Parting Shot

We have been quite sad about the demise of all the local, small, brick and mortar camera shops. Penn Camera had been a DC institution since 1953. When they declared bankruptcy in 2012, they were bought by Calumet. That was very short-lived, however, and in March of this year, without any notice, Calumet closed all of its US stores, including Penn Camera. The closest, good camera store that I know of is now about 30 minutes away in Virginia.

On this trip to NYC, I skipped Saks Fifth Avenue (much to my husband's delight), and instead we made our first visit to the B&H Superstore on 9th Avenue. I realize that a store like this is probably somewhat responsible for the closing of the smaller shops, nevertheless, it is quite a wonderful place. I felt like a kid in a candy store. There were dozens of knowledgable sales people who were willing to talk to me about anything photography-related for as long as I wanted. I was able to pick up, hold and try out various pieces of equipment. It was incredibly informative and such fun. We did not really need any new equipment, so we left with minimal damage, but I did manage to get myself a snazzy new camera bag. :-)

There wasn’t much time for photos today. I couldn't resist this shot just before I hopped in the car for the trip home. I suspect most will recognize it.