U.S. arrests a Canadian!
So the American’s are now arresting Canadian political activists – IN CANADA! The RCMP picked up Marc Emery in the Maritimes yesterday “on behalf of the U.S. government.”
Is it just me or is this a terrifying step in the wrong direction? Last I checked (despite free trade etc) we were still a sovereign nation with our own laws and ethics and political system. Since when do U.S. authorities get to decide which Canadian CITIZENS can be arrested WITHIN Canada for alleged crimes carried out IN Canada!!??
Again is it just me or is the media not making enough of this rather shocking step? I, like a vast number of people around the world, consider George Bush a war criminal, maybe we should have him arrested and brought here to face charges. Just a thought.
Saturday, July 30, 2005
Friday, July 29, 2005
Long weekend
Woo hoo, long weekend, three hot, sunny, beautiful days to enjoy hardly working. In my two month's here this is probably the 2nd or 3rd least work I've had to do over a weekend. Cold beer, hot weather, just missing that one last thing and life’d be perfect.
It looks like town is preparing for a disaster, residential streets lined with campers, people cutting work to load up, that warm fuzzy you get when a community comes together for a common purpose, to ward off floods or escape fires...or drink beer by a lake in Saskatchewan.
The video crew last weekend was impressed with the average middle-America look of this town and said they’d likely be back to shoot Chevy commercials. There is a certain mid-western Norman Rockwell eccentricity which, depending on your mood and perspective, can be comfortable or creepy.
I like how the mayor is just another main street shopkeeper and how all the most important people give you home numbers. As an old fashion guy I like that they sell tapes in the grocery store - for my younger friends that's what we listened to music on back in the day. It bums me out that the best selection of CD's (the only selection of CD's) is at the drug-slash-dollar store and the hippest thing they sell is Britney Spears and Tim McGraw.
It weirds me out that I live right in the middle of town and there's a trailer park between here and main street. It's also strange and annoying that half the town seems unpaved. That leads to a sense that it's unfinished, yet it doesn't feel new, it feels like they quit half way through fifty years ago and never got around to finishing.
On the other hand there is an amazing town spirit of the sort I am unfamiliar with. Not a corny contrived Saturday Night Live sketch cheerleader spirit, just a real sense of place and home and camaraderie. People actually come out to events and take part and volunteer for projects and live in this town intentionally.
Anyway I'm blathering, trying to get into the long weekend spirit, but I'm going to enjoy the sun. Merry Xmas.
_____
Frink: Here we have an ordinary square.
Wiggum: Woah! Slow down egghead!
Woo hoo, long weekend, three hot, sunny, beautiful days to enjoy hardly working. In my two month's here this is probably the 2nd or 3rd least work I've had to do over a weekend. Cold beer, hot weather, just missing that one last thing and life’d be perfect.
It looks like town is preparing for a disaster, residential streets lined with campers, people cutting work to load up, that warm fuzzy you get when a community comes together for a common purpose, to ward off floods or escape fires...or drink beer by a lake in Saskatchewan.
The video crew last weekend was impressed with the average middle-America look of this town and said they’d likely be back to shoot Chevy commercials. There is a certain mid-western Norman Rockwell eccentricity which, depending on your mood and perspective, can be comfortable or creepy.
I like how the mayor is just another main street shopkeeper and how all the most important people give you home numbers. As an old fashion guy I like that they sell tapes in the grocery store - for my younger friends that's what we listened to music on back in the day. It bums me out that the best selection of CD's (the only selection of CD's) is at the drug-slash-dollar store and the hippest thing they sell is Britney Spears and Tim McGraw.
It weirds me out that I live right in the middle of town and there's a trailer park between here and main street. It's also strange and annoying that half the town seems unpaved. That leads to a sense that it's unfinished, yet it doesn't feel new, it feels like they quit half way through fifty years ago and never got around to finishing.
On the other hand there is an amazing town spirit of the sort I am unfamiliar with. Not a corny contrived Saturday Night Live sketch cheerleader spirit, just a real sense of place and home and camaraderie. People actually come out to events and take part and volunteer for projects and live in this town intentionally.
Anyway I'm blathering, trying to get into the long weekend spirit, but I'm going to enjoy the sun. Merry Xmas.
_____
Frink: Here we have an ordinary square.
Wiggum: Woah! Slow down egghead!
