New camera

'If I could tell the story in words, I wouldn't need to lug around a camera.' - Lewis Hine

Digital cameras are similar to computers in that they develop personalities, quirks, and tendencies to grow sluggish over time. I have used a Panasonic super zoom for a few years but it has taken a rough beating from college. It's time for change and time for an upgrade to something with more manual options. In the past month I acquired a new Olympus PEN E-P3, which I have been playing with in every free moment. Just as there are point-and-shoots and DSLRs, my new camera is part of the new micro four-thirds family. This new class goes by many names: Mirrorless System Camera (MSC), Compact System Camera (CSC), Digital Interchangeable-Lens System camera, or Electronic Viewfinder with Interchangeable Lens (EVIL)... I snicker every time I read "EVIL camera."

When cameras turned digital, they retained the internal mirror and large size necessary for handling film. Finally, Panasonic and Olympus rebuilt the camera from the ground up, adapting to digital technology in lieu of forcing digital components into a tried-and-true film camera body. The result is a smaller, lighter body because it does not have a mirror - hence "micro." To some professionals, the cameras' drawback is the four-thirds (of an inch) sensor that has replaced the larger 35mm standard. Though photographs are slightly cropped, I see the camera's micro size as a huge advantage. I can travel easily with it, remain less conspicuous, and still have a plethora of manual functions.

There are other mirrorless cameras on the market but micro-four thirds have been around for long enough that I am confident the lenses and accessories I purchase will not be anachronistic in ten years. Why Olympus over Panasonic, though? The big reason is each company's placement of the image stabilizer (the device that prevents blurring rom vibrations). Panasonic's is in the lens, so I would be buying a new image stabilizer with every lens - that gets pricey. Olympus' is in the body, so it is compatible with any lens that has or does not include a stabilizer; plus, stabilizer-less lenses are cheaper. I look forward to improving with this camera!

My kit so far:

Olympus PEN E-P3 body

M. Zuiko 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 II R kit lens

Lumix 20mm f/1.8 pancake lens

B+H UV filters for each lens

37mm circular polarizer filter for the 14-42mm lens

Extra battery

SD card reader

Hellolulu micro four-thirds camera case

Digital Photography: A Basic Manual by Henry Horenstein

Taken with an iPhone

Also, this kid is an amazing photographer. He just graduated high school and is most of the way through a self-portrait-a-day project. Lucky ducky, he lives on a small island in the north of the Netherlands and has the entire island to stage the photographs.