Start a digital photography hobby for meaningful, creative fun that doesn’t cost much! When the shutterbug bites, it makes you want to capture the best light, and to go where the most amazing views, colors, and textures are. This morning, for example, we got up early, and tramped around our town for 3½ hours, taking digital photos of the early snow and ice that hit while the leaves had barely reached their peak colors. (Take a look at some of my autumn Pennsylvania fire and ice pictures here.) We got exercise, used our senses fully, and captured the day. Digital photography is carpe diem!
Today, digital photography is a hobby that’s easy to start. It takes a good eye, a camera and a computer. Most already have a computer, and inexpensive cameras are easily had. For a price of $100 to $150, you can get a decent, lightweight camera to put in your pocket to capture beauty, drama, and action wherever you find it. I use a Canon that cost me less than $200, and I bought it four years ago. Now, prices have gone down, and quality is better for the money. (View some good, cheap cameras here.) Of course, you need some photo editing software too, but that is usually included when you purchase a computer.
It doesn’t matter what season it is, there are fun things to photograph in your neighborhood. In the autumn, take shots of whatever happens to the fall foliage in your area, be it glorious riots of color, or just a couple of brown crunchy leaves on the sidewalk. Winter may be stark and shiny with ice and snow, or it may involve palm trees and Christmas trees at the same time. Spring bursts out almost everywhere, bringing so much life and color for amazing photos. Then there’s summer, when you can take lots of underwater photos with, believe it or not, a waterproof digital camera. (See some waterproof cameras here.) The photo worthy world just keeps giving you changing subjects all the time.
In addition to nature, there are those wonderful human subjects to capture. Snapping candid or posed shots will preserve the events with family and friends for the ages. Portraiture is a whole other world to explore with digital photography. Pictures of your kids are priceless, and you can take good ones with almost any of today’s digital cameras.
If you enjoy digital photography, your little ones might like it too. Did you know that Fisher Price makes almost indestructible, real digital cameras for kids? They don’t take the best photos, but plenty good enough. I figure that getting children hooked on photography when they’re young is smart. It gets them involved with the world, gets them observing things, and helps spur their creativity. (View some digital cameras for kids here.) If you have children too old for a Fisher Price camera, teach them how to use your old one.
In these days of simplifying and streamlining our lives, and cutting back on expenses, a digital photography hobby makes sense. You can take digital pictures on your own or with your family or friends, and you can do it anywhere with simple equipment. It is a rich and rewarding endeavor that gives you a ton of joy.