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
Fright night
Had another fright last night (see June 24 post on creepy noises). This wasn’t one of those late night noises you can barely hear, it was the opposite. I was sitting watching TV in my living room mid-evening, volume fairly high if anything, computer was on near bye, fan on etc., ie. not that late night sound magnification thing.
I was sitting near my big picture window (curtain closed) when there was a massive crashing sound that almost made me shriek as I leapt from my seat afraid something was coming through. The bjesus came right out of me - bit messy.
My first thought was of something breaking, roof collapsing, tree falling into it but to my surprise the window didn’t break. Being at ground level near the street my next thought was of someone pounding on the window and with no way to see out without opening the curtain or door it took me a second to get the courage to look out…nothing in sight.
Never did find any clue to what happened. My best guess is a bird crashing into it though I’ve never heard of that happening at night – why would a bird fly into what it can obviously see is some kind of window or wall? No reflection of sky which is what tricks them during the day. Though I’ve never seen the slightest hint of mischievous teens in the neighbourhood who may have been pulling a prank, that would be my next guess. There is no tree nearby that could have blown against it and upon inspection I found no sign of damage or feathers etc.
Anyway, just another funny reason why I seem to average about 5 hours sleep a night. Though I wasn’t in bed, or even all that close to trying, I have enough trouble falling asleep at the best of times and events like that set me back a good hour or two. Is it just me? Maybe I’m just a big chicken shit.
____________
Bart Simpson: I'm not calling you a liar but....I can't think of a way to finish that sentence.
Had another fright last night (see June 24 post on creepy noises). This wasn’t one of those late night noises you can barely hear, it was the opposite. I was sitting watching TV in my living room mid-evening, volume fairly high if anything, computer was on near bye, fan on etc., ie. not that late night sound magnification thing.
I was sitting near my big picture window (curtain closed) when there was a massive crashing sound that almost made me shriek as I leapt from my seat afraid something was coming through. The bjesus came right out of me - bit messy.
My first thought was of something breaking, roof collapsing, tree falling into it but to my surprise the window didn’t break. Being at ground level near the street my next thought was of someone pounding on the window and with no way to see out without opening the curtain or door it took me a second to get the courage to look out…nothing in sight.
Never did find any clue to what happened. My best guess is a bird crashing into it though I’ve never heard of that happening at night – why would a bird fly into what it can obviously see is some kind of window or wall? No reflection of sky which is what tricks them during the day. Though I’ve never seen the slightest hint of mischievous teens in the neighbourhood who may have been pulling a prank, that would be my next guess. There is no tree nearby that could have blown against it and upon inspection I found no sign of damage or feathers etc.
Anyway, just another funny reason why I seem to average about 5 hours sleep a night. Though I wasn’t in bed, or even all that close to trying, I have enough trouble falling asleep at the best of times and events like that set me back a good hour or two. Is it just me? Maybe I’m just a big chicken shit.
____________
Bart Simpson: I'm not calling you a liar but....I can't think of a way to finish that sentence.
Monday, July 25, 2005
Nickelback back and gone
So as you can see (below) I covered Nickelback’s visit here to their hometown this weekend and mostly stood with the fans and shot pictures from a distance.
The production crew had been in town all week and I’d made friends with them including the director Nigel Dick, one of the most famous music video directors in the world. I had full permission from him and the highest ranking record company exec. I could reach to get access and while they were shooting B-roll stuff around town I did have full access.
When the band showed up they were surrounded by security, friends, family, record company lackey’s, a Much Music crew shooting a special and worst off an evil PR rep who made it her mission in life to keep me as far away from the band as possible. As the only media chasing them most of the time I was a pretty easy target. I managed enough OK shots for what I needed but I never did get to the band for even a simple comment let alone an interview.
As the “paper of record” for their home town I figured I had a good shot at talking to them, however briefly, and I figure if I’d ever gotten close enough and ask, they would have been happy to, but evil PR lady was impressively vigilant. I had less trouble getting close to Paul Martin and bigger celebrities than this band.
Anyway that story, which will be in the Calgary Sun in some form tomorrow, took up a big portion of my last week so I’m relieved to be done.
