• The Hot-Crazy Matrix is such a funny bit of analysis that I have to preserve it. It will be at risk of censure because of the political correctness problem we have. I show it to female friends (and loved ones) and all have laughed at it to date. It is sarcastic humor at its best, I think. But I suspect the woke will label it misogynistic.
• Simon’s Utak (YouTube) posted a review of the TTArtisan 100mm f/2.8 Triplet lens. The Meyer-Optik Göerlitz is a very expensive vintage lens that is highly regarded for its background blur and soap-bubble bokeh. However, the TTArtisan produces very similar images at a much better price point. It is worth a look.
• Matt Day does a nice job of explaining the practicals of black and white film development.

• This week, The Corporal did a mid-week video on his preferred load bearing gear. It is worth a watch.
• It is something I have been thinking about. I like the idea of a smaller pack to support a belt. Sometimes I want to carry a camera bag and a full pack is too much for a short hike. That lead me to researching The Corporal’s LBE and then I landed here.
• Faizal Westcott posted a video that includes a brief review of Rick Rubin’s book, The Creative Act. I downloaded a Kindle sample, but might decide I want a hardcover book.

The photograph was from walkies a few days ago. I have been carrying the Fujifilm X-E4 with the Voigtlander 27mm f/2 Ultron mounted. It is a manual focus lens that has a chip. So the aperture setting is sent to the camera for recording in the EXIF data of the image. The focus is very smooth and focusing is fast and easy, provided I set the correct color for the focus-peaking assist.

Another week, another few links:

• I need to back up the Microsoft Surface Go 2. A quick review of my options led me back to a legacy Microsoft tool, System Image Backup Tool. That is a mouthful, and it is no longer supported. But I do not care for the alternatives at this time.
• Adapt Kit. It looks quite interesting as a small supplemental toolkit that will hold a multitool, bit set, accessories, and maybe a small gun cleaning kit.
• ZAID makes good leather products for photographers.
• So does Clever Supply Company.

Another week, another round of links:

• Allphotolenses.com is just what it says it is.
• The Kamera Store has a lot of film cameras (and others).
• David duChemin is a Canadian photographer and teacher. He is good at both.
• Fujifilm’s digital film simulations changed my way of looking at digital photography. There is a longer entry in this idea (I will get to it), but there is also science behind what some might think is a gimmick. Dave Etchells explains some of the technical background of creating a film simulation.
• This Vistek video looks into the Fujifilm film simulations in a video (with reference to the above article) and is worth a watch (and a sub).
• Reggie Balesteros offers his take on a Kodak Portra film simulation for Fuji cameras. (Note: There is also a YT video for this film simulation.)
• And then Reggie offers an Acros-based (a Fuji film stock) (video) black and white simulation for his documentary photography that is also worth a look at.

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.

Here we go with another week. Where will I land?

• 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.
• David Wilcox released a new album, My Good Friends. I bought the download (ALAC format) from Bandcamp. It is recommended.
• Meyer Optik Görlitz made some interesting glass in the Post-Ware 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.

Another week is begun. Where will it take me in the Interwebs?

• I have thought of a Hasselblad film camera for years (decades?). The thought recently resurfaced. I have two Zeiss lenses for Hasselblad cameras in my inventory (result of a trade). There is a log about Hasselblad cameras here
• But wait! There’s more! I found what I need to know about the Hasselblad system here. It is the history of the system and worth the time to read.
• I am still considering a Light Phone to replace my smartphone (iPhone).

Here we go with another week. It looks a little thin this week.

• I found myself looking for an easy way to subset a dataset in R¹. I found dplyr to be a useful asset.
• Hardcore Hammers has some killer (pardon the pun) camp hatchets/hand axes. I think this one might come home to live with me.
• Moment has a lot of interesting things for photographers.
• I spent some time listening to Gillian Welch the last week. She is an interesting artist.
• I have had a lot of camera bags over the years. Most of them were junk. Tamrac makes a few nice bags. But I have a fondness for waxed canvas bags. My EDC is a waxed canvas Nutsac that will carry my Microsoft Go 2 and support. I have taken to Domke camera bags in their ruggedwear line. Domke bags are highly recommended.

¹R is a statistical analysis software that I use for a lot of my work.

Well, we will see where the week takes me.

• Well, this cast iron sausage pan really caught my eye. I like sausage, but do not cook them often. I think this would be great for stove top hot dogs and bratwurst. Hmmmmm…
• While working on a project, I came across the R package dplyr. This adds a powerful ability to filter a dataframe.
• I still track Fuji Rumors for information about the Fujifilm ecosystem.
• For that matter, I sometimes browse Sony Alpha Rumors as well. I got restarted into photography when I bought a Sony NEX-5N more than ten years ago and then wandered into the world of adapting legacy glass.
• In my research on the Fuji X100 series cameras, I was directed to a Squarehood, which manufactures (?) and sells square hood for the X100V and similar cameras.
• I was also reminded of another vendor of camera accessories, Lensmate, which I remember from back when I was working with the Canon G series of cameras and then the Sony NEX-5N. The 5N remains one of my favorite (and first) mirrorless cameras.
• I also discovered Clever Supply, which has some nice leather accessories for camera lovers.