Post Christmas Week And A New Lens To Play With

      Christmas is over for another year. Now begins that quiet time between Christmas and New Year's Eve. In some ways, it's a time I enjoy even more than the big day itself. No rushing around to get gifts and stocking stuffers ready. No need to prepare an elaborate feast. There are enough leftovers in the fridge to prepare simple meals or perhaps just a turkey sandwich as needed. It's a time of complete decadence. I can sleep in if I want to. Conversely, I can stay up late reading, editing photos or  just surfing the web. I can even be so daring as to enjoy a cup of coffee past my usual cutoff time. Such luxury!

    Christmas in our household is a relatively low key affair anyway. I've long ago given up on excessive rushing around in an attempt to please everyone on an extensive list. To paraphrase my own writing from a post I published a while ago, I doubt that the celebration of the  arrival of the Prince of Peace was meant to cause stress and mayhem in the souls of those that would follow his teachings. https://multifarious-musings.blogspot.com/2011/12/ghosts-of-christmas-past.html

    So Christmas is over and I've got some time to play with my toys. This year I acquired a zoom lens for my Fuji camera system. It's a fairly big one. Well, big for me. One of the reasons I switched to the Fuji system is that the cameras are smaller. (a little more suitable for travel and street photography)  Although I sometimes dabble in wildlife photography, I'm not known for hauling around one of those huge bazooka barrels attached to my cameras. But,  compared to either of the other lenses in my Fuji kit, this thing is big.

At 55mm this lens isn't so bad.

Zoomed out to 200mm with the lens hood attached, we're
entering ''Holy Crap!'' territory.

    Christmas Day being what it is, I really only had time to test the lens with a few close-up shots of Christmas ornaments on the tree.                                                                                                     

    But, this morning, I took it for a little walk up to the dam near my home. Yeah, yeah, I know. I photograph this place too often. But hey, it's a beautiful spot. And it's handy. And when I try out a new piece of kit there, I know that I've already got about a thousand images on file for comparison. Anyway I really like what this lens can do. It allows me to pick out interesting details of a landscape. (or in this case riverscape) I even didn't mind it's overall size too much. I could easily operate the zoom, aperture and focus control rings without having to take my gloves off. I loved how I could feature specific aspects of a scene with which I'm very familiar.

                                                                            

   

 Is it a lens that I'm going to leave on the camera all the time? Probably not. But for those times when I want to pull things in a bit closer or simply narrow my angle of view it's more than  adequate for my needs. It's a nice piece of equipment to have in the old LowePro. 

    Since this is my last blog post for this year I want to close with a note of thanks. To say that 2020 has been a hell of a year would be a huge understatement.  If there's a silver lining to this pandemic, it would be that I've come to appreciate, more than ever, the sense of caring and community that exists in this small town where I make my home. Thanks for all for the ''likes" and comments on social media. Thanks to everyone who has purchased my prints and postcards.  Thank you also to all who follow and read this blog. Your kindness and support is greatly appreciated. 

    Thanks also to the shutterhounds of the Paris Photo Collective.  Although the  group has essentially been reduced to a Facebook page due to the pandemic, it's great to see that people are shooting and posting their work. Keep the passion alive! I'm confident  we'll all be able to meet in person again in the new year. There'll be coffee, laughter, wild stories, and...oh yeah, maybe some pictures and photography stuff! You know...the usual insanity! 

     Wishing everyone all the best in the New Year. Stay safe.

                                                  ...more later

     

 

     

    

                                                      

     

Fall Colour Season 2020

    Well, I guess the fall colour season is over for another year. About a week ago, a pretty substantial windstorm blew in and pretty much annihilated the last of the leaves  left on the trees. Ahh November, that dreariest of months. Almost no colour left on the trees, not enough snow for a pristine winter wonderland. 

