June 18, 2022
35mm TTartisan F 1.4 Lens
Succulent On The Windowsill Of A Bar.
A Proud Puzzlemaster Shares The Accomplishment.
The Complexities Of Photographing Chrome.
Street Shape.
June 17, 2022
35mm TTartisan F 1.4 Lens
Foreboding Clouds.
Multi-colored tail light.
Street Snake.
Analogous Harmony.
My TTartisan lenses (17mm and 35mm) coupled with my 55mm 7artisans may prove to be the Three Musketeers of manual focus lenses. The focusing and aperture rings rotate in the same direction, with the focusing ring set closer to the body. Transition from one to another is simple.
My Peargear lens in currently in South Carolina.
June 15, 2022
17mm TTartisan F 1.4 Lens
A local hauler decorated the sides of his truck. The back panel is covered with sections of broomsticks. The driver side panel is covered with wooden rulers. I've photographed the truck several times, as it is a common sight in Corona Heights and Noe Valley, my frequent haunts.
I made the shot. It's done. Time to move on and not look back.
Blue walls, blue sky, and a red night light.
I found a mysterious stairway a block from Clarendon Avenue. It allowed me to make this lamp-level photograph.
June 14, 2022
17mm TTartisan F 1.4 Lens
.
Cactus Not Doing Well.
Abandoned Trays Of Assorted Nipples.
Today This Photo Made Sense.
Haven't used this lens since March 21, 2022. For a moment, I regretted using a manual focusing lens, as I had just missed an "easy shot".
Still waiting on my Peargear lens. As of Monday evening, it's in Houston. Way too much drama for a toy fisheye lens.
June 10, 2020
25mm 7artisans F 1.8 Lens
Legal Immigrant.
View Of The Sky.
Hopefully my next entry will feature photos taken with the Peargear full frame fisheye.
June 9, 2020
25mm 7artisans F 1.8 Lens
It's nice to have focus control once again. This 25mm lens isn't known for its sharpness, but for the web, it's perfectly fine. Since my walk was much later in the day, I have real sunlight to work with.
The Peargear Fisheye lens arrives tomorrow.
June 8, 2020
25mm 7artisans F 1.8 Lens
I haven't used this lens in a long time. At 25mm, it falls between the favored lenses of 2022: The 17mm and the 35mm TTartisan lenses. Underexposing the sky made the streetlight seem so much brighter. No gimmicks, no cross stars.
June 7, 2020
Fuji X-E1, 24mm F 8.0 Filter Lens
I think I just made my last "cross star" photography. The world is more interesting when one isn't constantly looking for specular highlights.
Minimum Distance Reminder: I mentioned that the minimum safe camera-to-subject distance for this lens was 2 meters, or about 6 1/2 feet on this side of the Atlantic. Try this trick for estimating distance: Extend your arms straight out from your sides and the distance from finger tip to finger tip will equal to your physical height. Since I am 5' 6", I just add a foot to my "wingspan" and I'm golden. That's exactly what I did for this shot.
Lady Bug Parade: This bit of street art is new . Not only is it cute, it was signed by fnnch (pronounced "finch"), the controversial artist who created the Honey Bear, the ubiquitous and political amorphic symbol that graces homes throughout the Lower Sunset district. Here's a technical point: The pavement below the lowest seam line has an aggregate surface, while those in the background have a smooth finish.
Thoughts On The Lens: While I don't normally use a portrait orientation in my photos, it made more sense in this case. As a consequence, capturing the line of ladybugs stretches the depth of field limits of this fixed F 8.0 aperture lens. If I had my 28mm Meike with me, I could have closed the aperture to F 16, and by using the depth of field scale on the lens, adjusted the zone of sharpest focus to include both the nearest and farthest bugs. But after using this non-adjustable lens in the field, I've decided to switch back to something I can actually control. Woulda, coulda, shoulda ends tomorrow, although I don't know which lens I'll carry as the antidote to the feeling of surrender when using this non-adjustable, non-focusing lens.
The Peargear Fisheye lens arrives on Friday, so we'll see how that goes. At least this lens has some basic focusing capabilities.
