(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.
