Gone to See North America Road Trip. Day 03: Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota.
Painted Canyon Panorama. Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Composite of 9 images taken with a Nikon D3 camera and 85 mm f/2.8 PC-E lens (ISO 200, 85 mm, f/16, 1/40 sec). Raw images reprocessed in 2019 with Capture One Pro (BM-02 Teton Style). Composite generated with AutoPano Giga Pro. A 48 x 17 inch print is available for sale. The individual images going into the panorama are included below.
Painted Canyon Panorama. Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Composite of 9 images taken with a Nikon D3 camera and 85 mm f/2.8 PC-E lens (ISO 200, 85 mm, f/16, 1/40 sec). Raw images processed with Capture One Pro (BM-02 Teton Style). Composite generated with AutoPano Giga Pro. (David J Mathre)
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North American Gypsy Moth Caterpillars in a Silk Nest. Image taken with a Nikon D300 camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 280, 400 mm, f/8, 1/250 sec). Since the Gypsy Moths are so destructive, I removed and burned the nest right after taking the picture.
North American Gypsy Moth Caterpillars in a Silken Net. Image taken with a Nikon D300 camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 280, 400 mm, f/8, 1/250 sec). (David J Mathre)
Lone Rabbit. Image taken with a Nikon D200 camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/10 sec). The ninth image taken with the camera. Not a very good image, but it does show that the vibration reduction (VR) helps since this was hand-held with a relatively long (1/10 sec) exposure. Below are the original jpg image, an updated version from 2010, an updated version using current tools (2019). For the current version the image was first converted from jpg (8 bit) to a tif (16 bit) file with Topaz JPG to RAW AI, and processed using Capture One Pro. I then attempted to sharpen the rabbit with Focus Magic (motion blur) and Topaz Sharpen AI (stabilize). Not perfect, but much better than the original.
Lone Rabbit. Image taken with a Nikon D200 and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/10 sec). Original jpg image. (David Mathre)Lone Rabbit. Image taken with a Nikon D200 and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/10 sec). Processed with tools available in 2010. (David J Mathre)Lone Rabbit. Image taken with a Nikon D200 and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/10 sec). Processed with tools available in 2019. (David Mathre)Lone Rabbit. Image taken with a Nikon D200 and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/10 sec). Original jpg image cropped. (David Mathre)Lone Rabbit. Image taken with a Nikon D200 and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/10 sec). Processed with current tools (2019) and motion blur removed with Focus Magic. (David Mathre)Lone Rabbit. Image taken with a Nikon D200 and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/10 sec). Processed with current tools (2019) and Topaz Sharpen AI – stabilize. (David Mathre)
Today is my thirteenth anniversary of using a DSLR camera. I have made many mistakes, and learned a lot since then. Over this time I have taken over 2 MM images. I save everything, and continually review the bad images and failed compositions to become a better photographer. Part of the reason I go back and review images taken on each day of the year. Initially, I only used Nikon DSLR cameras (D200, D300 (2x), D700, D800, D810a, D850, D2xs (2x), D3 (2x), D3s, D3x, D4, Df, and D5). More recently I have been using smaller mirrorless cameras Nikon (N1-V1, N1-V2, and N1-V3 (2x)), Leica (X1, X2, T (2x), TL2, CL), and Fuji (X-T1 (2x) X-T2, X-T3, X-H1). Of these, only two failed — Nikon Df (shutter sleeves buckled while in Antarctica, subsequently repaired), and one of the Fuji X-T1 (water damage while visiting Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, not repairable). Some of the cameras my brothers, sisters, nephews, and nieces are using. I have also used a large collection of lenses (macro, prime, zoom, telephoto, perspective control, fish-eye). Recently, I have been trying out some 360 degree panorama cameras.
