New Bike

A couple weeks ago Kathryn learned how to ride a bike.  Last weekend we bought her a bike that actually fits her.  We had been waiting to make sure she got over her fear.  I thought it would be neat have a picture with her new bike too.  I think I did a little better job with these.  I don't think I dropped low enough to the ground earlier.  This shot is a little closer, a little wider, and a lot lower than my previous try.

Its interesting.  I did hardly any research into what I consider a major purchase.  It used to be whenever I was interested in a thing I would go on the 'net and find all the pros and cons of various makes and models of said thing.  I realized something recently.  ALL the major well known brands are generally pretty good for any given thing, and choice usually boils down to personal preferences that are only really learned over time.  The chatter that roils across the net is either nitpicking, or fanboy strutting.  With a bike, all we really needed to do was find a shop that works on them.  Service is a pretty important thing that I used to overlook.  I did spend enough time searching to see what the "major" brands are, and then looked for local shops that carried one or more of them.

Does this have anything to do with photography? Maybe.  I know a lot of us spent a lot of time "researching" our first "real" camera searching for the best.  I think if I had just narrowed it down to Nikon or Canon, walked into a shop and picked the one that felt right-- I'd have saved a lot of time.  I'm pretty sure I would have bought the same camera too.  So, what did I really gain by spending a few weeks looking at all the models and specs and reading opinions?  Nothing, it was wasted time.