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I believe that the best way to stay sharp and keep our skills in great shape is practice, study and challange yourself with the new things to learn!!!   A few months back I was asked to shoot the new Fujifilm 80mm Macro for Fujifilm and I enjoyed shooting with  it, it was not the lens I had hoped for, in terms of focal length, I really wanted the previousy announced 120mm (180mm equiv.) but it was tack sharp and worked great.   I wrested with what to do, I already had a perfectly wonderful and much, much smaller Fujifilm 60mm Macro, which I love!

 

So, as usual,  I caved and ordered one through the company.  Well that was a long time ago and all my friends already have their’s, but mine has never arrived.  Don’t take this wrong, I was buying it, X-Photographers get a nice discount, but we often have to wait until all the regular orders get filled.  I’m sure they are still trying to get those to the people who ordered them early!  So, frustrated, and wanting to try something “completely different”,  I cancelled by order for a 80mm Macro and X-E3 and instead bought a drone!!!  I got the DJI Mavic Pro because it is very compact yet extremely capable of making great stills and 4K video.  As you can see below, if I trim up my still gear, it and the controller fit great in my Think Tank Advantage roller for trips where I have to fly, when in the car, I have a lot of ways to carry it including a supplied pelican type case that holds it all, (below).

 

 

The DJI controller is made to use your smart phone, but I upgraded to a new iPad Mini 4 128gb model so I can see what the camera on the drone is seeing, more clearly!

 

I’ve taken it our to the kids soccer field once and got a little flying in, It is a learning proccess but it is coming quickly and I can already tell I’m really going to enjoy this!!!  Now, I must learn Final Cut Pro X to edit some cinamatic video!  More info coming soon!  I promise to publish some results here when I have something worth showing!

 

In Him and blessings,

 

the pilgrim

 

My daughter, Catherine, posted this on her facebook page, I love it, and it is pretty much what my father taught me growing up!!!  Who ever wrote it knew my father, I hope I learned well!!!!

 

Rules For Sons:

1. Never shake a man’s hand sitting down.
2. There are plenty of ways to enter a pool. The stairs ain’t one.
3. The man at the grill is the closest thing we have to a king.
4. In a negotiation, never make the first offer.
5. Act like you’ve been there before. Especially in the end zone.
6. Request the late check-out.
7. When entrusted with a secret, keep it.
8. Hold your heroes to a higher standard.
9. Return a borrowed car with a full tank of gas.
10. Play with passion or not at all…
11. When shaking hands, grip firmly and look him in the eye.
12. Don’t let a wishbone grow where a backbone should be.
13. If you need music on the beach, you’re missing the point.
14. Carry two handkerchiefs. The one in your back pocket is for you. The one in your breast pocket is for her.
15. You marry the girl, you marry her whole family.
16. Be like a duck. Remain calm on the surface and paddle like crazy underneath.
17. Experience the serenity of traveling alone.
18. Never be afraid to ask out the best looking girl in the room.
19. Never turn down a breath mint.
20. In a game of HORSE, sometimes a simple free throw will get ’em.
21. A sport coat is worth 1000 words.
22. Try writing your own eulogy. Never stop revising.
23. Thank a veteran. And then make it up to him.
24. If you want to know what makes you unique, sit for a caricature.
25. Eat lunch with the new kid.
26. After writing an angry email, read it carefully. Then delete it.
27. Ask your mom to play. She won’t let you win.
28. See it on the big screen.
29. Give credit. Take the blame.
30. Write down your dreams.
31. Always protect your siblings (and teammates).
32. Be confident and humble at the same time.

Copy and paste. Post a picture of your son (sons).

 

Have a great weekend, and blessings,

 

the pilgrim

 

Why the Coca Cola image, my father was a manager of the local Coca Cola bottling plant when I was growing up.  I never see anything Coca Cola related that doesn’t remind me of him!

 

Well it’s a new year and everyone is making resolutions!  I guess that is normal, a new start does casue us to think about what we wish we had not done in the previous year or maybe done better, and that leads to promises.  May I suggest a really important promise to head your list?

 

I want my spiritual condition to supercede all other conditions.  This morning Dr. Charles Stanley’s In touch Daily Devotional was the very answer I was looking for, please allow me to share it and then make a few closing comments.

 

Proverbs 3:1-4

Jesus Christ told His disciples, “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit” (John 15:5). As we carry out the Lord’s plans through the power of His Spirit, our lives will have significance, and two practices will characterize us.

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 1. Treasuring God’s Word in our hearts. When we value something, we think about it often, study it regularly, and learn all we can about it. By studying the Bible, we learn many important things about our God, including His character, plan, and promises. Regular Scripture meditation develops our ability to think biblically and deepens our relationship with the Lord. One of the indications that we treasure His Word is a change in behavior: Decisions will increasingly be guided by His principles, and actions will reflect the fruit of the Spirit. (See Gal. 5:22-23.)

