We walked in town Sunday. This marigold asked me to shoot its portrait. So, I did.
The last few outings, I noticed The Girl stopping abruptly to lick her right front foot. Then she runs off again to hunt lizards.
In the afternoon and evening she limps. For the brief moment she permitted me to look between her toes, I noticed a lot of inflammation and what looks like a small laceration. So I decided that a day or two off from the crazy lizard hunting (not that the lizards are crazy, but she certainly is) would be appropriate to give her foot time to rest and heal.
In the field she bounds over the brush and will often bounce on whatever bush the lizard ran under in an attempt to make it flee. So she sometimes injures a foot.
We walked north from the house to the Station 51 park. It was the state school for many years. Now the buildings are used for storage and the quadrangle by dog walkers and other park users. It is infested with California ground squirrels and they are destructive. Sera also likes to hunt them.
Nonetheless, it was pleasant walk even if she chafed at being on-lead the entire time. It is good work for her. It is good practice for me.
On the way back home, I noticed some domestic flowers in the pots outside one of the State buildings. I paused a few minutes to work the flowers with the X-T5 and the 35mm f/2. Satisfied that I had an image for the day, we continued home. There, Sera drank a good bit of water and ate her breakfast.
It was a good outing. It is a good day. Life is good.
On morning walkies, The Girl sniffed about while I made this capture of Silver Saddle Ranch and Mt. Scott.
I have not written about it yet, but I bought a new camera. I carried the Fuji X-T1 for a long time. The new X-T5 has been getting a lot of attention recently. I started carrying a camera again on my daily activities. So I decided to buy a new camera with an upgraded sensor and processor.
I picked it up on Saturday and charged the batteries. I have been carrying it on my last few outings. This is one of the results. I used the in-camera Fuji Velvia film simulation and touched the result up just a bit in my iPhone with Snapseed.
It was a good day. We got out earlier, it was cooler in the (earlier) morning, and the light was better. Life is good.
A fellow member of The Tech Prepper’s Discord sent me an antenna to test. The Girl and I took it to Washoe Lake.
I sat on this project for almost three weeks. A fellow member of The Tech Prepper’s Discord channel offered to send me an antenna to test. It is a linked, end-fed, half-wave antenna. It covers the 20m, 30m, 40m, 60m, and 80m amateur radio bands. It is intended to be set up low so that the low bands will provide regional communications (near vertical incident skywave, which is technical talk for bouncing off the ionosphere).
So we drove up to Washoe Lake where I would have room to deploy the antenna. I did not get out a radio, but used the antenna analyzer to test it.
After about an hour of playing with the antenna, I got Sera out to play in the water a bit. It was hot.
I am not positive this is Desert Peach, but it sure looks like it. I sure think these are pretty flowers and Nevada is alive with wildflowers this year.
My desire and my goal is to make a good photograph every day. I wrote before that this is part of what nourishes my soul. And it does. The creative process and focus of looking for a subject and then working that subject is brain healthy. It forces me out of my head and into my environment (with one eye on The Girl, of course) instead of me spending the outdoor time and energy thinking about things.
I think this is Desert Peach. It seems a bit early for the blooms to show, but the colors look right and the leaf shape looks right. In any event, I like the play of light and color. Post-processing did not take much, a bit of adjustment to exposure and contrast, a little bit of additional saturation and some sharpening, and finally a crop to eliminate extraneous material.
The capture was with the Fuji X-T1 and the Fujinon 35/2 at f/4. I did shoot this one in RAW format for more detail in post.
The Girl hunted lizards while I puttered with the camera off the trail. It was a good day. Life is good.
The Girl and I stopped briefly at the south side of Mono Lake for a short break. There is still a lot of snow in the Sierra Nevada.
This week I was tasked with travel to Southern California for a field walk. The project is just getting started and doing a site visit is a critical part of forensic engineering.
I activated Manzanar National Historic Site for Parks on the Air. The place is a testimony to the mistreatment of Japanese-American citizens about 80-years ago.On the way down, I stopped at K-0845, Manzanar National Historic Site. In 2014, Ki and I visited Manzanar on our way back from Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, where I had a project. It was in January, so the weather was good for a visit to Death Valley, which we did. On the way north we spent an hour or so at Manzanar, walking the site and taking in what we, as a country, did to our Japanese-American fellow citizens. It was wrong. The site feels wrong.
