Now if Only It Would Stop Raining

I'd put this behemoth to work!

So, why a Canon A1?

As you all know, I am a film dinosaur. They will get my film cameras when they pry them from my dead twitching fingers... or when they stop processing film :)

The A1 is the stick shift sports car to my Minolta 700si grand touring machine. The A1 is not auto focus. It is precisely the sort of camera I grew up with but with the addition of superb metering. It is programmable in either shutter or aperture priority, that's all the automation I want or usually need. I feel an extra measure of control, and I like that feeling.

Here my baby sits atop my prized Bogen tripod. We are ready to take on the world... if only it would stop raining.

Flower at Carmel Mission

No idea what it is, but it sure is interesting.

Okay Then, It Arrived!

OK you digital guys, let me enjoy myself here for a bit. This is a thing of beauty. If it ever stops raining out here in "sunny" California, I'll put it to use.

San Francisco Video is Up at Google

A segment of the video I've been working on is up at Google.

I shot this starting with entering the Presidio, over the Golden Gate, out the Marin Headlands toward Point Bonita, on the main drag in Sausalito, the ferry to San Francisco and then all around town.

Reason 4,228 For Why I Left Missouri

Yumpin yiminee! A friend of mine sent this to me and tells me it was shot in Seadalia, Mo. during that horrendous outbreak of tornadoes a couple weeks back. I suspect they are still looking for the photographer, no doubt somewhere in Indiana.

What a magnificent shot!

Ali of "The Big Picture" Joins the Blogroll

Ali has a good blog from a defferent sort of place, The United Arab Emirates (UAE). This is a place much in the news of late, including the screwing over of the Dubai ports deal in the last few weeks by some amazingly cynical American politicians. But, like my views on San Francisco, I won't go into that here, and PLEASE do NOT impute my views to Ali.

He takes some really neat shots and has a fine eye. Do drop by and pay him a visit here.

San Francisco - Another Day in Paradise

Just uploaded a video to Google, and it should be available in a day or so. It's kind of cool. I lifted a song from the Eagles, "Learn to be Still," so I'm waiting with baited breath to see if Google puts the kabosh on things.

Anyway, while I'm waiting on that, I will put up a few of my stills... a few of the hundreds that I have of the old hometown.

San Francisco really brings out mixed feelings in me... but I won't go into that here. It is still of one of the most wonderful and beautiful places anywhere in the world and I'm glad to be back near home (Monterey is about 95 miles south of SF.)

I also love square rigged ships, so I'll start with this one.

Welcome Sedona Scenery to Ye Olde Blog Roll

Sedona dropped by this blog earlier today and left a nice comment. So, I popped over to his site, and... shazam! Some really nice stuff in a gorgeous place.

His blog is new, so I'd be pleased to give it a plug here. Told him that might pick him up three to four visitors a day ;)

Anway, do drop by and see some nice shots of a wonderful place.

If you missed the link above, click here.

MJ Re-Surfaces - Gets New Toy and Other Happenings

First for the toy: cast your eyes to the left, that is a Tokina 100-300mm f4 for my trusty A1. Yep, I said f4. I Googled the the heck out of this lens and found nary a bad word. In fact, all the reviews were raves. I can not wait to put this baby to work.

As for where I have been and what I have been doing, well, a couple things: first, I have been putting a lot of free time into putting a video together. In fact, the previous post links to an early cut of that video. It is a labor of love if not particularly high art

Then there is Christine... last Monday she had a small stroke and fell. So we spent that day at the hospital. She was admitted and was there until Friday. We got her home Friday afternoon. Then, this afternoon, she fell again. We spent from 1:00 in the afternoon until 9:30 at the ER. Nothing major. She is back home. Sigh.

So, MJ has not been posting much of late.

"Morning Has Broken"

New video here.

This is a bit of the video shot by my brother and I at Malpaso. I set it to the hymn "Morning Has Broken." It is a bit rough and i am still editing on my computer. But it is good enough to share this bit.

The Beach at Malpaso

This picture demonstrates why I tend to prefer film to digital.

My experience with most digital is that the images tend to be oversaturated. This shot was taken with plain old Kodak HD 400 film on a Minolta 700si. It has not been manipulated. What you see is what you got.

At the same time, there is a slight distortion of reality in film. Perhaps it is the grain. Whatever it is, it is something I like.

I do shoot digital. I love the flexibility. I especially appreciate the fact that I can shoot multiple exposures and then pick and choose which ones I want. I also am one of those folks for whom immediate gratification is not quick enough.

Anyway, so long as I can shoot film, so long as it and processing are available, I will continue to shoot with it.

Sunrise Comes to Malpaso

Here we are in Clint Eastwood country. His production company is named for this place. My brother and I went down there to shoot video and I carried my little Fuji 5000 just in the event something cool turned up. Well, sure enough...

Two Point Landing

Lake Tahoe

A shot taken by my son Will high above Lake Tahoe. Now THAT is what I call a vista.
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Gull in flight

These birds fly with incredible grace.

This is where a digital camera comes in handy... point the camera and shoot like crazy. Pick the one that comes out best.

Oh My Gosh... Midwest Weather

Yesterday I made light of the weather back in Missouri while complaining about ours here in the West. In my years in Missouri I just got used to these violent storms. They usually blew away a barn or tore up a bean field.

This morning I went online to look at the morning St. Louis Post-Dispatch only to learn nine people had been killed and that a lot of damage had been done by tornados. Talk about feeling just awful.

Guess that will get a check out of me for The Red Cross and a prayer for those harmed.

It's Amazing What 300mm of Glass Can Do For You

Continuing on The Bird Theme

This guy looked distinguished and wise to me. I guess Jonathan Livingston Seagull has stuck with me all these years. There is a sort of campy Zen thing about these critters. But just when you think something is going on in that pea-sized brain, they do something unbelievably goofy or comical.

