Yum. Yum. Moment captured on April 23, 2017 at 6:03 p.m. PDT using the Fujifilm X-T1 and XF18-55mmF2.8-4 R LM OIS kit lens, with Classic Chrome simulation set. Vitals: f/4, ISO 200, 1/1250 sec, 55mm. The birds are […]
Tag: street photography
The Cats of University Heights: Cocoa
As my wife and I walked up Maryland Ave. late yesterday afternoon, something hiding in the flowers caught my attention—and I missed the perfect portrait when the meower came out to greet us. The Featured Image isn’t from the feline’s first approach but second, when she temporarily moved up the steps, before coming back to the street for more pats. Vitals: f/3.6, ISO 200, 1/1700 sec, 35.6mm. I captured the moment using the Fujifilm X-T1 and XF18-55mmF2.8-4 R LM OIS kit lens at 5:59 p.m. PDT, with Classic Chrome simulation set.
The day marked the first return to service for the digital camera. I boxed up the X-T1 and posted for sale on Craigslist twenty-nine days ago, after seeing selling prices for new hadn’t budged from $1,699—despite release of the X-T2. I decided to recover some of my investment, being satisfied enough with the Fuji X100F received on February 28th. About an hour-and-a-half before our couple’s walk, a potential buyer from Orange County contacted me. He wondered about the X-T1’s condition and probed on price, seeing as mine was so high ($1,100 in prime condition). He surprised me. The bottom had fallen, and I hadn’t seen: Adorama, Amazon, and B&H all are discounting the mirrorless-and-lens kit by $500. As such, no one, if anyone, would buy from me for even $900. It’s pointless giving up so much value; it’s a wonderful shooter. I unboxed the kit, attached Hard Graft Atelier Hang Camera Strap, and updated the body’s firmware to version 5.10.
The Cats of University Heights: Bonde
What could the owners possibly call this fine specimen? My nickname comes from our chance encounter, as I almost missed the kitty while walking down Monroe Ave. nearby North. The furball crouched just outside an open door, from which I could hear the television inside. I shot six photos at three different manually set apertures, using the Fujifilm X100F, with Velvia film simulation. I chose not to approach and risk causing a scaredy-cat calamity. The Featured Image is a 75-percent crop. Vitals: f/4, ISO 200, 1/105 sec, 23mm; 6:38 p.m. PDT.
I recognize the house, BTW. My wife and I walked through it in 2016, or perhaps the year before, when up for sale. Guess that means a new cat moved into the neighborhood—and I remain surprised finding more to add to this series.
The Cats of University Heights: Mellow
On the same block where is the three-legged Bengal, Mini, whom visited with my wife and I yesterday, and where was the hit-and-run tiger-tabby last week, there lives a Calico—or so we learned while walking down Cleveland Ave. this afternoon. She earns nickname Mellow, for letting me shoot so many photos over the course of three minutes. I tried various vantage points, seeking memorable composition, and the closest came in post-production cropping.
Like other recent captures, I used the Fujifilm X100F, with Velvia film simulation—perfect choice for the lingering lush green and red foliage following unusually heavy winter rains. Featured Image vitals, aperture manually set: f/5.6, ISO 200, 1/280 sec, 23mm; 4:10 p.m. PDT.
Surfers in Black and White
The Fujifilm X100F is, conceptually, little different from the original that released in early 2011. Refinements are plenty, reaching the fourth generation (hence the F): focusing is way faster; sensor packs more megapixels (24 vs 12); and controls are more sensibly placed and functional, for example. But largely the same: overall retro-rangefinder styling; shape and size; emphasis on manual dial controls; leaf shutter; ND filter; dual optical and electronic viewfinders; and fixed f/2 lens, among others. Why change what is classic, and clever, from the start?
The Prime lens, matched with the 24.3-megapixel X-Trans CMOS III sensor, delivers fantastic IQ (e.g., image quality). Surprisingly, the X100F is more an action-cam that conceptually is in league with interchangeable siblings X-Pro2 and X-T2. Focus finally is fast enough. I got a good taste of both qualities while shooting surfers from Pacific Beach pier. Some of the best captures are black and white, applying Acros film simulation in camera. The Featured Image and two crops following below the fold demonstrate.
Knick-Knacks Paddywack
My mom was in the hospital earlier this week—and not for the first time in recent months. On March 29, 2017, I walked about the neighborhood while chatting with her on iPhone 7 Plus; left hand to left ear. Over my right shoulder, from the ONA Lima strap hung the Fujifilm X100F, which I am loving for its convenience, easy-carrying, and one-handed operation.
While ambling up a steep street, I spotted a cute arrangement of child collectibles nestled under a tree. Without interrupting the conversation, I pulled off the lens cap, spun the aperture ring from f/11 to Auto, turned on the camera, and clicked the shutter with my right hand—crouching down for better perspective as I looked through the optical viewfinder.
