Tag: cats

Photo by Joe WilcoxOct 19, 20166:29 am

The Cats of University Heights: Woo

Woo, who resides among apartments off Park Blvd. near Meade, is a fixture. I’ve seen her, and a littermate, around the same courtyard for years. Not nearly as long as I have lived in University Heights but definitely for a good half-decade. But this summer into autumn, though, she is alone—and I wonder about the other. (I later learned that Woo’s sister was mauled by a dog, leading to her death.)

Google’s Android auto-upload photo feature saved these captures; I can find no digital hard copies anywhere. For about 28 days in autumn 2013, I owned the Moto X Developer Edition before returning for refund. I praised the camera for shooting what the eye sees, which wasn’t enough to offset huge variances in image quality, depending on lighting. I captured the calico using Moto X on October 15th three years ago. If not for Cloud backup, the pics would be lost.

Photo by Joe WilcoxOct 18, 20166:11 am

The Cats of University Heights: Roly Poly

Meet the second feline featured in this limited series. From Scruffy we go to Roly Poly (real name unknown). He and I first crossed paths on July 8, 2016 at 6:20 p.m. PDT a few meters onto Cleveland Ave. where it meets Monroe. He couldn’t stay still for long—moving from rolling around on the sidewalk to pestering a black cat meowing and growling on the other side of a hedge to lying flat. He preoccupied most of the time tormenting the hidden beast that I occasionally could see behind the brush.

I shot Roly’s portrait, the Featured Image, using iPhone 6s Plus. Vitals: f/2.2, ISO 32, 1/120 sec, 4.15mm.

Photo by Joe WilcoxOct 17, 20166:01 pm

The Cats of University Heights: Scruffy

I begin a new series that ends when the photos are all used: The Cats of University Heights. The number of feline sightings in my San Diego neighborhood is quite surprising, and I shoot them […]

Photo by Joe WilcoxOct 13, 20169:24 pm

Halloween Cat

I sighted the same cat sitting in the same place two nights in a row—second time with enough light to capture meaningful pics with iPhone 7 Plus. The candid presented opportunity to use the dual-camera’s zoom feature. Image on right is standard, and the other is 2X. The collage editor cropped, so for reference I provide the originals separately.

The captures are from Oct. 12, 2016, at 5:36 p.m. PDT. Vitals for the first: f/1.8, ISO 20, 1/399 sec, 3.99mm. The second: f/2.8, ISO 20, 1/129 sec, 6.6mm. I shot the pics quick, fully auto. Activating the optical zoom was one-touch easy.

Photo by Joe WilcoxSep 28, 20168:31 pm

iPhone 7 Plus First Photo

My daughter’s cat Cali sleeps on the desk from where I type this post. I couldn’t resist giving iPhone 7 Plus a quick, point-and-click camera test. She is too cute. Except for the slightest straightening, […]

Photo by Joe WilcoxJun 18, 201611:02 pm

Peek-a-Neko

Our handsome ginger poses for your late-Caturday amusement, between new sleeping bags. The green is Annie’s—the Marmot Trestles 30, purchased during REI’s big sale a few weeks back. The blue arrived today, and rather quickly […]

Photo by Joe WilcoxMay 23, 201612:45 pm

Cat Cuddles

Rarely do Cali and Neko sleep together like this, but the Tortoiseshell is having an off 7 days or so. She seems unsettled. Yesterday, the petite feline watched the Apple TV Aerial screensaver for the longest time. I do mean attentively watched.

Perhaps she longs for the outdoors, which was a major part of her habitat before joining our household in October 2014. On June 5 of the same year, Cali adopted our daughter. I met Molly’s new companion the previous evening on the street.

Critters by Joe WilcoxApr 7, 20168:59 pm

He’s So Big

A rare close-up of Neko. Shot with iPhone 5s on Dec. 6, 2013. Vitals: f/2,2, ISO 400, 1/15 sec, 4.12mm.

Critters by Joe WilcoxApr 5, 20166:53 pm

Goodbye, Copper

Recently, I made walking a daily habit. My wife Anne and I often go together, here in the neighborhood, as we did this afternoon. Our family moved to San Diego’s University Heights area in October 2007, to be close to her dad, who at 94 lives on the next street. On the adjacent block there are several cats we often visit, but one I hadn’t seen for several months. The lady who cared for the kitty was outside today, and Annie asked about scruffy Copper. Where is she?

Last year, animal rescue euthanized the feline following a vicious dog attack; in the cactus and bushes where she often safely stayed. The injuries were too severe for recovery. 🙁 Copper came to the apartment building that became home as a stray. Her caretaker-benefactor tried taking the cat inside, but Copper refused confinement. That’s not to say she strayed far from her adopted outdoor home.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 24, 20164:38 pm

Thank-you, Google Photos!

Last night, while looking for one thing I found another: Four snapshots of Cali taken when she approached me on the street, June 4, 2014. This one is best of them. Strange, I hunted for […]

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 22, 20168:49 pm

Here Kitty, Kitty

I spotted three cats on North Ave. here in University Heights on the same block in two different yards. None was friendly, and one hissed when I approached but held its ground. The featured image is the twain that I disturbed. As I walked down the sidewalk, the one in the foreground caught my eye. I captured a couple shots and moved in closer for better composition. That startled the other out of the bushes to the left; I hadn’t seen it.

Last night, I snapped some street shots at dusk, and used the Fuji X-T1’s dedicated light Sensitivity dial to switch down from auto-ISO 6400 to 200. It’s a dual dial: Sensitivity top and Drive below. In near darkness, while moving one I nudged the other—from single-frame (S) to low-speed burst (CL). That setting error let me capture a sequence as the other cat exited. Lucky.

Critters by Joe WilcoxMar 17, 20163:48 pm

The Old-Timer

Among our neighborhood cats is Fess, who carries kind of an angry expression, although being quite friendly. He’s a slow, mature mover, and you don’t see many of them round here because of the double-C […]