This squirrel took some offense to my pointing Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra on July 26, 2023. He (or she) scurried up the telephone pole, then turned around and started back down when the smartphone came […]
Tag: Galaxy S23 Ultra
Hidden Bunch
I occasionally share some of the things people put out in San Diego alleys, like the Apple PowerMac G3 (circa 1999), art gallery, big face clock, family room, profane hat, rustic mirror, rusty typewriter, Seventies stove, snowboarding boots, solid wood dresser, Victorian-style sofa, or Vitamaster Slendercycle—to name but a few.
But humans aren’t alone; nature puts out a few surprising finds, too—as the Featured Image demonstrates. These tempting grapes grow along a fence in an alley whose location I choose to withhold other than to say somewhere in University Heights. Interestingly, some vines have riper ones than others.
Big Band Bubble Brigade
Summer never really ends in San Diego but ebbs and flows throughout the year. Yet the last Friday night live music event in Old Trolley Barn Park feels like end of the season, even as the dog days of August are yet to come.
I walked over this evening, beckoned several blocks away by the boisterous big band sound of Sue Palmer & Her Motel Swing Orchestra. She drew quite the crowd, and sizable group—mostly older folks—danced before the stage. If mosh pits were for kids and grandmas, well I observed one tonight.
Crisis is the Best Measure of Character
One of my direct neighbors—meaning living in the same apartment building—had her SUV stolen four nights ago, while visiting a friend in Mission Valley. We live in University Heights, which overlooks that San Diego community. Also taken: Cell phone, purse, and wallet. To say the least, this is a devastating event.
Rather than rant, or be angry, she nervously laughs about what happened. I understand. There’s an absurd, “this can’t be real” quality that is tragically laughable. She takes charge of the situation and doesn’t whine “Why Me?” or seek sympathy as a victim. She is determined and matter of fact in her resolve to recover life quickly.
Light the Way
Tonight I experimented with Night Mode on Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, but the Featured Image isn’t it. That’s because the functionality is too good. My intent was to capture true ambiance of the moment, rather than more illuminated render. Hence, the standard shot.
The view looks North on Alabama towards Monroe and also Mission, in San Diego neighborhood University Heights. Solar-powered lamps light the way. Vitals: f/1.7, ISO 3200, 1/17 sec, 23 mm (film equivalent); 8:37 p.m. PDT. Composed as taken.
Strikingly Stylized
Android users should always back up their pics to Google Photos, and I do. This evening, rather unexpectedly, the service presented a stylized rendition of the Mimosa pom-pom that I shared on day taken: July 22, 2023.
Is this artificial intelligence’s idea of pretty? To my tastes, the Featured Image is way oversaturated. For sure, pink pops—and all the colors of everything blurred behind. I don’t dislike the rendering, or you wouldn’t see it to offer opinion. But I am not loving it either.
Mimosa Moment
While strolling South along Maryland in my neighborhood of University Heights, today, I stopped to regard pink-and-white pom-pom flowers that blossom from Mimosa, which is also known as Persian Silk tree. I used Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra‘s Portrait mode to shoot the Featured Image. Vitals: f/1.7, ISO 10, 1/750 sec, 23mm (film equivalent); 11:20 a.m. PDT.
Trader Joe’s was my final destination, but I had ulterior motive. A few days earlier, I discovered that one neighbor’s house is for sale. I worried why. She grew up in UH, played in the canyons nearby, and graduated from San Diego High School. She lives in a generational home—one of just a few remaining here. She wasn’t there, but I got the skinny from someone else living nearby.
Thinking About Moving?
Anyone not battened down with an exceptionally good-paying job or affordable home ownership should be thinking about fleeing from San Diego. My wife and I talk about doing so every day—not nearly but with certainty every. Rents rocket and home prices are beyond escape velocity.
According to Zillow, the city ranks third nationwide for highest average rents—behind New York and ahead of San Francisco. Yikes! Point2 crunches home prices, and you’ll need binoculars to see how high they are. Among the 30 largest U.S. cities, San Diego ranks fourth for the number of listings above $1 million (58.6 percent). Median home price: $910,000.
What’s More Inclusive Than Welcome?
On July 14, 2023, as the prideful descended upon San Diego for the annual alphabet-letter parade the next day, I stopped with my wife to gawk at the fence, along Adams Ave. in University Heights, that is subject of the Featured Image.
The “Welcome” sign and homage to the “brave”, along with an American flag out of frame, stood starkly—proudly and patriotically—in contrast to the many rainbow flags we encountered nearby along Panorama Drive. (Say, why do these banners have six colors when the real deal in the sky is seven?)
Soaring Sunflower
In the same spot—seemingly so—as the “September Sunflower“, another rises but turned 180 degrees (e.g., facing the opposite direction). The Featured Image comes from Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, composed as shot using the 50-megapixel option (200MP is another). Vitals: f/1.8, ISO 10, 1/800 sec, 23mm; 4:06 p.m. PDT, July 16, 2023.
The captured detail is absolutely impressive. Zoom in and judge for yourself. I wonder why carry a fancy camera like my Leica Q2 when the smartphone delivers surprisingly high IQ (image quality).
The Unlucky Card
I made two shots of this card; the Featured Image is second. For the first, I knelt on the cement and closed in with Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra. Oh the careless mistakes we make. Almost immediately, a torrent of ants took to my left leg and knee.
What I missed: Massive number of the insects, swarming in multiple lines along the entire stretch of bridge on University Avenue, over SR-163, in San Diego neighborhood Hillcrest. Never have I seen so many ants, easily thousands, frantically—or perhaps fervently—on the move.
Blues and Americana at Old Trolley Barn Park
July means live music Fridays at Old Trolley Barn Park, here in San Diego neighborhood University Heights. Despite feeling crappy all day, I walked over tonight for a look and some photos—oh, yeah, and surprise. Performer: Chickenbone Slim and the Biscuits. Perhaps you remember my sharing about the blues band back in November 2021, after finding them performing impromptu outside our auto mechanic’s shop, which is closed weekends.
The venue and crowd was way bigger this evening. Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra didn’t deliver the kind of shots I have come to expect. Highlights are blown out and color is way oversaturated for the dozen captures. Details are muddy, too, as you can see from the Featured Image. Vitals: f/4.9, ISO 200, 1/60 sec, 230mm (film equivalent); 7:38 p.m. PDT.