I love my new camera!

So I bought a new camera a few months ago - a Nikon D7000. I'd say it's about 100 times better than my old D70. It's great in low light, has a beautiful and large LCD screen, produces higher quality photographs, and has a bunch of handy features (like interval shooting and multiple exposure). One thing that it has that I really didn't care much for is the ability to capture HD video. I'm a photographer, not a videographer, so why should I pay extra for something I'll never use?

That's what I had thought, up until this morning. I discovered a beautiful dragonfly sitting in the grass this morning, seemingly waiting for the dew to evaporate off its wings before setting off for the day. It was sitting extremely still, so I couldn't pass up an opportunity to take some close-up shots. I grabbed my camera and attached my macro lens... and eventually my gorillapod too.

Before I get to the point of this story, I should also mention that doing macro photography is really nice with the live view feature of the D7000 - another feature that I swore I'd never need. It makes it much easier to fine-tune the focus on your subject without straining your eyes or back. Click here, here, and here to see photos I uploaded.

I took several photos from a variety of angles, and was about ready to call it a day, when the dragonfly started to move. At first I was going to snap some more frames, but then I remembered the video feature, so I thought I'd try it out. Below is the video I captured of this dragonfly, wiping droplets of dew from its head. I am quite impressed with the quality of the video, and even the sound. (The crunching noise you head is just me adjusting my position on a plastic bag - it was dewy and I didn't want to get wet!)



I'd like to dedicate this post to that dragonfly, who apparently didn't last much longer. I'm glad I could share his last moments.

PS Speaking of which: thanks Joy for your help with the bunny. Bad Jack!