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| Photo: © Stan Banos |
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Partisan update 2022! | |
Cringe... as you witness Russia's No.1 Spy Chief nearly piss himself in the presence of the Soviet Union's former No.1 Spy Chief, as the latter considers putting his confused underling out of his pain permanently!
This is everyone's worst public speaking nightmare come true...
I once thought that the levees in New Orleans were these audaciously high palisades of steel, earth and fortified concrete that rose precipitously skyward to protect their vulnerable inhabitants behind and below. And... uhh... they're anything but! They're mostly fairly modest earthen constructions and modifications of gradual incline (as seen below), wouldn't notice most if not pointed out- and they're still in need of further updating if they are to meet the future (and even present) needs of those relying on their protection from the full ravages of oncoming climate change. And New Orleans is not the only place that will need them- more like every inhabited coastline... of every continent on the planet.
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| Photo: © Stan Banos |
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| Don't ask. Photo: © Stan Banos |
I had previously noticed that every so often (about 1 out of every 30 shots or so), either X-T1 would produce an off focus image using my 14mm (21mm equivalent), even without action in direct sunlight. It never cost me a photo I really liked until this one, and it usually (though not always) occurs when I reshoot the same composition repeatedly (something I don't usually do)- as if though the focusing algorithm (or whatever) couldn't deal with the fact that it had to refocus a scene already in focus and then instead of just laying low and leaving well enough alone, just panics and short circuits. Dunno, but that's my 'tech breakdown' till someone offers a better one.
I've been resisting using manual focus in a digital world, perhaps, a viable alternative is to just make better use of the back focus button- I keep forgetting it's there, that it actually exists, it's not part of my muscle memory. Though I'll have to concentrate on doing just that, since I'm not getting rid of either X-T1, I still value their image making capabilities, and their resale value is well past due. It's just hard to... focus and/or concentrate all that much on anything when confronted with subject matter as above...
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| Photo: © Stan Banos |
No harm, no foul, I dusted myself off and proceeded to do the laundry upon arrival. When the GR3 came out and I saw its $900 price tag, I rather wisely began the hunt and landed a rather minty, used GR for $350- it's patiently waiting in the wings for when the physics even out. As it inevitably will...
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| Photo: © Stan Banos |
One top (Black) female Olympic athlete is banned for using a mild recreational, non performance enhancing drug, another top (White) female Olympic athlete is allowed to compete despite using a performance enhancing drug. No, two different, separate sets of rules definitely not in play here!
What's the fuss? Who doesn't know Classified material takes 10 flushes, Top Secret... 15!
on Benghazi and yet... ABSOLUTE, FUCKIN', CRICKETS on Trumpwad crunching up, ripping up and flushing documents down the toilet. Not to mention Ivanka and Jared using private phones for government business, and the burner phones used in "the war room" at the hotel where Trump's henchman plotted stealing the election!
So let's see... it's an actual law, very clearly written and just as clearly broken, repeatedly and with obvious malice aforethought (since he was also repeatedly advised and warned)- the latter the key obstacle so hard to prove in court to gain conviction.
So why does this blatant disregard of law (amongst others) by a nation's top official warrant little more than a most astute joke by a late night comedian? How about said chief executive being held liable for its consequences exactly as written:
forfeit of office, and disqualification from holding any office.
Photo: © Stan Banos
Now, just a wee bit closer/OK, maybe a step back! I wanted to catch this woman's head dead center in the opening between the trees on either side. I also wanted to position her smack in the middle of of the the arced construction midground. So I moved a tad this way and that trying to nail my perfectly imagined composition, and in so doing, rather (in)conveniently managed to discombobulate the remainder of the original composition. Sometimes ya can't make it all right just on your side of the equation no matter how you work it, particularly when confronted with an unwilling, uncooperative 'model.' In this case, compromise was the word, my imaginary stab at total symmetrical perfection was not in the cards.
Fortunately, I think the composition still has enough going for it as is, the light is gorgeous and maybe being slightly off balance even works in its favor- maybe it's not a Pulitzer, but it's a keeper...
...things said by Republicans. True, I could spend the rest of my natural days writing this particular post with a ton of the near hilarious stupidity they just happen to fabricate and spout without the slightest forethought or shadow of sentient self realization, but these two shining examples from 2/04 will do. One is by an actual Republican lawmaker (all Republican lawmakers should be made to watch School House Rock), the other by a diehard believer.
Photographers are constantly seeking to expand their horizons beyond the normal to see things differently, if only for that one shot. Film goers are constantly seeking to escape the normality of our everyday lives by leaving reality behind within the confines of the movie theater. Irony has a way of transcending reality when, and how, we least expect it. And this most certainly qualifies as the convergence of all the aforementioned in a manner most sublime.
