On the morning of June 26, 2017, I took an unusually early walk through the neighborhood. Along Mission Cliff Drive, approaching Park Blvd., a pretty tabby moving in the shaded greenery from yard to yard […]

In the alley beyond Alabama going towards Park Blvd., about midway between Monroe and Meade, I spotted a lanky, grey short-hair sprawled on the pavement; June 13, 2017. She slipped away as my wife and I approached, among cars against a garage, resisting me and the Leica Q. The Featured Image shows her hanging on the fence, at least a six-footer and taller than me, following a dramatic leap. She balanced there long enough for four clicks of the shutter. This is the third shot.

Once again, the mirrorless camera’s 28mm, f/1.7 Summilux lens and 24-megapixel full-frame sensor deliver super sharp detail enough for a close-crop. Vitals: f/8, ISO 100, 1/125 sec, 28mm; 6:36 p.m. PDT. 

Two mornings ago—Memorial Day—my wife and I walked down Campus between Monroe and Meade, when she spotted a grey and white crossing the street. Whoa, two new sightings on the same block about 18 hours apart. The other: Siamese seen at dusk on May 28th. I also ambled to the other sidewalk, and there captured a series of sequential stride shots as the feline approached before turning into a yard (Featured Image). The other is below the fold. Vitals, respectively: f/1.7, ISO 100, 1/800 sec, 28mm; 11:04 a.m. PDT and f/1.7, ISO 100, 1/1000 sec, 28mm; 11:03 a.m. PDT. Both are crops.

For a compact camera with fixed lens, the Leica Q‘s focus and shutter response is fast. Easily, the entire series of shots as the cat approached is useable. The morning was overcast, which I consider to be perfect photography weather. At f/1.7, shutter speed was plenty fast enough to stop motion. Both pics are crops, BTW.

One of Leica Q’s best benefits is its dual-focus system: auto and manual—the latter of which uses a mechanism similar to the German camera maker’s pricey rangefinders. There is a dedicated focus ring and adjustment knob around the lens, which when activated, cause the electronic viewfinder to magnify the shooting subject and present visual cue—green “peaking“—when in focus. This feature is particularly handy because: the lens is wide-angle (28mm); the f/1.7 Summilux glass and 24-megapixel full-frame sensor capture so much detail that cropping-in can replace a telephoto; but when shooting wide, with multiple objects, the auto-focus system can hone in on the wrong one.

On May 28, 2017, as I walked down Campus, midway between Meade and Monroe, I spotted a Siamese not seen before. I lay down on the sidewalk to capture the moment. Since the kitty was so still, I took a few extra seconds to switch to manual focus. Interestingly, as dusk settled, none of the auto-focus shots were right. The Featured Image is spot on the cat, in this close crop. The original, which is below the fold, gives actual perspective and illustrates how much detail the Leica Q captures. Vitals: f/1.7, ISO 100, 1/250 sec, 28mm. Time: 7:12 p.m. PDT, about 40 minutes before sunset.

I am a pitiful Southern Californian resident—for not speaking, or reading, a word of Spanish. Fortunately, Google gave my linguistic handicap a little boost yesterday evening, when encountering the large-pawed beast who is our featured feline this cool Caturday. Walking down Monroe from Park Blvd. towards Texas Street, I heard a furball meowing on the other side of a tall hedge at Georgia. I rounded the corner and peaked inside. The beastie came running out on the sidewalk to greet me.

The number of owned street cats without collars surprises me, but this friendly brute was an exception. As he rolled around for pats, I looked at his tag, which gave a phone number followed by “Gracias” on one side and “Mellamo Peso” on the other. I may be ditz-for-non-English-language brain but nevertheless recognize “Thank You”. But the other, I assumed was a first and last name, or perhaps a nickname. I whipped out iPhone 7 Plus and Googled “Mellamo”, only to discover that it means “my name is”. That caused me to resume petting with one hand and lifting the tag with the other; maybe I misread, because who calls their cat Peso? Crazy thing, makes sense. He is one big boy, and the name translates to “weight” (or so says Google). He is Maine Coon size but leaner. 

What a surprise. Nearly across the street from where I spotted the Tortoiseshell for the first time on May 15, 2017, a grey and white tiger-tabby greeted my Mrs. and me four days later. We visited the ever-friendly Haiku (real name) where Cleveland Ave. meets Golden Gate. I shot the Featured Image using Leica Q. I cropped the original DNG, for composition, before exporting the JPEG from Adobe Photoshop Lightroom. Vitals: f/7.1, ISO 100, 1/100 sec, 28mm; 9:13 a.m. PDT. 

Earlier the same morning—May 12, 2017—that I spotted the siamese on Meade, a tiger-tabby leaped away as I approached on North Ave. He perched inside a fence in the yard next door to where The Colonel […]