Monthly Archives: July 2012

 

 

You may or may not know who George Harding was.  You probably don’t, unless you lived in Corbin, Kentucky, or worked on the railroad.  He wasn’t a Senator, or a Congressman, a civic leader, or celebrity.  He wasn’t extremely rich, or famous, he was something much better, a good man!  George Harding was my neighbor, three houses up the street.  He moved a way a few years ago, but we stayed in touch.  Every time I turned the corner to go to my house and he was in his yard, which was often, I would slow down roll down the window and we would chat.  He had a smile that could make your worse day seem to  melt away.  George was a good friend, a kind man, a humble man, a man that would always offer a hand, and always had a kind word for everyone.  He was a God fearing man, and good husband.  He wasn’t George Clooney, or George Forman, or George Washington.  I guess we need all those George’s but I think we need the George Hardings of the world a lot more.

 

The George Hardings of the world affect us on a daily basis. They cheer us up, they make us proud and they show us what is so great about living in a small town in the southern part of Kentucky!  The world will not miss George, but his friends and neighbors sure will.  His wife Edith sure will, because George made a difference.  He made a difference, and he wasn’t even someone you knew, and that was your loss.  More importantly if we do not live up to that standard of being “significant”, to those around us, it’s everyone’s loss.  When I think of George I’ll think about how someone, a lot of someones, are going to have to take his place, standing in the yard, being friendly, and making other peoples’s lives better.

 

Thank you George, for all those great moments that you lifted my spirits, I know a lot celebrating is taking place on the other side!

 

the pilgrim

 

1 John 4:11
Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.

 

2 John 1:5
I am writing to remind you, dear friends, that we should love one another. This is not a new commandment, but one we have had from the beginning.

 

I’ve had a week to review images and look closely, that further examination has led me to believe that for certain circumstances the classic manual focus glass is a great choice!  Especially for landscape and close-up work.  In both of these fields you want to control depth-of-field closely, and the great depth markings on the old manual lenses is a great help.  Also with the advent of the Live View, with magnification, precise focusing can really be achieved, like never before. I also noticed that the depth of color was also amazing.  The shot below of rocks in the surf at Little Hunter’s Beach in Acadia N.P. was a good example.

 

In another close-up situation I wanted to capture the delicate colors in a flower at the Acadia Garden, the 105 Micro Nikkor f 2.8 did a sterling job. The color was spot on and the sharpness was great in the area of shallow focus.  The tactile pleasure of working with old dissimilar metal racing’s in the helicoids makes the shooting process so much fun.  It really takes you back to the “old” days.  As I said before I don’t see the manual lenses so much as a replacement for current lenses, but just as a great way to vary the process.

 

Then there is the cost factor, many of these classic old lenses can be purchased used in very good condition for 1/4th to 1/3rd the cost of current glass.  I’ve found mint condition 24mm f 2.8’s for around $150., 105 mm Micro Nikkor f 2.8’s for around $300.  By-the-way if anyone ever finds a mint condition 25-50 f 4 AIS Nikkor zoom let me know, I’ve been looking for one, for some time and would  love to add it to my classic collection!

 

As of today my manual lens collection consists of:

 

24mm f 2.8 Nikkor

55mm Micro Nikkor f 2.8

50-135 Nikkor f 3.5 zoom

105 mm f 2.5 Nikkor telephoto  (the classic portrait lens)

105 mm Micro Nikkor f 2.8

80-200 Nikkor zooms (both the f 4.5 and f4)

300 mm IF-ED f 4.5 Nikkor telelphoto

400mm IF-ED f 3.5 Nikkor telephoto  (One of my favorite lenses of all time!)

 

I’m still looking for the 25-50 and the 28 mm f 2.8 lens!  I’ve got to stay out of camera stores that sell a lot of used glass!!!!!

 

Give one a try, I believe you will enjoy it!

 

the pilgrim

Independence Day 2012 finds our nation in a world of hurt, but the story has not ended yet.  The world economy is teetering on disaster, America’s economy is in a terrible shape and our Congress, Senate and President are doing nothing to make it better.  The American people are, for the most part, asleep at the wheel, far to interested the trivial lives of celebrities.  After that rosy picture you may be wondering what the good news is, sorry, no good news.  GREAT news, God is still in control!  I take a great deal of heat from my city friends about being a hill billy, but as shown in the church sign above, a lack of sophistication can often lead to a simple truth!  The answer to all our problems still lies in Trust in God.

 

The foolish among us live in fear, but God has a plan, and no matter how difficult the road ahead may become, He always delivers His own.  Today celebrate our freedom and pray that we may continue to enjoy it!

 

Praise Him,

 

the pilgrim

 

 

This morning’s In Touch Daily Devotional was just too good not to share!