Thanks to everyone who suggested questions, especially the serious ones like Scott, Audrey, Stefanie and people like Joe who’s girlfriend wanted me to ask Chad if he's trying to look like Jesus or if it's just a coincidence. And by the way Marcel, there is a charity program in town where merchants give people a nickel back – dunno any details. Oh, and Tara I didn’t know anything about the drummer situation, that was exactly the kind of thing I was looking for.
Aside from that it’s just been more of the same, work, boredom, wah, wah, wah. Been some big news stories recently, crazy London terrorist situation, and of course that sport thingy with the puck…meh.
I kinda liked not having hockey this year (right Manny & Jess?). Less disruption to the real TV sched. I had a lot of trouble taking anything about the multi-millionaire bitch fest all that seriously. I got a kick out of how they reported hockey players having salaries rolled back to $2 million or whatever as a loss, not as people being paid millions to play, like that actually counts for anything. The MINIMUM salary increased to $450,000 a season – for playing a GAME half the year! I better stop, as I think about it I’m getting angry.
It reminds me of a headline I saw on a business page once about the CEO of a major Canadian corporation having his compensation cut from something like $10 to $7 million because the company performed poorly that year…um, let me get this straight, you’re going to punish him by paying him $7 million?!
In other thrilling news from my random thoughts I met a guy who’s last name is Rice today and he’s from the neighbouring town (village? Hamlet?) of Cereal - I liked that but he didn’t seem to ever have put it together before.
Speaking of Cereal this corner of the world seems to have more than it’s share of oddly named communities like: Batter Junction, Bymore, Scapa, Bonar, Hartshorn, Endiang, Bullpound, Finnegan, Western Monarch, Michichi, Dinosaur, Hemaruka, Sedalia, Loyalist, Monitor, Kirriemuir, Naco…etc. Teeheehee, Bonar!
Another random thought: what's the deal with movie & TV scenes at airport boarding gates? Those areas have been strictly passenger only for decades and everyone knows it, yet every dramatic airport greeting or declaration of everlasting love happens right at the boarding gate, what’s up with that? Night.
______
Homer J. - "A gun is not a weapon Marge, it's a tool. Like a butcher knife, or a harpoon, or... or an alligator"
So as you can see (below) I covered Nickelback’s visit here to their hometown this weekend and mostly stood with the fans and shot pictures from a distance.
The production crew had been in town all week and I’d made friends with them including the director Nigel Dick, one of the most famous music video directors in the world. I had full permission from him and the highest ranking record company exec. I could reach to get access and while they were shooting B-roll stuff around town I did have full access.
When the band showed up they were surrounded by security, friends, family, record company lackey’s, a Much Music crew shooting a special and worst off an evil PR rep who made it her mission in life to keep me as far away from the band as possible. As the only media chasing them most of the time I was a pretty easy target. I managed enough OK shots for what I needed but I never did get to the band for even a simple comment let alone an interview.
As the “paper of record” for their home town I figured I had a good shot at talking to them, however briefly, and I figure if I’d ever gotten close enough and ask, they would have been happy to, but evil PR lady was impressively vigilant. I had less trouble getting close to Paul Martin and bigger celebrities than this band.
Anyway that story, which will be in the Calgary Sun in some form tomorrow, took up a big portion of my last week so I’m relieved to be done.
Thanks to everyone who suggested questions, especially the serious ones like Scott, Audrey, Stefanie and people like Joe who’s girlfriend wanted me to ask Chad if he's trying to look like Jesus or if it's just a coincidence. And by the way Marcel, there is a charity program in town where merchants give people a nickel back – dunno any details. Oh, and Tara I didn’t know anything about the drummer situation, that was exactly the kind of thing I was looking for.
Aside from that it’s just been more of the same, work, boredom, wah, wah, wah. Been some big news stories recently, crazy London terrorist situation, and of course that sport thingy with the puck…meh.
I kinda liked not having hockey this year (right Manny & Jess?). Less disruption to the real TV sched. I had a lot of trouble taking anything about the multi-millionaire bitch fest all that seriously. I got a kick out of how they reported hockey players having salaries rolled back to $2 million or whatever as a loss, not as people being paid millions to play, like that actually counts for anything. The MINIMUM salary increased to $450,000 a season – for playing a GAME half the year! I better stop, as I think about it I’m getting angry.
It reminds me of a headline I saw on a business page once about the CEO of a major Canadian corporation having his compensation cut from something like $10 to $7 million because the company performed poorly that year…um, let me get this straight, you’re going to punish him by paying him $7 million?!
