Sounds like you have a good argument to help convince the wife that you need a four wheeler with a plow.
Dude...reps on the way for reading my mind!
I've already been looking and will have one before too long. I've got almost 2 grand saved up for one, but I won't borrow for it, so about 3 grand more...
I've already been looking and will have one before too long. I've got almost 2 grand saved up for one, but I won't borrow for it, so about 3 grand more...
So funny that was exactly my plan!
What are you saving money for? Just search craigslist and I'm sure someone will give you a brand new one for $100 and throw in the plow, trailer and full tank with two full five gallon cans for free. Once word gets out that "The Keetman" is searching CL the offers will start pouring in.
What are you saving money for? Just search craigslist and I'm sure someone will give you a brand new one for $100 and throw in the plow, trailer and full tank with two full five gallon cans for free. Once word gets out that "The Keetman" is searching CL the offers will start pouring in.
lol.....if it were only that easy and I were only that good!
More people know what they have than the New Year's exercise folks!
I've already been looking and will have one before too long. I've got almost 2 grand saved up for one, but I won't borrow for it, so about 3 grand more...
So funny that was exactly my plan!
You'll need a big truck. Say, an Eff Tree-fiddy.
You need a rack, bench and 300-lb. Oly set. Now, what was your question?
()---() York Barbell Club #1 ()---() []---[] Equipment Crew #36 []---[] []---[] Ivanko Barbell Crew #51 []---[]
I hiked up to Tom's Thumb on Wednesday. I split off from the main trail early and went up one of the climber's access trails. I had fun on the trail I hiked, but I can't recommend it for everyone as it was steep, loose, and hard to follow. Fortunately, I was able to join up with the main (Tom's Thumb) trail for the descent.
I used a new lens on Wednesday. It's a 35mm, f/1.8 prime. (Mensa convinced me to try a few primes.) I thought I would find lack of zoom to be limiting. There were a few instances when I wanted to zoom out a bit, but I was usually able to find another vantage point; I just had to work a bit more for it.
I ventured into KBKB's neck of the woods today and hiked Tom's Thumb Trail in the Scottsdale McDowell Sonoran Preserve. Long drive. Yikes!!
The trail was awesome and the scenery and geography is like nothing else I've seen. We hiked all the way to Tom's Thumb and on the way back, went the extra mile and went up to the Lookout. The little sign there said we were at 3858' elevation. I will definitely go back and hike other trails in the Preserve.
Here's a couple pics.
Me standing in front of Tom's Thumb. I'm the little guy on the rock.
I thought this pic was cool because of the window in the rock.
I thought this pic was cool because of the window in the rock.
That rock formation is known (in the climbing guidebooks) as "Glass Dome". My son and I did a couple of climbs on it a few years ago. He lead both climbs; on the first one, I topped out. On the second, he got to the top, but on the way up, I realized that he hadn't protected it well enough to prevent me from swinging into that window area if I fell. So, instead, I made my way over to the boulders on top of the window. He rappelled down to where I was and then continued down the rest of the way.
I hiked up to Tom's Thumb on Wednesday. I split off from the main trail early and went up one of the climber's access trails. I had fun on the trail I hiked, but I can't recommend it for everyone as it was steep, loose, and hard to follow. Fortunately, I was able to join up with the main (Tom's Thumb) trail for the descent.
I used a new lens on Wednesday. It's a 35mm, f/1.8 prime. (Mensa convinced me to try a few primes.) I thought I would find lack of zoom to be limiting. There were a few instances when I wanted to zoom out a bit, but I was usually able to find another vantage point; I just had to work a bit more for it.
Hopefully you will enjoy using a few prime lenses, and you are trying out some of the less expensive ones. They have some good priced ones, as well as some pretty expensive ones. What were your initial thoughts? Did you use less processing in your work flow on them? There are some good defined shadows, over a varied level in a few of the pics. The low f is going to offer that open/speed to get some things "in" that you may not have thought about. Now, having said there, there are limitations, and that's where having multiple primes, as well as a zoom at hand, works well. The upside of getting used to using primes outdoors, is they work pretty good on indoor action shots as well. It does take a bit, to get used to knowing where to be for indoor framing/shots. Just another tool in the box to use. I like the pics you posted. There is a different level in them.
Hopefully you will enjoy using a few prime lenses... What were your initial thoughts? Did you use less processing in your work flow on them?
I'm really happy with the color and sharpness of the images I got using the 35mm prime. (I got my wife a 24mm and a 50mm prime for her camera. But I can use them too via an adapter.)
With regard to processing the image, I'm definitely using fewer sharpening steps because the images are wonderfully sharp from the start. However, this sharpness makes me more aware of problems with my layer masks when blending layers with different exposure or color temperature values. For some of those images, I found myself taking a lot of time trying to get the masks just right.
One of the things I noticed today while working on images from Friday's hike is that the camera's white balance presets seem to be different for this lens versus that of one of my zoom lenses. It may be that they're different for all lenses; I hadn't noticed up until now. I'm thinking now that if the WB can change from lens to lens, then the color calibration profile probably has too. I probably should create separate profiles for each lens.
The f/1.8 aperture came in handy when it started getting dark. I was able to get the middle exposure for each of the shots below, hand-held, at ISO 100 using f/2.2, 1/200 sec and f/2.0, 1/100 sec respectively. In each case, I was far enough away from the subject for the limited depth of field to not be an issue. Keeping it at ISO 100 (or something else fairly low) is a big deal because there's a lot more noise when using higher ISO values. Detail diminishes as you increase the amount of noise reduction.
I blended two exposures for the shot above because I wanted to show detail in the mountain, but hopefully I still kept it dark enough for the sunset to be believable. I only used one exposure for the photo below, but did extra processing to bring out more contrast in the clouds.
That rock formation is known (in the climbing guidebooks) as "Glass Dome". My son and I did a couple of climbs on it a few years ago. He lead both climbs; on the first one, I topped out. On the second, he got to the top, but on the way up, I realized that he hadn't protected it well enough to prevent me from swinging into that window area if I fell. So, instead, I made my way over to the boulders on top of the window. He rappelled down to where I was and then continued down the rest of the way.
Nice photos!
I saw the sign that pointed to the climbing area and that it was named Glass Dome. I asked my buddy if he had any idea why it was named that. Neither of us could come up with anything that sounded sensible!!
I saw the sign that pointed to the climbing area and that it was named Glass Dome. I asked my buddy if he had any idea why it was named that. Neither of us could come up with anything that sounded sensible!!
I'm not certain either. Phoenix Rock, by Jim Waugh, has this to say about it: "This area yields moderate and difficult climbs. Although short in length, the rock in most areas is unusually polished and is worth the extra hike." It might have gotten the "glass" part of its name due to the polished nature of the rock. I'm guessing that the "dome" part is from being vaguely domed shaped - but only vaguely.
Here's another view of Glass Dome from my hike on Wednesday. You can sort of see the dome shape in this shot.
The start of a new year means new members will be signing up to bb.com in hopes (sometimes dashed) of improved fitness. For the new members, I post this video of epic gym fails. Note rack curling at 4:10.
You need a rack, bench and 300-lb. Oly set. Now, what was your question?
()---() York Barbell Club #1 ()---() []---[] Equipment Crew #36 []---[] []---[] Ivanko Barbell Crew #51 []---[]
Happy New Year. No drunk typing this year....I've been drinking, but only moderately as my wife was driving and she has to work tomorrow....so Keetman had the brakes applied prematurely!
JFindon....at least you got a picture of it before your congress critters take it away next week......
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Sounds like you have a good argument to help convince the wife that you need a four wheeler with a plow.
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