Be that as it may, Manzanar is also a designated Parks on the Air park. I wanted to activate it. And time spent outside the rig for a few minutes is always good on a long trip. Sera got out of the rig for a run around while I got out the station. It was hot enough and there was enough traffic that I put her back in the rig.
I setup my folding table and chair under the rear hatch. Sera found a spot in the back out of the sun. It did not take long to put out an antenna and get the station on the air. In less than an hour I made my activation running 15 watts. I put everything away, gave Sera a drink, got one myself, and we got back on the road.
We spent the night at a Best Western in Sherman Oaks. It was noisy with city energy and the neighbors had a small dog that barked. This irritated Sera… she growled and grumbled several times that night. I rested some, enough to be up early to deal with accumulated email and the market.
There is a Denny’s in the facility, so I got some coffee and breakfast. Of course, I took The Girl some of my bacon and sausage, plus a couple of scrambled eggs for her breakfast.
It took about 45 minutes to get to the site and a couple of hours to see what I needed to see. I visited with my clients a bit, then headed back home.
Wisely, I had a reservation for a hotel in Lone Pine, California. This is about halfway between the site and home. I knew I would not want to drive all the way home after spending the morning on the site. So I did the easy thing and stayed over.
The Girl and I had a nice visit of the Alabama Hills National Scenic Area in Lone Pine, California. I also activated the park.I checked out early Friday morning, got Sera out for a little constitutional, and then bought a biscuit and a coffee from McD’s. I shared my biscuit with Sera and drove over to K-8300, Alabama Hills National Scenic Area, another designated park. I found a spot to setup the station and got Sera out for a bit. She hunted lizards in the willow brush while I got out my radio station and setup the antenna. Again, there was a little too much traffic so she had to stay in the rig. But it was cool in the morning so it was not too bad.
I had my quota after about 45 minutes. The 20-meter band was the go to band for this activation. I worked an Indonesian station and that surprised me. But DX is always welcome.
I put away the station and was able to make a meeting (virtual) using my iPhone at 1100h local. That did not last long, so Sera and I puttered a bit before heading north towards home.
At the north end of Independence, California (I think) is a BBQ place called the Copper Top. It was lunch time as we passed, so I turned back and bought a tri-tip sandwich. With pickles, onion (red onion), and a few jalapeños (and some sauce) it was good. But it was not as good as smoked Texas brisket. I shared a bite of sandwich with Sera, of course.
Then it was time to slug out the home stretch. I was tired, of course. I stopped a few times to stretch, give Sera some water, and get her out of the rig. Still, it was a tough slog.
I learned a few things, of course.
I need to either add another set of blue Voile straps, or add a longer set of Voile straps to the antenna kit. The blue straps were not long enough to go around the 4×4 or 6×6 posts at the Alabama Hills site. I had to double the blue straps and then find a rock to keep the mast in place.
I really think it would be better to log on the computer than my iPhone, particularly for POTA activations. The larger screen of the computer is simply easier to see.
In addition, I was checking the Reverse Beacon Network for my spots. RBN is a great way for CW and digital operators to determine whether their signal is getting out to the spotter stations. The spotter stations decode the signals they hear and post the calling stations callsign, mode, signal strength, and speed to the webpage. If I am spotted, then I know the station is working because other stations are receiving my transmissions. It would be a lot easier to have multiple browser tabs open on the computer than it is to flip back and forth between tabs on my iPhone.
I prefer a more leisurely activation, one where I have (and take) time to operate multiple modes and work through all the open bands to take the calls of the park hunters.
But, when traveling, it is also a good break to stop for an hour, make at least ten contacts, be out of the rig for awhile, and get Sera out too. This type of activation has a place as well as the more deliberate, longer activation.
In all, the radio play was a nice break from the drive. I gave a few hunters an opportunity to chase a couple more parks. And Sera got a chance to be out of the rig for a while too. It was good. Life is good.
This was a lovely find for supper. I am glad the other place ignored me.
I am on my way home from a site walk in Topanga, California. The site walk was a long time coming. I suppose it was because there are so many parties involved in the case. But it was good to get to see it.
I knew it would be too long of a trip to drive all the way back home after walking the site all morning. There was a lot of Los Angeles to traverse and traffic is always bad. So I planned on stopping midway and that turned out to be Lone Pine, California.
The hotel is decent enough if expensive. But it is the Fourth of July weekend and it also seems that since The Shutdown hotels are a lot more expensive than they were pre-virus. Nonetheless, I have a room.