In other thrilling news from my random thoughts I met a guy who’s last name is Rice today and he’s from the neighbouring town (village? Hamlet?) of Cereal - I liked that but he didn’t seem to ever have put it together before.
Speaking of Cereal this corner of the world seems to have more than it’s share of oddly named communities like: Batter Junction, Bymore, Scapa, Bonar, Hartshorn, Endiang, Bullpound, Finnegan, Western Monarch, Michichi, Dinosaur, Hemaruka, Sedalia, Loyalist, Monitor, Kirriemuir, Naco…etc. Teeheehee, Bonar!
Another random thought: what's the deal with movie & TV scenes at airport boarding gates? Those areas have been strictly passenger only for decades and everyone knows it, yet every dramatic airport greeting or declaration of everlasting love happens right at the boarding gate, what’s up with that? Night.
______
Homer J. - "A gun is not a weapon Marge, it's a tool. Like a butcher knife, or a harpoon, or... or an alligator"
Saturday, July 23, 2005
Sunday, July 17, 2005
Haven't posted in a while, sorry if you've been checking, just too bored and disillusioned to bother. Weather's been co-operating photo wise, been getting some nice ones. Started posting some on flickr (link at bottom of 'friends' list at right. It's good to be able to get some on there but I'm not that happy with how they organise them and with my epic computer struggles and chronic boredom I haven't gotten around to doing anything better yet.
I'm gonna try to get back at this cause it is fun when I do it. Cheerio & keep yer pantaloon's on.
I'm gonna try to get back at this cause it is fun when I do it. Cheerio & keep yer pantaloon's on.
Saturday, July 09, 2005
Eat my shorts
I have a confession to make. I'm only admitting it because it's an old story and several people already know. I bought a pair of shorts at Value Village on my way to a party during an early summer heat wave (Joe’s party, for those who remember). I threw them on and was rather shocked to discover they were backwards, left handed shorts that were a struggle to do up. Hmm, I thought, oh well, they make left-handed everything else, why not clothes.
I got to the party and mentioned to a group of people "hey wanna hear something weird, I'm wearing left handed shorts! ever heard of that before?" to which of course someone deadpanned "they’re girl shorts."
Maybe this should have been more embarrassing, but really how was I supposed to know, I've never worn women's clothes (really) and I've never paid much attention to how they do up (fabric & functionality are not big issues for men in that area of woman's clothing). And they were in the mens section…I think.
Anyway the confession is, I'm still wearing the shorts. They’re my favourites - is that wrong?
Ps. Why is it a “pair” of pants or shorts?
I have a confession to make. I'm only admitting it because it's an old story and several people already know. I bought a pair of shorts at Value Village on my way to a party during an early summer heat wave (Joe’s party, for those who remember). I threw them on and was rather shocked to discover they were backwards, left handed shorts that were a struggle to do up. Hmm, I thought, oh well, they make left-handed everything else, why not clothes.
I got to the party and mentioned to a group of people "hey wanna hear something weird, I'm wearing left handed shorts! ever heard of that before?" to which of course someone deadpanned "they’re girl shorts."
Maybe this should have been more embarrassing, but really how was I supposed to know, I've never worn women's clothes (really) and I've never paid much attention to how they do up (fabric & functionality are not big issues for men in that area of woman's clothing). And they were in the mens section…I think.
Anyway the confession is, I'm still wearing the shorts. They’re my favourites - is that wrong?
Ps. Why is it a “pair” of pants or shorts?
A summer breeze
Left work early, as usual, a stiff flap of wind was kicking dust into the bright sun, just missing the tumbleweed. The wind was warm and eerily quiet. I hopped in Pepé the wonder car and headed down Main Street. The mayor waved from his woman's shoe store, Karen in the deli/bakery waved. I saw Chris in the bank and the old farmer I interviewed today nodded at me as I drove past at the unspoken speed limit of 35 km/h.
Young constable ### waved overly friendly as we passed slowly in an intersection. In my first week in town, the day after my introduction and photo was on the front page, he pulled me over for rolling through a stop sign, where there was no one else around. I’ve been told since it was likely because I had BC plates. He happened to pull me over in front of my office so I grabbed my camera and notebook and hoped out, at which the poor guy scrambled for a moment like some Police Academy slapstick and yelled, “stay in your car! stay in your car!” probably thinking he’d have to draw his gun for the first time. Anyway he quickly recognised me and has been apologising ever since.
