Week 1: Getting Started

Hello and welcome to the James E. Hughes Photography blog. I started taking photos with a point-and-shoot camera nearly 20 years ago.

I travelled widely, to some pretty interesting places, and decided that my little point-and-shoot camera just wasn't getting the best out of the places I was visiting. So, i bit the bullet, and decided to upgrade to a DSLR.

But which one to choose? Well, I went for the only thing a total novice with no understanding of how DSLR camera's work could really go with: how the camera body felt in my hands. And without a doubt, it was with the Nikon camera range that I felt the most comfortable.

I purchased a D60 which, with its 18-55 kit lens, kept me happy for a few years. But after a trip to Greenland, I realised that there were shots I wanted to take which just wouldn't work with the camera and lens that I had.

Now, I'm definitely not an advocate of the "more money, better picture" school of photography: excellent photos can be taken with the most basic of equipment if you have the eye for what makes a stand out image. But certain vistas just cried out for a wide angled lens, while other, more delicate pieces looks great through a portrait lens. And everything could benefit from more than three focus points!

So, I took the plunge, and purchased a D7200... and an 80-300 zoom lens, a portrait lens, and a 10-22 wide angle lens.

Was it worth it? Yes. Yes it most definitely was. I'm enjoying learning about my camera and lenses, I'm enjoying taking new types of photos, and I'm enjoying learning how to use Lightroom to bring out the best in my images.

There was a point where I really wanted to give up on photography. Where I just couldn't seem to make those powerful shots that I saw in my head a reality on the digital screen. Now, I still haven't quite got there, but the images I'm making on this journey of learning and relearning are more to my liking.

So that's where I am now. As to the future? Well, still travelling, maybe revisiting some of the places I went before, but with a new eye for the images which will "pop," and a move towards more portraits.

Let's see what the future holds!

​James