100 Rolls of Film

Having recently organized some of my old photo logs, it reminded me that for many serious film photographers it was critical that one eliminate any variables in emulsion when you had to replenish the supply of your favorite film with a new batch.

For those of you that never shot film, every role of film comes with an emulsion number that indicated date of manufacture, coating plant etc. The photos, below, show the process I used to test the effective film speed (versus stated ISO) of film as part of some workshops I taught on adapting the Zone System to 35mm photography.

I should add that by knowing the effective speed of your film when recorded by your standard lenses and developed in your standard developer, you essentially were eliminating any of the variables in your equipment thus allowing you to instinctively compose and read a scene quickly then "expose for the shadows and develop the film to control where your highlights fell".

This got me thinking about another practice in the film days that has seemingly been forgotten or not appreciated in the current age of being able to immediately review images taken with a new camera or new lens, and instantly make snap decisions on the performance of your gear. I remember a maxim a well known editorial photographer shared with me at a workshop I was attending about how he related his lenses as equivalent to the fine bristle brushes he used for his other passion - oil painting.

Just like new brushes, he pointed out that with any new lens, he had to spend many hours getting accustomed to how it captured light just like how he'd have to practice with a new brush on scratch canvas to understand how it lay down his favorite oil paint. His maxim was that it typically took him "100 rolls of film" to thoroughly test any new lens in all the various lighting situations and conditions that he typically shot. He explained that he would never use a lens on an assignment until he fully understood it's characteristics and traits.

Note: I've been meaning to write this post for awhile, and I still have some additional comments from my old photo journals that I need to find time to review in order to complete this essay. Stay tuned.

(Data on color photo: DA*55mm lens / K20D / F4.0 1/20 sec. Japan, April 2009)

FASHION, THE LATEST TOOL OF DISCRIMINATION IN INDIA

After globalization, many western brands opened their outlets in India. It was followed by the large scale advertising of these products. Advancements in technology and new satellite links enabled the transmission of Western Television Channels, in India. People were exposed to a whole new world. This was followed by the BPO Boom. The unemployment rate of the educated people, living in the metros, came down drastically. The disposable income of people went up and the new range of lifestyle products and brands were hard to resist. The fashion obsession in the West was transferred to India. Every individual is expected to look his/her best today. Packaging is as important as the product, but in case of women, it seems more important. India is a multi-cultural and multi-racial society and people of different regions and across the social classes, have different beliefs. So those who haven’t been able to adapt to the changing lifestyles, are looked down upon.

Advertisements play a very important role in creating new ‘needs’ in the society. Women, who have a tanned skin tone, don’t get lucrative jobs and can’t attract the attention of men. A variety of beauty products are advertised in such a way that a person who does not use these products, feels like a loser. Dandruff-problem seems to be a life-taking disease! These ad-films have catchy punch lines, which are used to tease people. As a result, people, especially women, become victims of fashion. They are willing to even risk their health to look beautiful.

The ‘Plain Jane’, despite her intelligence and talents, is discriminated against in every field. She is not liked by her teachers, who cuddle and pamper the cute, fair and well dressed girl. She is teased and bullied by all her classmates, when she is a teenager. Impressionable teenagers are easily influenced by advertisements and television programs, which make the ‘Plain Jane’, look like a sinner. Despite her academic qualifications, she finds it hard to get a job. And of course an Indian man needs a wife who could be put on display, so she doesn’t find love.

There are many women who like being simple. However, in order to be accepted by the society, they try everything they could, to look fashionable. They don’t have the ability to understand contemporary fashion. As a result, a new class of women has emerged who are popularly known as ‘Behenji Turned Modern’ (BTM). Why do we need to use such a term? Why can’t a woman choose her own style? If she wants to maintain her former ethnic style and deportment and combine it with the western, where is the harm? We live in a free country, don’t we?

As has been already stated, people from diverse socio-economic and cultural backgrounds cannot share many similarities. Not many women can afford to spend their hard earned money on cosmetics and sessions in the beauty parlour. They might also be bound by some restrictions imposed by their traditional families. Yet, they have the courage and the talent to dream big. They should be encouraged and not insulted.

First Photos from the DA*60-250

The first production units have started to ship in Europe and other parts of the world. We'll start to receive our first units in the US in the next two weeks. Not having had a chance to shoot with this lens, I was pleasantly surprised to see some early sample photos from Richard Day, who lives in the UK. Here's a link to some of his DA*60-250 test photos on Flickr. Here's another series of photos Richard took to show the background blur (bokeh) produced by this lens using some nice tomatoes in the foreground.

April 26, 2009 - Libation

Responding to my April 20th entry, a reader named Christine writes:

“My cancer has progressed to the point where I am on my last leg of this journey. I was wondering if you could direct me to what the Bible says about facing death. In essence, what are your thoughts on dealing with grief and sorrow? My journey has been four years and as I approach the end, surprisingly I find that my emotional and spiritual struggle have not diminished but intensified.”

Wow. I had to think about that one for several days, before attempting an answer. It’s not that I’ve never had to supply this sort of counsel before; it’s just that Christine poses her question so bluntly. Most people whom I visit in their final days raise the question obliquely, if at all. Whether they ask the question directly or not, I typically respond by sharing some of the great scripture passages that witness to God’s reliable presence.

