Living in the Fog

Ah, golly gosh darn, the fog made only a short stopover here. There is meat and potatoes (if you are so inclined), coffee and cigarettes (again, if you are so inclined), spring and love, and fog and cemeteries. Truly a natural for the mysterious question of what happens when...we die. The fog enhances the mystery.

So much going on, and I don't know why anybody would be interested, and I don't even know why I'm writing about it. Maybe to sort things out inside my head a bit.

Detroit. My adventures came to a standstill when I developed some serious car issues this past summer. With an older car, I had no desire of breaking down in the areas where I go for photos. I'm on edge enough when I do so without having to wonder about the mobility of my being.

Equipment. I haven't had such good 'luck' with my cameras these past few months. The newer Fuji HS10 is really a fun camera and I love the manual zoom because it gives me much more control of my composition while I'm shooting. However, the shutter is slightly delayed and I miss shots with the camera. Overall, I am really pleased with the photos. And like an earlier Fuji I had years ago, a S5000, it was defective from the start. It has to go back for repair, though it doesn't appear to be a major problem affecting the image itself. Before I could send it back to Fuji (with a nasty letter about all these defective cameras I have been buying!) I had to secure my other camera, which also was having issues, the Canon Power Shot SX10 IS. It was already back to the factory for warranty repairs, and Canon only addressed one of the three issues. About the time that the factory warranty expired, a new problem arose, one that I would have to pay for no doubt, had I not purchased the extended warranty. Whew. I'm not a firm believer in those services, or at least I wasn't. The camera went back and was evaluated for repair, which was too costly, and the repair was declined and the store gave me a brand new SX30 (with that wonderful 35X optical zoom!) I am definitely a zoom-aholic. Great. Then I took it out for a spin a few days ago and the zoom mechanism was a mess, freezing up at times, moving in the opposite direction when engaged. Very strange. I got a replacement and so far this one performs as I expect.

So there that accounts for the equipment issue.

Back to Detroit, I can only visit for so long until it starts getting to me, seeing how people suffer, how people have so few options anymore. The world economy and recent events weigh heavily on my soul. We all seem to be morphing into something else, something unknown, something bad. I wish I could stop the world so I could get off, or just stop the world and have everyone evaluate where we are going.

And there has been so much else going on in my personal life, which has been swirling in a blender set to 'pulverize.'

On top of that, I really needed to move my photography into a different direction, and unlock the grids where it seems only my Detroit photography is deemed worthy a look. I don't kid myself about my skill level as I have no aspirations to that of a professional or 'arty' photography. I do what I do and I derive immense satisfaction most of the time. I started out my photography days in the cemetery, some decades ago, and I really enjoy it, the atmosphere, the elements that I like to bring together to create images that transcend 'just a grave marker' type photo. I like to set a mood, create a feeling perhaps.

But that's the tip of an un-melting iceberg of my photographic interests. I enjoy so much more, and in fact am just enraptured with the process of taking pictures. Some themes and topics come more naturally, but the whole practice of freezing an unique moment in time...is so intriguing.

So that's what's up.