Jan. 7th, 2012

plonq: (Oolong mood)
There are four things worth mentioning in this picture, some worth mentioning more than others.

First, there are three houses in this shot that would not have been there if I had taken this same picture the last time I did this Year In Pictures project. The owner (or owners) of two of the lots behind our house subdivided the properties and did some in-filling of houses. Part of me misses having a view through to the next street, but at the same time I feel for the people who lost half of their yard to one of the houses. They are only renters, but one has to think that the yard would have been part of the consideration in renting a house. I am speaking specifically about the bungalow in the centre of the frame. They used to have a yard on one side of the house, and an open lot on the other. Now they are tightly wedged between a pair of two-story houses that are close enough to reach out a window and touch.

The second thing of note is that the Belt of Venus is running across the sky in the background. I didn't even notice that when I took the shot, and only saw it when I was pulling the pictures off my camera later this evening.

The third thing is that we went from record highs and bare ground yesterday to a fresh dump of heavy, wet snow today. The temperatures are supposed to fluctuate over the next few days, and some of this will surely melt (which is not a word you usually associate with January around here), but I think that most of this snow will be with us until April.

Finally, I took this picture with one of the trick modes on the camera called the Toy Camera Effect. Enabling this mode essentially makes the camera mimic a cheap, toy camera complete with a vignette effect in the corners. It's a neat effect, and I can see myself using it now and then when I am feeling artsy and pretentious, but I didn't go out and buy this camera with the intention of making it take pictures like a $15 plastic one.

I think what would be a way cooler feature would be a setting on a cheap camera that made it mimic a much more expensive one. I'd probably turn that feature on and use it all the time if I had that.

20120106
plonq: (Intense mood)
When you live with little photogenic creatures like cats, you are never without a subject for pictures. This is not to say that cats are always good or willing subjects when you pull out the camera. In fact as soon as they see it in your hand, they either do their best to avoid eye contact with it, or try their hardest to get snot on the lens.

On the other hand if you can catch them in a moment of distraction, such as when they are trying to figure out a way to get onto your lap before you notice, then you can sometimes capture a good shot.

20120107

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