For example, there’s Psalm 139, in which the psalmist imagines himself journeying to the very edges of the known world, only to find God still there beside him:

“If I take the wings of the morning and settle at the farthest limits of the sea,
even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me fast.” (Psalm 139:9-10)

For those who struggle with fatigue, cancer-related or otherwise, there’s always Isaiah 40:28-31, that promises:

“Those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31)

Those of a philosophical bent may find some comfort in the timeless contemplations of “the Teacher” who wrote the book of Ecclesiastes. In these verses – immortalized for my generation by Pete Seeger’s folk anthem, “Turn, Turn, Turn” – he recalls how, in life, there is a time for everything, even a time to die:

“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance...” (Ecclesiastes 3:1-4)

THE BYRDS - Turn ! Turn ! Turn !
by danadi33

Certain psalms, like Psalm 69, pull no punches when it comes to voicing the honest cry of human anguish. Perhaps, Christine, you’ve felt like this in recent days:

“Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my neck.
I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me.
I am weary with my crying; my throat is parched. My eyes grow dim with waiting for my God.” (Psalm 69:1-3)

So, what does it mean to speak of God saving us, in a time of serious illness – perhaps even illness unto death? Some may be tempted to blithely drop a pollyanna catch-phrase, like “Expect a miracle!” Yet, this is unrealistic, maybe even deceptive. We all know miraculous reversals like this – the sort that cause doctors to scratch their heads and say, “I don’t know what happened, there’s no medical explanation for the way that tumor just disappeared” – are rare indeed. Besides, even in those fortunate cases where a terminal illness reverses itself, the patient is still going to die of something, eventually. No, that sort of miracle merely buys a little time, that’s all.

No, the only ultimate consolation comes from promises such as Jesus’ words in John 11:25-26:
“I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.”

Seeking to describe the life to come, Paul resorts to a variety of metaphors. In 2 Corinthians 4:16-5:1, he likens this present life of ours to a tent – a temporary dwelling, slated to be replaced by something more permanent:

“So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. For this slight momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure, because we look not at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen; for what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal. For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.”

In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul uses a different, organic metaphor, that of a seed planted in the ground – one I’ve cited just upstream, in my April 14th entry.

At the end of the day, though, all these are just metaphors. Such poetry, lofty as it may be, captures the emotion, but inevitably falls short on details – for, who can chart with certainty lands no human has visited, save on a one-way journey? (Jesus, of course, being the notable exception, and he wasn’t talking – not on that subject, anyway.)

In the course of my pastoral ministry, I’ve spoken with more than a few people who’ve had near-death experiences. There are more of these people around than you may think. Most are pretty quiet about it. They’re hesitant to speak of such experiences, for fear of being misunderstood – but, if you give them a chance, they’ll speak in hushed tones, eyes brimming with tears, of bright visions no words can capture. I feel incredibly privileged to have heard a few of these firsthand testimonies.

We can’t make too much of these subjective experiences, though. They’re elusive, dreamlike – merely the shadow of a suggestion of what the next life may be like. Still, I take some comfort, personally, in observing that, whatever these soul-travelers experienced, there was no terror in it: only a sense of comfort and welcome and peace.

Reflecting on his own impending death, the pseudonymous author of 2 Timothy speaks of his hopes and fears using the common coin of his own culture. He portrays his life as a “libation” – a sacred offering of wine, to be poured out onto the ground, as the Greeks and Roman were wont to do:

“As for me, I am already being poured out as a libation, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing.” (2 Timothy 4:6-8)

Back in my chemo days – when I was feeling sick as a dog and far from certain Dr. Lerner’s promises of a likely remission would ever come to pass – I wondered if my own life was turning out to be just such a libation.

It’s a powerful image, even though we have to work a bit to translate it into 21st Century terms. Then, as now, it defies reason to upend a perfectly good cup of wine and pour its contents out upon the ground: but sometimes that primitive calculus is the only response that makes sense in face of the absurdity we call “death.”

Surely, we protest, there’s got to be a better way. Surely, God – if the Bible’s descriptions of divine power are true – has the ability to arrange things in some other way for us.

The hard fact is, God chooses not to exercise that ability. Sooner or later, our life-force is bound to run out in rivulets, like that libation-offering, poured upon some unimaginably ancient block of stone.

A libation. That’s what we’ll be, one day.

Poured out. An offering to a God who (we can only hope) is, as the scriptures teach, “gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love” (Psalm 145:8).

If that is so, we will one day be able to affirm, with Paul, that:

“...in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39)

That’s the sort of thing I’d be inclined to say to you, Christine, by way of summarizing the Christian witness about life and death.

On a more personal note, I’d also like to encourage you to try to step back and get some perspective on the faith-struggles you’re going through right now. A certain amount of angst is to be expected. Strong emotion is understandably part of the experience. Cancer stinks. So does an early death. There’s no way to sugar-coat such hard realities.

I wouldn’t be at all surprised if you’re feeling angry, as well. Just read through some of those biblical psalms of lament, and you’ll quickly realize you’re not alone in this.

Doubt can be part of the psychic landscape, as well. (Remember, even Jesus went through his own crisis of faith in the Garden of Gethsemane.) You may worry, at times, that you’re losing touch with all the beliefs you once held dear, but that’s simply what dying is like. It’s profoundly disturbing and disorienting (Hollywood cliches about falling gently back on the pillow notwithstanding).

There’s nothing more disturbing nor disorienting in all of life. If - as the Christian faith teaches - death is actually rebirth into a new way of living, then wouldn’t it be reasonable to expect a bit of birth trauma? Just try to keep your eyes upon Jesus, the one whom the letter to the Hebrews calls “the pioneer and perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2).