     With the restrictions of a world dominated by a global pandemic, my travels  during this fall colour season were somewhat diminished this year. From what I heard, in chatting with other photographers, many places, provincial parks , conservation areas, etc. were functioning on a ''reservations only'' basis. They were trying to control the number of people who access these places to view and photograph the sweeping vistas of colour. So, for the most part, I limited my fall colour photography to places and scenes I could access easily within a short walk from home. This year my images were often just a small burst of colour in the in the overall drama which is the fall colour season. My usual ''Autumn at the Dam'' photos were published with my last blog post.  https://refractivereasoning.blogspot.com/2020/10/gratitude.html

     My last blog post was entitled ''Gratitide'', published (appropriately enough) on the Thanksgiving weekend. One of the things in my life for which I'm grateful is being a photographer. The strange thing about it is that I don't always have to be actively engaged in the craft to experience the beauty and wonder of the scenes and situations in front of me. One beautiful Autumn morning I went to the dam near my home and just sat, savouring the beauty of the scene.   Sometimes it's better to just be in the moment rather than fiddling about, trying to make a photograph of it. Sometimes less is more. 

     A few years ago, I saw the movie ''The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty''. The  scene that stuck with me was the one where Walter Mitty finally connects with photographer Sean O'Connell played by actor Sean Penn. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfjkiTB1fHQ 

I remarked to the lady I was with, that I could completely relate to Sean Penn's character in that scene. 

     In reality, the cameras, the photographs are not the be all - end all of my existence. My photographs are, at best, an adjunct to the life I've lived. Through photography, I can more completely experience the wonder that is right in front of me whether I photograph it or not. 

While photography is a method for me to share my perceptions of the world around me, ultimately, it is the perceptions themselves that matter most.

           ... more later

  

     

     

Gratitude

    It has not been a very happy Thanksgiving weekend  in our little household. Yesterday, I had to have our beloved  house cat, Goofy, (the Doofer) put down. I won't go into the conditions that led to having to make that most difficult decision. Suffice it to say, she had lived a long and good life and her time had come. Goofy came to us shortly after we moved to Paris. She was the runt of a litter of kittens that had been born next door. As the runt of the litter, she was always a small cat, but she lived her life with an intensity and ferocity that belied her diminutive size. I'm so thankful that she was a part of our lives for so long.             

 

     So it's Thanksgiving. It is hard to generate a feeling of happiness in the face of powerful loss. I had a hard time sleeping last night. I guess I missed the comfort of my little cat curling up on my legs while I dozed off. I awoke about 4:00 a.m.  Feeling kind of restless, I went downstairs for a snack. The house was a little cold. I bumped the the thermostat up a degree and was thankful to hear the faint sound of the furnace in the basement kicking in. We had had some trouble with it last year. I returned to my room and pulled up the wool blanket folded at the foot of my bed. Thankfully, I had remembered to wash it the day before. It had dried  on the clothesline and had that fresh scent that only comes from fabric dried outside. I was thankful for it's comfort.

     This morning I grabbed my cameras and went for a walk. It's become something of a tradition for me  to post some fall colour pictures on social media after I was dragged, kicking and screaming, into the digital age. The sky outside was kind of overcast. Not quite the kind of crisp light that I prefer for fall colour shots. I was thankful for getting some shots earlier in the week under bright blue skies. They would make for a nice Thanksgiving post.                                   

 

     The camera I was using this morning is my Fuji XE-3. I purchased it earlier this year (pre-pandemic) as a 60th birthday gift  to myself. https://refractivereasoning.blogspot.com/2020/04/bridges.html  Unfortunately the camera had a minor glitch and had to be sent back to Fuji for warranty service.  I was thankful to get it back in time for the fall colour season.

     I wandered  up to the dam and did a few shots there. The XE-3 performed flawlessly. I enjoyed the usual photographer's satisfaction of working with a really nice camera. I was thankful to live in a place where I could take beautiful photographs so close to home. 

     I later mosied downtown and was greeted by John, owner of John M. Hall Linens, who was laying out some colourful matts in anticipation of the weekend crowd. I took a few photos of his colourful merchandise. In the words of Harry Chapin, ''All my life's a circle.'' It occured to me as I walked away, that the Canadian made MacAusland blanket that had provided  me some comfort last night was purchased at his store. I was thankful that I lived in a town where caring merchants still provide good quality stuff.                                                                                   

   

 By now, you've probably noticed that I have used the words ''thankful'' or ''thankfully'' a lot in this post. I have learned something this holiday weekend. If you're looking for happiness, first find gratitude.

    Thanks for the love and the lesson Doofer. I'll see you on the other side.

