Perhaps I should add a header image to these posts to add a little interest. Thoughts?
The State Film Lab is still developing film for those who do not have access to a photography laboratory. I will use them. I have been thinking about running some film.
While watching a little YouTube this afternoon, I came across Faizal’s presentation on how he uses his Fujifilm cameras. It is worth a watch.
I have a penchant for experimenting with vintage and odd lenses. Radjuva has some interesting writings on Soviet (and other) lenses.
Another outfit that produces APRS products for amateur is Byonics. These are hams that make stuff for hams.
On walkies I spotted this cart sitting in the shade. I had the Nikkor 82mm f/2 mounted on my Fuji X-E4 and made the capture. I think the shot was captured at f/2, but I did not record it. Straight from camera with the Tri-X 400 film simulation.
The caption pretty much says everything that needs to be said. One thing I will mention is that the bokeh of this lens with the subject/background distance is a little crazy in the upper right. That is not pretty.
I have a Zuiko 85mm f/2 sample in my collection. I think it should be taken for a walk and tested. My other Olympus lenses render out of focus areas well. This Nikkor does not.
Shot with the Sony A7Sii and a lovely Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar 50mm f/2.8 wide open.
An interesting lens arrived in the day’s mail. It is a lovely silver Carl Zeiss Jena 50mm f/2.8 Tessar. The lens has a great reputation among vintage glass shooters. So I decided to add one to my collection.
This is a test image of my Lucas plushie. I rather like the background blur. It is very soft and smooth.
I made this capture on one of our regular routes. The sign struck me several times over the years. Of course, The Girl was *not* on leash. Capture with the Fuji X100V at f/2.
Captured with the Fuji X-E4 and the Fujinon 35mm f/1.4 at f/1.4.
After I spent much of the morning puttering at my desk, I decided it was time to get out. We are experiencing the remains of a hurricane from the south. Our weather is cloudy, very cool, and a bit rainy.
The Girl asked to go with me. So, she did.
I had a lens to put into return mail. It was not what I expected. So we walked north to the post office and I dropped the parcel in the bin while chatting with Older Son. Then we walked the reverse of our normal circuit to Station 51. There was no one at the park, so Sera got some time off leash. She had a blast chasing the ground squirrels.
On our way home, I stopped at the planters outside the NDEP building and made a few images of the flowers there. I missed the focus on most of the shots with the thin depth of field of the 35mm f/1.4 wide open. I still got a few decent captures.
Once home, I made some lunch and shared some of my chicken with The Girl. She is doing much better today.
Vivitar made a ton of lenses. So many that they used multiple manufacturers for their production. If you have a Vivitar lens and wondered who made it, then Camera Quest can help.
I reactivated my Flickr account. It will provide some inspiration and a place to park a few images.
Meyer Optik Görlitz made some interesting glass in the Post-War era to the early 1970’s. The company history is also interesting.
I still use my HP-48GX calculator. It might not see daily use (like my Swiss Micros reproduction of the HP-42S), but it is still used. I wrote many useful programs for it. Now I see that the memory cards are available from Retrotronik.
My poor girl is quite sick. She has a urinary tract infection and is being a little slow to respond to antibiotics. This on top of a rattlesnake bite a little over a week ago is a lot for her system to handle. Shot with the Sony A7Sii and a 50mm f/1.7 Zenit-M lens at f/1.7. Post-processed with Iridient Developer.
The Girl has had a tough run of luck lately. Last week she was bitten by a rattlesnake. That caused a trip to the clinic and an overnight stay. The treatment mitigated the worst of the bite. After a couple of days of recovery, she was pretty much her usual self.
Still, I limited her crazy activity for a few days. Tuesday and Wednesday we were out in the field where I directed collection of some additional topographic data for one of our projects. She seemed her normal self, and had a blast chasing the multitude of chipmunks that inhabit the area.
Thursday evening I noticed some swelling of her muzzle. I called the vet and we traveled back to Gardnerville for another check. Her blood work was good, but the vet identified a urinary tract infection. I asked that she give an injection of antibiotic to jumpstart the process and then I would administer the remainder of the round orally.
She was not a bit good yesterday. I was able to coax her to eat a couple of scrambled eggs I made for her. That got the antibiotic in. Last night I had some leftover hamburger steak and mashed potatoes, so I was able to get the next does of antibiotic in her.
She did drink some water and ask to go out to eliminate a couple of times. So we are making progress.
This morning as I readied myself to go out, she looked at me but did not leave her spot on the sofa. I drove down to Red Hut and had some food. I brought her French toast (my leftovers) and that got another dose of antibiotic in her. She also drank some water, which is good.
Then she laid her head back down to rest. She is showing little interest when I start moving around. Normally she would be a pesty-bitch and follow me everywhere in the house, underfoot, asking to go with.
Not today… she is firmly established on the sofa.
I will leave her there and pray she is better this evening. I always hated it when my kids were sick, especially when they were small and did not understand. I feel the same for my fur-children. They know they are sick and do what comes natural to them to recover. They do not understand medical treatment, but permit us to treat them. They know we love them and are caring for them.
So, I will hope for better this evening. In the meantime, I have other things to keep me busy.
1Yes, I know that my term of endearment, fur-child, is completely inaccurate. She is not human. However, we share a bond and relationship that is as strong as I have with most humans. Do not try to tell me she does not love me — I know that she does. So, leave me alone!
This is the first of several captures made Thursday afternoon, 17 August 2023. I was on my way back from a trip to the vet in Gardnerville, Nevada for Sera. The capture was made with a Sony A7Sii and a lovely little Pentax-M 50mm f/2 at f/8.
Sera has a urinary tract infection. I know this because I took her to the vet yesterday evening. I noticed a bit of swelling on her muzzle and thought that there might be some residual impact from the rattlesnake bite.
I called and decided to take her down to Gardnerville to see a vet. The swelling on her muzzle was not the issue. She tested positive for a UTI. She got an injection of antibiotic and was sent home with a round of oral antibiotic.
On the way home it started raining. The light was looking good with the sun just over the Sierra Nevada. I stopped along U.S. 395 to make a few images.
I hope Sera heals quickly. She is not good at the moment.
This image was captured 02 July 2016 while we were out hiking. She’d lived with me for about five years at this time. I still miss her.
I was browsing my image archive this morning, cleaning up some culls and organizing the directories. I stumbled across this capture of Ki I made seven-years ago. She was on overwatch as I climbed up towards her and she looks so happy. We had so many good times together. She was a great dog, not perfect but neither am I.
I still miss her. We will see each other again and have a big-ol’ play along with all the others.
