I guess I start to hang around here ...

[Call Me Wesley]

We just bought a new Nikon D50, and I'm still trying to get the hang of it; it's sure not my old F2 anymore - it's nicer. :) So Heidi and I went for a short walk in our neighborhood, and here are some impressions I caught:

The swallows have been very active in the month before they migrate to Africa for winter.


Private tree I guess:


Path down the hill:


Buddhist retreat:


Ripe grapes:


Chestnut:


Fall colors showing:

[ForrestGump]

1. Excellent!

I hope you're enjoying the new camera. I'm planning to go digital before I get back into underwater photography but I want to be able to use my overpriced Nikon lenses and was seriously considering the Fuji S2 (though now they've already got an S3 out and who knows what they'll have on the market when I'm ready to buy). Unfortunately, I'll have to buy a new underwater housing (with ports for different lenses) and digital strobes, so it gets a tad expensive 'cos that adds a few thousand dollars to the price. Digital SLRs are pretty cool, though...it'll be great to not use up that last shot on a roll of film right before the pod of dolphins comes past, which is what dolphins seem to specialize in.

I like your neighborhood, too. Looks like a beautiful day in the neighborhood! Can I come live with y'all? Pleeeeease?

I hope you have a lot of fun perambulating around with the new camera and running it through its paces. It's amazing how far digital photography has come in a decade. I loved 35mm (for my underwater work and scientific stuff I rolled my own film -- Fuji Velvia and Provia -- and developed my own slides) but digital's so high-resolution now that it's all you need for everything up to and including high-quality publishing and it sure cuts down on the bulk a traveling photographer has to allot to carrying on exposed and unexposed film to prevent it being zapped by the evil (CTX 5000? can't remember...) X-ray device they've lately turned on checked baggage, and it's a lot easier to download files than it is to even do E6 developing (cheaper, too!).

That tree's not a private, though, really -- that one stripe on it indicates that it's actually a private first class. Good camo job, though.

And I haven't seen that many swallows at once since...um....well...perhaps I'd better not say. Nothing to do with Capistrano, though.

[Call Me Wesley]

2. Thank you!

As I said, it's just the beginning - I still have to get warm with the camera and lens itself and with the afterprocess of the raw files (instead of JPGs.) Running in highest resolution (RAW), and with an 1 GB SD-card, I can take 150 pics, in JPG mode it's around 290. With this, there's actually no problem anymore with running out of the last shot - which, of course, seems to be always the best.

I always used Nikon's during my short photographer career, and I still have some precious Nikkor-lenses for the F2 which I could use with the new digital Nikon after some remodeling. But autofocus wont work and light-metering won't work either, it has to be manually done. My newer Nikkors (from the 80's) fit fine, but without autofocus and light-metering. Depends on the oldness of the lenses; mine just are ... well, old and have some scars. :)

I sure do not miss to spend the whole day in the darkroom, even it meant absolute control over the product then. Now it's done with a computer and photoshop, and the results are amazing. I would not want to go back.

My next thing will be getting a negative scanner, so I can make some use of all my old pics.

Here's one I just took in RAW mode, and it's heavily sized down:



So yes, I do have fun. :)

Oh, and Heidi says that you can come live with us anytime! No dolphins though. Heck, no oceans either. Mountains?

[Gregorian]

3. How cool.

I'm amazed at the similarity of our observations. I've taken almost identical photos this week. I even just picked a bunch of grapes. In the last week, the majority of swallows here (Oregon) left. But this morning I noticed just a half dozen who were still here. And I wonder what that is all about. Who they are and why they decided that they would not leave with the rest of the birds.

I've never seen a "real" chestnut before. That's really neat. A floral porcupine.

[Call Me Wesley]

4. The grapes are just now being harvested here,

and I guess the harvesters go for the really sweet taste since the grapes (in my opinion) are a little overdue. And for the swallows, I think a bunch of them already left, but these are the ones that might enjoy a little late summer sun before taking off.

