The D40. The "D" stands for Drunk.

"If he can pipe rats pie-eyed, I guess I can sober."
- Jerry "Curly" Howard

A while ago, the good folks at Nikon gave 200 people in Georgetown, South Carolina new D40's and turned them loose on society to take pictures. The idea was to prove that anyone could take great pictures with the D40. Chances are, almost all of them were sober and operated during the daylight when things could be seen and understood.

In my case, it was between midnight and 2am last Wednesday morning, I was drunk on a combination of SoCo and cranberry and Long Island Iced Tea and I had never used a D40 before. To make matters worse, I had no tripod and it was dark. Still, I managed to snap off a few decent photos, proving Nikon's point. I hereby volunteer myself to the marketing people at Nikon to give me a D40, get me stone drunk and turn me loose on Philadelphia. Next time, I'll need a tripod.

The target area is Logan Circle, outside of The Four Seasons hotel where my friend was waiting patiently for the appearance of Dave Matthews after his show at the Tweeter Center. Since I bore easily, I ran with her camera and snapped off a few. All of these are on "auto", since I have no idea how to change anything, and probably couldn't see it if I did.

Proving that a flower grows in the city. This is part of a basket of pansies on the sidewalk outside the entrance to the hotel. I think they're pansies. I know they're purple. This proves that I can operate the little button that pops up the flash.

One of the oldest churches in the city, and the largest Catholic church in Pennsylvania sits to the north of Logan Circle on 18th Street. The Cathedral-Basilica of SS. Peter & Paul. It's beautiful on the inside, too. I found the juxtaposition of the Sheraton intriguing. You would too, if it was 1am and you were drunk. I think I rested the camera on a nearby phone kiosk or trash can. There's no way I could have taken this by hand.

Bugs and drunks are attracted to light. This is the traffic light on the corner near the hotel. I wasn't straying too far, lest I miss the appearance of the Great One. I took about 30 shots, but without a steady hand or a steady surface, most of them were kinda fuzzy. They looked good through the viewfinder, though.

I'm not sure what time it was that he finally showed up. I did get to shake his hand and say, "Great show". Next time I'll have to take something for him to sign. He's great with the fans, and twenty or so devotees hung out at the side door until about 2am waiting for him.
As for me, I may have to get me one of those D40's. I'm still on the film thing, outside of my little Olympus digital that I carry in my pocket. My bag full of Nikon lenses would still fit the D40, so it wouldn't be a total loss.
I could probably put the 6006 and N70 on eBay and make up some of the price. Film is so 20th Century.