Hello 300mm/f4!

There's a new camera lens in the family in celebration of an impending birthday (hubs turns 27 on Tuesday!).

 

I think he's happy with it! 

So I stole it from him while he was at work and gave it a go on my camera. 

 

(I so wish this one was in focus- hover puppy!)

It's a LOT of fun to shoot with.  I did end up getting a little nauseous from using it though, as it's almost like shooting through a telescope.  I can't wait to start shooting more interesting subjects with it (i.e. boats and birds!).

The Universe.

This is a photograph of the entire visible universe from our planet.
37,440 exposures.
5,000 megapixels.

This photo was taken by Nick Risinger, a Seattle-area fellow.

Well done, sir. Well done.

Damn Reflections, Getting in the Way

I promise I won't flood this blog with baby photos. Cross my heart. As I was going through them I discovered something.


Wait... what's that?



I try not to mar family photos with my presence. But, as it turns out, I'm not a vampire, and my reflection still can get in the way.


I guess I really was there.

Vignette.

We had a chance to adventure north to the Mount Vernon tulip festival today. I armed myself with my standard fare, a Canon DSLR with a 100mm macro lens, and a 50mm, and a simple 35mm film camera.

What really surprised me was how much I enjoyed using my phone with the vignette application. It's grainy, imperfect, unpredictable, and.. lovely. I have a slew of more visually accurate photos that I'm proud of. But the ones that I truly love were taken with this application.




And while the pictures are nowhere near perfect, I feel like the mood of the adventure was captured better with a gritty and grainy picture than with a perfectly color balanced panorama.

Rocketeer - Far East Movement

"There's a world out there that we should see."

Our current song. And the video is all chock full of lomography love. Sigh.

The hubs and I have a habit of dedicating sappy, cheesy, or otherwise lovelorn songs to one another. The last one was Bruno Mars - Grenade.

Cause I'd catch a grenade for you. Yeah, yeah.

Volunteering

I'm come to the conclusion that I need to start giving back. I am so blessed, I have everything I need in my life and I'm healthy and happy. Now that I'm at this point, I really want to start giving back.

What would I do? Not sure, but my contenders so far:

1. Salmon - It may sound weird, but salmon have always been linked closely to my life. They're a sacred fish to me- they remind me of my family and of my life. There's a group that gets together once a month to help clear known salmon runs.

2. Teaching English as a Second Language - This requires a lot of thought, as the commitment is a big one. Twice a week for at least a year. But it's something that could really change someone's life- helping someone to be able to communicate with the people around them... It'd be a wonderful thing.

3. Local Library - We have a new and gorgeous library being built 2 blocks away. It'd be nice to help them out.

4. Purrfect Pals - The hubs and I want to use our professional quality equipment to help a nonprofit organization find homes for abandoned felines. They were able to help us when we had no other options... We owe it to them to give back. We have already been in contact with them, so this volunteer project is officially on its way.

5. Community Garden - There's a community garden in Redmond that donates food to the hungry. I desperately want land so I can grow my own food, but realistically this isn't going to happen anytime soon. I can use this urge to play in the dirt for good, and not just for my own stomach.

So there you have it - 5 things that have been weighing on my mind. I want to make this year a good year, not just for myself but for the people around me.

Random Shots

So the other day the hubs brought home another toy. The Canon EF 35mm f/1.4. I'm not one to get super excited about camera lenses... but this lens is so dreamy and soft and reminiscent of my lovely Dianas that I can't help but feel all warm and fuzzy thinking about it.

1985 Schwinn shot by the hubs:



Our brand new juniper bonsai (his name is Bamboo) shot by yours truly:



Granted, there is a bit of post-processing involved in both photos... but the colors and the softness and.. well.. to be honest, it's the kind of lens that makes me want to scrap the whole housewife thing and become a photographer.

Meet the Dianas!

Remember my internal struggle regarding the Diana F+ and/or the Diana Mini? I now have both. I have yet to master the F+, as I've been having entirely too much fun with the Mini.

Things I've learned so far:

1. Processing film is expensive. Even run of the mill 35mm color film.
   
2. Take your film to a specialty processing lab.
3. Black and white film is incredible. The tonal range is gorgeous.
4. ISO 400 film is my friend.
5. I like life more through a plastic lens.

B&W ISO 400:

Color ISO 400, split exposures:


Color ISO 800:

I got my favorite picture out of my photo experiments, too. Here's my family, all in one 4x6. Something about a plastic lens makes the photos turn out more relaxed and lovely... People don't get all weird about getting their picture taken if the camera is incapable of capturing every tiny flaw.


And the best part about this photo? It was taken the same day. At the same table. The first time my family has had a meal together in at least two years. It was a great day!

Lo-Fi Love

The hubs wants a new camera. Not that this is a surprise, as I knew his skills and his love of photography would propel him towards a more advanced camera. The sad thing is, he's having a heck of a time finding just the right one. As much as I love traveling to camera store to camera store, I do know that he's getting antsy finding his photographic soulmate.

And even sadder news, I managed to fall into a torrid little camera love triangle myself. So we've got two antsy photonerds under the same roof, both bemoaning our inabilities to find just the right camera.

He's going into a more technologically advanced direction. Software engineer, falling in love with something complicated and tricky? Yup, sounds like my husband (explains why he likes me, doesn't it?). Meanwhile, I fell in love with something simpler and artsy. Yup, sounds like a graphic design geek.

So, I know it's not Wishful Wednesdays... but I think these merit a bit of discussion, especially with trip next month.. I want to make a decision quickly so I can get a few rolls of practice in.

All three cameras are lo-tech, low fidelity cameras. They are valued because of their cheapness- the plastic lenses, bleeding light, and old school film technology- these traits cause magic to happen- beautiful vignetted, dreamlike photos. Sign me up!

So without further ado, let me introduce you to the ladies:

Camera #1: Holga.

Pros: Great name. Cheapest lady of the three. Beautiful vignetting. Medium format film. Cult following, lots of great and fun photo competitions.
Cons: Fixed lens. Because of shoddy construction, only one real aperture: f13. Kind of large. Have to tape it with electrical tape to prevent light flooding (in some cameras).

Camera #2: Diana +:

Pros: Sleek design. Softer, more dreamlike pictures. Also medium format. Lots of lenses to play with, including fish-eye.
Cons: Less vignetting. More expensive than the Holga.

Camera #3: Super sleek design, easy to pack. Uses normal 35mm film (easier to process)- can put two pictures side by side on one exposure- up to 72 pictures per roll of film!
Cons: No additional lenses. Less vignetting than the Holga. More expensive.

Sample photos of the three:

Holga:

Picture from Here

Diana +:

From Here

Diana Mini:

Picture found Here

So I'm kind of stuck. Yesterday afternoon I was adamant I wanted the Holga. Last night, the Diana. This morning, the Holga. Now, the Diana Mini.

My current thoughts on the matter are: I'll be packing my Canon DSLR as it is, so I want something small and light. The double frame option will allow more creative compositions: I can snap an establishing shot then something all artsy in the second frame... It'd be a nice way to capture our trip. Or attempt to capture our trip.

Urf.

Tough life, isn't it? Can't help but feel blessed that this is my major worry of the day.