…and play with my camera-related toys. Though as soon as I came back I thought of all kinds of things I should have tried (why didn’t I use a slower shutter speed for some of those water shots along the coastline??). But it was a vacation after all, so I guess I was actually trying to do more than just take photos. I still managed to come home with over 800 shots to comb through. None of the shots have been processed, other than some cropping on a handful.

I can’t take credit for any of the underwater shots; G is apparently part fish. I, on the other hand, am too chicken to venture out far enough to see the good stuff and am just not coordinated enough to hold my breath, swim and use a camera. (We didn’t try snorkeling; instead we bought goggles since I forgot mine at home.) I’m amazed at how good they came out. We (he) used my Canon PowerShot SX100 and a $50 underwater case. Well worth the money since we are both dorks and had a ton of fun goofing around in the Caribbean.

I will, however, take credit for just about everything else.   Although, as I said, I always feel like I/they could be better. I had fun using the fish eye lens to capture as much of the landscape as possible. This was a Christmas gift from my brother, and is also very reasonable. I still need to learn how to maximize the use of that one, but at least I think I finally know how to put it on and take it off without thinking I’m going crazy.

G and I also had great fun — and felt a bit like we were on a stakeout — using the telephoto zoom lens from our balcony (most pics here). Especially check out the camper over the cliff and the person doing flips off a boat (another G capture). Though my absolute favorite is the ‘Abercrombie’ shot of G. The best ones happen when you’re not even trying.

Excuse the lame attempt at a play on words. It’s early. I haven’t had coffee yet. That’s about as good as it gets when those factors are working against me.

Anyway, one thing I love about photography is playing with the shallow depth of field. Last weekend the buds were just starting to come out in the “woods” behind my house so I of course grabbed my camera and did some playing. There are some more photos here. Clearly, I still have much to learn, but that’s part of the fun of it: trial and error with an occasional great shot.

Not only is my first house my first house and the first time in my life I am not sharing a wall with neighbors, but it’s the first time that I and I alone (well, and G, of course) am responsible for how a place is taken care of, inside and out. Crazy. Who would give me such responsibility? Among other ambitions, I’m attempting to grow things. Actual living things. I started small, with some herbs. So far they’re doing pretty well. Basil (lemon, sweet and genovese), chives, oregano, parsely and mint are all growing by the dining room windowsill. Next I started some seeds. Vegetable seeds. (I know, ambitious, right?) I started with tomatoes (heirloom and cherry) and green beans. Soon I’ll start cucumbers, zucchini and squash.

That not-so-little guy above is clearly an anamoly. That’s a green bean plant. The others started at the same time are just starting to poke through. I’m beginning to wondering if some GMO seed got mixed in with my Seeds of Change organic seeds.

I was all set on doing a container garden after seeing how nice that looked in a friend’s backyard, but now I’m not so sure. Maybe a combination of containers and a regular garden would be better. What about you? Do you have a garden? Suggestions welcome!

The ‘Hello world!’ title seems to be appropriate, and not just because I’ve neglected the blogosphere for awhile now. So much has happened since VoO was a part of my daily routine and I feel like a new phase of my life is just beginning.  So here I am, again, still obsessed, still needing an outlet to share my obsessions with the world and 142 characters or whatever it is just really isn’t enough sometimes.

This website is likely to be a work in progress for a while, but in the end I hope it’s a photo blog, a place where I can share thoughts on sustainability and community development (more on that to come),  and, of course, what would a blog be without the occasional rant.

So with this first post you get a little bit of what’s to come, minus the rant. This photo is of none other than Butch Walker. After more than a year, G (the bf) and I drove more than 2 hours down to Poughkeepsie to see BW and his latest incarnation, The Black Widows, at The Chance in Poughkeepsie. The show was better than I allowed myself to even hope for, and it was also my first time using my 50mm-f/1.8 lens. I still have a lot to learn, but the photos are already some of the best I’ve ever taken. (See the full set of photos here.) We stopped to have an early dinner at The Village Tea Room in New Paltz, a restaraunt that is a member of the “slow food” movement and serves local, organic ingredients. I had a wonderful goat cheese and basil pesto sandwich with a salad. I highly recommend skipping the rest areas on your next trip on the NYS Thruway and instead hitting this gem just off the highway.