I got a fun new Nikon SB-600 Speedlight Flash for my D40x DSLR this Christmas, and I’ve been testing it out whenever possible. I have been dying to have an external flash for my camera since I got it this summer–thank you, Santa!

I thought it’d put it to the true test tonight while my daughter was in the bathtub. I can’t think of a harder place to get a good photo, what with all the shiny tile, stark white walls and porcelain to throw things off. I still definitely have to delve into the manual and sort out good settings for different circumstances, but I was pleased to get a couple fun shots of the squirmy toddler just by experimenting a little. Usually, shots indoors like this at night in the past were either too washed out or red-eyed from my my crappy standard camera flash or too blurry and dark when I tried to go without it. So this is definitely a step in the right direction.

Like I said, I still have tons of experimenting to do, but I can tell already that an external flash is definitely going to be a great investment for me. If you want to take your photography to the next level, this is totally an easy way to step it up.