Photoset

We have a copy of the C&H Tenth Anniversary Book that we've been reading the last few weeks. I really identify with Hobbes more than Calvin, who strikes me as spoiled and kind of a jerk. Hobbes makes the most sense to me, as someone who's always down for whatever and is pretty forgiving.
Bill Waterson is the real hero of the comic, never merchandising or selling the rights. How great. I'm sure he was often offered a lot of money to sell out and he managed not to. 

This is great Sunday morning activity with someone you love. You have an activity, you create something beautiful and create a shared memory.

Camera stabilizer

There's a pretty straight forward tutorial on how and why to make this. Despite being an Eagle Scout, he still doesn't understand the value of a good coil before putting in his pocket.

A coworker moonlights at a hardware store and she picked up the parts for <$2. I assembled it after coffee break and before lunch. Ideally the parts would be brass for aesthetics and because it doesn't rust.

Dinner

Overhead kitchen halogen

I made a simple, but delicious dinner tonight. I marinaded a salmon steak in a sweet & sour and shoyu. I baked for 10 minutes on 250F then broiled for 5.  I also included rice made with shrimp broth and chopped up lettuce.

"Long" exposure in the kitchen

Photography

Sometimes it's the tecnique, playing with a new setting, squeezing the AoF as tight as I can or following some principles.

Other times it's the process, getting me out of the house. It can sublimate cabin fever when it threatens.

Mostly it's the content. Your body of work is never done. It's important to continue to create and explore and express if only for yourself.

It's always a good thing.

I'm just glad I can create something. It doesn't have to be amazing, it just has to be honest. I like showing my pictures here and on Flickr, but the audience is mostly me and mostly unimportant.

Photography

My friend wrote a life list. One of the items was to buy a DSLR camera. Here is my response:

I don't know how much time you've spent with a camera since highschool. I tried to get back into photography last November and it was a wonderful decision. Here is what I've learned:

1. Buy a used DSLR to begin with. Get a used bottom line camera from any of the big manufacturers like Cannon or Nikon. After 6 months you'll know if the limits are your camera or you.
2. Have somewhere to store your photos in redundancy. Storing all your photos on your laptop will work until your hard drive dies. Then you're fucked. I store them on my WHS with duplication enabled. Your Flickr account will probably suffice for the important photos.
3. Use the highest quality settings. You bought a DSLR, put that image sensor to use. Storage is cheap. Also DSLR pictures can be pretty large. My D40X on its highest setting takes pictures in the range of 3-4mb.
4. Buy a case and tripod at the same time as your DSLR. You can manage without either of them but the case will lengthen the life of your camera and a tripod enables a lot of really cool shots.
5. RTFM. I read the manual every few months and everytime I learn something new.

Here's a Mauna Kea panoramic