Finally got around to selecting the better shots and uploading them with some commentary. With the weather we’ve been having, we’re looking longingly at the beach photos. Warning- lots of baby photos included!
I can’t believe that Christmas is over, and 2006 is winding down. It has been the most memorable year for family and friends- lots of new babies, new job, Maui, engagements, retirements, milestone birthdays, etc.
It’s been awhile since the last blog entry, and so I’ll break things down into chapters instead of one big entry.
The big thing is that we packed everyone up and had a family vacation in Maui- Ka’anapali and Kihei. We were apprehensive at the thought of travelling with e being just shy of 4 months… but until she’s 2 years old, she flies for free. Plus we had Uncle Henry and Aunt Doreen (UH/AD) on our flight to give us a hand, and some potential baby sitters in Maui.
We were to leave Dec 15th at 7am to catch a 10am flt with Harmony. The night before, we were madly packing and trying to get all the logistics sorted out. In the end we managed to get to bed just after midnight… just in time for the biggest storm we’ve ever seen roll in. First the wind- our windows are double paned and framed by plastic, glue, and compression fitted rubber seals. They generally stand up well to the elements, but that night we felt the building vibrate when the winds were gusting. I could hear the window and frame groan and creak as the wind whipped at it from the west- to the point where I was really concerned the windows were going to be blown right into the bedroom. Although the windows were fully closed, the blinds INSIDE the window would move everytime a blast of wind came roaring. The rain driven into the window sounded like someone was shooting an automatic BB gun.
In the distance, we could see lightning- blue and red, but we couldn’t hear the thunder?!
About 3:30am, I hear a LOUD crash upstairs. I went up to take a look, and found our big deck chair flipped over and on top of our hatch. The top part was wedged in, so I couldn’t open the hatch to free it.
6am rolls by, and we find that the power is out. Great. We still have to finish packing and get baby ready. We groped around in the dark and found our LED headlamps, flashlights, and lit some candles. Somehow we manage to get all our stuff together in time for our ride to the airport. We checked our flight, and it was still on time. The worst was over.
At the airport, we went to long term parking and took a shuttle in. The windows were fogged so we couldn’t see where our stop was, and the driver didn’t say anything and continued to Domestic Departures. 🙁
Ok, so we’ll unload and hoof it back all the way to US Departures… a good walk, but we were doing ok for time. Halfway there, E realizes that we left the base for our carseat on the shuttle. The carseat won’t work without the base. Argh.
Think fast… ok, the radio is faster than me trying to run around to find the shuttle. So I run over to customer service and ask them to radio the shuttle. They can’t do that, so they had to call around to find out which company runs the shuttle service. After a few anxious moments, they found someone who could contact them. They then instruct me to go downstairs and meet the shuttle.
Ok, I went down to the stop, waited a bit and the shuttle comes around. I talk to the driver, and he tells me that he dropped the seat off to the Long term parking kiosk. Hop in and he’ll give me a lift.
So here we go back out to Long term parking. We can’t leave without the base, and E can’t check-in without me. I check the time, and we’re getting near 9am.
We get to the kiosk, and the attendant there informs the driver that the base is on another bus, and they don’t know which one. 😐
At this point, I’m trying to goto my happy place.
The driver then gets on the Radio “This is 1, looking for 4…” “This is 1, looking for 9…” “Does anyone see Mike…” “Is his radio working”
Time is now accelerating as we’re getting close to our departure time. After an eternity of trying to raise the shuttle, the other driver responds that he’s at Domestic. My driver tells him to hold and he’ll meet him. We race off to Domestic where indeed, the driver and carseat base is there. Whew! I shake his hand and thank him for all his help. I then realize I’m back at Domestic and need to run all the way back to US Dep with a carseat.
I get there, we check in, go through security, and found out that we were pretty damn close to missing the flight. The staff at check-in were getting panicky that I wasn’t there on time, and would miss the flight. In the end, we made it to the gate and got on the flight.
The guy next to us was nice enough to move seats so E, e, and I could have a row to ourselves. I think he also wasn’t thrilled about being next to an infant, but hey it worked out for everyone…
Next chapter- Winter to summer in 5 hours.
About 4 years ago, I got back into Photography. I made the choice to go with the classic Minolta X700 and Minolta XD. I got the 105 Vivitar S1 Macro, 24mm MD, 75-200 MD, 50mm 1.7 MD, and 28-85mm Tokina ATX lenses. I felt at the time that for the best quality and color, you can’t beat slides. I have to say that it was a lot of fun handling the manual Minoltas- the lenses were all metal and glass. I liked having full control over the focus, DOF, and exposure… and there was no shutter lag. For the most part, the cameras were very reliable, but being 20-25 years old, both had to have some repairs. Since then, they’ve been solid.
I remember having a number of spirited discussions with friends who had DSLRs, and debating the pros and cons. For me, it always came down to quality. I bought the Canon A70, and although it did well, it had its limitations- the flash, the shutter lag, the power up time, the Autofocus, the AWB, etc. But it was very convenient, and under certain conditions it took nice photos.
Back then, after I invested in a technology that one day will be phased out, I told myself that I would only upgrade when the DSLRs caught up to slide film. I think that day is near if it isn’t already here- at least in prints up to 8X10, it’s hard to tell the difference. With the older Canon 300D, you could tell it had problems with some of the higher contrast shots, but I think that’s much improved.
The only thing that bugs me is using Photoshop to fix up problems. Is that different that me going to the photofinisher and asking them to lighten up a certain area? Is using Photoshop any different than using color and graduated filters or burning/dodging? I’m not sure I can answer that one. Maybe I’m having a problem with it because one day you could digitally manipulate a photo even further than you could with filters or getting the photofinisher to lighten or darken a stop.
But, there’s airbrushing that goes on with film…
In short, I have my eye on the Canon XTi. The shutter is quick, lots of features, 10 megapixel, auto or manual mode, and very good quality. This means I’ll have to get a whole new system of EF lenses and Speedlight flashes, but it will allow me to take a whack of pictures, and not have to wait for LDs to develop and print. Not having to do that will save $$. Plus, I’ll be able to use the EF lenses with an older Canon film body. 🙂