First steps with my SLR

I recieved it this week end, it is just brand new and cost two thirds of my monthly income...

But this purchase is a (very) well thought: I had my eye on it since the end of last year, considering all the things I will be able to do with it.

Let me introduce you to my Canon eos 550d :

say hello honey

I've already practiced photo with a compact Panasonic tz5, which has followed me in Australia and New Zealand. I took thousands of pictures with this little darling which was so precious to me to store everything I saw overthere. A bad scratch on the lens and few bumps later (despite great care, life is hard sometimes) the unfortunate left his place to his small brother, a Panasonic tz6, with which I had fun taking macro pict last summer. i will show you later some of my best pictures taken with those small compacts, small but very good in their category.

Well, I wanted to go further, frustrated at not being able to play with shutter speed and depth of field as I wanted to do.

FYI, I subscribed to photography courses that help create throughout the year a creative book, on learning the different techniques : studio, outdoor, black and white, portrait...

I'm waiting for the answer to know if I am taken, I keep my fingers crossed!

So here I am with my semi-pro tool, ready to face the world after swoting the manual and making few trials in my place:

my cat is a top model

The value of the camera and its size that doesn't allow me to hide it in my hand as I use to do with my compacts (I have no case for it) make me pretty freak, thinking that someone was going to attack me as soon as I set my foot outside, keeping myself ready to make a taekwondo move.

The fear disappeared as I walked in the streets of Paris: first, I was not the only one with a SLR around the neck and second, nobody cares!

Here is the result of a long promenade at sunset, there is much waste and the other coud be greatly improved (framing, ISO..) but I loved doing it.

île St Louis

île St Louis' Point : art students

île St Louis'Point:  I really like this one but it's too bad there is this guy on the right

île St Louis : ivy

Quays : messages tree

Sunset, could be better

Sunset, black is black but I like the waves on the Seine

Light effects  place de la Concorde

could be much better, need to work again

Opéra Garnier : not very straight but I like those silhouettes