Category: Tech

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 11, 20217:56 pm

Bell Weather

Santa Ana winds brought unseasonable heat to San Diego on this Thursday. By contrast, elsewhere: Parts of Minnesota and North Dakota are hunkering down for blizzard conditions. The high in my neighborhood of University Heights reached 30 degrees Celsius (86 F). By contrast, where white-out conditions are forecast: Watertown, SD is 0 C (32 F); as I write.

This morning, searing sunlight purged the frigid memory of living one winter in Minneapolis (decades ago). While walking along the Campus-North alley, between Adams and Madison, I came upon the discarded bicycle helmet that is the Featured Image. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/2.8, ISO 100, 1/400 sec, 28mm; 9:42 p.m. PDT; Leica Q2. Consider the photo, composed as shot, as homage to the warm weather.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 10, 20218:30 pm

Never Rest, San Diego

About 10 minutes after photographing the “Roarin’ Riders and the First Responders” on Nov. 6, 2021, I came across building art that is the Featured Image. The pair of murals are on the alley side of Belching Beaver Brewery in North Park—between El Cajon Blvd and Howard Avenue. The irony about the “people come before profit” sentiment is its placement on a commercial building selling pricey gourmet booze—or am I missing something here?

While I carried Leica Q2, iPhone 13 Pro made the moment, by taking advantage of the ultra-wide lens. Vitals: f/1.8, ISO 32, 1/405 sec, 13mm; 2:10 p.m. PDT. Because of obstructions, I couldn’t back up far enough with the camera to include both murals. Hence, the choice of the smartphone.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 9, 20217:52 pm

Roarin’ Riders and the First-Responders

A whole lot of activity goes on in the Featured Image—and more than I realized until sitting down to edit in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic. The nearly 100-percent crop comes from Leica Q2, on Nov. 6, 2021. Vitals: f/8, ISO 100, 1/250 sec, 28mm; 2:01 p.m. PDT.

As I walked up Meade Ave. in San Diego’s North Park neighborhood, I heard jovial talking and motorcycles revving ahead of me and found them on cross-street Idaho. I crouched down behind a car and, after changing the aperture, managed to click the shutter once before they rode off in choreographed procession; there was a precision to their group riding that evoked safety and conveyance. They roared towards El Cajon Blvd.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 8, 20217:10 am

Neko Chills

This is what knowing you’re handsome looks like. The Featured Image comes from iPhone 13 Pro on Nov. 4, 2021. Vitals: f/1.5, ISO 50, 1/1209 sec, 26mm; 10:07 a.m. PDT.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 7, 20215:58 pm

The Cats of University Heights: Jack

Years ago, a striking dark-fur sprinted from view as I walked by. The owner happened to be outside, so I inquired. “That’s Jack!” she answered. The property is adjacent to where Reddy now calls home, with Zero. I frequently mosey down the street, looking to visit either, never really expecting to see their neighbor once more or to have chance to shoot a portrait.

But Jack appeared, and posed, on Oct. 22, 2021. A few occasions since, I almost added him to the series but restrained hoping to see his owner and confirm the identity. Few days ago, I came upon her lugging tires and she did just that. So at last, we present Jack.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 6, 20219:33 pm

Birthday Beans

Saturday supper is a burpy (or, ah, gassy) memory for some folks back home in Maine tonight. Baked beans are a traditional meal for the day—classically cooked buried in the ground under hot coals. Growing up in Aroostook County, I remember grocery stores selling Saturday fresh baked beans and bread—by the pint or quart and loaf. Yum.

Like some United Kingdom residents, we would eat beans on toast (usually cold on hot crust), typically for breakfast. As a youngster, I saw it as poor-man’s-food when short on other options, not realizing that we consumed something quite tasty and traditional.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 5, 20218:18 pm

I Blame the Traffic Circles

This car crash won’t win awards for photographic excellence. I got one shot for the Featured Image before a flatbed truck moved in to take away the vehicles. It’s what the moment represents that matters. But first, quickly, the vitals—aperture manually set: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/500 sec, 28mm; 2:08 p.m. PDT; Leica Q2.

I passed by the scene on Oct. 30, 2021, at the intersection of Meade and Mississippi in University Heights. On either side of Mississippi are parallel streets Alabama and Louisiana, where San Diego workers completed so-called “calming measures” last year. I call them “traffic circles of unintended consequences“—contending they adversely affect driving habits that will lead to more accidents like this one.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 4, 20217:59 pm

Gosh, Is Jack-o’-lantern a Taboo Term?

Halloween is past, but remnants remain—and what’s better than pumpkins as Thanksgiving approaches. Already, my local Costco sells massive pumpkin pies. Why now, I cannot fathom. It’s not like they’ll keep.

Yesterday, I used Leica Q2 to capture the Featured Image and companion. The first is nearly a 100-percent crop, shot wider-open than the other to make some bokeh. Vitals, aperture manually set for both: f/2.8, ISO 100, 1/2000 sec, 28mm; 11:49 a.m. PDT. The second: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/800 sec, 28mm; seven seconds earlier.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 3, 20219:10 pm

Chickenbone Slim and the Biscuits

I came upon a blues band playing outside our auto mechanic’s shop on Oct. 16, 2021, while walking to fetch more Orijen dry food for our cats Cali and Neko. The place is closed on Saturdays (and Sundays, too). I listened for a bit before continuing along Adams Avenue, in San Diego’s Normal Heights neighborhood, to Pet Me Please.

My wife met me with the car to take home the 12-pound (5.4 kg) bag of kibble. I plodded back to the service station, where I used Leica Q2 to capture the Featured Image and companion, iPhone 13 Pro to film the one-minute video clip, and my hands to pay for and grab Chickenbone Slim CD “Sleeper”.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 2, 20218:44 pm

The Cats of University Heights: Damsel

In a neighborhood dominated by renters, residents come and go—and that’s one reason for the apparent number of kitties. Likewise, they leave with their owners and arrive with new tenants. Such is the case with this cute Calico, who appeared in the same window as the black nicknamed Night—profiled in August 2018.

The Featured Image comes from iPhone 13 Pro; captured in ProRAW; cropped and edited in Apple Photos on 16.2-inch MacBook Pro then exported as JPEG. Vitals: f/2.8, ISO 32, 1/424 sec, 77mm; 10:05 a.m. PDT, Oct. 24, 2021. The seventy-eighth feline found behind door or window earns nickname Damsel.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 1, 202110:01 pm

Ripped Rocker

This chair must be valuable—despite its, ah, drop seat. My University Heights neighbors typically put out giveaways in alleys, but the claimed antique was on a street corner—Georgia and Meade. Hey, that’s the same intersection where my wife found an ugly art print facedown in the street.

I used Leica Q2 to capture the Featured Image, which is composed as shot. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/125 sec, 28mm; 3:59 p.m. PDT, Oct. 7, 2021.

Photo by Joe WilcoxOct 31, 20219:37 pm

The Maine Coons’ House Sold

A chapter is closed in the saga of the two Maine Coons whose backyard territory was clearcut in early August 2021. Their old residence listed as sold on October 28. Mimi and Sweet Pea occasionally go into their old habitat, but the behavior must stop whenever new construction begins. I expect the owners will demolish the existing house and build an apartment building, based on zoning.

Both kitties appeared in my “Cats of University Heights” series during May 2018. Mimi is mother to the other; both are ferals who lived on the property for about eight years. The woman who fed them has made space in her smaller, fenced outdoor space across the alley—and both go there for food and safety.