Who needs a camera anyway?

– Time For A Tiara: Column by Ginna Young –

As I talked about in my last column, my beloved camera bit the dust, or rather, the spring. When I sadly decided it was too expensive to fix and since there were no places around here to do so, I put my darling camera into retirement.

Thus began my search for a new one. I mean, I have to have one for work, and I absolutely can’t live without one for landscape and wildlife photography on my own time... it’s unthinkable.

So, I turned to online reviews for what would fit my needs and consulted with my photography buddy. I had one model in mind (Canon R7), while she had another (Canon T8i). So, I bowed to her wisdom and ordered it through Walmart. They had the best price and I know the items come quickly.

Take 1.

I placed my order online and now, I could just sit back and wait. Walmart promised it would be delivered before the end of the week. I’ve written extensively about my bad luck that follows me everywhere, right?

Two days later, I received notification that it would be delivered by the end of the week. The day after that, I was notified that my order had been canceled, because the account was flagged as fraud. Which account? Mine or the shippers?

Take 2.

OK, new plan. Since I wasn’t sold on the T8i, I decided to go to Best Buy and get the one I originally planned on. I withdrew money from my savings and headed to Eau Claire. Of course, when I got there, I asked for help on the sales floor and was informed it would be a 15-minute wait.

That should have been my first clue to just walk out the door. But, I said no problem and patiently waited until the nice young salesman came to help me. While I waited, I looked at the cameras on display. They didn’t have the R7, but they had the Nikon D850 that caught my eye.

I wandered around, but kept coming back to that Nikon. Finally, I picked it up and tested it out, and fell instantly in love with it. By the time the salesman arrived, I’d made up my mind to purchase the Nikon, who I named Francine, even though it was more than I wanted to spend.

Seems cut and dried, right? Hah! First off, they didn’t have the camera or lens I wanted in stock, and would have to order and ship it (why am I not surprised?). Well, OK, I guess I can wait a few more days. Then the nice young man accidentally hit the wrong thing on the register, so we had to wait for an equally nice young manager to come override the transaction and then start the process all over again.

Finally, I walked out the door, sans a camera, but with a new external flash and much lighter pockets. My email informed me that I would receive my package before the end of the week. Another email came, saying it would arrive by the end of the week. Still another came, saying it was arriving before the end of the week, but required a signature, since it was an expensive item(s).

I took that day off of work to wait for the delivery, running to the door every time I heard a car. Several emails later and multiple, “now arriving between such and such a time,” and the UPS delivery man pulled in. I signed and Francine was here. Only, this wasn’t Francine.

The camera that came said it was a D850, right on the body, as did the display one, but were nothing alike, so there must be various models. The control buttons were completely different, and the one I received was much larger and heavier. Still, how bad could it be?

Well, for starters, the lens wasn’t compatible, even though the salesman had assured me it was. Of course not. So, I immediately ordered one from a company in New York. The next day, said company called. The transaction didn’t go through.

I contacted my bank, who said my account had been flagged for fraud (it was me after all!) and while they tried to reach me (I got no call or email), they didn’t have any luck and suspended the card attached to the account.

Turns out, if you purchase something online back-to-back from the same place, within minutes of each other, that is a fraud red flag. Who knew? I got that straightened out and got the lens ordered, after it was made clear that the one I wanted to purchase was actually an international model. Did I want the U.S. model instead? Heck yes!

I paid for next-day shipping, because I just wanted a camera, but turns out, since I ordered it on a Friday, they don’t deliver until Monday. Still paid for the shipping though. Rip-off much?

After the four-day wait, I would be back in business. The lens did come when specified and it was a beauty; it fit the camera perfectly and now I could try it out. Only...why were all my photos blurry and over-exposed? I fought with the camera for hours, trying every single thing I could do get them to actually turn out.

Sometimes, a distance shot in enough light worked well, sometimes, it didn’t. Close-ups you had to forget about. I watched multiple online tutorials, read the trouble shooting manual several times, talked with my photography buddy and read online testimonials about that very same issue. Nothing worked.

I finally just decided I couldn’t deal with it and didn’t want to. Even if I could have figured it out, the controls were hard to use and my hands were killing me from the weight of that thing.

It’s going back, as are the lenses. Take 3.