May God be with you.

Sunday Walk with DA15

Our Sunday walk along the beach in San Clemente was the first time for me to try out a production version of the DA15. I previously posted photos of Harry the Pelican using a pre-production sample of this lens and I'll need to burn through a lot more film (files) of various scenes and subject matter to see if I can discern any differences.

Photos were all shot in RAW with a K20D and processed in CS3 to produce jpegs for posting here on blogger. No adjustments were made to the images, except for the snapshot of my wife. I had to crop this photo, as I shot this quickly by turning and firing and ended up with a falling horizon in the background.

I was really pleased to see that dpreview already posted their review of this lens in the past few days. Being a new lens, I didn't expect to see their review up this quickly. I'm puzzled by one of Andy Westlake's comments about construction and his choice of a zoom lens to compare against a prime, but overall, I thought this review was even handed and well done.

(Note: Click on any thumbnail to see a larger image file)

Crime Against Women in India

Gender equality is a very popular topic of debate in this country. Urbanized men often crib that women have all the rights and some laws should now be framed to protect men from women! This article is going to show how different the real situation is. There are several laws in our constitution, to protect women. The sad part is these laws are rarely ever imposed.

Over 32000 murders, 19,000 rapes, 7500 dowry deaths and 36500 molestation cases were reported in India in 2006. However there are many instances where crime against women, goes unreported. These are figures released by the National Crime Records Bureau. While Madhya Pradesh is worst off among the states, the national capital New Delhi continues to hold on to its reputation of being the most unsafe city in India. Delhi takes the top slot for crimes ranging from murders and rapes to dowry deaths and abductions. Instead of leading the way in tackling crime, the country’s capital is a cauldron of crime. While the national crime rate declined negligibly by .02 % in 2006; Delhi's rate grew to 357.2, more than double the national average of 167.7. These details reflect the efficacy of our law and order system.

Giving and taking dowry is a crime, yet the practice goes on. In fact people unabashedly display the objects they get as dowry and no action is taken against them. Female foeticide and infanticide is also a crime. Then why is the female population of North India, less than the male population? If a rapist agrees to marry his victim, his crime is forgiven! Wife-bashing is the favourite sport of Indian men! A woman can’t step out of her house at night. If she does, she fears that she will be the next Saumya Vishwanathan. If a beautiful woman does not want to love a man, he publicly throws acid on her face. Women are exploited by their bosses in their workplaces and owing to dire financial constraints, they have to suffer their nonsense. After all India is an overpopulated country and there aren’t enough jobs.

As many as 18 women are assaulted in some form or the other, every hour, across India. Even foreigners aren’t spared. We have a reputation, alright! Cases of rape have become so commonplace that people don’t even bother to express their shock or despair, when they hear about a rape. Filing a police complaint in this case, is a nightmare and the investigations which follow are humiliating. Policemen are expected to protect women. However, if you are an Indian woman, you should know that they are more dangerous than most criminals. They’ll give you the nastiest of glares.Ladies who go to police stations at night often complain of misbehaviour and the charges of rape and molestation against police officers are a proof of this. Alas! Our society forgets the rapist but it never forgives the victim. It seems women have accepted the reality. They don’t complain any more, they choose to be careful, instead.

Meetings and seminars are organized from time to time to analyze the cases of crime against women. Most come to the conclusion that laws should be enforced. These days people are talking about making molestation a non-bailable offence. However, like the other laws, this would also be forgotten. Punishments set an example. People who are guilty of crime against women, should be humiliated and insulted in every possible way, in public. Their life should be made a living hell and every aspect of their trial should be covered by the media. So that, people think twice before molesting women.

References:

1) http://www.hindu.com/2009/01/08/stories/2009010852440300.htm

2) http://www.azadindia.org/social-issues/crime-against-women-in-india.html

Indian Women

According to Indian Mythology, the woman represents ‘Shakti’. Our goddesses destroy all evil and ensure that justice is done. Saraswati is the goddess of education and wisdom. Laxmi, is the goddess of wealth and prosperity and Kali, is the destroyer of evil. Ironically, Indian women are not allowed to educate themselves and be financially independent. They also become victims of crime. Our religious texts accord equal rights to women. However, the perpetrators of patriarchy misinterpret these very texts to subjugate women.

India got its independence in 1947. Indian women played a very important role in the freedom struggle. Maharani Ahilyabai Holkar, Rani Lakshmi Bai of Jhansi Sarla Devi, Muthulaxmi Reddy, Susheela Nair, Rajkumari Amrit Kaur, Sucheta Kripalani Aruna Asaf Ali, Vijayalakshmi Pandit and Sarojini Naidu, are some of the women who helped us in winning our independence. Yet can Indian women be called truly independent?

India is a multi-cultural and multi-racial, country. Each state has a unique identity with a varied set of customs, traditions, values and superstitions. People follow different religions and the level of development in different states and cities, is also not the same. So, it is very hard to generalize the situation of women in India. However, they can be classified into two broad categories: The Women in Urban India and The Women in Rural India.

In most Indian states, especially in the rural areas, when a girl child is born, there is mourning on a large scale. Female feticide and infanticide are major social problems in India. Even when the girl child is allowed to live, she is made to tolerate every form of torture – mental, physical and emotional. She is not allowed to educate herself and enrich her mind. Instead she is trained to manage the house and encouraged to take up menial jobs. She is married off even before she begins to understand her womanhood and is forced to multiply. She has no individuality, no identity and no life of her own. She is ever too busy serving others. Finally she meets her end and no one even notices her absence. This is the story of women in rural India.

