Geotracking

My husband is obsessed with all things map-related. And I have a really lousy memory for where/when photos were taken. Sure, the date and time properties on the file help but what if it's just a photo of random trees or a butterfly?

That's where my anniversary present, the GiSTEQ PhotoTrackr, comes in.

It's a small GPS device, roughly the size of a garage door opener. Once you power it on, it locates the satellites to obtain a position. I have to say I'm rather impressed with this as it's done remarkably well even from inside my house. I installed the software to my laptop and then set about syncing up the time between the PhotoTrackr and my camera. This is an important step to remember for later.

Shooting is easy - turn on the PhotoTrackr and then carry it with you (I threw mine in the camera bag). Take photos like you normally would. When you're finished, turn off the PhotoTrackr until you're ready to load the log onto your computer via USB. Again, very simple.

Finally, upload your photos to the computer and load them into the GiSTEQ software. The software will match the timestamps on the files with the corresponding locations in the log and load it all nicely into Google Maps allowing you to retrace your steps and see exactly where you took each photo.

Unless you are a moron, like me, and somehow sync the time but not the date. So no matter how many times I loaded the photos, nothing showed up on my route. It only took me thirty minutes to discover the error and another twenty to find a way to change the data in the photo files so it would finally match up.

Now, it works like a champ. I can't wait to use it on our trip to San Francisco!

Some "Hot" Photos

It's been a bit since I've posted here. We made a specific stop at a cemetery as part of our anniversary getaway this past weekend just so I could snap some photos there. Unfortunately the weather was so miserable that I wasn't particularly inspired.

Lesson Learned: Taking photos from the back seat of the car is lazy and results in unimaginative images. Put forth a little more effort next time instead of wasting the opportunity.

I wasn't going to post any of these but since @dpringle asked so nicely I'm posting what I would consider to be the top three because at least I a) climbed out of the car for them and b) spent 2 seconds thinking about the shot.







The weather is killing me. I really want to go wander with the camera but it's just still too miserable. Go away, summer!

Listening to a house

(inspired by C. Beth)

The hum of the refrigerator,
Whoosh of air conditioning,
Passing cars on the way somewhere important,
The tick-tock of a clock marking the passing of the day.

My house is quiet.

No gossiping of neighbors,
No conspiring of sisters,
No laughter of friends planning dinner,
The tick-tock of the clock marking the passing of time.

My house is lonely.

No baby giggles signaling delight,
No toddler screams expressing frustration,
No persistent “why?” from a curious child,
The tick-tock of a clock marking the passing of life.

My house is empty.
__________________________________________________________

I rarely write anything in poem form but Beth's poem today set off a bit of reflection and a nagging need to respond. By no means do I think this is any good and I debated about posting it but that's what this blog is about - somewhere to let out whatever creative urges I feel, missteps and all.

First Photos

Just a couple of photos from my first trip out with the new g10. The first three are the same image, manipulated a bit in Photoshop. And the last one is a random tree I liked. Everything was taken in auto-mode because I haven't had a chance to even begin figuring out the intricacies of the camera yet but it still performed pretty well.

On FedEx vehicle for delivery

Those are words that make me quite happy. My camera will be here today (Joe even stayed home to sign for it) and we're going away this weekend to visit a winery and do some hiking. Perfect timing!

Canon g10

Learning Curve

We've just booked an awesome trip to San Francisco, featuring Napa and Lake Tahoe.

I love to travel, when I can keep my anxiety in check. And one of my favorite things to do is capture the places we've been so we can "visit" them over and over.

To aid in this, I've been feverishly working to learn the manual controls on my camera, a Canon g5. It's several years old but takes decent photos. However, I've been considering buying an entry level digital SLR so I can really take advantage of manual focus and lenses.

In the end, I chose the Canon g10 (much newer version of my g5) over the T1i d-slr. The cost of lenses really overwhelmed me. And the g10 offers great flexibility for macro, automatic controls, manual controls, etc.

In the meantime, as I await the arrival of my new toy (as well as a new sd card and backup battery), I've been shooting a lot of shots with the g5. I figure they're similar so it can't hurt.

The first two sets are all basically the same subjects (shoes and turtles) but using different manual settings. I share these so you can see how much I'm failing. The third set is from a garden we drove out to yesterday - some of these are actually not too bad.

I'm hoping one day I can look back at these starter sets and laugh about how far I've come. Or at how much I still have no idea what I'm doing.

A Study in Shoes	Turtles in a Half Shell	Sunday in the Garden

Running

This is a recent submission to The One Minute Writer If you're unfamiliar, the site provides a daily prompt to spend just sixty seconds writing about. I don't participate every day but probably a few times a week.

This piece was a response to a Friday Fiction prompt:

Write a brief bit of fiction involving running.

It's nothing astounding but I kinda liked it and didn't want to lose track of it.

I could hear him behind me. I didn't dare look back but I could sense him gaining ground. Not sure how much longer I could keep up this pace, my eyes constantly scanned ahead of me. I was searching for a hiding place, assistance, some sort of escape from my relentless assailant.

As I rounded the corner, I spotted my salvation. Daddy! I jumped into his arms, giggling as our new puppy bounced at Daddy's legs, unable to reach me. My pudgy little toddler legs may not be that fast but as long as Daddy was there to save me, no way would that puppy steal my ball!