For the past 3 years, I tinkered around with my fine Olympus E-510 camera. She accompanied me on visits to Lambeau Field, Clam Bakes, family functions and Republican conventions. We visited flower gardens, parks, metal concerts and even attended the birth of my grandchildren. She was loyal, reliable and at times, spectacular. I learned so much from her. She’s been my tutor and constant companion. Chances are, if you saw me, you saw the red and black camera condo that housed her. I toss the backpack over my shoulder and off we go. But times change. People grow, cameras don’t.
From the past 2 months, I’ve been courting a new love. She’s everything that I could ask for. A Canon 5D. Sleek yet robust. A little bigger than I’m used to but fits nicely in my hand. Size does matter. She been in a previous relationship but seems to have been treated well. I’ve invested everything I have in her. I’ve spoiled her with fun accessories. Tamron 28-75mm and Canon 75-300mm lenses have moved into the condo. The additional bulk has put a strain on things and an expansion may become necessary in the future but for now, we’re doing great.
When I was contemplating my focal separation, I consulted with my dear friend and mentor, The Dude. I have known Jim for over 30 years and trust his opinion maybe more than anyone. As we discussed the situation, the question of what computer I was using at the time was brought up. I was told that my outdated PC would just not be sufficient to handle . My answer would be a Craigslist upgrade. The Dude doesn’t think that way. I don’t know exactly what happened in Oakland but somehow, over the course of about a week, an offer to send me a computer that he had “laying around” morphed into a new Windows 7 (64 bit), Dual i5 processor with 4 GB of ram and a 2 TB hard drive super machine. My ignorance of computers relative to his knowledge probably has me understating how fast it is. All I know is that its screaming fast, seems to have unlimited resources and is an absolute invaluable tool. I can’t express enough my gratitude to him. This isn’t the first time he’s done wonderful things for me. After a catastrophic crash years ago, he build and sent me a then top of the line computer that still operates in my youngest son’s house. He hosts this page. My primary email is one of his domains. In order to insure that I could afford to attend a Clam event, he sent a plane ticket. I could go on but you get the point. But beyond all of that, the greatest gift of all has been his loyal friendship for these past 30 years. My dear friend Jim, I love you and can not express my thanks enough. My awkwardness possibility limits my ability to properly express this. You have given me the tools to succeed. It’s now up to me. Thank you, thank you.
So… for the past 30 days, I have become obsessed with learning what makes my new girl tick. What used to work, doesn’t any more. What was required to make my old girl purr, absolutely ruins this ones day. And the problem was that the issues weren’t clearly detectable until we got home. It was frustrating beyond words My confidence was rattled. I became extremely, shall we say, focused. My apologies to my friends that have called and been ignored. I’m so sorry but this was important. My knowledge has grown incredibly in the past month. Hours of reading and experimenting I think have begun to pay off. I visited the St. Paul Zoo and Conservatory on Monday, determined to leave with at least a couple keepers. It’s my “safe place”. A controlled environment that offers spectacular colors. I went crazy, taking over 450 total shots ranging from flowers to animals to insects. I’ve done nothing but edit for the past 48+ hours. Lesson learned Be more selective. Hope you enjoy. Lets begin with flowers.