June 6, 2020
Fuji X-E1, 24mm F 8.0 Filter Lens
The Fuji Body Cap is the lens du jour. Lately we've been having very overcast mornings, and without direct sunlight, no opportunities to try the "starburst" effect that is built into the lens. The sun peeked out for just a few moments, long enough for me to dial in filter and make a quick shot. Well, the filter works.
Knowing the minimum close-focusing distance, I stepped back from this statue of Pan and framed the shot to include the potted plants. While Pan himself is "reasonably" sharp, the bark of the tree behind him is sharper still. I'll have to remember that the "two meter" rule in ensure maximum sharpness.
June 2, 2022
Fuji X-E1, 24mm F 8.0 Filter Lens
Images enhanced in post production to improve saturation.
The images are surprisingly sharp for a fixed focus, fixed aperture lens. I'll try the built-in soft focus and starburst filters when the sun comes out.
May 20, 2022
Fuji X-E1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
I've photographed this potted plant many times, but this is the first time it was exposed in direct sunlight.
The Ghost of Photography Past. Although I've never owned one, the Holga or its Clone In Waiting the Diana, these plastic toy cameras that developed a cult following in the 1970s. Their plastic lenses produced wildly unpredictable images with off-beat colors. They became the camera of choice for photographers seeking more abstract images. It also inspired the Toy Camera preset in some Fuji cameras, along with a number of fixed focus, fixed aperture "pancake" lenses, all intending to duplicate the Holga's strange take on the world.
I found this broken camera on a bench at a bus stop, and when I returned 15 minutes later it was gone.
May 25, 2022
Fuji X-E1, 35mm F 1.2 7artisans
Shadows on stairs.
Instructions Included.
Safe From Harm On An Alien Planet.
I am astounded that the 50mm (full frame equivalent) was so popular. The wisdom of selecting a 35mm (full frame equivalent) prime lens was today made so obvious. Time to switch.
May 24, 2022
Fuji X-E1, 35mm F 1.2 7artisans
A small LED accent light was placed at the base of this bust, giving it an odd accent light. Temperature today is 73 degrees, but it feels like 90.
May 23, 2022
Fuji X-E1, 35mm F 1.2 7artisans
Brass on blue.
Free Stuff.
The 35mm 1.2 lens isn't the sharpest lens I've owned. I guess reminds me of how lens used to look and feel. Its scallops on the focusing ring reminds me of how vintage Nikkor lenses used to look. It simply has a very nice feel.
May 22, 2022
Fuji X-E1, 35mm F 1.2 7artisans
This was an attempt to capture the subtle variations of white in Styrofoam sheets when hit by marginally directional light.
A bit of whimsey.
May 20, 2022
Fuji X-E1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
Morning Red.
Shadow.
May 18, 2022
Fuji X-E1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
Gate with textured plastic privacy panel.
Lit by a shaft of light.
Natural vignette.
May 16, 2022
Fuji X-E1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
Solar Panel.
Misplaced storage.
Doggie Domain.
Housing Density.
May 14, 2022
Fuji X-E1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
I mounted the Meike lens onto a X-E1 body to see if the diopter adjustable eyepiece would make it easier to focus, which it did. The X-E1, introduced after the X-Pro1, can be considered a slight improvement over its successor. So far as I can tell, the only real difference is the X-E1's lack of an optical view finder.
May 11, 2022
Fuji X-Pro 1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
I learned something important from this shot. I was on the shady side of the street, and assumed that this was a shadowless, open shade exposure. On viewing the photo, I saw an unusual richness and texture in the concrete creature. I noticed the shadows surrounding the garage door in the background, I realized that the light actually had some direction. Perhaps there was some sunlight bouncing off of a house. At any rate, there are shadows and visible texture on the surface.
May 7, 2022
Fuji X-Pro 1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
Connected.
Proclamation.
Doorstop.
Klatch.
May 8, 2022
Fuji X-100S
The shutters in the background show some real attention to detail.
May 7, 2022
Fuji X-Pro 1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
May 6, 2022
Nikon P7000
Trimmed succulent stalks.
Street Garden, Market and Storrie Streets, San Francisco
Photo manipulated in post production to restore parallelism.