The plight of the urbanized Indian woman is of a different kind. She is expected to have academic and professional qualifications. She is trained to be reasonable and rational, yet her life is an anti-thesis of rationality. Despite the fact that she is trained to be independent, she is forced to conform to the gender codes for purposes of social acceptance. She is expected to be the jack-of-all-trades, with recognized qualifications, a good job and excellent communication skills. Apart from this, an urbanized Indian woman should also have a good family background, a nymph like frame, clear complexion, wrinkle and pimple free face and silky-dandruff free hair. She becomes a victim of fashion. Besides, she knows that she has to be perfect by the age of twenty-four, because, without the aforementioned qualities, she cannot expect to get an Indian man. The poor thing knows that she is going to be an obsolete product in the Indian marriage market by the age of thirty, which is ordinarily, her expiry date.

Woman is treated like an inanimate object in our society. She is displayed in the marriage market and is purchased by the groom’s family. Ironically, she is the one who pays the price, in the form of dowry. Despite her education she is forced to accept the unreasonable demands of her prospect bridegroom’s family. She has to love her mother-law, more than her man. And mum-in-law always forgets that she herself is a woman and inevitably assumes the role of a slave-driver. She rants and curses all the time. If she fails to balance her personal and professional life, she is expected to forget her professional life, altogether. Her desire to succeed and attain self-fulfillment is of no consequence to anyone. So, she has to manage her house, be a good mother, wife and daughter-in-law, look beautiful and also earn a living.

There are a large number of women in our society who are single. A spinster is tortured all her life for not finding the right man. It is believed that a widowed woman brings bad luck to the people she associates with and the social stigma attached to the term ‘divorcee’ is far from gone. Single women are seen as threats to the society by the so-called happily married women.

An Indian woman spends her whole life, looking after other people. She rarely gets the time to think about her own health. A woman’s body needs special care during teenage, pregnancy and after child birth. If she is callous about her health during these stages, she suffers from many diseases and ailments, later on in life.

The crime against women is also on the high. Over 32000 murders, 19,000 rapes, 7500 dowry deaths and 36500 molestation cases are the violent crimes reported in India in 2006 against women. There are many instances of crime against women which go unreported in India. These are figures released by the National Crime Records Bureau recently. While Madhya Pradesh is worst off among the states, the national capital New Delhi continues to hold on to its reputation of being the most unsafe city in India. Delhi takes the top slot for crimes ranging from murders and rapes to dowry deaths and abductions.

Indian women can rightfully be called Superwomen. They are expected to be experts at multi-tasking. They are trained to be ideal daughters, sisters, wives, daughters-in-law and later, useful and adaptable mothers, mothers-in-law and grandmothers. They hardly get the time to thing about their own well being and health and when they fall ill and fail to be ‘useful’, they are abandoned. It seems that their existence on earth has only one purpose and that is, to satisfy the needs of others. The critics of my articles would contend that Indian women are now free. They have the right to lead their lives the way they want to, with the full support of their families. These are unfortunately, the ‘fortunate few’. It is very convenient to be idealistic. The truth is, women in India, rural or urban, are expected to conform. There is hardly any improvement in the lives of rural women and urban women are paying the price of their so called freedom, every day of their existence.

References:

1) http://www.azadindia.org/social-issues/crime-against-women-in-india.html

2) http://www.indianetzone.com/2/women_freedom_struggle.htm

April 25, 2009 - Take a Little Wine

“No longer drink only water, but take a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.” So says 1 Timothy 5:23 – a little practical advice, in the midst of some miscellaneous exhortations at the end of this New Testament letter.

Who woulda thunk it? Who could imagine this homey, first-century medical advice would surface at a 21st Century cancer research conference?

It has, though – at least, according to a recently-released research study. From a news article describing it:

“Pre-diagnostic wine consumption may reduce the risk of death and relapse among non-Hodgkin's lymphoma patients, according to an epidemiology study presented at the American Association for Cancer Research 100th Annual Meeting 2009.... [The researchers] analyzed data about 546 women with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. They found that those who drank wine had a 76 percent five-year survival compared with 68 percent for non-wine drinkers. Further research found five-year, disease-free survival was 70 percent among those who drank wine compared with 65 percent among non-wine drinkers.” (“Drinking Wine May Increase Survival Among Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma Patients,” ScienceDaily, April 24, 2009.)

Admittedly, those numbers aren’t all that startling. The wine-bibbers get a mild statistical bump, that’s all. Draining Bacchus’ cup is clearly no panacea, but it does seem that “a little wine,” as the author of 1 Timothy advises, can be good for what ails ya.

Not every tippler will be happy with the study’s results, though: “Beer and/or liquor consumption did not show a benefit,” the report soberly concludes.

It’s just the vino, folks.

According to the article, wine has certain anti-oxidants that tend to retard tumor growth. This is consistent with some earlier studies that show wine (especially red wine) has a mild positive effect on heart health. An occasional glass of Chianti or Lambrusco is part of the highly-touted “Mediterranean diet.” Now, it appears the fruit of the vine does a little something for lymphoma prevention as well.

