Small Churches

Another quick post, since I'm on vacation and filling my days with fun, sun, and some photography here and there.

 

Here's a shot of a church that I took in Lanai, Hawaii today:

 

Koele Church, Lanai, Hawaii (now on the property of the Four Seasons Koele Resort)

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX7

 

And here it is in a panorama:

Lanai Panorama

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX7

 

The in-camera panorama function in the LX7 is just amazing.

 

(Click Here) to see another nice rural church, this one in Iceland, on the blog Mute.

 

Thanks again for hanging in with my quick posts this week.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

Another Long Day on Maui, Short Post

 

Sunrise at Iao Valley, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX7

 

I had a long day of photography today. The girls went off to shop and go to the Maui Aquarium. I hiked around the Iao Needle, then hung out in Wailuku and Paia Town.

 

While Hiking, I carried my Leica M9 (with WLL lens for August, the Summicron 35mm f2), SFTC camera (Agfa Record III), and the LX7. The LX7 was out and around my neck the whole time. I used the built-in HDR quite a bit. The LX7 is so versatile, I had to remind myself to bring out the other cameras. Each did well in its own way. I'm looking forward to seeing the Agfa Record pictures, but those will take a while to get developed.

 

Anyway, just wanted to make sure I get a post in before going to bed for the night. Maui is a blast!

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

Green Sea Turtle - Scuba Diving With Panasonic's Underwater Camera, the Lumix DMC-TS5

 

Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas) From Below, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS5

 

I am mid-vacation now, and battling jet lag, mostly unsuccessfully. Lucky for me, our scuba trip this morning was scheduled for early morning. We had to be at the Maalea Harbor at around 6:30AM. No problem there. We were up by 5:00, and it was actually a challenge to sleep that long. It will also be a challenge to stay awake long enough to see the sunset tonight.

 

I'm pretty wiped out, so I picked a single picture from our dives today to share. I have a lot more to share later.

 

We did two dives with Maui Divers, the first on a wreck called the St. Anthony, the second on Molokini. Both were outstanding!

 

(Click Here) to check out Maui Divers. They run a great shop, and made us comfortable every step of the way, including taking my newly-certified twelve year old daughter on here deepest dives ever.

 

The DMC-TS5 performed very well. I'm learning more about how to set it for diving. The Advanced Underwater mode works well at avoiding too much blue, but the tiny on-camera flash is only good for closeups. Otherwise, it causes reflections from particulates in the water to diffuse the image. An off-camera light would really help. I may look into an LED for that purpose.

 

(Click Here) to read my user report on this great little camera.

 

I have more to share, but it will have to wait until I'm more awake...

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

Do I Feel A Renewed Emphasis on Lumix Coming On?

Video Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNSZcTn2Pqo&sns=em

 

The newly-announced Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX7 certainly has my interest. The features that attract me most are:

 

1. Improved high iso performance, reportedly as good as, or maybe better than the Olympus OM-D, which has been the Micro 4/3 benchmark so far.
2. Focus peaking, to allow you to see when your manual focus setting is correct. Should be great for using legacy lenses with adapters.
3. Built-in electronic viewfinder (EVF) in a very compact body.
4. Silent shutter - I love that my smaller DMC-LX7 makes zero noise when I trip the shutter.

This year, I have been focused on two things - my Leica M9, and using some of the older film camera treasures in my closet. Both have been great fun, and I will continue at least through this year. Last year, I focused mainly on Panasonic and Micro 4/3. I am considering what to do next year. Current possibilities include more emphasis on film, and picking one camera from each of my favorite types (rangefinder, SLR, folder, etc.) and shooting with that set throughout the year. I'm undecided, but really kind of like the second idea. I have a few months to decide.

 

In any case, the DMC-GX7 is a welcome addition to the Lumix family. I will give it some time to see how people like it in real use before thinking about getting one.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

 

Moon Hoon House - A Virtual "Artist Date" Study in Design

I'm pretty disciplined about some things in my life, writing included. I write every day here on my blog. I also write a journal every day. In four years, I have not missed two consecutive days of writing.