May 4, 2022
Fuji X-Pro 1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
This image was underexposed in an effort to maintain detail in the painted ironwork. It seemed to have worked.
Shadow play.
In a photograph, if anything is in focus, everything else can be considered intentional. I struggled to get a good shooting angle but couldn't get anything in sharp focus due, in part, to the fact that the X-Pro 1 does not have a diopter adjustment on the eyepiece. I was unable to properly observe the focus peaking because the low angle forced me to use the upper portion of my right bifocal lens which is not properly corrected for distance viewing. Unfortunately, in the few minutes it took to overcome those focusing issues, the sun's position had moved and the highlight on the top of the branch was gone.
April 29, 2022
Fuji X-Pro 1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
There must have been a sale on gold paint. It's found on architectural accents all over the neighborhood.
School day. Somebody's going to be late.
April 28, 2022
Fuji X-Pro 1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
Safety mirror on a garage under renovation.
Acorns on the sidewalk.
Aging infrastructure.
April 26, 2022
Fuji X-Pro 1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
The small highlights on deadbolt and the doorknob caught my attention.
Here's a house with a front lawn and a wire and cable free exterior. This is unusual for San Francisco.
Traffic mirror for spotting oncoming traffic.
April 22, 2022
Fuji X-Pro 1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
The only subject of real interest was this micro-quasi-crèche hidden in some ivy.
April 21, 2022
Fuji X-Pro 1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
Detail in this rose was greatly improved by setting Exposure Compensation to -2 stops. This protected the rose from overexposure when the camera attempted to adjust for the darker leaf background. Happy accident, I blush to say.
The Bar Stools at Finnigan's Wake, a bar in Cole Valley.
Life cycle of the yellow umbrella.
Lonely, perfect strawberry, found wandering on the street.
Love the vase, but my framing, not so much.
I normally carry a spare battery because mirrorless cameras draw a lot of power just to function. Today I forgot to bring one, so I was careful to turn off the power between shots. This felt so much like the old days when you realized your camera only had a few frames left on your last roll of film. Totally foreign mindset since I embraced digital photography.
April 18, 2022
Fuji X-Pro 1, 28mm F 2.8 Meike
It is odd that this morning's walk would produce so many images that I found amusing. It is my first outing with the Meike 28mm 2.8 pancake lens. Perhaps just my fascination with a new toy.
April 17, 2022
Fuji X100S
Easter Morning found me in Cloverdale. This dwelling had a whimsical façade to dress up a utilitarian Quonset hut.
This interesting fencepost ornament had a crystal doorknob as its center.
April 13, 2022
Fuji X-Pro 1, 27mm F 2.8
One way to discourage unwanted guests.
Hardware still life.
An unusual cactus. I wonder if it's real.
April 10, 2022
Fuji X-Pro1, 27mm F 2.8
This backlit spider web is typical of the sharpness the 27mm lens has brought to the morning walks. The longer focal length makes tight framing a little easier.
This shot includes both of the problems associated with photographing glass. At the left is a reflection of the silhouette of a building across the street. In the center, we see a neon light in the darkened interior of the garage. I had to look twice to realize I was seeing both the reflection and the interior.
Incidentally, the "World Is Flat" references the engine design shared by the Volkswagen and the Porsche. The garage was empty, so I don't know for which team the owner drove.
Witness to a collision: A car part lies on the sidewalk.
I was attracted to this little spot of color.
April 7, 2022
Fuji X-Pro1, 27mm F 2.8
I don't recall seeing any sunflowers in the neighborhood, so I cannot explain how these wound up here. A puzzlement. It turns out the yellow and blue are for solidarity with Ukraine.
The lock caught a beam of sunlight, reflected from a window and filtered through the branches of a tree.
April 2, 2022
Fuji X-E1, 27mm F 2.8
A home in my neighborhood has the most extravagant lawn decorations. With Easter two weeks away, this garden is ready to party. I used my infrequently used 27mm Fuji pancake lens, its focal length falling between my 23mm and the 35mm standards. So sharp. Autofocus is spoiling me.
Shadow Play, Multiple quadrangles.
I photographed the two squirrels earlier in the week. Now, there are some ducks to keep them company.
