Have a Heavy Expensive Camera That You Shoot on AUTO? #DitchTheDSLR

Disclosure: I am part of the Samsung Imagelogger program. In exchange for equipment my husband and I provide images to Samsung that are shared throughout social media channels with the hashtag #imagelogger. Any opinions included in this post are my own.

My husband Derek and I have both been so fortunate to be part of the Samsung Imagelogger Program. Many people have asked in person, tweeted or somehow inquired about what an #imagelogger is. We are part of a select group of photographers who share images taken with Samsung’s mirrorless cameras and interchangeable lenses that currently include the NX30, NX3000 and NXmini.

Being married to a photographer is expensive. At the dawn of the digital age, Derek jumped right in and our first major purchase together wasn’t a home or a car, it was one of Canon’s first DSLR cameras – the 10D. Once we made an investment in a DSLR brand it was cost-prohibitive to even think of changing as Derek built an arsenal of camera bodies, battery grips, flashes and lenses. While digital SLR cameras Derek has owned throughout the years have taken beautiful pictures, as a novice I couldn’t ever figure out the settings or points of focus. The result has been hundred’s of great pictures of Gavin and I, and very few of my husband, because he’s always the one taking the photos. No matter how many times he’d set up the shot for me, I always managed to mess it up. We even perfected the art of the selfie a decade ago, because people in general were too intimated and afraid to operate our DSLR beast.

Photography is not only an art form, but it’s a sport. The moment I rotated the button to a mode, other than Auto, it was like learning to ski down rugged terrain without poles, blindfolded. I crashed, many times missing the perfect memorable shot.  While some will study the fundamentals, others, like me, learn through trial by fire. The result though has been amazing. With the Samsung mirrorless cameras,  for the first time ever I’ve  learned about shutter speed and aperture and lighting. All of the cameras are lightweight and easy to travel with, and the ability to upload photos to my smartphone via the internal wifi connection makes posting to friends and family on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram a feature I’ll honestly never be able to live without.

The positive comments from viewers on social media since we began this program have been overwhelming. Other than spending a little more time each week dedicated to finding time to take photos, I’ve made 3 major changes to my  lifestyle with regards to photography.

1. I always now have a camera in my bag that isn’t my iPhone. I’m a mom, I carry a large purse, and what’s one more piece of technology? Especially with the #Nxmini. Having another camera with me has dramatically conserved the battery life of my iPhone throughout the day if there’s something I’d like to take a picture of.

2. I use a Samsung camera 90% of the time for all my images on social media. So if Facebook, sharing information, social media, blogging and photos in general are your thing, within a minute you can send a much higher quality image to your phone before you post it for the world to see.

3. Most of the time I don’t even really edit the image. If I do I frequently upload it into Instagram and choose a filter, and that’s it.

What I noticed after posting these higher quality images was that immediately the comments and likes became a steady stream, instead of few and far between.  Many friends now appreciate and respect my photos, many have called, asked or emailed for advice on purchasing their next camera. Do it. Join us and #DitchTheDSLR.

If you are tired of your old heavy,  DSLR and you live in the Los Angeles area, bring the camera, a functioning lens and battery to the Hollywood and Highland Center at 10 a.m. on Tuesday Oct. 14th. Trade it in for an #NX30 or a #NXmini, while supplies last. Join celebrities Julianne Hough and Nick Cannon at the event as they aim to break the Guinness World Record for the most “Selfies.”  After the record is broken, Samsung also plans to donate $50,000 to Habitat For Humanity of Greater Los Angeles.