As I drove home, past the cop, the baker and the women’s shoe maker, for several minutes I forgot where I was and felt kind of at home. Some kind of storm’s blowin’ in - though on the prairies I'm starting to realise there's always something blowing in...or out. Either way you can watch features drift along the horizon for hours. Sometimes they steer south of town and everyone says "looks like the old Hampstead farm's gettin all the rain today," or "well at least old man Tarington’ll be happy down there."
I got home to my stinky little place and went for a nice walk in the surreal summer weather. It was a nice afternoon.
Left work early, as usual, a stiff flap of wind was kicking dust into the bright sun, just missing the tumbleweed. The wind was warm and eerily quiet. I hopped in Pepé the wonder car and headed down Main Street. The mayor waved from his woman's shoe store, Karen in the deli/bakery waved. I saw Chris in the bank and the old farmer I interviewed today nodded at me as I drove past at the unspoken speed limit of 35 km/h.
Young constable ### waved overly friendly as we passed slowly in an intersection. In my first week in town, the day after my introduction and photo was on the front page, he pulled me over for rolling through a stop sign, where there was no one else around. I’ve been told since it was likely because I had BC plates. He happened to pull me over in front of my office so I grabbed my camera and notebook and hoped out, at which the poor guy scrambled for a moment like some Police Academy slapstick and yelled, “stay in your car! stay in your car!” probably thinking he’d have to draw his gun for the first time. Anyway he quickly recognised me and has been apologising ever since.
As I drove home, past the cop, the baker and the women’s shoe maker, for several minutes I forgot where I was and felt kind of at home. Some kind of storm’s blowin’ in - though on the prairies I'm starting to realise there's always something blowing in...or out. Either way you can watch features drift along the horizon for hours. Sometimes they steer south of town and everyone says "looks like the old Hampstead farm's gettin all the rain today," or "well at least old man Tarington’ll be happy down there."
I got home to my stinky little place and went for a nice walk in the surreal summer weather. It was a nice afternoon.
Thursday, July 07, 2005
Horse and bull event So there's an event about to start in Calgary they call a “stampede” which appears to be a pretty big deal. As far as I can tell it’s like an old Spanish bullfight event except the matadors are called “cowboys” and they get to fight from on top of horses.
The matador/cowboys undertake various battles and great feats of strength with the giant bucking animals including tying them up and even trying to ride on top of them. Sometimes the horses stop working with the men and the men try to hang on as the horse bucks around. From what little I’ve seen none of them seem to be all that good at the riding event since they appear happy when they get violently thrown off after just a few seconds.
Aside from the horses the matador/cowboys are aided by other men who don’t get to ride horses and have to dress in makeup and colourful clothing. Presumably these men on the ground are being punished for something.
There are also all kinds of carnival things and concerts and parades going on all week so it looks like fun. I’m not sure about these “stampede” things but this one claims to be the largest in the world, so it must be a good example of whatever its all about.
Wednesday, July 06, 2005
Tuesday, July 05, 2005
Homolka
With this wall to wall coverage you’d think the Pope had died again…or was released from prison. It’s a bit ironic (or disturbing) that she’s doing “exclusive” TV interviews the same day she’s going back to court to get the media to stop paying attention to her. “Hey you! HEY! You guys with the cameras & microphones, yes YOU GUYS! Come over here, come here a second. HEY! I’m talking to YOU, come here and listen to what I have to say…um, I wanted to ask you guys to leave me alone.”
The question seems to be whether she should she be left alone by the media and allowed to live free. Personally I thought that’s what the court system was for. She’s been let go, doesn’t that mean she has paid her debt and she has the same right as anyone to try to start building her life?
Now don’t get me wrong, I think she deserves to fry. I think for the rare extreme case I’d reconsider bringing the death penalty back (Clifford Olson, Pickton, the wonderful St. Cathrines couple). They should never be on the street again and I don’t see why we should spend a fortune to keep them locked up and healthy for decades.
I have trouble stomaching the woe is me whining “I will never really be free” she said in her interview yesterday. Guess you should have thought about that before you raped, tortured and killed several girls including your 14-year-old sister you fucking…. Anyway you get the point, nobody sympathises with her or cares how uncomfortable she claims to be with media attention, but the fact is our courts decided she should be free. If we disagree we need to find a way to get her back in prison where she belongs.
