I was hauled into the back of a swat truck once in Uruguay because, unbeknownst to me, policemen were making a drug bust in the market I was photographing. I think they concluded I was working for some magazine or something because the camera I was using had one of those long telephoto lenses on the front. It was too high profile. My suggestion is – carry a camera that’s comfortable and practical for you, but beware of equipment that raises your profile unnecessarily. After years using Canon “G-series,” I’ve recently ventured into the Nikon family, partly because our Creative Arts Department at Team Expansion had gone that direction and I wanted my RAW photos to be compatible with theirs. But I had campaigned for some time that G-series cameras were lagging behind on merging high-def video features (merging a camcorder with a still-shot camera). The Nikon P-7700 finally seems to hit that sweet spot. High-def 1080 video WITH a mic jack into which we can plug a wired or a remote lavalier mic (essential to bump up the audio quality for videos). Like the Canon G-series (that probably inspired it), it’s one of those unique cameras that has essentially all the settings of a digital SLR, without the look of one; in fact, it carries reasonably well in my jacket or vest pocket, completely out of sight. But the secret is to find something that works well for YOU. Read reviews online. When you notice that a friend or co-worker is producing great results, ask her what she uses, then see if that would work for you. And once you find something you like, stick with it — and *use* it. Pick up a little tripod to stick in your backpack or vest pocket. It’s the only way you’ll get shots with *you* in them (using the self-timer). My carry tripod is so light, I barely know it’s in one of my right vest pockets. It’s probably just 6″ long, but it’s generally all I need to capture a shot of a luncheon meeting or a time-exposure of a church building at night. And with the P7700, the on-board flash finally gets some brightness (meaning that if you positively HAVE to use flash and you don’t have a powerful flash with you), you can depend on the on-camera flash to give you some quality light. I’m carrying (and have used a LOT) one of the Speedlite hot-shoe mounted electronic flash units — and it truly lights up the entire room (and even a small church auditorium, even if the power is off; I have photographic proof). If you decide to bite the bullet and carry a powerful flash like I did, I suggest you get one with a head that you can pivot upwards to “bounce” the flash off the ceiling so it illuminates the entire room. That’s the way to get a really pleasing picture at night without all the glare in your subject’s eyes. The Nikon Speedlite series meters through the lense of the camera with a small test flash first, allowing for a perfect exposure every time. Outstanding units.
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