Guy Stuff at Guys Clubhouse

First let me say I ordered my Pentax from B&H out of New York city on Tuesday around lunch time. It arrived Thursday mid afternoon. I also saved $100 – $200. I’ll confirm that next post but man, is that great service or what!!  I’m not going to write much right now but my first impression is, this is more camera than I  thought I’d ever own. When was the last time you owned a camera you thought could take a good whack? The thing is a Tank! I need to go and start reading the 325 page manual. Basic stuff is simple so far and next post will be better. Here’s a couple pics of the real deal in my hand. More soon.

I thought I’d make a new sidebar for this page while I’m waiting for the UPS Dude too show up. This  is why it looks so nice on the blog page right now. No fear, I’m going to uglify it as quick as I can. Or should I just get rid of the sidebar?  Any ideas on what would be cool here? (I mean good Ideas. And you know who I’m talking to “helmet wearer” ) Anyway, lets have some fun and leave me a comment. All two of ya.

Yay! I’m all a tingle! I ordered my new camera yesterday! This is going to be the longest week or so of my life! Hoping to get off my ass and make a bit of cash with it too. Check out the Home page to see and read about it. It’s a nice piece of hardware. I’ll post opening the package and all when it gets here.

Well I decided to upgrade my camera situation and start shooting again. Deciding on what camera to purchase at first seemed easy but the more I read, the more unsure I became. When I was done, I was pleasantly surprised at my choice. Not wanting to spend more than a couple of grand,  I headed straight to the Nikon page.  That turned out to be wishful thinking because the more I thought about it, I just couldn’t justify spending that kind of money to get 10 or 12 mega pixels. Then the lens after that. So I turned to Canon. The  EOS Rebel T2i seemed ok with 18 mega pixels and a lens for 1200 bucks or so. Trouble for me is the build quality. In depth reviews and user ratings all pointed to the fact that it feels cheep and plasticy in your hand. I want something durable and robust. Moving up to the next model that is more durable is a substancial increase in price.  I pondered all this for a week before deciding to take a look at the Pentax K-7. What a shock I got.

The K-7 has a magnesium alloy body, is weather proof, 14.6 mega pixels, shake reduction built into the camera body, and, check this out, will use any k-mount lens ever made. What does this mean to me? As a former portrait wedding photographer that shot everything with a Pentax P-5 SLR, I have several very high quality Pentax lenses that have been collecting dust for years. I’ll be able to use these again! Not only that, but their are millions of k mount lenses out there, you can pick up some really high quality ones Cheap! So, that was it for me. I’ve ordered it. The lens that comes with it is not the best, it’s a 18-55 mm f-3.5 but who cares, I’ll use my old one or pick up an auto focus lens at a pawn shop.

To see and read about the cameras I’ve mentioned, or see any camera, I recommend you take a look at dpreview.com as it’s full of great info.

I finally got over to Dad’s after holding on to the scooter I got him for two weeks. I think it was a hit. Dad has a long driveway on a hill and didn’t make it to the top the first couple of times as he’s a big guy and let his finger off the trigger, then the scooter couldn’t get him up there. But last try he got the hang of it and made it easy.  Dad went and checked his mail up at the mail box on his own, then took a spin around the block which is quite long.  He hasn’t done that in ages and did take a corner a bit fast running off the road once. I believe it went a bit faster than he thought it would. Now he didn’t fall or tip over but  it might have scared him a bit causing some  apprehension . He carried on however and when he returned said ” I didn’t remember the block being that long”.  Anyway, hope you like it Dad and it gives you some of the freedom we know you need.

Another ( what I think) great deal I came upon at my neighbors yard sale was this baby. Hey, along way from new I know, but 18 gears all working with little wheel warp and a really nice gel seat! Well, I grabbed it for a whopping $10.00 and road home feeling like a thief. It was the whole.. ” hey bud, how much for the bike? 10 bucks eh. Well I don’t kno…. K here ya go. Listen, I gotta run, I need to get my dishes done before Jan gets up. Keep in touch eh.”  Shew ! I had to think of something fast and get the hell out of there. He might realized what a great deal I was getting! Of course, it even comes with the mandatory bike lock that has no key but hey, the lock looks good! I’ve had it out a couple of times for a short ride, and was hoping to get it out today for a bigger tour but it’s pouring rain, which is why I’m on here and not riding along the lake. Maybe tomorrow.