For the initial trip across the US with the D200 camera I had the kit 18-70 mm lens and the 80-400 mm telephoto zoom lens. I didn’t know how to use the camera, and the manual wasn’t much help. Somehow, I got some great images during the trip and became hooked on photography as my new passion. I have always been the type of person that has to learn and become an expert of something new every few years. I’ve had many great mentors to guide me, and have been on many photo related trips. I’ve had cameras with me on every one of my Semester at Sea voyages, visiting over 50 countries. Now that I am retired from corporate America, I can spend my time with photography and travel. I probably am not going to buy new cameras and lenses as often – and believe that “the best camera is the one that is with you”.
Daily Walkabout, today with a Fuji X-T3 camera and 200 mm f/2 lens. It was cloudy with light rain. Also 20 degrees cooler than yesterday. The Fuji X-T3 camera is supposed to be weather resistant. [I did have a Fuji X-T1 camera fail six months after visiting Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, and was told that the camera was not repairable due to water damage to the electronic circuits.] No butterflies or hummingbird moths out since it was raining, so today is all Sunflowers.
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Daily Electric Energy Used (43.0 kWh) from Sense and Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (21.2 kWh) from SolSystems and Locus Energy. Cooler outside temperatures reduced the need for cooling, but much less sunlight reduced the solar energy generated, for a net deficit of 21.8 kWh. Cooler weather expected tomorrow!
One note — the WaterFurnace Symphony software indicated the system used 4 kWh, however the Sense Energy monitor indicated that the geothermal heat pump used 7 kWh. I tend to believe the Sense numbers since they more closely the energy being recorded at the external power company (PSE&G) meters. I’ve asked the WaterFurnace folks in the past about the discrepancy, but they didn’t have a good answer. The Sense folks told me they thought that the WaterFurnace/Symphony system was only measuring one phase of the energy even though the system is powered by the 220V circuit (using two phases). I wish an electrical engineer that understands this better would correct me here.
Gone to see Europe. Semester at Sea. Fall 2012 Semester Voyage on the MV Explorer. Day 01: Embark and Depart from Halifax, Canada.
The students boarded the MV Explorer in shifts beginning at 08:00. It was an efficient process, and most everyone was on board by 11:00. We were told that after lunch that there would be a mandatory evacuation drill. Everyone was supposed to get their life-jacket and report to their evacuation station wearing long pants, long shirt, shoes, and a hat. Once we got to our station, the ship staff did a roll call to make sure everyone was accounted for and present. The drill is required before the ship can leave port. After the drill was completed, we were ready to leave at 17:00. Most everyone lined up on the open decks to watch the departure. The parents and relatives that came were all lined up on the roof of the port terminal. Michael Mariant was set up to take a series of images from Deck 7 that will be combined into a time-lapse video for the entire Fall 2012 Voyage.
Weather permitting I plan to take an early morning image during dawn or sunrise, and an evening image at sunset or during dusk. I did this exercise during the previous two Enrichment voyages on the MV Explorer, and got images with great colors.
Sunrise over the Lighthouse Island in Halifax Harbor from the MV Explorer. Image taken with a Nikon 1 V1 camera and 10-30 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 16.3 mm, f/4.2, 1/800 sec). (David J Mathre)Sailboat and Lighthouse in the Halifax Harbor. Image taken with a Nikon 1 V1 camera and 30-110 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 93.5 mm, f/8, 1/320 sec). Watercolor effect applied using a Topaz Simplify/Painterly filter. (David J Mathre)Evacuation/Lifeboat Drill. Image taken with a Leica V-Lux 30 camera (ISO 400, 4.3 mm, f/4, 1/15 sec) (David J Mathre)MV Explorer Departure from Halifax, Nova Scotia. Image taken with a Nikon N1 V1 camera and 10 mm f/2.8 lens (ISO 100, 10 mm, f/4.5, 1/640 sec). (David J Mathre)Sunset from Deck 7 of the MV Explorer in the Atlantic Ocean. Image taken with a Nikon 1 V1 camera and 10 mm f/2.8 lens (ISO 100, 10 mm, f/4.5, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)
