Jon Siegel / ジョン 米岡

Ya, I upgraded my D80 to a D300. The experience was fascinating. Selling my D80 was the toughest part I think, not in finding a buyer, but in parting with an old friend. When you sell something, like a computer or a TV, it’s not really the same. Those things don’t go on vacations with you or share intimate moments with you. They weren’t there when you got married or took that big trip overseas. The feeling was on par with relinquishing your favorite pet to a good friend, or, well, something like that. I’ve never been good at describing my emotions, oh the inescapable consequence of the life of an artist. The experience wasn’t an easy one, so to anyone thinking of upgrading their camera body, considering doing it on a day when you can either hit the bar shortly after, or make sure it’s not on a rainy day. In the end though, I’m grateful I found a buyer who will enjoy using it and take good care of it.

Thanks to Tokyo’s amazing second hand camera scene here, I’ve grown an odd addiction to older manual focus lenses. The D300 gives me more flexibility with these, I can meter with them, which I couldn’t do before, and with greater control over white balance. As well, the new sensor is much more sensitive to low light, my 50mm F1.2 was bright before, now shooting anything at night is like shooting during daylight(still need fairly steady hands though). There were a few obnoxious details which I neglected when I made the upgrade. I had to buy all new memory cards for one thing, and my camera cases don’t fit anymore. Not a huge deal I guess, but still a little annoying.

Really looking forward to next week though. Taking a short trip to Vietnam and Malaysia, mostly for escape and photography. Taking my 50mm F1.2 and 35mm F2, and probably my 70-300mm if I don’t get an 85mm F1.8 before then for some nature shots. This will also be the first time I sort of “live blog” during a trip. Bringing my laptop along since I can’t escape work this time. Mark your calendars then and keep an eye on my Flickr stream for some interesting stuff.