The reward of giving my wife flowers...

Rose macro s
Rose macro s
It can indeed add a little flame to the relationship. :)
2 comments Tags: photography

Re: 52 Nights Unplugged and Close-up Photography

Re: 52 Nights Unplugged. Well, I made I made it through my first evening of not being in front of the computer. It's not that I've never done that before, but it's the first time in a while that I made a conscious decision to do so. I must admit, I was tempted to keep working past 6 p.m. I was post-processing some close-up shots I took using the recently updated Aperture 2.0. I so much wanted to see how the photos came out and what I could do with them in Aperture, but when the clock hit 6:05, I said enough. I would return to the project tomorrow. 


I went downstairs had dinner with the family, helped my daughter with her homework, and did some reading for a few hours. It was not a good idea to read the current issue of Macworld magazine that arrived in the mail yesterday, because there were like three items I wanted to check online that are written about in the magazine. But again I told myself that could wait. Then I picked up a copy of Scott Kelby's book on digital photography to review what he says about close-up photography. That reading made also want to go on Amazon.com to see how much a Canon Close-up Lens would cost. I was seriously tempted. But my little boy jumped in bed with me and we wrestled and played for about 15 minutes, and I put the Internet out of my mind.

So it was an okay night without the computer. I went to bed a little earlier and got a lot more reading done. (I've been reading Challenging Nature, by Lee M. Silver, which I may post about later.

 
Roses 49
Roses 49

1 comment Tags: 52 nights unplugged, close-up photography

Re: 52 Nights Uplugged

I haven't been a part of a blogging project for a long time. In fact, I haven't been a part of any meme for a while. But when I read about Ariel Meadow's 52 Nights Unplugged project, I felt like girlfriend was reading my mind. 


It's simply sad that I spend so much time in front of a computer screen. I work in front of the computer practically all day, but I have to admit that there are many times when I find myself surfing the net out of habit and instead out of necessity. It's seriously sad. I fuss at my kids for being on the computer too much, but I haven't set an example getting my eyeballs away from it at least one day in a week. I mean, I know I should be able to do this. 

So starting tomorrow evening, I'm unplugging for one evening a week. 

I'll use this site to post how I'm sticking to the project. 

I'm not sure if Ariel was trying to start a meme or something, but I do encourage others to give it a try if they are in the same position.


1 comment Tags: computer, project, unplugged

Office organization cont.

OfficeAfter
OfficeBefore
Getting organized. Slowly but surely. I spent Monday downsizing my books in my office and making room in the closet to make space for storage. So far, getting things cleaned up is like freeing myself from bondage. It was like I couldn't hardly breath when I sat at my computer doing work. Everywhere things were stacked or cluttered, largely unused.

I still need to downsize more books on the shelf, change the photos on the wall, (would like just two or three large size photos) and get a few more things off my desk, such the 5 drawer organizer on the left.

I really use an entire furniture make over, but that will have wait for later. Until now, I'm going to improve things without spending hardly any money to do it.
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MacBook Air

IMG_0648
IMG_0648


Though I only attended Macworld for two days, not a minute went by when this long table of a bout 30 Macbook Air demos were not being handled and played with. This stylish little machine is definitely for Apple fans and iPhone owners. It has style and class written all over it. You simply won't find a PC type of computer that can match it.
Apple has taken the minimal road with this computer. Striping away a DVD slot and a way to change the batteries, Apple's message is that this computer is not for heavy duty work. It's for people who are wirelessly connected, organized, and on the move. There's no need to carry around CDs and DVDs, you simply download things you need from the Internet, the iTunes music store, and your dedicated storage server. Just as Apple was among the first strip away the floppy disk feature from their computers, it's leading the pack in getting rid of a super drive. Anyone who purchases the Macbook Air will no doubt have a dedicated desktop or another laptop with a wire connection and super drive. So all they have to do connect the Macbook to a wired computer if need be.

