Shutterbugged

So I went ahead and signed up for a wedding photography course conducted by Stanley, the guy who shot for my wedding day. No, I don't intend to switch careers. Not when my photography sucks as bad as it does. :)

The oops bit is that I'd forgotten I'd promised to loan my cam to my brother-in-law for his vacation, which overlaps two lessons. Doh! Thank goodness GrunGe agreed to lend his 300D to me to cover the two sessions. Actually, nevermind goodness, thanks G! :)

Flash, Defender of the Universe
Part of the course covers flash photography, and most indoor event photography requires the use of a flash. Which means I had to get a flash unit. Stanley was recommending that I pick up a hammerhead flash gun, but being the lazy cur that I am, I decided to go with a standard hotshoe mount flash.

I more or less had my mind set on the Sigma EF-500 Super DG, and went down to Alan Photo to check the price. Steven quoted $380. :( After I told him that TKFoto had quoted $360 including tax, and some calculator punching on his part, he agreed to match the price. Can't say that I was happy about the initial quote, but I guess I should have expected to bargain a little, regular customer or no. Picked up four extra Sanyo 2100mAh NiMH AA rechargeable batteries for $2.50 each as spare for the flash.

Am I going nuts over a hobby that I barely rank as 'amateur' in? Time will tell, I guess.