The oncologists aren’t exactly advocating pub crawls. Far from it: “This conclusion is controversial, because excessive drinking has a negative social and health impact, and it is difficult to define what is moderate and what is excessive,” says one of the lead researchers, by way of a disclaimer.

(Nota bene: 1 Timothy does specify “a little wine.” All things in moderation.)

I’ve always thought an occasional glass of red wine to be one of life’s little pleasures. It’s nice when something that tastes so good turns out to be good for you, as well.

Wine has even found its way into religious poetry on occasion. I close with these lines from the medieval Persian poet, Rumi:

“The grapes of my body can only become wine
After the winemaker tramples me.
I surrender my spirit like grapes to his trampling
So my inmost heart can blaze and dance with joy.
Although the grapes go on weeping blood and sobbing
‘I cannot bear any more anguish, any more cruelty’
The trampler stuffs cotton in his ears: ‘I am not working in ignorance
You can deny me if you want, you have every excuse,
But it is I who am the Master of this Work.
And when through my Passion you reach Perfection,
You will never be done praising my name.’”

– Mevlana Jelaluddin Rumi (1207 - 1273)

Salut!

A Quick Little Hello

Oh, how I miss you all! I'm at my friends house staying the night right now so I'm checking my internet stuff. We're all (both families) are on our way to the Sacramento Waldorf conference tommorrow! I'm so excited! I can't believe Seth is even coming with me :) He's such a great man :)

Now for the big news, baby number three is on his or her way! I'm pregnant! We're so excited! I'm due december 15th, wow!

A Quick Little Hello

Oh, how I miss you all! I'm at my friends house staying the night right now so I'm checking my internet stuff. We're all (both families) are on our way to the Sacramento Waldorf conference tommorrow! I'm so excited! I can't believe Seth is even coming with me :) He's such a great man :)

Now for the big news, baby number three is on his or her way! I'm pregnant! We're so excited! I'm due december 15th, wow!

Op-Ed thoughts by the Spa

After a particularly grueling and long week, it was really nice to get back home for a weekend of relaxation. This morning as I was reading the NY Times and enjoying coffee in my back yard, I realized there were a number of related topics and discussions that occurred this week in the small corner of the world we call photography that is then further segmented by those that have an interest in all things Pentax. So consider this an "op ed" post or collection of thoughts and comments that I will post throughout the weekend. There won't be any order to the comments that I add, and there's no significance to the order in which I post these snippets.
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Having seen a lot of less than complimentary things said about me in the past, which I understand is part of being open and approachable on the internet, I had to laugh this morning when I read this comment by GnusMas on pentaxforums that was in response to a heated exchange on who knew more about a certain upcoming model from Pentax..."Ahh its OK maybe next year you to can buddy up to Ned at the PMA and try to get your very own NDA . I suggest you start building your tomato shot portfolio I hear that's one way into NED's heart. lol." I think the whole point about my love of tomatoes stems from the realization that what tends to typify many Pentax shooters is that they have a pretty balanced life wherein photography is only one of their passions and pursuits. I think we tend to harbor a higher percentage of independent minded shooters who enjoy the pursuit of photography first and are less obsessed with their gear. So GnusMas is right, the way to my heart is to show a balance of passion for life and make sure your love of photography is not at the expense of other priorities including nuturing the relationship with your family and close friends.
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The photo for this post was taken with the K20D and DA15 lens, shot in RAW and processed in-camera to produce a "soft" jpeg.
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Regarding the tempest on pentaxforums about whether Rice High knows more about the upcoming K-model than Yvon Borque, consider this. Just like any other company in high-tech, we have a number of journalists that represent traditional print as well as web, who have signed NDA's and are at various stages of evaluating a new product offering. We've had long standing relationships with these folks, and this is critical in making sure information about a new product is available at the time of announcement. None of this is possible without a great sense of trust by both parties. Therefore, it's a reality that while some people will have knowledge prior to an announce dates, others will have to speculate and I guess that's fine in this new cyber world where rumors tend to create so much buzz that the actual announcement almost becomes a letdown.
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I've never met him, but quite a few of you should cut RiceHigh some slack. I don't always agree with what he says, but he has every right to post his thoughts. He has strong opinions, and is passionate about what he does. Last time I checked, there's no restriction on having a point of view either in print or on-line.
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Mike Johnston had some great things to say about buying a camera in his post this week by not selecting the "T.O.P. Ten Recommended Cameras: #3". His conclusion was "all of these cameras are truly excellent devices that will serve any thoughtful and hardworking photographer very, very well—very well indeed. Pick one and be done." If you haven't read this post, check it out...
T.O.P Ten Recommended Cameras:
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Square sensor and full frame??? Executives in Japan have said we'll release a model this summer that is more advanced than the K20D, and that we have re-started development of the 645D which is expected to be released in 2010. When asked about full frame (meaning 35mm camera body), we commented this would be very difficult in the near future. To those that continue to postulate or argue that the new camera better be full frame, ask yourself what lenses are you planning to use on this hypothetical new full frame body?

As I received a few comments on this, let me clarify my tongue-in-cheek comment. Anyone that is currently using a full frame sensor 35mm camera knows that they exact a high price in terms of the lenses that perform acceptably. Many lenses originally designed for film fall short in terms of distortion control and edge-to-edge sharpness when used with a full frame sensor. I have a good friend who currently shoots high-end weddings in Southern California with a 5D. While he loves the fact he can now use his wide angle lenses, he has quite a few lenses he's shot with for years that he can no longer use.