           

                     ...more later

     

     

     

Bridges

     We're living in difficult times. The word ''unprecedented" has been used so much that it has become trite.  It's a language development that in and of itself is ''unprecedented''. Everything and everyone has been affected in one way or another.

     So I went out for a walk this morning. I made some photographs that, hopefully are decent or at least mildly interesting. Of late, I've been shooting with a Fuji X-E3 that I purchased for myself back in February. You know, back when life was relatively normal. At the time,  I purchased it as an early birthday gift for myself. I know, I know, I didn't need another camera! But I believe Fuji was in the process of discontinuing this model and a store in Toronto was clearing them out with an incredibly good package deal. Besides, it was my 60th birthday coming up.  After surviving six decades on this planet, I wanted something shiny! I'm glad that, on the advice of a friend, (Thanks Francine!)  I decided to grab it early.  When I got to the shop in Toronto,  they only had one left! And, you guessed it. It was a silver one! (Regular readers of this blog know that I generally prefer black cameras.) 

https://refractivereasoning.blogspot.com/2017/04/the-silver-camera.html

     Well at least the two lenses I have available for it are black. They were purchased for another recently acquired camera,  a black  Fuji X-T1. (Thanks Tom!) It kinda creates a cool retro vibe for it. Back in the day, most camera lenses were black even though they were often mounted  on silver camera bodies. Think Pentax Spotmatic or Leica M3. (God! I'm so old!)

     Like most children,  I tend to play more with my newest toys. So, for the last two months, I've been doing most of my shooting with the X-E3. I like its sleek minimalist design, it's touch screen and some of the newer bells and whistles it features.  This morning however,  I opted for my trusty Fuji X-100F. (Hey, it's nice to have choices!) The X-100F has been my main camera for the past few years. It has provided the majority of the images I have taken. It features a very cool retro design and, from a functional standpoint, harkens back to the days of rangefinder film cameras. It's a photographer's camera. Lacking a zoom or even interchangeable lenses, it forces me to work a little bit harder for the shot.                                                                                                     

     I guess that I chose the X-100F this morning because, perhaps on a subconscious level, I'm looking for a return to the way things used to be. That's the biggest problem with this crisis that we're experiencing. It's the damn uncertainty. How big is the risk? When will it be over? What if it's never completely over? Just part of a new reality like the seasonal flu. How will we adapt to this new reality? Let's face it.  This new virus has set the whole world on it's ass. The medical community, the scientists, the politicians. No one is really capable of providing solid answers as yet. Maybe this will all be over in a month or so. Even if it is, there's no question that, one way or another, there will be a new reality.

     That being said, in addition to shooting with a camera that is as familiar to me as an old comfortable coat, perhaps I was functioning on another subconscious level.  When I got home and uploaded my pictures, I noticed a common theme. A lot of the my photos were of bridges. Not entirely out of the ordinary. Considering that I live in a town where two rivers meet, bridges are a crucial part of the infrastructure. I've photographed them before.

 William St. Bridge here in Paris, Ont. Taken Oct. 2019

     

     Maybe there's a silver lining to this cloud. We've already seen a greater appreciation for the courage and dedication of   medical workers on the front lines of this crisis. Maybe the politicians will now provide proper funding for hospitals and healthcare. Maybe we can raise the minimum wage so that people working in the retail sector, especially in food markets, pharmacies and other essential services can live with dignity above the poverty line. Maybe we can develop domestic industry so we are not so dependent on foreign supply lines at a time of crisis. Maybe we can burst the housing bubble so families don't have to have two incomes just to have a place to call home. Maybe our politicians will realize that they are elected to serve the people and not provide tax breaks and handouts to greedy corporate billionaires. Maybe  we can provide seniors with the pensions and resources they deserve so that they are not our most vulnerable when times are hard. Maybe we can each do with a little less so that as a society we can all have a little more.                                                              

                                                              

                                                                

     Then again, maybe none of the above will happen. It's that  enormous uncertainty factor again. There are, however, some things of which I am certain.  Bridges exist to provide a means of passage over obstacles, like a river or ravine. Perhaps my photographing them is symbolic of a hope to find a way to overcome the obstacles now present in our lives. Ultimately, all we really want is safe passage in this journey of life.

     Safe passage everyone. 

               ...more later