Otherwise she’s out, there are unprecedented restrictions placed on her, and media and police will always keep an eye on here. What else can or should we do? Let her try to sort her life out and be a productive member of society (whatever that crap means, don’t get me started on that one). Anyway I’m just on lunch, gotta run back to work.
With this wall to wall coverage you’d think the Pope had died again…or was released from prison. It’s a bit ironic (or disturbing) that she’s doing “exclusive” TV interviews the same day she’s going back to court to get the media to stop paying attention to her. “Hey you! HEY! You guys with the cameras & microphones, yes YOU GUYS! Come over here, come here a second. HEY! I’m talking to YOU, come here and listen to what I have to say…um, I wanted to ask you guys to leave me alone.”
The question seems to be whether she should she be left alone by the media and allowed to live free. Personally I thought that’s what the court system was for. She’s been let go, doesn’t that mean she has paid her debt and she has the same right as anyone to try to start building her life?
Now don’t get me wrong, I think she deserves to fry. I think for the rare extreme case I’d reconsider bringing the death penalty back (Clifford Olson, Pickton, the wonderful St. Cathrines couple). They should never be on the street again and I don’t see why we should spend a fortune to keep them locked up and healthy for decades.
I have trouble stomaching the woe is me whining “I will never really be free” she said in her interview yesterday. Guess you should have thought about that before you raped, tortured and killed several girls including your 14-year-old sister you fucking…. Anyway you get the point, nobody sympathises with her or cares how uncomfortable she claims to be with media attention, but the fact is our courts decided she should be free. If we disagree we need to find a way to get her back in prison where she belongs.
Otherwise she’s out, there are unprecedented restrictions placed on her, and media and police will always keep an eye on here. What else can or should we do? Let her try to sort her life out and be a productive member of society (whatever that crap means, don’t get me started on that one). Anyway I’m just on lunch, gotta run back to work.
Sunday, July 03, 2005
Camera stuff
Drooling over digital cameras and lenses and making my wish list for when I win the lottery (or when YOU do). For non-photo geeks this will be boring but I was almost giddy over some of the things I saw and had to tell someone so I figured I’d post it here.
My plan is to get a Canon 20D within a year or two (or whatever the equivalent is at the time). The 20D is a 8.2 megapixel, capable of 5 shots per second that retails for $1,400 or $1,500 (body only). It is the dividing line between pros and amateurs, one big step up from the Canon Rebel or Nikon D70’s we were familiar with in j-school. Wealthy amateurs may use a 20D while many pros (photojournalists, wedding photographers etc) use them. Above that you jump all the way to the Canon 1D currently ranging up to 16 megapix and selling for $11,000 (body only).
The absurd part is when you get into lenses. Nikon made (discontinued) the worlds widest-angle lens, a 6mm f/2.8 fisheye which has a 220 degree angle of view – note normal human field of vision is 180 degrees to the far edge of your peripheral vision. While I couldn’t find a reliable price on these I found similar lesser lenses running up to $4,500 (US).
In terms of fast lenses (which allow quick shutter speed in lower light etc) Canon makes the fastest widely available, the EF 50mm f/1.0, a full stop faster than a f/1.4. The most extreme though is the rare, discontinued Zeiss 210mm N-Mirotar with three-stage electronic image intensifier and an effective lens speed of f/0.03—more than 11 stops faster than a f/1.4 lens!
These can get a bit expensive, on an online discussion board a professional photographer said his lenses alone were valued at $57,000 for insurance purposes.
The funny ones where the extreme zooms. For comparison I’m usually more than happy with my 70-300mm lens and I can’t imagine ever needing anything longer than 400 or maybe 500mm. A 500mm lens would give you a close-up of someone’s face across a football field or a shot of a hungry lion from a safe distance.
The longest zoom lens ever is the Nikon 1200-1700mm f/5.6 which is almost 3 feet long, while the Canon 1200mm f5.6L is slightly longer, weighs 36 pounds and cost $138,000 before they were discontinued. I really can’t imagine what a 1700mm lens could be used for except spying on Iraqi military bases or taking pictures of people on the moon.