In our case, if we developed a full frame camera, it's likely that very few of our recent DA lenses (those designed for APS-C) would be able to properly fill the viewing area of this new sensor. And although we have some wonderful FA lenses, like my favorite FA 31mm Limited, I'm not sure even this lens would be up to the optical challenge.

I know that our engineers have studied these issues and would probably not agree totally with my simplistic explanation. However, I think it's important to understand that going to a full frame sensor means not only having to design a brand new camera from ground up, but likely a new line of lenses that meet the more demanding optical requirements.

It's clear that there is a place for full frame cameras, but it currently is a small part of the overall SLR market. Due to the total cost of ownership and increased demands shooting with full frame images, the majority of cameras sold will still use APS-C, 4/3rds type sensors.

Despite some of our desires to always want newer, faster, better technology, I'm not sure that many of us would see a dramatic improvement in our photography if we were given a full frame sensor camera. Personally, I think we've hit the sweet spot with APS-C sensor cameras today. 12-15 megapixels is more than adequate for even your most demanding assignments, we've got far better control of noise, frame rates and processing speeds are sufficient for the majority of work advanced or serious photographers need and all of this is available at very reasonable price points, regardless of your choice of brand.

In closing this train of thought, the whole full frame debate reminds me of the sometimes wine-induced arguments I have with a buddy of mine over the performance of our 5 series BMW's. I always end these discussions by saying if he really, really demands/needs/desires higher performance then shut up and buy an M5 or 7 series. As you'd expect, he's still shooting...uh I mean driving his beautiful 5 series bimmer.
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As RiceHigh aptly points out, any legacy lens would work on a 35mm full frame camera. There's no question about this, the real concern is about the image quality produced by these lens.
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Spring in Connecticut

I flew back to Connecticut this past weekend for a family event and to check in on my 88 year old mother. Being a quick trip, I only packed my K20D and 31mm lens. The weather turned out to be sunny and warm, and I was able to carve out a little free time to try and capture a few photos showing the signs of springs.

Except for the photo of the field of daffodils, all the other photos were taken around my mother's house and land. I tried to find scenes and composition that tested the 31mm's wonderful resolving capabilities. Although I have used this lens more than any other piece of Pentax glass, it continues to surprise me in the way it consistently renders highlights, shadows and color regardless of the scene or lighting.

While I spent most of my time outside, I did take a few photos inside my mother's house to mix in some hand held natural light interiors to juxtapose against the primarily outdoor nature scenes. I haven't photographed many interiors with this lens previously, and was fairly happy with these casual tests especially since they were all shot at f/4.0 and between 1/6 and 1/8 sec.

All photos shot in RAW and converted with CS3 (no adjustments) into jpegs for uploading to Blogger. Double click on the thumbnails for a larger image.

April 20, 2009 - Known By Our Wounds

Sunday’s sermon afforded me an opportunity to mention cancer survivors’ issues. I was preaching on the post-resurrection appearance of Jesus in which his disciple, Thomas, needs to see and touch Jesus’ wounds in order to be convinced of the truth of the resurrection.

As I pondered anew the meaning of this familiar scripture text, it struck me how noteworthy it is that the disciples know Jesus by his wounds. It’s very true-to-life, psychologically speaking. Often, we do know one another by our wounds, by the adversaries we’ve bested (or are still struggling against).

From the sermon:

“Sometimes the scars are visible, peeking out from the surface of our skin. More commonly, our wounds are hidden: either beneath our clothing or concealed deep in the recesses of our soul - rarely talked about, seldom acknowledged. Those friends and family who know us well, know of their existence. They, too, know us by our wounds.

When neighbors of ours go through some grueling medical ordeal and survive it, we come to know them, too, by their wounds. See the neighbor across the street climbing into his car? You can't help but recall the triple coronary bypass he had a couple years ago. Greet your co-worker in the office one morning, the one whose speech is just a little fuzzy - the last reminder of the stroke that first took all her speech away, then slowly gave it back, word by word, through hard work with the therapists. Every time she opens her mouth, you marvel at how far she's come.

I suspect that, as many of you look at me, you can't help but recall the word, "lymphoma." Once you become a survivor of something like that, it becomes a part of who you are, for better or for worse. Our wounds, in life, have a way of molding and shaping us.”

As part of the sermon, I shared with the congregation a quote from surgeon and author Richard Selzer. I’ve long been an admirer of his writing. This is from an essay called, simply, “Skin.” It’s a doctor’s appreciation of this largest organ in our bodies, that covers and protects us, even as it serves as our interface with the outside world:

"I sing of skin, layered fine as baklava, whose colors shame the dawn, at once the scabbard upon which is writ our only signature, and the instrument by which we are thrilled, protected and kept constant in our natural place.... Gaze upon the skin as I have, through a microscope brightly, and tremble at the wisdom of God, for here is a magic tissue to suit all seasons. Two layers compose the skin - the superficial epidermis and, deeper, the dermis. Between is a plane of pure energy where the life-force is in full gallop. Identical cells spring full-grown here.... No sooner are these cells formed than they move toward the surface, whether drawn to the open air by some protoplasmic hunger or pushed outward by the birth of newer cells behind.... Here they lie, having lost all semblance of a living cellularity, until they are shed from the body in a continual dismal rain. Thus into the valley of death this number marches in well-stepped soldiery, gallant, summoned to a sacrifice beyond its ken. But let the skin be cut or burned, and the brigade breaks into a charge, fanning out laterally across the wound, racing to seal off the defect. The margins are shored up; healing earthworks are raised, and guerrilla squads of invading bacteria are isolated and mopped up." [Richard Selzer, Mortal Lessons (Simon & Schuster, 1976 ), pp. 105-106.]

