Fuel for Thought

A Perk

As part of the driver retention program at Load One, they have something called Gold Rewards. A driver earns points by keeping current on training, participating in company surveys, time with the carrier... The points can then be redeemed at an online store much like cashing in points for frequent flier miles or other customer loyalty programs. The Load One program is run by a company called Stay Metrics.

My original idea was to save all my points for a "gold watch." They don't have Rolex in the store, so I was going to have to settle for a Tag Heuer. The Tag Heuers cost millions of points and was going to take years to accumulate. Then I changed my mind. To be honest much of the store is like the days of S&H Green Stamps and stocked with marginal grade products, especially in the early days of the online store. Turns out there are some really nice items in the electronics section, and I found just the camera that I can use for 80% of my photo requirements, AND clear out most of my account. First I saw the Sony Alpha 5000 Mirrorless camera and thought – that's worth ordering. Then I saw the Nikon and – Oooo no, that's the one.

The Nikon 1 AW1 comes with an 11-27.5 mm (a 35 mm, 30-74 mm equivalent), f/3.5-5.6 zoom lens. Both camera and lens are rated as water and shock proof. It is mirrorless with interchangeable lenses. I consider it to have prosumer (between professional and consumer) quality construction and features. Before considering anything else, I like that images are captured nearly instantly when the shutter button is pushed. None of that annoying lag of lesser cameras and phones. It is fast. It will grab 14 MP resolution images at 15 to 60 frames per second depending on the setting for automatic focus. It takes photos even while capturing high definition video. I like being able to set exposure manually, and I have all those options. This camera is going to serve me better than a gold watch.

eb