Travelling SuperZoom wants to Continue the Journey

I received the Olympus Superzoom 105G from my @EMULSIVE Secret Santa.  And it turns out that the Camera had a Story to tell:

Here is a summary from my introductory letter pictured below:

"....This camera has a bit of a history in that it's spent the last few month travelling the length and breadth of  of the United Kingdom (and even got to the south of France on one leg of it's journey) as a part of a project on an online photography forum. The camera was loaded with a roll of film, the first person shot five frames, and then the camera was sent on to the next person.  The process repeated (with a half-way set of photos when a second roll of film was loaded) until it eventually got back to me.........."

So If you are interested in continuing the Journey, Contact me.......

Long Beach Harbor........

 We took a boat tour of the Long Beach Harbor....... Here a new bridge being built to replace the Arched Bridge and accommodate larger container ships.

Most docks owned and operated by Japanese and Chinese Companies.....

Perspectives:  The Old and New of the Cruising Lifestyle......

Queen Mary Legoland.......

We've seen the Queen Mary Lego Model.........But there was more going on in that room.

Like the Bust of Winston Churchill

Or the details, as shown by the Life Boats and Passenger.  One day when I strolled through one of the Staff was dong some repairs to the model....

Stern (above) and Bow (below) Views.......

Weekends Online: Protect That Film!

I found this alarming.......New CT-Scanner based machines for examining carry on bags will DESTROY your film!  Read details here.

But alarming on two fronts:  Film destroyed without warning (because the technicians are not very knowledgeable) and the high levels of radiation that CT Scanners emit.  Do the Techs know how much more radiation they are being exposed to?  There is a reason why the use of CT Scans is limited in medicine.

So why are we exposing TSA techs and casual travelers to so much radiation? Ostensibly to shorten the scan times.........For me, that's not a very god reason.  As Cancer Survivor, I'd rather wait and have less radiation exposure.

Here is a list of the Airports currently running CT Scanners:

• Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL)
• Baltimore-Washington International Airport (BWI)
• Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD)
• Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG)
• Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW)
• Houston Hobby Airport (HOU)
• Indianapolis International Airport (IND)
• John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK)
• Logan International Airport (BOS)
• Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
• Miami International Airport (MIA)
• Oakland International Airport (OAK)
• Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX)
• Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA)
• St. Louis Lambert International Airport (STL)
• Tampa International Airport (TPA)
• Washington-Dulles International Airport (IAD)

2019 Photography Goals

Adding a photo and reposting.......

I had a lot of success in 2018.  OK, that depends on how you measure success.  I had a lot of recognition in 2018.  Success is more a measure of meeting Personal Goals that satisfy one's Artistic Vision.

So these were my stated goals for 2018:

• Focus on Darkroom Printing Time Especially prints of Moab Symposium events
• Attend THE FINAL Moab Photo Symposium in May 2018
• Continue Experiments with IR Film
• Practice with my newly converted digital full spectrum camera
• Continue the Charge towards Gallery Submissions (Check My 'Fine Art' Page Here)

I did have prints for Moab and attended the Final Show.  I also submitted images for the Wrap-up Book.

I gave up on IR film and moved on to my Full Spectrum converted Nikon-1.  I use the IR filter to block the parts of the spectrum I'm not interested in.  I got the full spectrum set-up for Ghost Hunting (We'll follow-up on that later).

Still entering contests even though we have discussed why that is bad......

So what are my 2019 Goals:

• First, Survive my latest medical complications
• Second, more thoughtful and meditative pursuit of my photography
• Stay Focussed
• More Darkroom time
• AND getting back to the Roots of This Blog; Recording my Life and Times on the Front Range.
• Restarting Vintage Camera News and Online Weekend Features
• Continuing the 52 Rolls Redux
• Film and Camera Reviews
• Travel Photography
• Snapshots from Life

End of Year Wrap-Up Part I: Book Experiences

I'm doing my End of Year Summaries a bit differently.  I've had lot's of activity and want to have a more in depth discussion than simply publishing lists.


Lot's of book experiences to report this year.  Both Buying from Photographers that Follow, and books that I have images published in.