We can look at scars, it seems to me, in two ways: as a reminder of something bad that’s happened to us, or as a reminder of a powerful process of healing that continues to be active in our bodies.

The nature of my cancer treatment has been such that I’ve never needed surgery. Consequently, the only cancer-related scar I carry on my body is the small one, near my collarbone, that marks the place where my chemo port was implanted (and where it remains to this day, in case it’s ever needed).

The scars, the wounds, I bear as a result of my treatment are of a less-visible nature. I’m more vulnerable now, and also more aware of my mortality. I operate less out of a sense of spiritual entitlement: no longer assuming the unconscious, childlike belief that if I just do the right thing, God will reward me. The universe doesn’t seem to be as safe a place as I once assumed it was: I’m all too aware that God has inserted a frightening degree of randomness into the creation.

Still and all, it’s not a bad place to be. Cancer may have beaten me up a little, but it hasn’t kept me down. I’m learning to move on from here, scars and all.

April 14, 2008 - Encounter with the Gardener

It was a glorious Easter this year. From the spectacular sunrise over the Atlantic at the 6 a.m. Community Sunrise Service, to the festive atmosphere at two well-attended services in our Sanctuary, it was a day to remember.

I decided to preach on a line from John’s Easter story to which I’ve never paid much attention before: “Supposing him to be the gardener, [Mary] said to him, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away’” (John 20:15b).

It’s always struck me as odd that Mary Magdalene, who knew Jesus well, would mistake him for a gardener. Some commentators have speculated that maybe it was still dark enough to make it hard to pick out the details of another’s face. Others have wondered whether Jesus’ resurrection body was sufficiently different from the body he’d walked around in previously that maybe it was hard to make the connection.

And why a gardener, anyway? Sure, it was a garden tomb in which his body had been laid, but that doesn’t explain why John includes this otherwise insignificant detail.

In the sermon, I present the idea that maybe John is subtly trying to make a theological connection between Jesus the gardener and the story of another gardener: God, who set Adam and Eve up in the Garden of Eden, then later barred them from it on account of their disobedience.

From the sermon:

“We’ll never know what was in John’s mind, of course, but it’s certainly worth pondering. Maybe the man Mary looks up and sees, through tear-filled eyes, is the gardener, after all. As our Christian faith teaches, Jesus Christ is the second person of the Trinity, being – as the Nicene Creed puts it – ‘of one substance with the Father.’ That means it would not be inaccurate to say that the man who calls Mary by name, and whom she embraces, is the very same one who – most reluctantly – expelled Adam and Eve from the garden of Eden. He is also the very same one who, by his death on the cross, has opened the way back to paradise, one day, for those who believe in him, through the forgiveness of sins.

The image of Jesus Christ as the gardener is one that occurs elsewhere in the scriptures. In a famous passage from 1 Corinthians we often read at funerals, the Apostle Paul poses the question, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?”

The answer he gives comes right out of the garden. It’s like a seed planted in the ground, he explains. The seed must crack open and die to its seed-nature, before it takes on the form the gardener truly intends for it:


“So it is with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. It is sown a physical body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a physical body, there is also a spiritual body.” [1 Corinthians 15:42-44]

Paul even goes on, in that passage, to speak of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden:

“The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. As was the man of dust, so are those who are of the dust; and as is the man of heaven, so are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we will also bear the image of the man of heaven. What I am saying, brothers and sisters, is this: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.” [15:47-50]

The ‘man of heaven’ – the counterpart to our ‘man of dust’ – is, of course, the Risen Lord, Jesus Christ. When she first glimpsed him, Mary supposed him to be the gardener. She couldn’t have known, in that moment of confusion, how right she was.

If this is true – that Jesus Christ has taken over where God, the planter of the Garden of Eden, left off – then it has something to say to you and me about the sort of impatience we often fall into, as we look around at the mess and incompleteness of the world in which we live. There are weeds among us. There is blight. There are infestations of wriggling insects. From time to time there arises, on the horizon, a dark and seething plague of locusts, that threatens to devour the seedbeds we’ve so carefully tended.

Have faith, says the gardener. Have patience. The seeds are planted. The sun will shine. The soft, spring rains will fall. The growth will come, in the fullness of time.


It’s a sure thing. As sure as the stone rolled away from the doorway of the tomb.”

The Lord is risen. Alleluia!

Best Tomato Photo '09

DA*55mm Lens

DA 21mm Limited Lens

At this year's PMA, after speaking with Yvon Bourque about various Pentax photography topics, our conversation turned to another of our passions - growing tomatoes. I thought about our tomato talk today, as I finally got around to planting a few of my favorite heirloom tomatoes.

It seems we have quite a few Pentaxians that are as passionate about growing their own tomatoes as taking photographs. Since many species of tomatoes are as lovely to view, as they are to eat, I'm thinking about having a "Best Tomato Photo '09" contest. For anyone that's tried, photographing tomatoes can be a pretty challenging assignment, requiring precise control of the lighting that falls on the fruit, especially since the waxy or shiny skin can create unattractive hotspots.

