Today is the first time in awhile that I haven't felt any need to do something specific, something generally unpleasant, other than a hike with a friend. That was nice.

Thursday I felt awful, but needed to return the camera to the store as that was the last date it was eligible for refund. I didn't want to go, didn't look forward to it at all, aside from not feeling well. I don't like returning things and always feel guilty. I returned it because I just wasn't thrilled with the quality of the photos I was getting from it, and there was no more time to experiment with it. Plus the lens didn't have enough zoom and I couldn't afford to buy a new one. I felt better immediately after leaving the store, which was a good sign.

Yesterday I had to return a few large 3-ring binders to Office Depot, which I also didn't look forward to because one of the clerks is rude and bossy. Naturally, she's the one who 'helped' me. But, I got the job done and then I may never enter that store again! I've been in the middle of a big genealogy project the last few weeks, as I might have mentioned. Got my three big binders shipped from Cedartown and then set about printing out new info sheets, and putting everything into plastic protector sheets, as I had before. And throwing out a lot of no-longer-needed stuff from the binders, and reorganizing, and expanding, etc. I bought a package of 200 of the protector sheets, and used many of the old ones as well, and there are only maybe 5 left. I'd planned to put these into large binders, and I did that, but then realized that they were heavy and unwieldy and hard to use, so I had to regroup. I've tested various sizes, have had to return others to OD, before settling on what worked. Ordered what I expected to be [and was] a better quality binder from a major company via Amazon and that arrived Thursday, definitely a better product. Hence returning all the remaining binders to OD and ordering 4 more from Amazon. Those will arrive tomorrow, but in the meantime I have 4 of them finished, and all I'll have to do tomorrow is transfer the stuff into the new ones and make labels.

Just having this [and the camera] behind me feels wonderful. But then after getting my laundry done early this morning, my day is totally free of any obligations to anyone. I think it's the first time this week, and I'm loving it.

Gonna head back to the comfy chair and continue reading now. Smiles all over.

 Still playing with the new camera, getting a feel for it. This morning, went for a hike in the fog, and this photo reminded me of many I took on foggy trails down on the southern Oregon Coast near Brookings. This hill, Skinner's Butte, is actually in downtown Eugene and has lots of hiking trails with plenty of steep uphills. I'm not actually in love with the focus [or lack thereof] in this shot, but I think that's more operator error than camera error. I just noticed I didn't have it set on fully automatic, and that might have made a difference.

On the other hand, took this one this morning, same trail, and focus is good, so go figure. At least, on my computer before uploading to Blogger the focus was good. Same with all of these, to some degree.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was in our garden area a few days back when it was sunny. Even manipulated and resized so I could crop it a bit, it has really sharp focus. I don't remember whether I used auto-focus or manual on this one, probably auto. I've learned that using manual focus, with my old eyes, doesn't work very well.

This one [above] from the ponds last Saturday.  Maybe I'm crazy, but I expected tighter/better focus on all of these photos. My old Nikons, simple cameras, did a much better job. But maybe there's more I need to learn yet.

What's the furry critter?

 

I treated myself to a new camera last week, as my old one was on its last breath and no longer taking decent photos. Saturday morning I went for a walk to the ponds to take a bunch of test shots, just to see what I can expect from the new toy.

Imagine my surprise when I walked up to the parking lot railing and saw the circular ripples, watched until the maker surfaced again. Zoom isn't very strong on this new lens, which is a problem for another day, and since he wasn't waiting around to pose for pictures, I had to snap a quick shot, then enlarge it to get a better look. That face is adorable, with a long body. I don't know if river otters get that large, or particularly if minks get that large. There's a beaver dam 40' away, but it doesn't really have that rodent look to it, with that face.

I've spent hours over there during the past 4.5 years, and this is the first time I've had a good look at any furry critter. Whatever it was, it was frolicking and having a good early-morning swim until it saw me, then it spooked a bit and swam off, surfacing again further away.

Camera is nice, except for the aforementioned lens. I suspected I'd need/want more of a zoom, and this walk certainly confirmed that. I could either spend $300 for a second lens that takes over where this one leaves off, or $600 for a lens that combines both of them. Not loving either idea, at the moment. I'll play with it some more for awhile, see how I feel later.

All is well here. I am now fully vaccinated against Covid [one of the rare benefits of old age is that we get in line sooner] and have escaped the winter in good health.