Whatcha get?!

No new kit, but after much prevarication I decided to buy myself a copy of Lightroom 6, and a stonking great, fat guide/instruction book to go with it. Almost immediately, I can see that it is much better than PS Elements (which I have been using for a few years) for some things, but less so for others.

I'll also have to learn a new approach to storing and (re)naming images, but I think that it'll be worth a bit of short term pain for long term gain.

Phil

Nothing photographic here, but got some great things none the less, hope you all had a great Chrimbo!

I bought myself a Spotmatic . Which also looks good on the mantlepiece

I've got v1.Excellent flash

Santa missed me. He thinks I've had enough already for one year. The 28-105 is tempting. Don't think it's been cheaper. But I'm trying not to jump in at the moment as a DJI Drone is tempting too.

Chris (my stepson) bought me a build-it-yourself Lomo 35mm SLR kit - with a LOT of little parts to put together - that WILL be a challenge to put together (if I can without losing, or misfitting, something).

Luckily, I still have quite a few cassettes of (well out-of-date!) 35mm film in the fridge for when I hopefully do!

I have a voucher for a photography day at the British Wildlife Centre - hmmm mammals or owls...

No christmas presents here in Spain until the 6th of January and I doubt there'll be anything photographic as my wife is completely clueless about gear and has this strange notion that I already have too much....

Just as well then that I bought myself the Fujinon 35mm f/1.4 a couple of weeks ago to go with my X-M1 mirrorless camera. It was a revelation for the christmas family get-together - sharp wide open so no need for either flash or super-high ISOs in the dark old house.

Well, I'm a happy chappie! My beloved gave me a wonderful book; Stephen Shore Uncommon Places - The Complete Works, (2014) Thames & Hudson.

Robert Venturi's review describes it well: 'Stephen Shore captures the essence of the American landscape by framing particular, ordinary elements so that they reveal the universal and the extraordinary.'

Not for everyone, but Joëlle really has me sussed out with this book. It's both inspirational and reassuring.

Be interesting attempting to mount the K-1 on it!

My present to myself was a 400mm f2.8 VR!

As we're expecting our first baby next year the thought was that I'd never get the chance again so I went for it!

Congratulations. Hard to argue to your other half that you need a 400/2.8 to take baby photos - is that how far away you'll be when nappies need to be changed??

500gb SSD. 4TB external drive, Filter holder and a couple of filters. Can now perhaps get my photographs organised. Hope everyone had a quiet and enjoyable Christmas as Liz and I did.

Got a new Projector, which could be used to display photos, but is more likely to be pressed into service for things like Aston Villa vs. Leeds tonight!

Regards
David