-----
ps. I thought I am more camera-naive than am I until I look closer at writing on otherwise professional website, example direct example (understand?):
"Not even professional in their own capacity because pros usually have the ability to adjust ability themself reverting any unfavorable photographic situations (added the fact, most successful pros with conventional wisdom in the profession are usually also smart in financial)."
Reminds me of Engrish.com, funny stuff, new link at bottom of "fun" list at right.
Drooling over digital cameras and lenses and making my wish list for when I win the lottery (or when YOU do). For non-photo geeks this will be boring but I was almost giddy over some of the things I saw and had to tell someone so I figured I’d post it here.
My plan is to get a Canon 20D within a year or two (or whatever the equivalent is at the time). The 20D is a 8.2 megapixel, capable of 5 shots per second that retails for $1,400 or $1,500 (body only). It is the dividing line between pros and amateurs, one big step up from the Canon Rebel or Nikon D70’s we were familiar with in j-school. Wealthy amateurs may use a 20D while many pros (photojournalists, wedding photographers etc) use them. Above that you jump all the way to the Canon 1D currently ranging up to 16 megapix and selling for $11,000 (body only).
The absurd part is when you get into lenses. Nikon made (discontinued) the worlds widest-angle lens, a 6mm f/2.8 fisheye which has a 220 degree angle of view – note normal human field of vision is 180 degrees to the far edge of your peripheral vision. While I couldn’t find a reliable price on these I found similar lesser lenses running up to $4,500 (US).
In terms of fast lenses (which allow quick shutter speed in lower light etc) Canon makes the fastest widely available, the EF 50mm f/1.0, a full stop faster than a f/1.4. The most extreme though is the rare, discontinued Zeiss 210mm N-Mirotar with three-stage electronic image intensifier and an effective lens speed of f/0.03—more than 11 stops faster than a f/1.4 lens!
These can get a bit expensive, on an online discussion board a professional photographer said his lenses alone were valued at $57,000 for insurance purposes.
The funny ones where the extreme zooms. For comparison I’m usually more than happy with my 70-300mm lens and I can’t imagine ever needing anything longer than 400 or maybe 500mm. A 500mm lens would give you a close-up of someone’s face across a football field or a shot of a hungry lion from a safe distance.
The longest zoom lens ever is the Nikon 1200-1700mm f/5.6 which is almost 3 feet long, while the Canon 1200mm f5.6L is slightly longer, weighs 36 pounds and cost $138,000 before they were discontinued. I really can’t imagine what a 1700mm lens could be used for except spying on Iraqi military bases or taking pictures of people on the moon.
-----
ps. I thought I am more camera-naive than am I until I look closer at writing on otherwise professional website, example direct example (understand?):
"Not even professional in their own capacity because pros usually have the ability to adjust ability themself reverting any unfavorable photographic situations (added the fact, most successful pros with conventional wisdom in the profession are usually also smart in financial)."
Reminds me of Engrish.com, funny stuff, new link at bottom of "fun" list at right.
Friday, July 01, 2005
Same-sex marriage
It’s interesting to be in Alberta – on the edge of the Bible belt on top of that – as Bill C-38 passed. It rarely even comes up here and my impression is that it is simply so fervently opposed, why talk about it. You don’t find people sitting around discussing whether or not genocide should be legal. Things everyone agrees on, like opposition to same-sex marriage here, aren’t usually hot topics.
I tried to bring it up with some of the more apparently enlightened people I know here and they all just huffed, “so stupid” they indicated. I just don’t understand the mindset – where can the controversy even come into this one? – how can an intelligent person in the 21st century be AGAINST a RIGHT!? That’s all we’re talking about – expanding RIGHTS! The inbred rednecks that panic at the mention of making same sex marriage legal seem to forget the key word in that phrase – LEGAL, not MANDATORY!
I don’t particularly want to listen to country music all day, but I don’t think it should be illegal. That seems like the bottom line to me, we want to pretend we’re a great, enlightened nation, how can anyone be against allowing people to live their own harmless lives, no matter how bigoted and homophobic someone is I can’t imagine how the paperwork of a couple who lives on the block could possibly hurt them. I suppose if someone’s really that terrified of homosexuality that’s their issue to deal with, everyone has their own phobia’s, who am I to tell them what they can or can’t be afraid of, I’m not fond of small spaces – but what difference does the couple’s legal status make?