March 31, 2020
Fuji X-Pro1, 16mm F 2.8 lens
I'm shooting with the same Fuji X-Pro1 I used in Half Moon Bay earlier in the week. While I was restricted to a prime wide angle lens, I allowed myself the indulgence of autofocusing.
This is one of the best "lost cat" photographs I've seen, although a closeup of Motor (the cat's name) might have been helpful due to the cataract on his right eye (read the fine print).
Typical morning walk. The smell of bacon was in the air, and I can only hope they were walking towards a hearty breakfast.
I don't think the owners of Padrecito thought about how the fire alarm bell could have become an integral part of their stylized banner. But I did.
March 30, 2022
Fuji X-Pro1, 16mm F 2.8 lens
Valve Cover, Half Moon Bay
Mural off Main Street.
35mm TTartisan F 1.4 Lens
On a windowsill in the Castro, even a bit of kitsch can become art when placed in the proper venue, and given an unexpected coat of silver paint.
Seeing this in a planter box made me think more of Suzanne than of Siddhartha.
"...And she shows you where to look among the garbage and the flowers
There are heroes in the seaweed, there are children in the morning
They are leaning out for love and they will lean that way foreverThere are heroes in the seaweed, there are children in the morning
While Suzanne holds the mirror..."
Couldn't figure out what they sold at this store in the Castro.
March 21, 2022
17mm TTartisan F 1.4 Lens
March 18, 2022
Nikon P7700
In a way, each of these photos was made using a feature available in P7700. Low shooting angle, macro ability, and telephoto capabilities helped make this photos possible. When viewed along side the earlier P7700 images, it is certainly a "can do" piece of equipment. It's not quite a satisfying as making a similar images with my manual focused lenses on a X-E1 body, since these three photos were just so easy to make.
I have no idea which camera I'll be using tomorrow.
March 16, 2022
Nikon P7700
I'm still adjusting to Daylight Savings Time. The Senate has just approved a bill to abolish the biannual time shift for once and for all. Let's see what the House does. I left my home at about 8:00 AM just in time to see the sun rising over the East Bay. I never got the shot I really wanted, but was instead amazed at how quickly the sun rose.
Reflections in a cracked mirror.
This is one of those "flash plus daylight" manipulations that took too long and resulted in an image that wasn't much more than LWIS (pronounced EL-wis, Look What I Saw). My acronym, one you're free to use.
Irving Street has a creative corner where everything is made into art. This mobile of children's shoes became a hanging garden of sorts, each shoe just large enough for a single plant.
March 14, 2022
Nikon P7700
First photo walk since Daylight Savings Time started. No real comments. The P7700 seems to be working, although I need to get some sort of screen protector for the LCD.
March 9, 2022
Nikon P7700
March 3, 2022
Nikon P7000
San Francisco is full of older homes that have interesting architectural details. In this case, they are not as flashy as the Painted Ladies of Alamo Square, but subtle and dignified. As my lunch-buddy Greg would say, "Money talks, but wealth whispers." Just open your eyes and your ears, and you'll be pleasantly surprised.
I know I'm not the first person to notice the heart shape of this calla lily. But I know I won't be the last. I photographed it because I tend to photograph plants when I find one in pristine condition, if that can be said of a flower.
There is much to be said about the flash synchronization capabilities of leaf shutters. While the quality of on-camera flash is less than ideal, the ability to make shots such as this is a definite plus. Antennae balls make amusing photos, especially for people like me who consider two tacos and an order of onion rings a perfectly healthy lunch.
February 26, 2022
17mm TTartisan F 1.4 Lens
Christmas is still in the hearts of many, or at least in the bushes.
The most ferocious succulent I've encountered to date.
Not every black and white photo is a work of art. I made this one to document my curiosity on how the circular marks got on the fence in the first place.
February 25, 2022
12mm 7artisans F 2.8 Lens
I decided to switch to a wider lens as I was beginning to find the 50mm was narrowing my perspective. I chose a 12mm lens, one with one-fourth the focal length of the one I had been using. I was aware that I would have to concentrate on the impact of the background, since a wide angle gives you so much to work with. I guess I was convinced that this clear crisp morning would give me great swaths of open blue sky. Alas, I was mistaken, as the natural urban environment tends to be cluttered, artificial, and bereft of the randomness only nature provides. These distorted window reflections are a common occurrence when the light just skims the horizon.