I dont remember hwo many times I had these nifty chestnut thorns in my fingers. It is fun getting them, but only with thick leather gloves. :hi:

[F.Gordon]

5. Hang here? What... are you crazy?

:hi:

Love Path, Retreat, and Grapes... but Chestnut friggin' rocks. I just love photos like that and yours is exceptional. Nice mix of color, stuff, and thingees going on with it.

[Call Me Wesley]

7. Thank you!

And yep, I'm crazy enough to hang around here. :hi:

[intheflow]

6. Mod in the Group!

Quick, everyone, put away your porno pics! :rofl:

Hi Wesley, nice to have you join our happy little corner of DU! :hi: Who knew you were artsy? :shrug:

Nice set of photos, here. I want to live at the Buddhist retreat. Also love the grapes and the fall color photo, but I really love the private tree! Will you be entering that in the contest this month?

[Call Me Wesley]

8. No worries,

I'm not a mod for this group. ;) And after the writing group, I thought I'd check out the photography group. My new camera just gave me some reason for it.

The Buddhist retreat (although not my school, more a sect) is quite nice, and what was funny is that they have a small pond built, but when we came back from the walk, the fountain was going like to show off.

I don't think I'll enter the tree pic, it's just some kind of a gimmick with the 'Privato' sign on it. And I don't think I can produce a decent tree picture ...

[JeffR]

9. Welcome! Hope your presence here puts a stop to

the heedless depravity that the Tree theme seems to have inspired.x( Why, it's getting to the point that an old Values Voter just doesn't know where to look anymore.:evilgrin:

Nice set of photographs. Where were these taken?

[Call Me Wesley]

10. Thank you for the welcome.

The pics were taken in my neighborhood, which is in Southern Switzerland, close to the Italian border. :hi:

[JeffR]

11. Very cool

I was just looking at some of my old pics of Bellinzona and Locarno the other day.

[Call Me Wesley]

12. Not a good pic (was hazy),

but there on the right is Locarno, which is just at the opposite side of the lake from here. On the left is the beginning of Ascona.

[JeffR]

13. Despite the haze, that's a wonderful vantage point

Brings back some very pleasant memories. I know your neighborhood just well enough to envy you! Thanks for posting this.:)

[TahitiNut]

15. Lago Maggiore. You're blessed.

Living in the area of Lago Maggiore and Lago di Como and Lago di Lugano ... some of the most absolutely gorgeous geography on the planet.

[TahitiNut]

14. Not far from one of the most beautiful little cities I've ever seen:

Interlaken. Stayed at the Victoria Jungfrau once ... one of the last 'Grand Hotels' of Europe. Came through the Col du Petit St Bernard and toured around the Rhone glacier - seeing the headwaters of the Rhone river. Earlier, I recall driving a mountain road, crossing from Italy into Switzerland in the early morning after breakfast at a pension, and hearing "The Sound of Music" ... bells, bells, and more bells. Stopped the car, got out, and listened. Clear mountain air. Blue sky. Goosebumps. Looked down into the mountain meadows and it was a scene straight out of a Joanna Spyri novel. A man, a boy, and a dog ... herding perhaps 100-150 cattle into a mountain pasture. Every cow had a bell. Big, small and in between. And they were ringing. Indescribable! The echoes of those bells filled the mountain valley. You just can't imagine that stuff!

[Call Me Wesley]

16. There still are a few of these 'Grand Hotels' around,

and they're amazing. Many are gone, though.

And I wish I'd find a nice picture of one of these 'Alpfahrten,' which are still traditionally done in a few states; the cows with flowers and bells, the herders with their traditional outfit. My uncle attends one every year, and it's great fun.

:hi:

[Haole Girl]

17. Wow!

Those are fantastic! Just detail. I especially like the path with the sunlight showing through and the grapes. Excellent!! Especially, considering the fact you are trying out a new camera!

[Call Me Wesley]

18. Thank you!

I've learned a lot more about the camera since then. :hi: