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RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/13/2016 6:03:19 PM

geofflambert

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I was using the macro mode on the camera (Nikon L340) and it was mounted on a tripod and the lens was less than a foot away from the subject (to your movement suspicion, there may have been a slight breeze, but I could see the AF focus perfectly and keep going, couldn't get it to stop at perfect). It just can be devilishly hard to get that AF to work. About 15 years ago I had a beautiful Nikon camera (the kind that used film) and a nice set of lenses (that I lost in a burglary). My absolute favorite was a 50mm lens that could do macro zooms and the pictures were just amazing. But I could choose to focus manually and much of the time I did.

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Post #: 511

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/13/2016 6:17:10 PM

BBfanboy

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quote:

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

I was using the macro mode on the camera (Nikon L340) and it was mounted on a tripod and the lens was less than a foot away from the subject (to your movement suspicion, there may have been a slight breeze, but I could see the AF focus perfectly and keep going, couldn't get it to stop at perfect). It just can be devilishly hard to get that AF to work. About 15 years ago I had a beautiful Nikon camera (the kind that used film) and a nice set of lenses (that I lost in a burglary). My absolute favorite was a 50mm lens that could do macro zooms and the pictures were just amazing. But I could choose to focus manually and much of the time I did.

Maybe we just have to drink enough of our favourite beverage to counteract the blurriness!
It might help if you could tell us whether you were looking at a butterfly or a beetle or a suntanning neighbour.

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Post #: 512

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/13/2016 6:26:01 PM

geofflambert

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quote:

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy

quote:

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

I was using the macro mode on the camera (Nikon L340) and it was mounted on a tripod and the lens was less than a foot away from the subject (to your movement suspicion, there may have been a slight breeze, but I could see the AF focus perfectly and keep going, couldn't get it to stop at perfect). It just can be devilishly hard to get that AF to work. About 15 years ago I had a beautiful Nikon camera (the kind that used film) and a nice set of lenses (that I lost in a burglary). My absolute favorite was a 50mm lens that could do macro zooms and the pictures were just amazing. But I could choose to focus manually and much of the time I did.

Maybe we just have to drink enough of our favourite beverage to counteract the blurriness!
It might help if you could tell us whether you were looking at a butterfly or a beetle or a suntanning neighbour.

Well this "neighbor" is part orange so she must be using the fake stuff.

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Post #: 513

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/13/2016 6:57:41 PM

BBfanboy

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There is an orange and black flying beetle that I used to see a lot on the in-laws farm. It seemed to show up around this time of year in fair numbers but disappeared when the weather cooled. Can't recall what it was though - I no longer have my "bug book" to ID those kind of things.

EDIT: Found something on the Internet - a milkweed beetle.

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< Message edited by BBfanboy -- 7/13/2016 7:10:11 PM >

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Post #: 514

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/13/2016 8:12:34 PM

geofflambert

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The colors are dead on, but I thought what I was seeing with my eye was twice as long(as though I can tell) and the wings or carapace half the length of the body. But it makes sense that whatever feeds on the milkweed will have the same orange and black coloration which means it is mildly toxic (it doesn't taste good) to predators.

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Post #: 515

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/13/2016 8:22:30 PM

geofflambert

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BBfanboy is reminding me of the time I was a city kid (Pittsburgh) and we were visiting my maternal grandparents on their farm. It was the dusk hour and everyone looked at me and somebody said "time to bring the cows in". I had no idea how that was done but I walked out to where they were (about 500 yds distant I would guess) and they started mooing more than they had been and crowding toward me and just followed me in, back to the barn. And yes, I did at some point learn how to milk a cow, and no, no opportunity ever presented itself for me to use that knowledge in "real life".

edit: for context, I don't think I was more than seven years old at the time.

< Message edited by geofflambert -- 7/13/2016 8:31:26 PM >

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Post #: 516

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/13/2016 8:41:36 PM

Lecivius

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quote:

ORIGINAL: geofflambert
And yes, I did at some point learn how to milk a cow, and no, no opportunity ever presented itself for me to use that knowledge in "real life".

