Tag: Nikon Zf

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 5, 20269:12 pm

The Easter AI Metaphor

For Easter Sunday, let’s use modern tech to compare and contrast. Today is supposed to be the celebration of Jesus Christ’s resurrection and the hope human beings can receive spiritual salvation. Physical redemption is the responsibility of the Second Coming.

Easter also celebrates the bunny—a rapidly breeding animal that aligns more with ancient, pagan fertility rights. Candy and sweets are all about enjoyment of the flesh, as is the worship of fertility practices of the gods of Spring. Christian teaching emphasizes the spirit and dominion over the flesh. Materialistic cultures and religions promote physical joy, from simple pleasures to hedonism.

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 4, 20269:31 pm

San Diego City Attorney Says Sex Shop

The questions: Why now? Who benefits?

For as long as I can remember, a massage parlor has quietly beckoned customers from the corner of Adams and Georgia here in the otherwise quaint village of University Heights. My wife and I have occasionally discussed its odd presence, with the presumption being the place peddles sex as much as massage.

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 3, 20269:24 pm

Serving Brooklyn Style

Here’s a simple photo for a Good Friday evening that has nothing to do with the commemoration. The celebration of Jesus Christ’s brutal murder—execution as insurrectionist (He claimed to be a king)—never feels right to me. Let’s talk about meaning, and what matters about his life and death, on Easter Sunday. The resurrection is by far more meaningful, although it was purchased at incredible cost.

As for Sonny’s Pizza, the place first opened for business around the time I shot the Featured Image, May 6, 2025. The eatery is located where was Florabella, on Madison just off Park Blvd, here in the village of University Heights. The florist closed at the end of June 2018 in response to tripling of the rent. Maybe the landlord was hasty and greedy, because the retail space stayed mostly unoccupied for nearly 7 years.

Living by Joe WilcoxApr 1, 20269:13 pm

Meet Malloy

I should have known. San Diego Zoo names its animals. But I wouldn’t expect identifying tags. As you can see from the Featured Image, this Penguin is Malloy. In a less-than-clear, unpublished photo, one of his companions is Mac. I wonder: Do they all these birds have “M” names, or is it a coincidence?

I used Nikon Zf and NIKKOR Z 24-200mm f/4-6.3 VR lens for this one, which is close-cropped. Vitals: f/6.3, ISO 110, 1/500 sec, 200mm; 10:20 a.m. PDT. I chose the Zf for many reasons, and effective resolution is one of them: 24.5 megapixels, which is the sweet spot, in my humble opinion. File sizes aren’t overly large and burdensome, while the sharp 6048 x 4032 photos can be cropped to effectively enlarge the subject.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 29, 20269:34 pm

An Irresistible Moment

Cats are full of surprises. As I opened a package of CAT-branded straps purchased at Costo, Cali noodled her way into the activity, eventually settling onto the empty box; May 5, 2025. She used it as a bed for the next four or five days, until she put her attention elsewhere; then I removed the box from the dining table.

The Featured Image displays the unusual photographic opportunity: A living cat sleeping on a CAT box with a stuffed cat behind. I couldn’t have set up the shot any better than what naturally occurred. Vitals: f/6.3, ISO 3200, 1/80 sec, 98mm; 3:22 p.m. PDT.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 26, 20268:47 pm

Queen for a Lifetime

Perhaps you’ve heard the saying, “Queen for a day”. This afternoon, I met a woman known up and down Adams Avenue, where Normal Heights and North Park meet, simply as Queen. She and her husband sold their home, after raising a family there, and rented an apartment in one of the newer buildings erected during the past few years. Children gone away, the house was too roomy.

I made Queen’s acquaintance when walking to the auto shop, where our Honda Fit had been dropped off to repair the strangest problem: Something had dislodged the splash shield under the engine, and it frequently scraped the ground.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 25, 20269:12 pm

What’s Broken Can Be Fixed

Ten years ago, I struggled to see normally. Cataracts clouded my eyes’ natural lenses, and macular edema leaked fluid into both retinas. In July and August 2016, John Bokosky (Eye Care of San Diego) performed the surgery that gave me artificial lenses and partially renewed vision. Fane Robinson (San Diego Retina Associates) treated my retinas to health over a period of six years. Dramatically changing my diet—for starters, reducing carbs and mostly eliminating added sugar—played an important role, too.

Dr. Robinson retired on Aug. 30, 2024. Dr. Bokosky passed away, suddenly, on Oct. 22, 2025. My last appointment with him, for an annual checkup, was two weeks earlier. His death stunned me, and I am not alone. He was highly respected and amazingly competent. The doctor that other doctors see for treatment is a professional’s professional. I saw several of them coming in for appointments during that final visit.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 24, 20269:21 pm

The Cats of University Heights: Warrior

Along Monroe, on March 22, 2026, I saw in the distance a shorthair presumed to be Ash. But upon looking at the Featured Image, at home, on Samsung Galaxy Book6 Ultra, I could see my mistake. Fur color pattern is different, and this wounded warrior is missing an eye. From another photo, the cat appears to have something of a hump on its upper back that could be from an injury.

Nevertheless, the beastie was spry as it and a chunky black beastie chased one another down the street and into an alley. They were playful rather than combative or territorial. I hadn’t seen either before the day before yesterday, so they are presumably newcomers to the neighborhood and come from the same household.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 23, 20269:22 pm

Susan Says Stop

A basketball hoop hung in a San Diego alley isn’t that an uncommon sight. I have seen several in my neighborhood of University Heights. But this one stands out for adornment: Black-eyed Susan vine. That raises question: Who would want to shoot baskets and ruin the lovely flowers?

The answer could be nobody. I haven’t seen any signs of activity around this hoop recently, which could mean something else: No aspiring basketball players live nearby, and that would easily explain how the vine climbed so high.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 22, 20267:55 pm

In Defense of Reading Books

Another book sale weekend at the local library (University Heights)—as designated by the third Saturday of the month (today is fourth Sunday)—is but memory. Our good friend Kerry, whom we hadn’t seen for more than three years, visited yesterday—so, I missed the better of the two days.

But I hauled my butt the 0.8-kilometer (half-mile) walk and looked for books for the women; I brought back a Moosewood cooking follow-up for my wife and two tomes on herbs for our daughter. I saw little that interested me.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 21, 20269:04 pm

Wedding Bells or Something Else?

While walking home from San Diego Zoo on Sept. 27, 2025, I passed by some kind of gathering or event at the Greek Orthodox Church on Park Blvd in Hillcrest. Being Thursday, I doubted a religious service was underway or ending. But what??

I initially assumed wedding, but on closer consideration funeral appeared to be another reasonable possibility. The people looked cheerer than somber, more befitting a wedding, dedication of child, or something similar.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 20, 20268:50 pm

Near Miss?

Minutes earlier, the kid on the left had been doing wheelies down Monroe in my neighborhood of University Heights. Not being a thru street (right turn only on Texas), traffic tends to be light compared to Madison or Mission on either side. I sometimes see roller skaters on Mississippi either at Monroe or Mission. So, these daredevils weren’t out of place, but the electric bike meant increased speed and risk.

I set up the shot, for their approach. You can see them coming upon Louisiana but turned towards one another rather than looking ahead. Meanwhile, the driver is somewhat blinded by the late-day sun as she turns Westwardly. There is no indication that she sees the distracted bikers.