Tree bark? Nothing remarkable, but in this case, a painted retaining wall reflected diffused sunlight at an angle from camera left. This gave me the texture I could not have otherwise achieved.
I did notice one thing. I had become accustomed to the control layout of the 50mm lens. Unlike my two TTartisan lenses, the aperture control is next to the body, while the focusing ring is closer to the lens hood. This made for some initial confusion, but I got re-acclimated after a short time. It's a reminder that awareness of control placement and orientation is much more important when shooting the manual mode.
February 22, 2022
50mm 7artisans F 1.4 Lens
For this photo, the longer lens was an asset. I could achieve a fairly tight framing without actually stepping onto the driveway proper. I am careful to not step onto what could be interpreted as private property.
Shoes and shadows. Nothing more.
February 19, 2022
50mm 7artisans F 1.4 Lens
One of my neighbors has started to transform a small piece of city-owned property into a garden featuring succulents and, most recently, a rock garden. I'm sure there's a metaphor for the ethereal nature of beauty and the inner peace that come with achieving it, if one only looks for it.
The 50mm lens seems to spur one to find smaller subjects to photography. The foreshortening effect created by the longer working distances renders backgrounds in a most abstract way. The bright morning light, lighting my subjects from a lower angle, provides many opportunities to experiment with optimizing the effects the background play. An important reminder: If you're using Aperture Priority exposure metering, be sure to underexpose you image or you will blow out the highlights.
The Bird of Paradise is such an interesting plant. Here, you can see that the flower actually emerges from the tip of a spine-tipped shoot. Also, the flower itself is incredibly fragile, losing its beauty almost as you watch. This one is about the most perfect one I've encountered.
Unfortunately, the lens choice worked against me for this grab shot. I only wish that I had a wider lens and was better prepared when a bicyclist rode past a few moments before, bringing an interesting shadow and some visual context with him. Oh well, maybe next time.
February 18, 2022
50mm 7artisans F 1.4 Lens
50mm 7artisans F 1.4 Lens
The 50mm lens increased the apparent size of the background while the shallow depth of field rendered it completely out of focus. I think the image is more about the warm/cold color contrast.
I was able to get this cat photo without spooking the poor animal. If I had been using the 17mm lens, this never would have happened.
I wanted to emphasize the spines. The shallow depth of field made the task pretty straight forward.
February 15, 2022
17mm TTartisan F 1.4 Lens
Voting Day: Special elections for a state congressional seat and a recall on some members of the School Board. I was the second person to vote in person at my polling station. Mail-in voting may well change the landscape of the politics.
Sidewalks need to be washed, and this early morning rinsing set these cherry blossoms adrift in a cleansing sea.
February 12, 2022
17mm TTartisan F 1.4 Lens
A surprisingly rectangular gap created a shaft of light which found its way to a garage on the other side of the street.
No dodging or burning required here. This shot is pretty much the way it came from the camera.
The ultimate shadow line, taken from beneath the nearly vertical face of Twin Peaks below the observation area.
January 27, 2022
TTartissan 17mm 1.4
Skunked: Defined as a fishing day that produces no fish. Heavy clouds rendered the lighting too even, too flat, and too dull. I settled on this yellow daffodil because I was drawn to the flower's near perfection. And I acknowledge the rather shallow plane of focus.
January 28, 2022
TTartissan 17mm 1.4
At some point in the very near future, there won't be a street sign, cloud, or garden tchotchke within a two-mile radius that has not been immortalized on this page!
January 27, 2022
TTartissan 17mm 1.4
The cup reads, "Wake Up, Kick A**, Be Kind, Repeat". A strange cup to be found by the rim of a bicycle wheel by a doorway.
This garden sculpture lives on Douglas Street and stands nearly four feet tall. For the blue plastic bucket in the background, there's a child that belongs to this prehistoric playmate.
