Purple Reign
Dig, if you will, these pictures of a few things purplish. Yellows and magentas surround them—now can you, can you picture this? Purple is the dominant color in my garden. There is actually an assortment of purples, and I have no idea what the correct names are. I’m still notContinue Reading
VMLP 13: The Minolta XD11—A Love Story…
The VMLP is a quest to relive the history and innovation of Minolta SLRs. Accordingly, the next camera up for review should be either the SR-7 with its built-in meter (innovation step) or the older SR-1 (historical). But here we have the XD11. Why? Love. Generally speaking, I prefer autofocusContinue Reading
Dealing with Garden Pests: A Scientific Approach
Every garden has unwanted visitors. Sometimes they are large, like the squirrels who keep planting walnuts and pecans among my flowers. Sometimes, they are small with too many legs. The large ones do little damage; they are just an annoyance. The little ones, though, can really cause problems. The twoContinue Reading
Challenges Shooting Flower Portraits in Dappled Light
Modern cameras make it easy to take a picture. Most have a “Program” mode that takes care of metering, shutter speed, and aperture, leaving the picture-taker free to compose and focus. Generally, I avoid Program mode in favor of aperture priority because of my bokeh preferences. My technical knowledge hasContinue Reading
A Visit from Claudette…
When I heard tropical storm Claudette was headed to Atlanta, I panicked, remembering how past storms had bowled over my flowers. Those flowers never recovered. Years ago, when I moved to Atlanta, dodging tropical weather systems was not high on my list of concerns. But these days, I pay veryContinue Reading
VMLP 12: Minolta MD Zoom 28-85mm, f3.5-4.5—Yeah, You Want One of These
Minolta made so many SR mount lenses that it is difficult for someone new to the brand to make an intelligent buying decision. There are a few famous lenses, and they get all the press. When I bought my first manual camera in July 2019, the most widely touted lensesContinue Reading
Life Library of Photography—Exactly What I Have Been Looking For!
Exploring the history and growth of photography, researching techniques and practices—all add to the enjoyment of learning photography and snapping the shutter. Josh Solomon is responsible for my latest library additions. His post extolling the virtue of The Camera set me on a quest to find the 51-year-old Life Library of Photography. There areContinue Reading
Garden Frame: Evening Gardenia — Crème, Sans Brûlée
Description: Early season gardenia in soft late-afternoon light Background: We have a large gardenia tree. It regularly grows to more than six feet in height. When it gets this tall, I chop away six to eight inches or so and hope I’ve done a good job with no damage. I tried lettingContinue Reading
VMLP 11: The Minolta ER—Strange Quark
That the Minolta ER (Electronic Eye Reflex) is an oddity goes without saying. Its design says 1960’s hi-tech—like how one would expect George Jetson’s camera to look. It also carries over a 50s sci-fi vibe, so much so that I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if it suddenly shotContinue Reading
Summer Bloomers—The Early Birds
There is nothing quite like watching and waiting for the first blooms to appear. This spring was more colorful than usual because the scarlet and magenta verbena forgot they were annuals and came back in force. I love spring, but I planned the garden to peak in summer because ofContinue Reading