At the intersection of Main and San Miguel in Salinas, before storms, hundreds of them gather at that one intersection and roost on the street lights. It's as though they were discussing the weather. It is NOT an intersection at which you want to catch a red light on those days.

Et Tu Palm Springs?

Received this shot from my old college roommate, Kip Alen, down in Palm Springs aka Fort Stinkin' Desert. My goodness, it's cold out here in the West. We're ready for some spring weather here. I'm really anoyed at my friends back in Missouri with their temps in the 70s. Of course, they are having tornados, and there is some comfort in that.

Speaking of noisy weather, we had thunder storms here this morning.

As for my illness... 0h boy this was a goodie. I was in bed Friday afternoon, all day Saturday and most of Sunday. I finally took a shower because I could not stand myself. Hoping this is passing.

Now, There Is Something You Don't See Every Day

Well, at least you don't see snow around here all that often, though it is the second time in a week. This snow was a bit heavier than last week's dusting.

I went up the Laureles Grade between Carmel Valley and Salinas. At about 1200 feet it was sleeting. Sleeting! Can you imagine such a thing? I stopped and looked across at Toro Mountain, and this was the sight that greeted me.

I grabbed the little Fuji S 5000. I was not about to take the time to set up my beloved Minolta 700si. Hey man, this was a "grab and run" thing, besides I have a terrible cold.

Now that I've shared our natural catastrophe with all of you, I'm grabbing my downe comforter, a good book and going to bed.

Oh Man, Here It Comes!

A few short weeks ago we were worried about whether we were heading into a drought here. It's been raining now, off and on, ever since. In February we were in the 80s, and today it's going to snow down to 500'. Holy smokes! Maybe I'll have some interesting images by this time tomorrow.

In the meantime this fella and the rest of us are bracing for a real beaut.

I Need to Go down to the Sea

It is there that my batteries are charged. It is there that God breathes life into my spirit. It is there that I find myself.

So What's Going on in MJ's Life These Days

I got a note from a friend today asking if I was still alive after I had stopped writing or talking for some time. I realized how much I had withdrawn. About the only thing I was doing for myself was this blog and my beloved photography.

So, here are some random thoughts about life, my life.

A couple weeks ago we brought Christine home from the nursing home. They were killing her. It was not a deliberate thing, but simple lack of humanity. She was sinking fast. So we brought her home.

In a couple weeks she has regained some strength, eats like a horse and is far more alert. The good side of her hospitalization is the "meds." The psychotic side of the Alzheimers is controlled. We are thankful for that.

But now life revolves around Christine 24 hours a day. Anita has very limited breaks from the 24/7 care she is required to provide. When I get home from work, I try to provide an opportunity for her to vent and have some adult conversation. That's not always easy given the nature of the practice in which I am involved. I come home pretty drained.

Folks, this stuff is hard.

But then I hand Christine a pill after dinner to help her sleep through the night, and I get a soft "thank you" and an angelic smile.

So what is life like?

It's like life. It's work. It's suffering as the Budha would tell us. It is treating the least of us with some care and understanding. It is simply trying to be a decent person and doing the best we can.

And when I think of it that way, I feel grateful.

Thank you God for this day. Thank you for the people in my life. Thank you for productive work to do. And perhaps most of all, thank you for that smile and "thank you" I got tonight.

Things That Grow Out of Cliffs - Life Will Find A Way

Sunset at Half Dome and El Capitan

Just up slope from Tunnel Hill is another overlook where I sat and waited for the sunset. It did not disappoint. Tell me, how does anyone live any place other than California?

Move Over Ansel Adams

Oh, not really, but this is the perch he made famous on Tunnel Hill in Yosemite. The view is looking across the Merced Valley at Bridal Falls. It really is a breathtaking view. Normally I would have left some sky in the image, but it was kind of milky and bleached out.

More Spring...

Azalea in the Backyard

Just screwed on an add-on macro lens to my trust rusty Fuji S5000 digital. This is not easy shooting to do. One little breath of breeze and the shot is toast. This lens also requires me to get right ontop of the subject, so shadows become a real issue. All that said, the effect is pretty pleasing.

Industrious Little Guy

Something from Florida

Not sure what it is but it grows in my brother's back yard. Darn pretty thing it is. Shot this a couple years ago with a really cheap digital, and I'll be darned if it's not half bad. Not sure I've gotten a better one since with way more expesnive equipment.

There's Snow on That Thar Hill

It actually snowed here today. That is a rare occurrence in these parts. Snow is very hard on the magnolias and suntans. It just is not fitting to snow around here. I mean, REALLY...

"Herself" - Bella The Attack Kitty

Here's Bella, my little buddy. She about 4 1/2 lbs of attitude. Her nemisis is a fella who goes by the moniker of Smoke. He's gray "dude" cat known around the house as Stud Muffin, a regular rockstar Smoke is. You get the picture. Smoke delights in getting Bella's goat. He seems to take joy in hearing her throw a fit. So he jaunts on into my bedroom and puffs up and looks very intimidating. When he gets the desired affect, he just turns and walks out. What a pair.

On The Wharf in San Francisco

I was walking along the Wharf in San Franciso and saw this scene. I just like the composition of the World War II Liberty Ship through the entrance to the old embarcation dock. It made me think of those of The Greatest Generation who gave their all.

Sunset in Sausalito

Not a particularly workmanlike shot taken from inside The Spinnaker restaurant in Sausalito, through a window, with my trusty Fuji digital. I was at dinner with my brother and friends from Columbia, Missouri. It was a pleasantly memorable evening. The view from this place is pretty stunning. Note the tops of the Golden Gate above the hill.