I’ve mentioned it a few times on Instagram and earlier on the blog, but my old camera went for a swim in my purse when a water bottle opened up and spilled everywhere. I was sad at first because my camera was a decent one (not DSLR though) and I’m also cheap so I knew we were going to have to fork up a bunch of money due to my careless mistake. Plus there’s the fact that I hate taking pictures and I hate learning about taking pictures and I figured it was all hard and that no matter what camera I used my pictures were going to suck anyway…so the thought of having to research cameras and then learn how to use a new one intimidated the heck out of me. Well y’all, turns out I was wrong, and now that I have a new camera I actually enjoy taking photos, I enjoy learning how to take better photos, and my photos are ACTUALLY DECENT! This is such a huge revelation I still can’t get over it.
I ended up going with the Canon EOS Rebel T5 camera and bought the Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM lens to go with it. I knew it was time for me to buy a big-girl DSLR camera, but I am the opposite of tech-savy so I wanted an entry level DSLR camera. After polling y’all on my Instastory, doing some research, and asking my friend Sarah of Sarah Bradshaw Photography (she took the photos for my Everygirl and Design*Sponge home tours and she’s an amazing wedding photographer too), I settled on this camera and I’m so glad I did. It was pricy but not crazy expensive like I had expected ($399 and then $125 for the additional lens), it is user friendly and it takes such crisp photos!
I took the photos on this post yesterday in my parents’ backyard and they are completely untouched so you can see what an amateur like me is capable of with this camera. Some are a little blurry because I’m still learning, but they are way better than anything I ever took with my old camera. Isn’t Jack so stinking cute? I still can’t get over him sometimes. I mean, he’s a complete wildman and it’s exhausting, but his cuteness helps make up for the trouble he causes. I know I’m a little biased though 🙂
So here are a few thoughts on why I like it:
-The 18-55mm lens that comes with the camera is great for shooting interior photos, and I use this lens primarily when I photograph my home. It lets you adjust the zoom so it’s good for capturing the whole room.
-The 50mm lens is wonderful for detailed interior shots and that’s also what I use when I photograph Jack (like in the photos above). Absolutely worth the additional money.
-The camera tells you what adjusting each setting will do. For example, when I want to blur the background it tells me that if I decrease the aperture it says “subject stands out, blurred background,” which is exactly what happens! I truly thought that only fancy bloggers and photographers could get that blurred background effect.
-When I was having trouble photographing the curtains in Jack’s nursery (see post here) I knew I needed to adjust something but wasn’t sure what to do. I played around with my camera a little and saw that if you adjust the exposure that will make things darker or brighter, and there is a little sliding scale that shows you whether you’re going to make your photos darker or brighter. I love how straight forward it is! With my old camera I was afraid to adjust anything because I had no clue what would happen. This camera is basically a camera tutor and helps guide you as you learn what each setting does.
I still have so much to learn and lots of improvements to make, but so far I am extremely happy with the camera. If you want to make the leap into the DSLR world then I highly recommend the Canon EOS Rebel T5. It gets great reviews on Amazon, Target and the Canon website, and it’s a great entry-level camera especially if you have no clue what you’re doing…like me 🙂
Adorable pictures, Katie!!
I'm so glad you're getting in the swing of things with the DSLR!