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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
Developing scanning expertise was never a goal for me. My practice has been to accept scanned images pretty much as they are. For black and white, this works nearly 100% of the time; color is another story. Over the past year, I have been more focused on testing cameras thanContinue Reading
To be honest, the only reason I bought the 50mm f2.8 macro lens was was fear of losing or damaging my 100mm f2.8 macro. I’m almost embarrassed to say this now. The 50mm 2.8 is sharp and handy, and it allows one to shoot from only a few inches away.Continue Reading