2. Adorning ourselves with kindness and truth. These two virtues are to be our constant companions on the Christian walk. God’s truth has the power to expose ungodly attitudes and behaviors. When this happens, the presence of kindness helps to protect relationships from damage; it can also prevent discord and division in churches. The Lord wants us to speak the truth to one another—but to temper it with loving compassion.

The Christian life is a journey filled with temptations, obstacles, and difficulties that are common to man (1 Peter 4:12). At the same time, it is to be characterized by the fruitfulness that comes from following Jesus Christ, our guide.

 

How can I display that fruit in my life?  First the study of God’s Word shows us who Jesus was, how He acted, what He did and What He said.  We simply follow that example.

 

Let me share a simple way to show His love, His compassion, and His forgiveness.  I was in the grocery store during Christmas weekend and I was in line when an old lady pushed her cart in after mine, I had a lot of items and she only had a few and I couldn’t help but notice she was counting her meager funds to be sure she had enough to pay for her few items.  They were two thirds through scanning mine so I leaned in to the clerk and said, “add hers to my bill please.” I was pushing my filled cart out of the way when she found out hers were covered, she walked over and said  “thank you young man!”  I said being called a young man was worth far more than that!  She said again thank you, why did you do that?  I said, “well you know, I’ve been celebrating a very special birthday of a man who loves me and you very much, he asked me to do it, for Him.”  She looked puzzled, I said  “have great day, Jesus loves you, and Merry Christmas!”  The look on her face was worth a hundred dollars worth of groceries.  It feels great to offer a random act of kindeness, it’s what He did every day, and what we need to learn how to do too!  Trust me, it’s worth it!

 

If we follow His lead every day in every situation we will have a richer life and make others lives richer too, give it a try!!

 

Blessings,

 

the pilgrim

 

 

I hope your Christmas day was wonderful!  Mine sure was, and I would  love to share with you some of the reason the entire Christmas season has been great for me this year!

 

FIRST:  I celebrated the birth of a Savior, a friend, a guide and confidant.  When you accept Christ as your Savior and Lord, your life will never be the same again.  I would not want to even contemplate where my life would have ended up without Him by my side.  This alone is reason for the greatest of celebrations!

 

SECOND:  The closeness of family.  Sherelene and I have had the great pleasure of being with our children and their families through out the last two weeks!  The older I get the more family means to me, and the greater the pleasure of being with them!

 

THIRD:   Drawing close during times of difficulty.  Wes’s battle with cancer and Jim and Sue’s battle with cancer and the loss of Sue have both re-focused my life.  2017 was time of deep prayer and kneeling before God, praying for family and dear friends.  In addition to Wes and Sue, I had several other wonderful friends all battling various forms of cancer and it was a year of constant lifting them and their families up to the Lord.  It is revealing how much closer we draw to those that we are in constant prayer for!

 

FOURTH:  The renewal of friendships.  During the holidays you often gather with old friends and I had a great breakfast with Jim Haverstock, Jim Begley, Brian Stefl and Wes on Christmas eve, eve morning, what a joy to be with such dear friends and celebrate our wonderful times together over the years, and feel great for Wes and comfort Jim Haverstock!  The meaning of real friendship, pulling together for each other!

 

FIFTH:  Making future plans.  While this is by far the least important part of my personal Christmas celebration, the future is still something we need to plan for it. Years ago when I first became aware of Scott Kelby I went to his blog and was suprised to find a whole section on his favorite movies, songs, hobbys, and lots of other personal stuff.  At first I thought it was a little narcissistic, but on further thought, and after reading all of  it, I thought it was actually pretty cool, I was interested in Scott, the person, and I expect lots of others were too, so what follows may be a little like that.

 

What’s next for me.  In 2018 I have 10 workshops scheduled with Jack, and will do a few smaller events for Fuji though out the year.  I’m thinking in 2019, I will start to cut back my travel to something like half what it has been and will be this coming year.  If I’m home more what will I do with the extra time?  More time in the word, more prayer time, and more personal outreach to the lost. Of course personal shooting and study will always be a big part of my life. Photography for the sheer joy of shooting and processin, (by-the-way I plan to spend this winer mastering Luminar 2018 to replace Photoshop and Lightroom as my main way of post processing!!!).  I hope to teach more on line and that will be a focus as well.  I plan to get a puppy, I think a golden retriever, and will name him Chester (in honor of the movie, The Kid). He will be come my best buddy, and I will take him everywhere with me!  I’ve also started to seriously study cooking.  I’ve invested in the proper tools and some good books and an online course on cooking and have already developed some new skills!!!  My goals is to invite guests into our home and serve them some wonderful food!  My family has had some master cooks and I would like to join their ranks!

 

So, I hope you had a wonderful and meaningful Christmas and will enjoy a blessed New year!

 

Blessings,

 

the pilgrim