30 days 30 posts: A talent of mine

In which i must blow my own horn. I do not do that comfortably but i do modestly say that i can take a pretty good photo when i want to. Sometimes it's just sheer luck but i do think about composition and try to capture light sometimes. I've given up the SLR now because carrying it around in my purse while traveling is getting cumbersome and heavy and i have come to enjoy the freedom of digital. No more worrying until the photos come back from being printed if they will all turn out. They always did, bar maybe one or two on each roll that either didn't or i just didn't like how they came out. I suppose eventually i'll splash out and get a digital SLR but again, we still have the problem of it being cumbersome to carry around on a trip. I don't carry a separate camera bag for gear and the large purse is heavy on my neck and shoulders with a camera in it. And sometimes a small tripod. And sometimes a zoom lens. So a point and shoot digital with a good zoom is what i use for now though sometimes i still miss the SLR. Too bad you couldn't convert a film SLR to a digital one by changing the back but i suppose that would cost more than buying new!

Anyway, yes, i've been taking pictures since i first got a polaroid camera when i was about 12 or 13. I'm by no means a technical photographer, never was, i don't usually get into fiddling with completely manual settings though i do miss a manual focus. I would change the aperture or the shutter speed sometimes but never both together, i'd usually let the camera pick the other setting.

Since joining Flickr, the photo website, i've also put my photos up against others in little contests and they have often been judged well. Flickr uses some various criteria to give your photos "interesting" status. This widget below is a link to a page showing the current "interesting" photos in order of appearance. I think it actually will scroll through every photo so you don't have to go through them all, but you might like some of the first 10 or 20 as they're generally the best and my favourites anyway.

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Apparently, the local mall is heaving with people and the traffic coming and going is beyond belief. No surprise there. One week before Christmas? I wouldn't go near there today for any amount of money. I bet the WalMart is equally bad. Sis's fella, Rick, came over and fixed my kitchen light so now i have brightness and can see! Yes, i could get the building people to do it but the thing is, the light fixture that was there before and that broke isn't theirs, it was one Dad put up for me. I kept the original one and that's the one Rick put back up. I'll have to patch a couple of holes where the old screws were and then maybe i'll repaint the ceiling. Mom has some leftover i think i could probably use. It's a very small kitchen.

Rick dropped me down to the local grocery story (not at the mall!) and the parking lot was quite full. There are other stores in that little shopping centre but i figured most of the traffic would be in the grocery store, A. because of impending Christmas and B. there's supposed to be a storm tomorrow and people go nuts stocking up even though it's only one day of bad weather. Anyway. All those people for all those cars? No idea where they were because they weren't in the grocery store. It was not busy at all! It was after 3 p.m . but that isnt' all that late. Had a nice chat with my friendly neighbourhood produce manager, an old school friend of mine and picked up what i needed. I'd forgotten my list but there were only two things i missed off it and neither are needed right now. I'll have to go back again this week as I'm expecting those new tops to arrive and the post office is also in the same place. I'll pick up what i need then. If i remember.

Still cold today but no wind so it feels warmer. Getting warmer is probably the indication that the snow is on its way. I can make candy tomorrow and get the laundry done. I also am going to try out a Jamie Oliver recipe for Pork Vindaloo (curry). Nom!