Month: July 2017

Traveling Light with Photography

I am finding myself in a bit of a dilemma.

My laptop took a bit of a dump, and I really don’t feel like messing around with it.  However, it is a very important piece of equipment when traveling and taking digital photos – I need to store my images somewhere.  Basically, it is a system running Windows 8.1, and when I fired it up a couple of weeks ago, it wouldn’t start properly.  Eventually I managed to roll back the system to Windows 8.0.  Upgrades to 8.1 failed multiple times, so now I have a laptop that I really don’t feel I can rely on to deliver.

So, the dilemma.  Do I invest in a new laptop?  Should I take a chance on the Windows 8.0 system?  Do I take an old and very slow one for the trip, and hope for the best?  Or, is there some way, using my Chrome Book and the Cloud, or an external HD, to back up my SD cards?

I need to back up my SD cards – I take too many pictures.  Buying oodles of SD cards seems rather dumb, and potentially expensive.

I have small external HD I used on my questionable laptop . . . . so this afternoon, when I get home from work, I plan to take a camera, take some pictures – maybe a lot of them – and connect it to the Chrome Book.   The external HD will be in the other USB port.  And then let’s see how the transfer works out.  I might be able to use a USB flash drive instead – and it will be smaller in size than the external HD.

I expect it may be horribly slow.  And, I will not be too happy.

Another option is to use a cloud-based storage system, but I need to find out about that one.

And I also need to look at one of our old laptops from 1732.  Considering we are leaving in 10 days, I better get my ass in gear.

Vacation Choices #2: Voigtlander Perkeo II 80mm f3.5 Color Skopar

Here is another camera I have taken pictures with, and which I am considering as a 120mm folder for our road trip.  The Voigtlander Perkeo II and the Color Skopar lens are a great combo.  I used Kodak Portra 400 in it, and really did not appreciate what the camera and lens and film can produce together.  These were taken last year in August, and produced some of my favorite images.

What are your thoughts about this camera for a road trip?

Vacation Choices #1: Olympus OM-1n

We are going to be on a longish road trip the last part of July and the first half of August. We are traveling throughout the west with family. Places to be seen include Arizona, Colorado, Wyoming, Nevada for the most part. We will see the Grand Canyon, Mesa Verde, Sedona, Fort Laramie, Yellowstone National Park, the Tetons, and places in between.

I am in a quandary – what cameras should I bring?? I want digital, and film, both 35 and 120mm. I have a herd of cameras, and only so much room. Now, I have to make some decisions.

I recently acquired the Olympus OM-1n and a 50mm f1.8 lens. Small and lightweight, discreet, easy to carry, simple to use, and it takes great pictures. Using Kodak UltraMax 400, I shot one roll, much of which pleased me for both color and clarity.  As you can see from the images below, it’s a pretty good little camera – much better than I had expected.

If you have any opinions, I sure would like to hear from you . . . I’ve got other cameras to discuss as well!

 

Rain

After yesterday’s post, and Fraggy’s wish for rain for us, something happened.

The sky is falling. Water is coming down.

Thunder.

Lightning.

RAIN!

Here in my dry neck of the woods, rain in July is a miracle. Thunder and lightning seldom happen. The smell of wet concrete, the pattering of rain on the leaves, the dripping in the eaves, the splotchy sunshine. All this is coming through the studio window this morning.

More than 30 minutes after it started, it is still raining.

Amazing.