In September 2026, I decided to make better use of my weekdays for photography, taking advantage of the late afternoons to shoot locally. This way, I could maximize my time actually photographing and minimize time spent traveling.
Another advantage of this approach is that it allows me to scout new locations. For that purpose, I used my son’s Nikon D3400, which had been sitting unused and now serves as my backup camera, fitted with nothing more than a kit lens — a Nikon AF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6. This setup even allowed me to practice handheld photography and explore shooting modes beyond Manual. I opted for Shutter Priority, as it gives greater control over the sharpness of the image and helps reduce — or even eliminate — the camera shake that comes with shooting handheld without a tripod.
I started by scouting locations with this configuration. Initially, I photographed the coastal cliffs near my home, shooting in color. To be honest, my expectations for this outing were modest, so when I imported the photos from the card and began editing them, I was genuinely surprised by their quality — both technically and from an aesthetic and compositional point of view. The conclusion I reached is that this modest camera-and-lens combination is heavily underestimated; the image quality achievable with an entry-level setup is truly impressive.