FocusOnImaging, & what we're doing now;

Another F.O.I event over, and we're still sorting through all the little leaflets and brochures - most of them on my desk, thankyou! Humour aside though, it really was a fantastic event this year - plenty of hype about the new Nikon D800 (we like Nikon..), a few new exciting products we're hoping to stock very soon (3 Legged Thing, here's looking at you.) and a wonderful time meeting all our favourite people.

The Nikon D800?

We don't tend to stock full blown DSLR's, as I'm sure you know, but nontheless we are impressed with the new Nikon - same focusing and metering as the D4, a nice chunky body for that extra feeling of stability, and it has the edge  in the high-ISO-let's-see-how-much-we-can-reduce-it-by stakes.

What else are we doing?

We're currently enjoying the weather, for one thing! Sunshine = Even better looking Cotswolds. Even better looking Cotswolds = fantastic photographs, and we're absolutely loving it. Personally, I'm going to grab my wideangle and head up behind my house to grab some sunlight wooded shots, but I can recommend places such as the Rollright Stones, Blenheim Palace, or just plodding through the hills with your camera and seeing what you can find. Some of the best photo's I've shot are ones I've just come across while going for a wander.

We're also looking forward to some new Billingham stock - Hadley Pro Large sounds quite fascinating! - keep your eyes peeled! We'll let you know as soon as we've got some in for you to have a peek at.

If I may just pop a small review in...

Lowepro UK have been having a great time with their Event Messengers, (see earlier blog entry..), and I'm having a great time with mine! I managed to get my hands on one of the Event Messenger 250's, hoping for a lightweight alternative to my I'm-doing-a-car-show-today-so-I-need-to-take-everything Stealth Reporter 400, which I use for, as I mentioned, larger events where I need the majority of my gear. 

The Event Messenger happily takes the gear I need, which amounts to, on a good day, my Nikon D90 body, my 105mm Macro, my 70-300mm, my 10-20mm wideangle, and best of all - it takes my beloved 150-500mm Sigma. The laptop pocket will take a 13" laptop, which I don't use at the moment, but along with the zip-up compartment on the front, it does mean I've got plenty of space for my filters, batteries, lens caps etc. It's comfortable and simple to use, and it's just what I needed when I don't need to take every little thing I own. Very happy with it!

I'll pop a more detailed review in soon, but on the whole, these really are excellent bags, and I am rather fond of them. (Especially when the largest one's only £50!)