It was strange to see somebody looking out from one of the many free libraries I encounter. Obviously, if you place the book inside a glass-walled enclosure, the back cover will be visible from the outside.
January 24, 2022
TTartissan 17mm 1.4
I finally managed to start this morning's walk just before sunrise, and while I was treated to a variety of interesting skyline reflection juxtaposition with east-facing windows, none of my attempts gave me and image I was pleased with. For the most part, this pre-dawn lighting was just barely there, not any different from open shade. This plant in somebody's front yard had a pale, unusual color that made it appear almost ethereal. I don't recall seeing it before, even though I walk past the house at least once a week.
The little image at the right made me think for a moment, and reflect on how empty the last twenty-two months have been. We're all living like goldfish swimming in very small bowls, seeing just a few friends peeking out from behind sunken pirate ships and hard-hat divers. There they are, the snail, the fantail, the comet, all of them going about their business. But when I saw the little sticker reflecting on the joy in discovery, I had to smile, hoping that a time for exploration, and yes, "adventure", was just around the corner. We're all longing for the joy of swimming in larger circles, finding new things hiding amid the plants swaying to the gentle rhythms of an aquarium pump.
I don't consider this a dream, just that sublime moment where sleep gently flows into consciousness.
January 22, 2022
TTartissan 17mm 1.4
I woke up before dawn this morning, thinking I could find some interesting morning light to work with. But by the time I got dressed, the sun was already peeking over the horizon, and the few fleeting clouds would be edge lit against a deep blue sky. With my wide angle lens, the moon appears even smaller when viewed through the a screen of trees and apartment buildings.
The winter skies highlight the contrails left by jets flying high enough for water vapor to be compressed into water droplets by the leading edges of their wings. Contrails have always fascinated me, for as a child I was told that only the mighty B-52 bombers could fly high enough, and fast enough, to create them. Of course, Trans World Airlines was flying a fleet of propeller-driven Super Connies at the time, which had neither the speed or the altitude to create contrails of their own..
January 21, 2022
TTartissan 17mm 1.4
Emerging from the deep shadows into the morning sunlight, I chanced upon this lamp and its shadow on the side of a former firehouse. I've passed the building many times during its conversion, and can only imagine the challenges the architect faced when when converting such a utilitarian structure into a comfortable living space.
January 17, 2022
TTartissan 17mm 1.4
The small image was taken almost two months earlier. You can get an idea of where the incandescent lamp was placed. The shot was made much later in the morning, so I didn't have the benefit of the "dawn's early light". I am tempted to re-shoot the dog, as I know I could have gotten a lower position if I wasn't holding the flash in my left hand. In the top shot, his snout got a little lost in the background.
There seems to be a warm/cool light theme going here. The Romain Street overpass has fallen into disrepair, and the lights that once lit the path no longer function. This morning, the warm light of the morning sun fell directly on the lamp, while in the background, the blue sky created a contrasting background.
January 10, 2022
TTartissan 17mm 1.4
Morning Light: Ever the optimist, I think myself in "pre-spring", when sunrise comes well after I first wake up. After my first cup of coffee and a snack, my disposition, along with the weather, turns sunny and winter-warm. However, after nearly two years morning walks, I've pretty much run out of new things to photograph. I guess that means I'll just have to look harder.
I've started to notice the variety of ways people individualize their homes. This is a bronze door knocker shaped like a bunch of grapes. The "hot spot" at the upper right hand corner is the reflection of the morning sun, and when I framed the photo, I chose to use a straight-on angle rather than attempt to move the glare spot out of the frame.
Triumph Of Optimism: At first, I wondered why this bright new label would be attached to a twig protruding from a planter. I then realized that it was a leafless cutting from a Waterfall Japanese Maple. For some reason, I'm not optimistic over its chances of a lush future.
January 2, 2022
12mm 7Artisans Lens
We're all getting acclimated to a new year, and artifacts from 2021 are starting to make their way into the streets, waiting for removal. This little tree with its trunk base seems too nice to be discarded just yet.
I installed a 12mm lens on my Fuji body this morning, hoping to find something with a foreground - background juxtaposition that might benefit from the exaggerated perspective provided by this focal length. Alas, this was the best I could do.
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