A happy dragon fly was flitting around this morning. We did a lot of yard work today. Can you find six differences between the 2nd and 3rd photos? Rosencrantz was sitting in the window by the front door wanting in, but I was on the deck. Instead of going through and letting him in, I photographed him through the glass in the door to the sunroom. He finally gave up and walked around the house to join us on the deck and lay on the table with Guildenstern.
Every morning I have to extricate myself from a clowder of cats and this morning they were wanting me to stay in bed with them. I think they can sense that something is up with all our preparations to leave for France on Saturday, because they have been clinging to us a little more the past few days. Another glass got broken this morning, and it ended up looking pretty artsy. We really like the large stemware, but they have a way of making their way to the edges of counters and tables where we tend to brush by and knock them off.
Speaking of France, I have had several inquires about what photo equipment I’m taking to France. The last two photos show the lineup of bodies and lenses, sans my Fuji X-Pro1 which I used to take the photos. The two Canon 1Ds bodies, the 17-40mm ƒ/4 and 70-200mm ƒ/4 zoom lenses, the 50mm ƒ/1.4 and 40mm ƒ/2.8 lenses, plus extra batteries may seem like a lot to carry, but they are not, really. I’ve been carrying one body, either a 5D or a 1Ds, the two zoom lenses, the 50mm lens and an extra battery with me everyday for the past 6 months in my laptop/camera messenger bag (not shown). The last photo shows how the cameras and lenses all fit nicely into my Lowepro Passport Sling Camera bag that I’ve had for a couple of years now. The Lowepro Passport is a compact, yet roomy bag that is really comfortable to carry. The zoom lenses give me a range from super-wide angle to telephoto, and the 50mm gives me a “fast” normal lens. The 40mm lens is a compact lens, and while not a true macro lens, it focuses close enough to allow me to crop to near macro levels, allowing me to leave my much larger 100mm macro lens at home.
Rosencrantz eyed Diné in the dry grass and attacked. Diné held her ground, while Guildenstern lounged on the deck watching the standoff.
When I came into the warm house after being out in sub-freezing temperatures, the lens on my camera fogged up, giving me the perfect fog effect on Guildenstern laying on my equipment bags. After the lens cleared up, I got a photo of Guildernstern trying to camouflage himself on the bags, but his yellow eyes and white whisker gave him away. Rosencrantz, Guildenstern and Diné rang in the New Year all snuggled up on the bed.
The dress rehearsal for the Messiah was tonight and it sounded wonderful with the orchestra and soloists. Tomorrow night’s performance is sold out, but there still might be tickets available for Sunday afternoon’s performance. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern thought Laurie’s new black velvety dress was a great color and texture and had to be involved in the photo shoot.
Off Center & Not Even 