Wednesday, March 10, 2010

A Little of This and a Little of That


(Click on the thumbnail for the bigger, better version)

Before I start babbling, I want to offer my heartfelt appreciation to everyone for the encouraging notes. They made more difference than you could know.

I haven’t had anything to say lately because I was filled with far more questions than answers and, basically, was afraid of the answers. So, I hid out, played the denial game for a bit, and by then I certainly had nothing to talk about that would interest anyone. These were all health issues (yawn) and there isn’t anything more boring to write or talk about so, but, darn it, they filled every corner of my mind. While these were nothing more than the type of pesky questions that we all deal with from time to time, silence seemed the only humane choice.

Most all the questions were resolved favorably, and I am feeling much better, in general. However—ah, yes, those pesky “howevers”, something else had developed and it has slowed me down. I developed pain in my right hand that has made it impractical to type (my how quaint—it’s “keying” now, isn’t it?) for long periods. Holding my camera for any extended time gets everything stirred up and I have been taking few pictures. Finally, a cortisone shot (for trigger finger—not in my trigger finger by the way—life is filled with little jokes, isn’t it?) is producing real results, and the thumb and wrist may just be plain old arthritis. As the saying goes, “Getting old is not for the faint of heart.”

Still, I have made good use of my limited time with the camera by exploring functions and breaking out of my old philosophy of manual-or-nothing mode combined with natural light and nothing else. I hate to admit it, but those AV and TV modes can be pretty handy. Heck, I have even experimented with P mode (some say that P stands for professional, after all, right?) and I have made use of auto ISO. Live and learn. I continue to investigate off-camera lighting and have lost neither my curiosity, nor my determination to make it a regular part of my arsenal.

We are planning a short trip soon. Now, that I am so much better, travel sounds like fun rather than a dreadful test sure to lead to disappointment, and I am determined to take photos. I wonder if I can learn to use my DSLR upside down and left-handed? Hmm. Not sure I could get used to reading those numbers backwards. I am exaggerating to poke fun at the situation, I will be able to take some pictures even if it isn’t quite as many as I would like. In the meantime, I make simple photos like the one above mostly because I discover more each day that it’s seeing the picture—no matter how mundane and hearing the sound of the shutter that brings me pleasure. For now, I am not concerned about those 12x18 prints.

10 comments:

  1. Anita, So good to hear that things are improving! Hope that the trip is just what the doctor ordered.

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  2. Anita, it's wonderful reading you again and hearing how you're progressing. While getting old is indeed not for the faint of heart (I just had another dreaded birthday) I keep reminding myself that the alternative is indeed worst.

    Getting away for a short trip would probably do you a world of good now.

    I like the simplicity and tint of the photo.

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  3. Steve - Thank you. It's great to be here. Evidently, even planning a trip was what the doctor ordered. I woke up today with more enthusiasm and "pop" than I have had in weeks. If only I had known the correct medicine.

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  4. Earl - I remind myself constantly of the alternative. It helps to keep me in touch with gratitude.

    We reach an age, finally, when birthdays come far to fast and furiously (one on top of the other) and reminding us of our mortality. Youth is indeed wasted on the young.

    I am looking forward to the trip and even a short outing today, here in Bear Valley Springs, was a joy.

    I am delighted that you like the photo. I certainly am having fun augmenting natural light with flash while trying to avoid producing a photo that screams "flash".

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  5. You are handling the light in a very painterly way and I love it in the image for this post.
    Really glad to see something new from you and hope spring is good to you and soon. It all looks better when the flowers come back.
    I'll just leave the whole getting older thing alone and go take a nap now.

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  6. Ray - Thanks a million for the encouragement on my use of OCF. I know you have considerable expertise in that area and I welcome C&C. I am having a wonderful time learning.

    Yes, indeed, the world will look lovely blanketed in spring flowers.

    I think you took precisely the right action regarding the subject of aging.

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  7. The light in this still life photograph is really lovely, it reminds me of paintings from the 17th century. They had often only one light source and modelled with highlights and shadows in the most exquisite way.

    I'm glad you finding your way back to normal life. This might be a good opportunity dusting of your G8, you wrote about some time ago. It must be easier to handle, and produces darn fine pictures for its size.

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  8. I'm with Ove. I love the shot. I like how you've kept it low-key with lots of nice shadows that add a lot of mystery. Also, it gives it a very old, classical look. Welcome back, my friend!

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  9. Ove - Thank you for the lovely comments about the picture. Just more encouragement to keep pursuing my education in OCF.

    Re. using my smaller camera, you must be reading my mind. I have considered that if my hand gets worse, I many have to upgrade from my G7 to the G11 (or wherever this series is at by that time) for exactly the reasons you list. The reason for upgrade would be that my G7 doesn't shoot RAW—bummer. Furthermore, the G10 or 11 produce nice files at higher ISO's, evidently. Something to have in the back of my mind.

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  10. Paul - Thank you. It's nice that those shadows are accomplishing what I had in mind.

    I have so much to learn about lighting, but it is an exciting exploration. I can see that it is a money pit, but isn't the whole business of photography a money pit?

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Anita