kiezen. Kies dan eerst het instap model of een model hoger.
    Vaak kan je een set kopen met kit en zoomlens. Daar kan je voorlopig mee uit de voeten.

    Enne een NIKON??? Zou ook echt naar Canon kijken, haha, ben zelf al jaren fan van Canon. Ik heb de nieuwe 650D met touchscreen, een geweldige camera.

    Succes,
    Nicole

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