The idea for this contest, or challenge, is that you have to shoot the tomato on the vine, showing both the fruit and leaves. You would have to use only natural light, but could employ any type of reflectors or diffusers to balance the lighting. As shooting tomatoes on the vine requires that you balance both the ambient light falling on the fruit, and controlling the shadows that naturally occur under all the leaves, you'll find that setting up the perfect tomato photo is a lot harder than it looks.

I'm thinking that this contest should end in September to allow most folks enough time for their tomatoes to grow to full size. I haven't yet figured out how I'd host the images, nor what the prize for the best tomato photo will be. But I figure there's a little time to work out these details. In the meantime, I hope all you tomato lovers have already started your '09 crop, and if you have any ideas or suggestions about the contest please leave me a comment here on my blog.

Note 1: The contest will be limited to photos taken with any Pentax SLR, and submissions from Pentaxians worldwide will be accepted. Since many of my favorite heirloom tomatoes come from seeds that originated in Europe, and Momotaro is a Japanese variety, it wouldn't make sense to limit this challenge to US growers only.

Note 2: Only one photo will be accepted. The photo must be of an heirloom tomato and you'll have to submit the name of the variety as well.

Best wishes for a warm, sunnny season and happy tomato growing!

April 8, 2009 - Michael J. Fox

Michael J. Fox was the guest on Monday’s The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. I watched it a day later on our DVR.

Fox, of course, is a Parkinson’s Disease survivor. I found him inspiring. Take a look and see for yourself:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	M - Th 11p / 10c
Michael J. Fox
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I was struck by the fact that Michael kept his 1991 diagnosis secret for seven years. Undoubtedly, that was a tough time for him. He was one of the hottest talents in Hollywood, but he was leading a secret life as a chronic-disease patient. The knowledge of his slowly-worsening situation was hanging over his head.

Fox tells how he went a little crazy during those years – drinking too much, that sort of thing. But then, he came to a point where he grew comfortable with his diagnosis. He stopped fighting it. He learned to go with the flow. I wonder if that coincided with his going public with his medical situation?

It’s always tough to live a lie. Little by little, it tears you up inside. I’ve never regretted going public with my cancer diagnosis, as soon as I was sure that’s what it was.

I could relate to these words of his: “Once you accept it and fix it in space and say, ‘This is this and it’s not anything else and it’s not going to go away any time soon, and you're going to have to deal with it’ then you open up to all the stuff that’s around it and say, ‘Wow, this gives me an opportunity to help people out, this gives me an opportunity to look at things in a way that I might not have looked at them before...’”

Fox even gave voice to the cancer survivor’s mantra, at one point: “It is what it is.” How many times have I heard people with cancer say that?

Note it, and move on.

There’s a kind of strength that comes from facing our life-situation honestly, and trying to live as resolutely as we can in the present. It does little good to pine for our pre-diagnosis days, nor does it help us to obsess about the future. The art of living with a chronic disease lies in living in the now.

Accept it. Fix it in space, as Fox says. Admit, “This is this and it’s not anything else and it’s not going to go away.” Then, go searching for the blessings that are still around: and there are many.

Thanks, Michael. You’re a great example for all of us.

April 6, 2009 - Looking for Life in All the Wrong Places

Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem is what I preached on yesterday. No surprise there – it was Palm Sunday.

Actually, it’s not a foregone conclusion that a sermon on the Sunday before Easter will be one of the Palm Sunday passages from the Gospels. This past Sunday is also called “Passion Sunday,” so lectionary-minded preachers have the option of expanding their field of vision to include any incident from Jesus’ last week before the crucifixion.

This week I took the traditional approach, looking at John’s version of the triumphal entry (John 12:12-19). Generally, I resist the easy path of harmonizing the various Gospel accounts (by “harmonizing” I mean combining all the details of these different witnesses’ testimony into a single version). Whenever I focus on just one story, treating it as though it were the only account we have, I find it so much richer in meaning.

Examining John’s account, I found myself fixating on verse 17: “So the crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to testify.” Unlike the other Gospel-writers, John sees Jesus’ triumphal entry as the direct outgrowth of Jesus’ greatest miracle, the raising of his friend Lazarus from death. The people waving palms by the roadside were ecstatic because of what Jesus had done for Lazarus. Since waving palms was like waving a national flag, that also says the crowds understood this unprecedented miracle as a sign that Jesus is the hoped-for Messiah.

From the sermon:

“Having heard the good news of the Lazarus miracle, these people are looking for life – but, they’re looking in all the wrong places. The life they’re looking for is very much like the new life of Lazarus: a mere extension of human life. Jesus may have raised Lazarus from the tomb, but he didn’t resurrect him – not in the sense that Jesus himself would soon be resurrected. When Jesus is raised on Easter, he’s raised to life eternal. Lazarus is merely resuscitated: he’s given maybe a decade or two of extended life, after which, he too will die – this time, for good.

By the same token, you know, there are lots of people today putting enormous energy into discovering ways to extend human life. Whether it’s preventing cancer, developing a new open-heart surgery technique or finding a cure for HIV/AIDS, these are all commendable efforts – but, even these pale before the good news of Easter. Easter’s not about resuscitation, such as Lazarus experienced. Easter’s about resurrection: resurrection to a life that’s not merely extended, but eternal!”

As I continue to trek to Dr. Lerner’s office for my monthly port flushes, and less frequently to hospitals for CT or PET scans, I’m very interested in extending my own life. All this, of course, is played out against the backdrop of the Christian promise of eternal life, which is something altogether different.

And that’s what Easter is all about.