Do I like it? It's okay. I got my hands on it at Macworld. If I traveled a lot, I'd definitely find a way to get one. But until the price comes way down, I can stand to wait and just keep using my good old PowerBook G4, thank you very much.
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A few quick night shots in San Fran

Nightshots (2 of 8)
Nightshots (2 of 8)
Attended the Macworld conference this week (as part of the media), but only for a couple of days. Money was tight and I tired traveling back and forth between Sacramento and San Fran. I did, however, get a chance to get in a few night shots while there. I'm so loving night photography, especially with my Canon Powershot G9. With my little mini-tripod, I can take out the camera and get a few shots without being loaded down with a larger camera and lenses. So I can't wait to get back down there and shoot some more.
Post a comment Tags: san francisco, photography, nightshot

QotD: Forward My Mail

  • Dec 15, 2007

If you could easily choose to live in another country without all the red tape and legal stuff, which one would you select and why? 
Submitted by Matthew 25.


Five years ago, I would have said I want live in Ghana, West Africa, and sometimes I still do. My wife and I traveled there back in 2004 and we enjoyed practically the entire month we were there. But now I think I would be too overwhelmed by the levels of poverty and poor quality of life that exist there. Despite the love seeing my people running their country, it hurt so much to see the starvation and lack economic development in Ghana. It had such so much more promise when Kwame Nkrumah was in power back in 1958.

I now think I would rather live in Egypt or Sweden. I've never visited either country, but from what I've read about these places, I think the culture of life would be so much better than here in America. I really do hate the U.S. now. It's become so shallow and hypocritical in it politics and culture. So much of the cultural life in this country is swept away by commercial interests, and its concept of democracy is a joke. There is no real democracy in this country. All there is, are goods and services. Things to buy and a plethora of commercialized entertainment. It exports entertainment like no other country can! But yet it's a shallow and narrow ass place to live. I hate it. I hate it dearly.



Tags: qotd, culture, another country

More shooting with Canon G9

Dowtown random-44
Dowtown random-44
After completing paid shoot job today, I drove a few blocks over to downtown Sac to do some more G9 shooting. For the last three years I've been shooting a DSLR (Canon XT and Canon 30D), but now I'm back to shooting with a small point-a-shoot. Of course, most people who buy a Canon Powershot G9 are not getting it to do point-and-shoot photography. We typically buy it for the control features it offers. But compared to the DSLR, the G9 is my point-and-shoot, and I'm loving it. 

This camera frees you up in ways that a DSLR can't. I don't have to think about changing lenses with this camera, nor is it bulky and weighty like my 30D, which includes a batter grip. (And by the way, while I was shooting downtown, I noticed, as I walked around, about 5 other people with their point-and-shoot camera out snapping photos. One guy just stopped on his way to where ever he was going, pulled his point-and-shoot out of his pocket, snapped a photo, and kept on moving. That's how a camera like this frees you up.)

My G9 Likes:
Small and sturdy camera
LCD exposure preview
Exposure Compensation feature stays on. I use it a lot.
Nice contrast in the original photos
White balance preview (no guessing about how your camera will read the color of the light)
Preview grid


G9 Dislikes
Aperture limited to 2.8 and 8.0
Heavy digital noise at ISO 200 or above. 
Display button is the wrong area. Awkward to reach
Relatively short batter life (luckily I can use one of my Canon XT batteries with the G9)
Wide angle is limited to 35mm

I'm enjoying learning how to use this camera. I'm even thinking about setting up blog site about using it. There's so much you can learn and share with about this camera. It takes great photos and I'm sure that the price will come down next year. It's not an affordable camera, but if you're serious about photography, it's a great investment. 

Post a comment Tags: photography, canon powershot g9

First Canon Powershot G9 shots

Dowtown random-9
Dowtown random-9

Went out this morning and took some first shots with my new Powershop G9. I've been wanting this almost pocket size camera for a long time. Though I like shooting with my my Canon 30D, it feels too much like work to tote the camera around in the camera bag with me when I all want to do is go out and shoot some everyday family and street shots. 


The G9 is going to be great for just having a camera on hand almost everywhere I go. And though I haven't learned all the features yet, I'm seriously jazzed by the 3" screen which provides a nice preview of exposure and exposure settings. At first I thought I wouldn't want to use the on-screen viewing for taking pictures, but this morning I really saw the advantage of doing so. 

The photos looked pretty great, and it won't take long to learn the most important features and controls for getting shots done pretty fast and effectively. 




2 comments Tags: photography, canon g9

ShowBiz Performance

_MG_5629
_MG_5629

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