Spent a few days down in N.C. with my SO Lisa and her friends from Winston-Salem. Went to the Grandfather Mountain Camera Clinic and saw many of the Usual Suspects there. Unfortunately, I was trying to do two things at once -- attend the Camera Clinic and fulfill social obligations with the SO and her friends -- so I naturally succeeded in doing neither very well. Still, I did get quite a bit accomplished and Lisa did get to meet Doug Brewer and Don Nelson (and a couple of other regulars).
I shot quite a bit while down there, though I don't think I got any portfolio material; mostly documentary shots for a project I'm working on. Took a few hunderd photos with the DA*16-50/2.8 and I'll try to get some online tomorrow. I'm tentatively very impressed with the lens. (We'll see for certain how good it is when I have a chance to examine the images in detail.) One thing I haven't seen mentioned much yet is the very nice minimum focussing distance of under one foot. At 50mm this is very handy indeed. Really makes it a viable lens for a one-lens "walkabout" kit, for which I've always preferred primes in the past. Lisa and I did one tough hike on Sunday and another on Monday. My legs are really feeling it now but we tried one GFM trail we'd never been on before (the Cragway Trail) and found it has the best views on the mountain. Next to the upper half of the Profile Trail it's the toughest trail on the mountain -- far more strenuous than the Grandfather Trail on the top -- but well worth it for the scenery. Highlight moment from the return drive today was seeing a place in West Virginia that billed itself as the Oasis Diner and Adult Video. (My suggested slogan: "Your one-stop shop for grits and tits.") -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
