Lille Island and Cemetery

I’ve fiddled around with my new camera and have gotten used to it enough that I’m more comfortable with it.  Last night, after the deluge of rain we got, I knew the river would take on that sweet calm.  I hoped for some nice light.  Jules was getting ready for bed and I changed into jeans and hopped onto the 4 wheeler and jetted off to the Island in Lille.

My newest lens isn’t as good as my old one (270 vs 300) but I do like it, a little more stable and I find that on the zoom it does just as good a job as my old one.

I think I have said this before – photographs are 2D while what we see, in life, is 3D.  The lens, camera, whatever – only captures a faction of what the human eye can see.  This is where settings and lighting and even post processing can come in.

I get lazy sometimes and just slap it into auto and take pictures, dealing with everything else in post.  That’s when you are shooting on the fly and don’t have the time to fiddle with the camera.

The water is super high this year so makes for a mirror like reflection.  Now, about that whole 2D vs 3D thing.  I don’t have anything over the top expensive to do post, its this program called PhotoImpact.  I like it, mainly because I got PI in 1996 and have stuck with it (I got PI 2 and its now up to 13).  I’ve tried lightroom and stuff, but the plug ins and apps drive me bonkers!  I’m not a professional, I am a girl who sees this through the lens of a camera differently.

The thing about sunsets and sunrises, they don’t last forever.  Zoom in, zoom out, snap shots.  If a blog post is 30 pictures, I’ve taken about 90.  Same shot, different settings.

The light near the river was fading so back on the 4 wheeler and jetting off to the church.  I was hoping to catch the last of the fledgling light and I did.  After a quick “hi, how are you doing” to the owner of the Church, I zoomed down and snagged a few photos.

1 – taking pictures at night means being stung by mosquitos

2 – those sucks are mean

3 – I’m by no means a great picture taking, at least, I don’t think so.  I see things differently, I’ve been told, so I’m always on the lookout for that.  Last night while moving around in the cemetery, I saw the cast reflection of the fading light on a few headstones.

I do like the way they came out.

Until next time!

Quinn

There is a long story behind this kitten.

It’s mom, now named after my wife, Julia hung out at our house for a few months.  Jules fed it but wasn’t petting her.  I get home in May and on 1st time seeing her, picked her up and she was simply sweet.  She was a muted grey color and cute. 

We had no idea she had KITTENS. 

Long story short, we captured her and brought her to PAWS in Fort Kent, the next day, someone delivered her kittens to PAWS.  Reunited. 

My wife then started in on “Oh it would be nice to have a kitten.”  Our current two, Remy and Sage are both 8 this year.  I said “No,no, no no no no no.”

ALL THE WHILE!  I’m in contact with PAWS trying to adopt this little split faced muted calico! 

Yes, I’m devious but romantic at heart!

Finally, on Friday before picking up the new kitten, I sat down and confessed to Jules. She called me evil while smiling and laughing.  I am evilly romantic is my problem.  Typically!  Jules picks out our animals, this time was my turn!  That lil munchin with the devious lil half and half face was mine!  I was naming her Quinn after Harley Quinn of Batman lure (Harley Quinn has this duel ponytail thing going on, one is one color, one the other, split – so the split faced look was perfect.  Also, she looked mischievous and, well, Harley Quinn IS a super villain)

She sleeps BETWEEN us in bed, or on Julia’s pillow.  When Jules goes to work she thinks its playtime and wakes me up.  Sage and Remy are warming up, but slowly.  That is our new addition to the Super Hero Family (Storm after the XMan, Remy after Xman Remy Lebeau, Sage after the Xman)  I finally went DC and even villainess!  Imagine that.

I couldn’t picture my wife calling a cat Ollie or Black Canary, of The Flash…… 

New Camera

So I finally gave in and got a new camera.  To most people, that’s not a big thing, for me – its HUGE.

1st, which one do you get?  2nd, how much do I pay?  3rd, what features do I want?

I never have been one to make big purchases, but I put aside a few bucks every week and started researching.  It came down between the T5, the T5i, and the SL1 (all Canons as I’ve a great 18-270 lens). 

I settled on the T5i, mostly for the sensor review.  I ordered it from Abe’s of Maine, out of New Jersey (I don’t ask questions!).  I got an email from the company and I had to call them, I found out that the battery life with the normal battery sucks, so I tagged on a purchase of a super sized battery. 

My 1st round of taking pictures was a nice sunset along the tracks.

Getting use to a new camera is always a curve.  How it feels, the settings, where the buttons are.  Thankfully, most cameras are standard, but there is ALWAYS different things you can do.  I’ve still got a few kinks to work out!

Bar Harbor

The week after I got home from nine weeks away, I whisked my wife off to Bar Harbor.

Note: My wife doesn’t like to do things outside our norm.  Little by little, we have been.  1 – we’ve never had MONEY to do this.  Not that we have that much more now, but there are many things to do that don’t cost an arm and a leg. 

I didn’t take many pictures, mainly because my camera (now upgraded) was giving me a hard time. 

We hit up Acadian National Park for a little hike, grabbed snacks, went to the beach (which I took no pictures of, instead I just watched my wife with glee as she visited the beach for the 1st time)

There is this really wicked hike you can take, walking on boards all around the pond – the water is crystalline. 

 

We are NOT the selfie taking couple.  Actually, I hate being in any type of photo at all.  However, Jules being at her 1st beach ever, had to be captured.