Pictures of the Christmas Tree

It is so hard to take pictures of the Christmas tree. Finally, finally, this year, I think I can do it. I've always wanted those magical tree pictures where the lights look all sparkly, but you don't wash everything out with flash or the room being lit up. 

 First, I turned out all the lights except the tree, the nativity (ours lights up), and one little lamp on the desk. It was dim, but not pitch black. I actually think the picture would have been prettier with a little more light.
But here's what I did. I put the camera on a tripod and then I made the aperture really small, like F.22. I set the ISO down to 200, and then took a really long exposure (30 seconds).  Hello sparklies!

They aren't the crispest pictures ever, and I'm not sure why. Could be that it's Blogger's problem and not the pictures.

Here's the whole room. You can see the nativity on the shelf. Who needs an inn when it's lit up like Vegas out there? Actually, the nativity is three lit up buildings and one dark manger in the middle.
I'm really enjoying learning all the settings on this camera. Poor Rob has to pose for a lot of test shots. Amy won't have it. She just wiggles her little heart out. She doesn't care if her whole childhood is documented in blurry images.