Let's start with Success book Purchases:

First Check Out Photo Hebrides.  I purchased one of his book for my Husband's Birthday:

We are both Taurus, so I couldn't resist the Highland Cow.  So many to choose from.  I will certainly purchase more.

Second,  Just ordered from Jim Grey "Textures of Ireland".  Bought one for myself and a Friend.

Now for Books that I have Images in:

Personalizing Place:  Moab Photography Symposium 2004-2018

And from Photographer's Forum: 38th Annual Spring Photography Contest Book.  My copy of the book has not arrived yet,  but here is my certificate:

So that was my 2019 Book Experience Summary

Revisiting the Real Stonehenge

Really terrible images from my 1990 visit to Stonehenge.  But you get what you get at the moment.  It was a once in a lifetime opportunity as I was living in Bristol for 6 months.

It was dark and  windswept as the Salisbury Plain often is.

I really ventured to Salisbury to see the Cathedral.  But once there decided that I might as well take in Stonehenge too.

We will see more sights around Carhenge in the next post.

Reliving Childhood Memories

Holidays, like Thanksgiving, often cause us to reminisce.  But often Childhood memories cannot be  revisited without disappointment.  So I report to you here, to kick off the Holiday Season. a childhood revisit that DID NOT disappoint:  The Black Hills 1880 Train.

Of course the train that I had experienced in 1969 has been retired, but had a long and productive life in film and television, as well as taking my family on a fun ride that August afternoon in 1969.  That engine wasn't actually from 1880, but the founder of the line said upon his first ride, that it felt like the 1880's.

Still steam powered (above recharging the boiler between runs). but now by oil instead of coal.

A few times a day, they also check the oils levels for the gears.

Whenever I have the chance to ride a steam train I do.  My Father loved trains.  He started his career at the Post Office on mail trains in the 1950's.  And yes, there were still Steam Engines on line then.  

I always think of him when I ride a train......

I hope you and yours had a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Posted as Week #41 of the 52 Rolls Project.....

Veteran's Day 2017

Returning to Heart Mountain to remember a childhood Hero of mine:

I remember Senator Inouye from the Watergate Hearings in the 70's.  When I moved to California I met for the first time Internment Camp Survivors and their descendants.  As it turns out my Husband's Family knew Japanese-Americans who had been at held at Heart Mountain.  

So I post this in honor of all of them today.

And the Memorial to all of the Veterans that left this Camp to serve in WWII

This is my 3rd visit to one of these camps.  See posts from Manzanar, and Amache.

At Artist's Point

We end our Yellowstone Tour at the famous Artist's Point overlooking the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River, featuring the lower Falls:

 Above: First View, and 

Below:  with 150 mm lens:

Rare view looking downstream

(no one ever looks this way).

 

Ending with An Artist @ Artist's Point:

 

And His View:

This wraps up 52 Rolls Week 37 & 38.

Yellowstone: Excelsior Spring

Adjacent to the Grand Prismatic Spring, you have to pass it to get to the main attraction.  But let's pause and give the Excelsior Spring some Love......

 

Above, runoff from Excelsior Geyser and Below, Excelsior Overlook.

 

Follow the link to learn more, but an eruption in 1888

basically turned the Geyser into a Spring. 

Steam from Grand Prismatic Spring in the background.

From the Overlook:  Sunrise over Excelsior

 

And Final views of the algae and bacteria around Grand Prismatic Spring.

Yellowstone: Orange Mound

Wrapping up my trip through Yellowstone over the next couple of days.  As you remember I had a major camera failure of the XD-11 on the trip.  So I'm missing a lot of the images I shot.  But here goes with images from the Mamiya-7.

Mammoth Hot springs has changed a lot since I first visited in1981.  I think it was prettier than, but the hydrology of the Springs does change over time, and with the recent earthquakes especially. 

But we took a different trail and found a very interesting Spring:  The Orange Mound,

Yellowstone: Fire Hole River Trail

"Trail" of Algae flowing away from a small geyser.

I think, next time I will spend more time on the algae and bacteria.

Fire Hole Spring and Lake.

  Pink Cone Geyser, spouting a bit of steam.

Yellowstone: Biscuit Basin

Algae growing in the warm stream (above);

Bacteria from hot spring run-off (below).