August 2012

When you get a new camera, especially if it is a step up in specifications, you can find yourself retaking earlier pictures hoping that your new camera makes a dramatic difference, or at least isn't a step backwards.  I have taken a lot of photos of the fireworks in Vancouver: webpage (mostly film), view from my deck (old place), August 2006, July 2007, August 2009 and went out looking to see a difference.

The D800 has higher bit depth which gives you more flexibility with exposure after the fact.  The resolution is higher so in theory if you wanted larger images, you could.  The D800 takes excellent long exposures without computing a dark image (The D2X like to take a dark image after the exposure which takes half as long as the exposure).  Better photos?  It's not a step backwards.

I have a one month old child so every journey out the house is a victory.  Being the August Long Weekend, in the past I have like to travel (Penticton in 2006) or go hiking (Rainbow lake in 2007), but there are lots of great things to do in town.  The Powell Street Festival is one such good long weekend trip:

Like a Cinderella story, you don't want to stay too long past closing time - it doesn't take long for the challenge that is the downtown east side to come back and fill the park.

Last year, I took photos of Nara in the water park in Kits (Nara Standing at on the Edge of Rain) which for some reason I thought was a really good - you can't do better - kind of image.  I went to the park with this image in my mind (having not checked it) that it was going to be really hard to best that image.  Don't even bother trying hard.  So I tried hard to do better.  Really hard.  Forty five minutes of up and down hard trying to do better.

 
When I got home, I checked that image I had in my mind and it really wasn't as good as I thought.  Thinking it was good though had pushed me to try hard to best it.  It's funny what imaginary goals do to you.

Oh, and I have a new pet peeve.  Parents that bring Nudies to the water park.  I don't mind the kids running around naked, but it really puts a hammer on me taking (or at least using) photos.  One naked kid in the background and I wouldn't use the image.  Sucks.

 
  After dinner we did a few formal portraits with the city behind.  Thanks for coming!
 

I think the star attraction for the kids was the wagon rides.  Deanne used the wagon to bring over some of the dinner supplies (Thanks Deanne!) and the Williams kids figure out you could ride the wagon.  Of course the wagon was way more fun when one of the parents pulled it up the hill.

Claira was very patient with the whole experience.  She generally likes to be held (although recently she seems to really enjoy being in the gym) and who doesn't like to hold calm baby.

Thanks again Jennifer and David for having us over!

The park is surrounded by trees and I find it hard to take photos of trees.  There are definite seasons for the park - spring cherry blossums, early summer Iris's and fall maple trees - our timing missed all three.  So what did I do?  I found the reflections in the pond the most interesting subject.
 

 
It's hard to take good photos and manage a two year old at the same time.  My wife would rather the camera go for a swim than my daughter so I definitly have to keep the priorities straight.  That said, I had a good time and I hope Nara did to.