Mapkyc's Introduction to Photography Minimize Zeiss-Ikon Contaflex Maximize Zeiss-Ikon Contaflex My first contact with the world of photography took place when I was about twelve years old and I was allowed to use my parents' camera - a Zeiss-Ikon Contaflex. This camera was a great tool to learn all about photography since everything was absolutely manual - including focus! For many years this was the only camera I used and because I really liked the results it (usually) produced, I did not want anything more. Still nowadays I like to use it once in a while ... with fond memories!

Mapkyc's First SLR Minimize Minolta Dynax 9xi Maximize Minolta Dynax 9xi On a trip to Hong Kong I decided to buy my first own SLR camera, a Minolta Dynax 9xi - and what a change it was! Whereas I was used to do everything manually, this beast had a chip and/or motor for everything: Auto-Focus, Auto-Aperture, Auto-Shoot, Auto-Rewind, Auto-Zoom (!), Auto-Everything! Since you could turn off some of the gimmicks I also liked this camera, however, sometimes it felt like an electronic toy and it really went thru batteries fast... All the pictures in my photo galleries from 1993 thru 1997 were taken with the Minolta.

Mapkyc's Compact APS Camera Minimize Canon Ixus Maximize Canon Ixus Since the Minolta was clearly on the big and heavy side, I was thrilled when Canon introduced it's first Canon Ixus in 1997. Having this tiny camera on me all the time allowed me to take some great snapshots. Before it often times happened that I did not have a camera with me to catch some incredible situation ... but no more! The only drawback was the APS film it used - the quality was not the best but it didn't matter that much. Some of the photos between 1997 and 2001 in my photo galleries were taken with the Ixus - easily identified by the different APS format.

A Step Up for Mapkyc Minimize Nikon F90X Maximize Nikon F90X When my Minolta 9xi was stolen from my apartment in Hong Kong I was first very disappointed ... but then my insurance paid out a great amount of money and I was able to step up: I bought a Nikon F90X! With this camera I finally felt like having the 'real thing' again. From 1997 till today I enjoy it a lot and it constantly produces great pictures! Some of which can be seen in my photo galleries dated from 1997 onwards.

Mapkyc Goes Digital Minimize Canon Powershot S40 Maximize Canon Powershot S40 Minimize Canon WP-DC300 Maximize Canon WP-DC300 In 2001 I finally decided to enter the digital era and I bought myself a nice Canon Powershot S40. Even though the possibilities with this compact camera and the quality of the photos are not comparable with the Nikon, I basically completely switched to digital photos. Especially also because I got an underwater housing for it too, and started to take pictures while scuba diving. Most of the pictures in my photo galleries as well as all the underwater photos in my scuba photo galleries between 2001 and 2005 were taken with the S40.

Mapkyc Had to Upgrade Minimize Canon Powershot S80 Maximize Canon Powershot S80 Minimize Canon WP-DC300 Maximize Canon WP-DC300 When my S40 'drowned' in the waters of the Maldives I was forced to upgrade, hence, I bought a Canon Powershot S80 in Dubai. I liked my S40 but I think the S80 is quite an improvement and I like it even better - especially the wide-angle lens. Of course, I also bought the underwater housing for this camera which now allows me to dive to a depth of 130ft (40m). Starting in the year 2006 until 2013 most of the pictures in my photo galleries as well as all the underwater photos in my scuba photo galleries are S80 photos.

Mapkyc's Next Step Ahead Minimize Sony RX-100 Maximize Sony RX-100 Minimize Ikelite Housing Maximize Ikelite Housing After my S80 broke down as well - the lens would no longer retract - it was time to switch to another brand. Evaluating the available compact cameras at the time, the Sony RX-100 won with quite a margin, especially when it came to the picture quality. Another nice surprise was the battery life! For the first time I was able to do more than one dive on one battery - no more opening the housing and changing the battery between dives. I got an Ikelite housing for the camera and later on added a video light as well. Starting in the year 2013 most of the pictures in my photo galleries as well as all the underwater photos in my scuba photo galleries are shot with the Sony RX-100.

Organizing Mapkyc's Photo Library Adobe Photoshop Lightroom The more digital photos I got the more I realized that I need a software tool supporting me in organizing this growing library. After having looked into several other applications Adobe finally released Lightroom - a member of their Photoshop family. I was impressed by the online tutorials, I liked the trial version and I love the application! For me, the library and the development functionalities are clearly the highlights. Check it out at Adobe's website.

Acknowledgement: Picture of Zeiss-Ikon Contaflex courtesy of Wikipedia, picture of Canon Ixus courtesy of Subminiature Cameras, picture of Nikon F90X courtesy of Foto Tat at Foto Libre, picture of Canon Powershot S40 & S80 courtesy of Digital Camera Review, picture of Sony Rx-100 courtesy of Sony, picture of Ikelite housing courtesy of Ikelite.