I came across these lights while walking back to Grand Central Terminal after a meal in New York City (Manhattan) with friends
Taken with a Fuji X-E1 and Fuji XC 16-50mm f3.5-5.6 OSS II
Fairy Lights in Manhattan
Fungi
Taken during a recent woodland walk. I particularly liked the first one.
Taken with a Sony A7IV and Tamron Di III VXD A056SF 70-180mm f2.8.
Briarcliff Manor-Scarborough Historical Society – Presentation on “The Chain that Saved the Colonies”
In earlier posts I’ve mentioned that I am volunteering at the Briarcliff Manor-Scarborough Historical Society.
The BMSHS organized a presentation last Sunday (January 15, 2023) on “The Chain that Saved the Colonies.” To stop the British invasion of the New England Colonies during the American Revolution, Peter Townsend manufactured a Great Chain at Sterling Forest for the Continental Army. The chain was placed across the Hudson River at West Point.
Above some links from The Great Chain on display at Trophy Point, West Point, NY.
The presentation was given by Donald ‘Doc’ Bayne. ‘Doc’ has been interested in history since the age of 8. After a long career with Minolta during which he worked as a part time Forest Ranger for Sterling Forest State Park, ‘Doc’ accepted the position of Environmental Educator and Historian for the park. He has acquired a vast knowledge of the forest, animals, Native Americans, and iron history.
In his position he planned and conducted history and nature hikes in both Sterling Forest and Bear Mountain State Parks. He has lectured on many aspects of the environment such as the iron history of New York State. He is a passionate researcher and educator with the ability to feel the history of the land and transmit it to the people.
‘Doc’ shared the history of the iron industry that started in 1736 in Sterling Forest and how the Sterling Forge was used to create the Great Chain that was placed across the Hudson. He also covered the apparently lucrative business of selling fake chains, explaining how to spot a fake rather than real chain, and pointing out where a lot of the chains (both real and fake) are located.
The almost full house thoroughly enjoyed the presentation.
The presentation was not recorded. However, ‘Doc’ has given the presentation many times and one version is available on YouTube. Over time he adds and deletes information so what is available on YouTube is not identical to the one he gave on Sunday, but it’s very close. That presentation can be found here:
Sorry about the Ads, but anyone who uses YouTube will know that this is the price you pay for using the free version of YouTube.
The Vescio Community Center awaiting the arrival of the attendees
BMSHS Executive Director, Karen Smith introduces the presentation and ‘Doc’ Bayne.
An almost full house watched the presentation
‘Doc’ Bayne giving his presentation
The location of The Great Chain
Taken with a Sony A7IV and Rokinon/Samyang AF 24-70 f2.8 FE
A New Lens: Laowa 85mm f5.6
I recently acquired a new lens. It’s a Laowa 85mm f5.6. I already have two lenses, so why not use one of them. Well, I have been using them and they don’t really meet my need.
My first macro lens was a 7Artisans 60mm f2.8. There’s a review of it here. Note that a newer version now available. Review here. I bought it because it was inexpensive, reputed to be quite sharp, and well made. I was just getting started with macro photography and didn’t to spend a lot in case I didn’t like it (as it turned out I did). I bought it to use with my then newly acquired Sony A6000. Unfortunately this combination didn’t work for me. The lens was everything I thought it would be, but it was also something I stupidly had not thought about: it’s heavy. Or at least it’s too heavy for me. It’s also very front heavy on the A6000. I should say that I have quite weak arms so this may not be a problem for others.
My second macro lens is an old Minolta Maxxum AF 50mm f2.8 macro. I like this lens a lot and use it mostly in manual focus mode. It’s quite small and light. There’s a review here. I enjoyed using it. So what’s the problem. Actually there are two: first it’s 50mm focal length means that I have to get very close to take a picture. Second it only works on my Sony A-mount (and of course Minolta film cameras) cameras. Nowadays I mostly use Sony E-mount cameras including the Sony A-6000 and my fairly recently acquired Sony A7IV. While writing the above I realize that I actually could use it with an adapter on the E-mount cameras. I’d lose the shot metadata and would have manual focus, but since usually use manual focus for macros that would be no great loss. You live and learn.
Anyway I bought the Laowa 85mm f5.6. It’s well made, smaller and lighter than the 7artisans and has a longer focal length than either of them allowing me to stand father back from my subjects. It also has something that neither of the other lenses has: a 2:1 magnification ratio rather than the 1:1 ration of the other two. You might think that the f5.6 minimum aperture is a limitation, but since I’m usually shooting around f8 with flash it really isn’t. I haven’t used it much yet, but so far I like it. There’s a review of it here.
Taken with a Fuji X-E3 and Fuji XC 16-50mm f3.5-5.6 OSS II
Optical Illusion
I had eaten lunch at a nearby Mexican Restaurant (Los Abuelos) and needed to use the men’s room. I was sitting there browsing on my iPhone (as you do) when I looked up. To my surprise my eyes briefly had difficulty focusing on the green tiled wall. After a second or two I realized what was going on: the tiles were in fact flat. But they were made of glass with a green background, which made them seem to be recessed. My eyes apparently had difficulty figuring out whether I was looking at a flat or recessed set of tiles and tried to switch between. It was a little unnerving.
Taken with an iPhone SE II