Let me introduce myself

<p>Hey everyone, James from Tucson, Arizona here. I joined this group a couple weeks ago and have been surfing the site, viewing images, reading articles, etc. on a daily basis ever since. The work everyone shares here is INCREDIBLE, and the articles have been very educational.<br>

Although I've been interested in photography for years, I've never taken any classes, and I'm a beginner in the world of SLR. I finally moved up from the point 'n shoot a couple weeks ago after I found myself feeling increasingly limited by my camera's abilities, more and more frustrated because my camera couldn't get the shot I envisioned. I've captured plenty of great photos from my Powershot (SD1200 IS), but with no aperture control, no shutter control, no flash control (besides on/off), and a tiny sensor there's just not much room for creativity. So I got a 60D w/ 18-135 kit. I don't have any other lenses yet, and can't afford any right now, but already I know I want a macro, wide angle, and a faster zoom lens (f/2.8 would be swell). Although I'm pretty much a beginner, I am quite technically savvy (an engineer) so just from reading various articles online I feel I have a good grasp of how an SLR works, and what most of the jargon about cameras and lenses means.<br>

The majority of my picture taking is at car shows, although my overall interests run the whole gamut, including landscape, nature, architecture, macro (not insects), street, travel, long exposure, and what I like to call artsy-fartsy (focus is on capturing colors, patterns, shapes, textures, etc. rather than objects). I'm also very interested in HDR, although it's something I've never tried.<br>

So that's a bit about me. I'm very excited about my new "toy", and looking forward to my personal development as a photographer without feeling sandbagged by my equipment. And I'm very excited to be a part of this community of photographers, looking forward to learning from and sharing with you all.<br>

Cheers!<br>

James</p>

<p>Welcome to PN, James! I grew up in Phoenix years ago (before it became L.A. II) and lived in Tucson (still own a house there and have a Mom there), so I know your area of the country well. You have some tremendous subject matter (landscapes, architecture, airplanes!) with some gorgeous morning and evening light. One tool I found to be very useful and which steepened my learning curve quite a bit was the SEARCH box for this site. Any time you have a question use it to see if there are previous threads that address the topic--chances are, there are and you'll get the answer. Also check out the Learning tab. Have fun and enjoy the ride! DJ</p>

Welcome to photo.net. I am from AZ too. Used to live in Tucson a few years ago. One of the best places to take

pictures, especially Titan museum and airplane museum. You have a great camera and a great lens. You can try third

party lenses if canons seem to be very expensive.

But this is an expensive hobby.

Regards,

Gurpreet.