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Post #: 517

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/13/2016 8:42:48 PM

geofflambert

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Lecivius, you are a prevert.

edit: The first time I know I typed "prevert" but, now I know 'cause the spell check just did it again and changed it to "pervert".

< Message edited by geofflambert -- 7/13/2016 8:47:42 PM >

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Post #: 518

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/13/2016 9:02:29 PM

geofflambert

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The farmhouse was one of those with the wrap-around porch like the one I picture here, but bigger. Three stories. And my grandfather smoked a pipe and I remember liking the smell and knowing which rooms he used from the smell of them.
That wrap-around porch had two of those swinging benches, you know the ones you were supposed to sit on with your date at the end of the date.

It had all the other accoutrements as well, like tables to play chess on. The magic of childhood.

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RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/13/2016 10:29:33 PM

Orm

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That is a nice looking house.

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Post #: 520

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/14/2016 3:53:37 AM

BBfanboy

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quote:

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

The farmhouse was one of those with the wrap-around porch like the one I picture here, but bigger. Three stories. And my grandfather smoked a pipe and I remember liking the smell and knowing which rooms he used from the smell of them.
That wrap-around porch had two of those swinging benches, you know the ones you were supposed to sit on with your date at the end of the date. It had all the other accoutrements as well, like tables to play chess on. The magic of childhood.

Was the swing big enough to accommodate a cow?

_____________________________

No matter how bad a situation is, you can always make it worse. - Chris Hadfield : An Astronaut's Guide To Life On Earth

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RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/14/2016 6:33:29 AM

wdolson

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quote:

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

I was using the macro mode on the camera (Nikon L340) and it was mounted on a tripod and the lens was less than a foot away from the subject (to your movement suspicion, there may have been a slight breeze, but I could see the AF focus perfectly and keep going, couldn't get it to stop at perfect). It just can be devilishly hard to get that AF to work. About 15 years ago I had a beautiful Nikon camera (the kind that used film) and a nice set of lenses (that I lost in a burglary). My absolute favorite was a 50mm lens that could do macro zooms and the pictures were just amazing. But I could choose to focus manually and much of the time I did.

Was it a 55mm Micro Nikor? That was one of my father's go to lens for years. He gave me a 105mm Macro lens for my digital Nikon, but the telephoto is kind of nuts to use. I was taking pictures of detail on some antiques to list on Ebay and I had to put the camera on a tripod 5 feet away. From that distance I was getting pictures of a spot about the size of a US dime.

Bill

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RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/14/2016 6:36:58 AM

warspite1

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Orm

That is a nice looking house.

warspite1

I thinks its the Walton's house.

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RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/14/2016 7:33:31 PM

geofflambert

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quote:

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy

quote:

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

The farmhouse was one of those with the wrap-around porch like the one I picture here, but bigger. Three stories. And my grandfather smoked a pipe and I remember liking the smell and knowing which rooms he used from the smell of them.
That wrap-around porch had two of those swinging benches, you know the ones you were supposed to sit on with your date at the end of the date. It had all the other accoutrements as well, like tables to play chess on. The magic of childhood.

Was the swing big enough to accommodate a cow?

A gorn. Maybe two.

< Message edited by geofflambert -- 7/14/2016 7:36:27 PM >

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Post #: 524

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/14/2016 7:39:54 PM

geofflambert

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quote:

ORIGINAL: wdolson

quote:

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

I was using the macro mode on the camera (Nikon L340) and it was mounted on a tripod and the lens was less than a foot away from the subject (to your movement suspicion, there may have been a slight breeze, but I could see the AF focus perfectly and keep going, couldn't get it to stop at perfect). It just can be devilishly hard to get that AF to work. About 15 years ago I had a beautiful Nikon camera (the kind that used film) and a nice set of lenses (that I lost in a burglary). My absolute favorite was a 50mm lens that could do macro zooms and the pictures were just amazing. But I could choose to focus manually and much of the time I did.

Was it a 55mm Micro Nikor? That was one of my father's go to lens for years. He gave me a 105mm Macro lens for my digital Nikon, but the telephoto is kind of nuts to use. I was taking pictures of detail on some antiques to list on Ebay and I had to put the camera on a tripod 5 feet away. From that distance I was getting pictures of a spot about the size of a US dime.

