I got my first digital camera in 2004...a Canon Powershot A70. I can't remember exactly the chain of events that led me to get this camera. Whether I did my own research, which was verified by the salesperson at Sears that I bought it from, or if I went by the salesperson's recommendation solely, but I tell you what, the pictures that it took can still impress me to this day. For many years after that (all the way until 2020), I've been loyal to Canon, upgrading to an A620 in mid-2006 for the 070206 Eagle Canyon series.

Between 2007-2008, there was plenty of quartz, fungus, stone, ice, and wood shots. Even though the subject matter is the same type of stuff as what I did between 2004-2006, I was always trying to make the shots look different enough that it seemed new, even if sometimes it was only slightly different. But there was also some new stuff to add to my repertoire, including my first underwater shots, some of the best squirrel shots I've ever taken (up to that point), and my first ice cave shots.

There wasn't too much else of note taking place during those years, other than me slowly but surely making more good shots, and less bad ones :).