The Cats of University Heights: Bramble

There are days I long for a reliable, interchangeable-lens mirrorless digital camera, like the Fujifilm X-T2, from which a good telephoto could close the distance to a subject. Then again, I doubt whether such a sophisticated instrument could capture such fine feline. The Summilux 28mm f/1.7 lens of the Leica Q may seem to shoot too wide, but precise manual focus let me cut through branches and full-frame sensor later made possible a moment from close-in crop.

I took the Featured Image and its companion yesterday afternoon, along Florida Street, soon after crossing Howard towards Polk. The kitty was a chance sighting and difficult capture. As I passed a cement wall, with overgrown hedge above, I spotted the cat through the branches, waiting outside a door to be let in.

I am a deliberate, amateur photographer. I don’t shoot hundreds of pics and sort them later for a good one among many discards. Every one counts. I took 13 portraits of the furball, from several different vantages, also manually setting aperture and ISO. Vitals for the first: f/5.6, ISO 800, 1/500 sec, 28mm; 1:05 p.m. PST. The other: f/5.6, ISO 200, 1/60 sec, 28mm; 1:01 p.m.

The putty-tat, whom I nickname Bramble for the tangled hedge hiding her, deserves a closer portrait. Perhaps we will meet again another time. Scratch that “again”. Meet. Bramble was oblivious to my presence, which highlights another Leica Q benefit: The leaf shutter is virtually silent.

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