Apollo 11 Landing Site Revisited

Just a brief Hello on the day before a holiday....more tomorrow.

Check out more Apollo 11 in our 40th Anniversary Year of the Lunar Landing. Recent images of the landing site.

Hoping to be released early from work today..........

XD-11 Focal Plane Leaf Sutter

The Minolta XD-11 is sometimes referred to as "the best camera that no one wanted". Designed for the professional market by a company that didn't market well to professionals. John wanted to see the Focal Plane Leaf Shutter, which is a rare feature. I've never seen it in any other SLR camera although it may exist (does anyone out there know of another brand or model?). Leaf shutters are slower than modern focal plane shutters, but have less vibration; do not distort moving objects; and can be synchronized to flash at any shutter speed. They are usually incorporated into the lens, not the camera (e.g. Hasselblad), and are common in Rangefinders (e.g. Paxette and Canon G-III, Leica B-type lenses, and my prized Mamiya 6X6 Rangefinder).

Faith on Film: Welcome to My Favorite English Church

The Cathedral Church of St Andrews in Diocese of Bath and Wells, is my favorite English Church bar none. I fell in love when I first saw the inverted arch in my Art History textbook.










The Arch has four side and supports the Crossing tower. It was designed this way after problems supporting the massive crossing tower at Salisbury
























Beneath the crossing tower...facing the Altar.














And one must pose the question: Is there a stairway to Heaven?
















Outer Wall of the The Bishop's
Palace.

Who Lives, Who Dies....Cameras I mean, not People!

Recently two of my camera friends have passed away. The Canonet I was told is not worth fixing.......Many available on the market if I really need one. But there are many other cameras on my wish list ahead of acquiring another one.



So you tell me, do I need to find another Canon G-III QL?







My greater dilemma is the Minolta XD-11. Said to be one of the best cameras Minolta made. The film advance mechanism is failing. I am going to send it out for an estimate. I'm somewhat optimistic about its prognosis.........


Oddly both have Leaf Shutters. An expensive option for relatively inexpensive cameras........

The Distant Hills

From my Prison Series..........in the distance the Oakland Hills, taken from the Prison Lunchroom at Alcatraz.

I actually think of this as a landscape more than a scene from prison.