The clerk gave me a heads-up that there are four restaurants in Lone Pine with outdoor seating that will accommodate my companion. I initially chose the Mt. Whitney cafe. But they ignored me.
I traveled a couple of blocks south and stopped in to The Grill. I was greeted as Sera and I approached the pavilion. The server greeted Sera, asked to pet, and brought water.
The proprietor came out, asked about Sera, and told me about his dogs.
I thought “this is the right place. I’m glad I was ignored at the other!”
So I ordered a Cobb salad and a Corona with lime. He brought me a beer glass, but I am old school and just dropped the lime in the bottle like I would at home.
Yes, you really cannot take me nice places.
In the end, the food was good, the treatment was stellar, and Sera met new friends.
It was a good day, a good evening, and life is good.
A grab shot from a morning walk at Silver Saddle Ranch.
Yesterday morning, after waking early and morning coffee, The Girl and I got out for a nice walk at Silver Saddle Ranch. We walked our usual loop, starting at the upper staging area on the access road, north to the Mexican Ditch trail, then south through the ranch compound and back to the Mexican Ditch, then up the hill to the trail and back to the rig.
The loop is about a mile and three-quarters and takes something between 45 minutes and an hour to walk. It all depends on how long we linger along the way.
I knew I wanted to make an image for the day. The thistles are in bloom and provide a ready subject. I have used them before.
They still look good, though. So I paused while Sera hunted lizards and framed a couple of shots. The camera was the Fuji X-T1 and the Fujinon 35mm f/2. Sera chased of a bee that would have added interest. Oh well, next time.
Just as I looked up from the camera, I saw another walker and two dogs leaving the compound.
“Here!”” I called to Sera. She came in, I grabbed her collar, and attached her lead. Her energy level was still pretty high and I did not want her to run over to engage the other dogs.
The other handler leashed up her dogs as well. I appreciate that.
Dogs are dogs. That is OK. But a lot of handlers do not understand their animals.
The Girl (Sera) and walk past this freezeproof hydrant nearly every day. It is part of the stock watering system at Silver Saddle Ranch. Today it called to me. The light was flat but that is pretty easy to fix in post-processing. So I paused, checked for traffic, and made the capture.
The Girl and I then continued our walk and I made a few more images. In then end, though, when I reviewed my captures after we got home, I picked this one.
It was made with the Fuji X-T1 and an adapted Nikkor 135/3.5 telephoto. I like many of the Nikkor lenses nearly as much as the Fujinon glass.
The Girl and I walked Silver Saddle Ranch again this morning. We stopped at the Mexican Ditch so she could swim a little. Happy Summer Solstice!
Today is the Summer Solstice of 2023. That means summer begins today. However, the weather certainly does not feel it. As I write this (about noon), the temperature is 65ºF.
As is our usual routine, The Girl and I walked Silver Saddle Ranch this morning. We like to start at the upper staging area (away from the ranch compound) and walk in the sagebrush. There are a number of unmarked trails that are readily visible. We pick one of them.
This morning we walked our usual route, mostly. It was fairly cool, so Sera did not jump into the ditch when we first reached it. If it is warm, she will usually get wet before we move on.
We paused at the ranch compound so she could get a drink. Someone has graciously put a bucket under a freeze-proof hydrant and there is water there year round.
We walked on south along the trail and bypassed our usual turn west to continue to the ditch. I knew she was warm and wanted to get wet. She did.
There I paused for a minute and made today’s capture. I liked the contrast of bright green and sage gray. I did use the Velvia film simulation in camera. But the image is unadjusted — straight out of camera.
While on walkies with The Girl this morning, I found this chunk of wood and liked the light. Fuji X-T1, Fujinon 35/2.
I call myself a “racoon photographer.” That is, I will eat about anything.
While reading David du Chemin’s weblog early this morning, I started thinking about my lifetime as a photographer. I commented on one of his recent posts, “I’ll never be a great photographer, one who garners a lot of attention. It is not my gift.” And I believe that. For one thing, I am not willing to spend hours working on a single image trying to perfect it.
But I am reminded that Wife said to me, more than once “You have a different way of looking at things.” She meant that I see things as I walk through life. And when I do, it nourishes me somehow to pause and make a photograph.
So, here I am… posting another image made in the field without a lot of post-processing. I made a few adjustments, but it took me only a few minutes.
The Girl and I walked this morning. It was a little late for good light, but I carried the little Fujifilm X-T1 with its compact normal lens. Of the subjects that caught my eye (so to speak), I like this capture the best. The play of light on the wood pleases me.