 

Today, I'm just uninspired by photographic equipment and recent images in the sites I follow. I need something different.

 

So, I decided to take a virtual "Artist Date." One of my inspirations for me beginning the writing life was the excellent book by Julia Cameron, The Artist's Way. The book is really worth reading, but boils down to two areas of focus - "Morning Pages" and "Artist Dates." Morning pages consist of writing three pages in a journal, long-hand (as in with a pen) every morning. Artist dates are roughly one hour diversions, by yourself, to explore something creative that is outside your primary interest area. I have been religious about writing every day, less so about artist dates. So, when I literally couldn't find anything photographic to write about this morning, I decided to do an artist date virtually.

 

A quick search in Feedsy led me to some design-related sites. Here's the most interesting thing I found - a wild custom home in Korea:

 

Image Source: http://www.yatzer.com/conan-house-by-moon-hoon

 

A really cool characteristic is the stairway - open, non-uniform spacing and arrangement, it's one of the "playful architecture" features of the house.

 

 

 

 

Image Source: http://www.yatzer.com/conan-house-by-moon-hoon

 

I could live in a place like this. Weird, but certainly not dull.

 

(Click Here) to read more about the house.

 

I'm sure you didn't come to my blog this morning to read about a custom house in Korea. Sometimes I have to go off a little, just to keep my own interest up. Design is a great subject to study, to keep things churning in your creative mind. When you think of a house, you probably think of the square with a triangular roof on top, like you draw as a child. This house design challenges that, making it something to explore. It is also a little disorienting, giving a feeling of instability. Instability can be good.

 

Thanks for taking a look. Try Julia Cameron's book (Amazon link below). It may stimulate you to think a little differently.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

 

Huffington Post Reports on Wayne Lawrence's Photo Project - Orchard Beach

by Wayne Lawrence

Image Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/20/bronx-riviera_n_3781903.html?ref=topbar

 

Wayne Lawrence has produced a striking set of portraits of New Yorkers at the beach, Orchard Beach, in Pelham Bay Park in NYC.

 

(Click Here) to read about the project and see several more images on Huffington Post. The images will be shown at teh Bronx Museum, starting in October, 2013. There is also a book planned.

 

I think this project is really cool. Clearly Mr. Lawrence spoke to his subjects, got their permission, and posed them at some level. I feel that these images capture our current time very well. It is also rather clear that Lawrence uses fill flash, but that doesn't take away from the images.

 

When I think of these images, my mind goes to the historic pictures at Coney Island, capturing a glimpse of not only the people on the beach, but of the time.

 

(Click Here) to see some of Harold Feinstein's historic pictures of Coney Island.

 

I'm heading to the beach next week - I hope this will inspire me to take some different pictures.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

LHSA (International Leica Society)'s Google+ Page Gets A New Collage

 

LHSA's Google+ Collage, by Reed A. George

 

As you may know, I'm an enthusiastic member of the International Leica Society. I recently established a Google+ community for LHSA, and it's a pretty lively place to catch up on what members are up to each day.

 

As a weekend project, I decided to make a new collage for the page's header. Clockwise from top left, the images are: Leica special edition null series replica, the Society's journal "Viewfinder," Vario-Summilux on the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX7 (same lens as Leica DLux6), checking out LiveView on the M240 in the Miami Leica store, a black paint Leica M6 LHSA special edition camera, Leica Ablon film trimming guide, and of course the LHSA logo in the center.

 

If you like Leica, you should really consider joining LHSA. We have the Viewfinder, national meetings, local meetups currently starting up (second Washington, DC area meeting on September 21), not to mention other new member benefits, including a 5% discount on t-shirts from Dodge & Burn.

 

(Click Here) to check out and join LHSA.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com