Bill

That sounds really familiar. I might still have some paperwork around on it (the burglar didn't get everything, after all). I also had a very good 35mm which I think came with the camera and I believe a 35/50/70 zoom lens or something like that, but I fell head over heels in love with that 50. I just couldn't believe the stuff I could do with it. Very quickly it wasn't the go-to lens, it was the only lens. I'm not sure I ever remembered what the other two were for.

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Post #: 525

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/14/2016 7:56:16 PM

geofflambert

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Here is the face of the instruction manual for that lens.

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Post #: 526

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/14/2016 8:10:25 PM

geofflambert

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Today, July 14th, 2016, a day which will live in birdfamy, I have heard and seen my first chickadees of the year. Now I don't know if they are Black-Capped Chickadees or Carolina Chickadees because I don't understand what the difference is. If you go to the Cornell site on this stuff, you will see that St. Louis is part of the borderline of the ranges of each; the black capped ones to the north and west and the Carolina to the south and east. St. Louis used to be in temperate zone 5, but because of a process of nature which some will deny is even happening (and by the way, nature doesn't give a flip what anyone thinks) we are now in temperate zone 6 and quickly headed to 7. Better get out of the way, Phoenix. Anyways, I am skeptical that there are two different species of chickadees here. Listen to their calls, they are the same.

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Post #: 527

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/14/2016 8:17:05 PM

geofflambert

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quote:

ORIGINAL: warspite1

quote:

ORIGINAL: Orm

That is a nice looking house.

warspite1

I thinks its the Walton's house.

I think I hear John-Boy calling.

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Post #: 528

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/14/2016 11:06:19 PM

BBfanboy

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quote:

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

quote:

ORIGINAL: warspite1

quote:

ORIGINAL: Orm

That is a nice looking house.

warspite1

I thinks its the Walton's house.

I think I hear John-Boy calling.

What is he calling you? Is he being nice? Or honest?

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Post #: 529

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/14/2016 11:42:34 PM

geofflambert

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He's calling me a slimy green scaly swamp denizen who is inexplicably missing his tail.

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RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/15/2016 12:06:50 AM

witpqs

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quote:

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

He's calling me a slimy green scaly swamp denizen who is inexplicably missing his tail.

We've never met in person - so is that your avatar or the real you?

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RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/15/2016 12:19:09 AM

BBfanboy

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quote:

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

He's calling me a slimy green scaly swamp denizen who is inexplicably missing his tail.

Oh - he's being nice, then. Such a wholesome guy

Personally, I like the look. You probably never get wrinkles and don't have to get an orange spray-on tan like some infamous "humans".

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RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/15/2016 12:19:51 AM

geofflambert

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The real me is much worse.

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RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/15/2016 12:56:52 PM

geofflambert

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Many of you may not be aware of the etymology of a word we use for a toilet. While he did not invent the flush toilet he did make various improvements to the technology.

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RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/15/2016 12:59:05 PM

geofflambert

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One of his patents is for the "ballcock". Interesting choice for a name for it.

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Post #: 535

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/15/2016 1:02:32 PM

geofflambert

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This is one of those "ballcock" devices.

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Post #: 536

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/18/2016 12:22:03 AM

geofflambert

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Watching the coverage of what happened in Baton Rouge, I saw what I thought was a helicopter that was a relic from the Korean war. Apparently not, I found this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZUutzp7sfE

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RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/18/2016 12:26:50 AM

geofflambert

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I must've been thinking of these:

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RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/18/2016 12:37:44 AM

geofflambert

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Guess they are Robinsons. Could have (would have) sworn the US army had a copter that looked like that in the '50s

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Post #: 539

RE: OT Things to ponder - 7/18/2016 3:14:08 AM

geofflambert

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Here in St. Louis, we are smack dab on the boundary line between the territories of the Black-Capped Chickadee and the Carolina Chickadee.
I'm going to have to call this one a Black-Capped Chickadee though they are terrifically difficult to distinguish, one from the other.
Looks malnourished. It has discovered an unlimited supply of sunflower seeds so that should be receding into the past.