My Precious

I was speechless when I opened this box on Christmas...

I was absolutely not expecting a new lens for my camera. It is just the right lens for my collection too.  I was desperately needing a lens that functioned well in low light.  (For the photographers out there, my lowest possible f number was 5.0 with my other lenses, I can now get down to 1.8).  My mom picked the lens out with help from a fellow photog (thanks Greg!) and she did really well.  Here are a few examples of what it can do.  These two pictures were taken using the exact same camera settings, only the lens was different.  Here's the first, with one of my old lenses.

And with the new lens...

Astounding huh?!

And here are a few pictures of Arrow, the only light source in the room was the Christmas tree lights. 

I truly despise the flat look that using a flash causes, so I am thrilled at all the doors this new lens will open.  I have a photoshoot of a friend's three little girls coming up soon as well as our family's annual trip to the Lake Tahoe house.  I am excited to see how this lens will affect my indoor photography abilities as well as evening and other low light shots.  

I also love how defined Arrow's stripes are in the above photos.  So thanks Mom, you did good!