This week I've been out of town for work which usually is a great time to get out and photograph something new that I don't always see in Seattle. Monday and Tuesday I was in Friday Harbor which I know is a beautiful place so I brought my camera and tripod expecting to get some nice night shots after work. Well there is one thing I was worried about, the weather. Unfortunately the weather didn't allow me to get out and take the photos I had planned.

I've read several blogs challenging people to try and take photos that are within 10 feet of you as you read the post. Many times I look around the room and am clueless about what I'd photograph. Most times I ignore this challenge cause I can get out and shoot something outside. Well as you in Seattle/PNW know Monday night was a stormy, windy and rainy night. Needless to say I didn't get a chance to take pictures of the Harbor. Instead I was cooped up in my motel room for the night. I decided to try and find things interesting in the room and was messing around. Here are a few photos that I took at my motel room in Friday Harbor. To tell you the truth I'm not sure I like the photos but thought I'd share anyways! This was my attempt at being creative in my given surroundings. What do you guys think? All photos were taken by my 50mm prime lens that I reviewed in a previous post here: How Nifty is the Nifty Fifty?

When I first got my camera for Christmas last year it came with two lenses, the 18-55mm and 55-250mm kit lenses. These lenses have been great lenses to learn photography but very quickly I was looking for something that was a little sharper and a larger aperture (greater depth of field). Well there are lots of lenses that are a lot sharper and have a larger aperture than the two lenses I started off with but most cost an arm and a leg. If only I had $1,000 or more lying around. Anyone have a $1,000 they can spare?

One lens that I read quite a bit about that has received great reviews and doesn't cost much is the 50mm f/1.8 which some have coined the "nifty fifty". Most reviews have been very good for this lens because of the combination of how sharp it is and the affordability. This lens is about $100 which is VERY cheap when you start looking at getting a new lens. The one downside is that for $100 you're not getting the most sturdy lens. The lens is built with a plastic mount versus a metal mount. Additionally the focus is very loud compared to more expensive lenses. With a max aperture of f/1.8 I was very anxious to test it out. You can see more about the lens here. After reading a ton of reviews I decided to go for it. Overall I've been very happy with it and it's amazing how sharp my photos are with this lens. As the reviews said the autofocus is very loud and the hood that goes with it doesn't attach very easily. Even with these issues I would definitely recommend this lens to someone who is learning photography and is on a budget. Below is one of my first pictures with this lens of my friend Jed. One of my previous posts, My big brother Paul, also used this lens. I think Jed kind of looks like a Viking with the beard and tassels on his hat. This was taken at the inaugural game for the Seattle Sounders FC season. Hope the Sounders win on Sunday!

Taken: March 19, 2009
Focal length: 50mm
Shutter speed: 1/200 sec
Aperture: f/2.8
ISO: 800

When the weather doesn't cooperate

How nifty is the nifty fifty?