The Cats of University Heights: Riley
About 18 hours ago, my wife and I walked to the mailbox on Park Blvd., then down from Monroe towards Meade. A few doors before the pie shop on the corner, Annie spotted an orange-and-white furball in an apartment courtyard. There we met Riley and owner Kim, who occasionally takes him out for supervised romps. He is a San Diego shelter cat, who was an estimated four years-old when she adopted him nine years ago. He wasn’t neutered beforehand, and Kim remarked on the animal’s street-savvy ways and rippling muscles. Accustomed to foraging, Riley would burrow into garbage bags scrounging for food if left unattended. Every once and awhile, the old habit returns.
I shot 14 pics of the male marauder, choosing Featured Image in part for the unexpected companion—calico Woo, who I hadn’t seen in the courtyard for nearly six months. This capture comes from the apartment complex’s back area—somewhere I wouldn’t otherwise go if not invited by a resident. You see a crop from the Fujifilm X100F, set to Classic Chrome film simulation. Vitals: f/5.6, ISO 200, 1/250 sec, 23mm; 12:23 p.m. PDT.
The Cats of University Heights: Veruca
Last night, a calico that I had been looking for since Oct. 29, 2016 finally appeared—about the same time of day and different location on her owner’s porch. I shot the Featured Image at 6:52 p.m. PDT; 10 minutes before sunset. The portrait is straight from the Fujifilm X100F; no post-processing (and big file at 13MB). Vitals, with Velvia film simulation: f/2, ISO 200, 1/90 sec, 23mm.
I met the couple who owns “Veruca”—or “Rukie”; the name will mean something to anyone who is familiar with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. She is five years old and not a big eater, despite from some vantage points appearing to be overstuffed. One of the caretakers calls her voluptuous.
The Cats of University Heights: Ash
Yes, you are experiencing déjà vu. We have been to this yard before—three times in six days. The furballs are resident pets of the “Wildlife Habitat”, as an official sign states. They must have a time-sharing arrangement, as cats are quite territorial. While walking to The Hub, my wife and I spotted Ash (his real name) around 1:20 p.m. PDT today. I observed the other two, Sebastian and Booger, in mid-morning and late-afternoon, respectively, on different days. The Maine Coon is about two years old and vision-impaired.
I captured the moment using Fujifilm X100F, with Velvia film simulation. Both pics are crops—the Featured Image 100 percent. That one is Anne’s preferred composition, and the other (below the fold) is mine. In both, the framing attempts to use the stones to lead the eye to the kitty. I shot the first photos with aperture manually set to f/8; they didn’t make the cut because Ash was turned away nibbling a plant. The keepers are auto-everything—and meant to see how well the camera handles contrasting light (in the yard) and shadows (where is the cat). Except for slight straightening and the aforementioned cropping, the two portraits are not tweaked for light or color, beyond what the camera does.
Kuma’s House For Sale
Out the alley behind our apartment building and across Monroe is what the Wilcox clan calls “Kuma’s house”. When our Maine Coon was still with us, and the 1,300-square-foot Craftsman, built in 1917, was a foreclosure, he […]
Caturday Centered
Time comes to revisit a couple of furballs from my “Cats of University Heights” series: Biscuit, Frenemy, and Slumber. As an unabashed amateur photographer, I tend to avoid putting the capture’s subject in the centerfield. But sometimes, there is no other choice or such placement pleases the eye—so I believe (gulp) about these two portraits. Both animals live on different blocks along Maryland Ave.
The Featured Image gives better view of the black cat who is Morla the tortoise’s front-yard companion. The fence leads the eye down to the feline, which offset dinosaur adds character to the yard. The JPEG is straightened but otherwise as shot today using the Fujifilm X100F, with Velvia film simulation applied in camera. Vitals: f/5.6, ISO 200, 1/420 sec, 23mm; 9:38 a.m. PDT.
Sign of the Times
Two weeks ago, while walking around Hillcrest, my wife and I briefly stopped by the local, massive, used bookstore. To my surprise, the place was three-quarters emptied and going out of business. Yikes! I hadn’t shopped there for nearly a year, when purchasing a paperback for myself later given to my father-in-law. While 5th Avenue Books is gone, online counterpart Schrader’s Books will continue selling used titles through Amazon. As someone who almost exclusively reads ebooks, I occasionally—but, honestly, rarely—shopped out-of-prints not available in digital format, almost always finding the sought-after read.
That last purchase: The Past Through Tomorrow by Robert A. Heinlein, an old-time favorite selling for three bucks. When I first bought the anthology in high school, it came as a set with two other titles: Stranger in a Strange Land and Time Enough for Love. During the last year of my father-in-law’s life, reading became his main recreation. I donated the Heinlein title to that cause. Following the 95 year-old’s death nine weeks ago, I reclaimed the book to read and as remembrance.