There’s the circular argument that gay marriage shouldn’t be made legal because we need to protect the traditional definition of marriage…which sounds like confused people saying the definition of marriage shouldn’t change because the definition of marriage hasn’t changed in a while. Obviously the whole point of laws in a progressive, democratic nation is to shift with the times. Women have only been allowed to vote in Canada for 87 years, are there people who oppose that change? Slavery has been banned in Canada for 212 years, I think quite a few people support that. Times and laws change, hopefully for the better, expanding rights is pretty much always a good thing – get over it!
Personally I don’t even get the appeal of marriage to start with, just to get divorced again, but that’s a separate subject.
If people want to be upset about people harming our world why don’t they focus on people who are harming our world? Why aren’t people more up in arms about white collar criminals, corporate raping and pillaging of the planet and people who leave their giant SUV’s running outside the gas station for 20 minutes on a hot day while they’re buying cigarettes and sweat shop goods? Or people building endless suburbs and highways rather than stopping for one second to consider the disastrous implications for our future.
Anyway I just caught a bit of the Canada Day celebrations on TV and I always want to be a proud Canadian – travel outside the country makes me more patriotic – and it reminded me of my embarrassment at being here at this moment in political history.
I hope I’ve offended some people so I’ll get some good responses. I’d love it if someone I knew could try to give me an argument against Bill C-38, I wanna hear a reasoned argument from someone whose opinion I respect (even just e-mail me if you don't want to post it). I’m going to head to the park for a Canada Day hot dog…er maple syrup dog? Happy Canada Day!
It’s interesting to be in Alberta – on the edge of the Bible belt on top of that – as Bill C-38 passed. It rarely even comes up here and my impression is that it is simply so fervently opposed, why talk about it. You don’t find people sitting around discussing whether or not genocide should be legal. Things everyone agrees on, like opposition to same-sex marriage here, aren’t usually hot topics.
I tried to bring it up with some of the more apparently enlightened people I know here and they all just huffed, “so stupid” they indicated. I just don’t understand the mindset – where can the controversy even come into this one? – how can an intelligent person in the 21st century be AGAINST a RIGHT!? That’s all we’re talking about – expanding RIGHTS! The inbred rednecks that panic at the mention of making same sex marriage legal seem to forget the key word in that phrase – LEGAL, not MANDATORY!
I don’t particularly want to listen to country music all day, but I don’t think it should be illegal. That seems like the bottom line to me, we want to pretend we’re a great, enlightened nation, how can anyone be against allowing people to live their own harmless lives, no matter how bigoted and homophobic someone is I can’t imagine how the paperwork of a couple who lives on the block could possibly hurt them. I suppose if someone’s really that terrified of homosexuality that’s their issue to deal with, everyone has their own phobia’s, who am I to tell them what they can or can’t be afraid of, I’m not fond of small spaces – but what difference does the couple’s legal status make?
There’s the circular argument that gay marriage shouldn’t be made legal because we need to protect the traditional definition of marriage…which sounds like confused people saying the definition of marriage shouldn’t change because the definition of marriage hasn’t changed in a while. Obviously the whole point of laws in a progressive, democratic nation is to shift with the times. Women have only been allowed to vote in Canada for 87 years, are there people who oppose that change? Slavery has been banned in Canada for 212 years, I think quite a few people support that. Times and laws change, hopefully for the better, expanding rights is pretty much always a good thing – get over it!
Personally I don’t even get the appeal of marriage to start with, just to get divorced again, but that’s a separate subject.
If people want to be upset about people harming our world why don’t they focus on people who are harming our world? Why aren’t people more up in arms about white collar criminals, corporate raping and pillaging of the planet and people who leave their giant SUV’s running outside the gas station for 20 minutes on a hot day while they’re buying cigarettes and sweat shop goods? Or people building endless suburbs and highways rather than stopping for one second to consider the disastrous implications for our future.
Anyway I just caught a bit of the Canada Day celebrations on TV and I always want to be a proud Canadian – travel outside the country makes me more patriotic – and it reminded me of my embarrassment at being here at this moment in political history.
I hope I’ve offended some people so I’ll get some good responses. I’d love it if someone I knew could try to give me an argument against Bill C-38, I wanna hear a reasoned argument from someone whose opinion I respect (even just e-mail me if you don't want to post it). I’m going to head to the park for a Canada Day hot dog…er maple syrup dog? Happy Canada Day!
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