Cap'n Bob & the Damsel

Retirement

Roadwork

roadwork.jpgWhen we went to our friend’s house on the Colorado River last week, we encountered a little problem when towing the trailer down the drive to the road in front of the house. The last dozen feet or so of the road, it sloped downward a bit abruptly. There was no damage to the trailer, but the rear leveling jacks dug into the one-inch gravel for several feet.

Image: Before and after for the top of the drive and the end of the drive. Two feet wider at the top and flared at to bottom for more room. Click image to enlarge.

It just so happened that Kevin, our contractor (the gentleman that built our house) stopped by the day we got back from the river. I mentioned the problem on the RV drive to him and he agreed to bring his Caterpillar multi-purpose tractor and smooth out the grade to a gradual slope.

Today, we got the work done. Kevin ran the tractor and Damsel and I moved rocks, raked up gravel and helped a bit. It was a bit of work. Earlier in the day, Damsel and I widened the road at the top near the wash to make it easier to get the trailer around the curve. With Kevin’s help, we also widened the bottom of the road to enable a sharper turn when towing the trailer out.

Tomorrow, or maybe the next day, I want to hook the trailer up to the truck and tow it down and around to see if any more work is needed. Judging from the result from today’s work, I believe it will be just fine.

06 Apr 2012 by Arizona Retirement Travel

A Tale (Tail?) of Three Pinschers

mini-me.jpg

Just as we were about to head home from the Dog Park today, a gentlemen showed up with his Doberman Pinscher. It was an interesting thing to see the similarities and the contrasts between the Doberman and our two Miniature Pinschers.

When we adopted Cabela, the Humane Society told us that Min-Pins are terriers and not related to Dobermans. The large breed is more closely related to Greyhounds and Rottweilers. Still, it was almost like the big dog was having a “mini me” moment. Click on the image to enlarge.

03 Apr 2012 by Critters Photography Retirement

My New Bird House

When we were at our friends’ house on the Colorado River last week, one of the in-laws surprised me with a gift of one of his handmade bird houses. He builds the houses and the ladies decorate them. We saw examples of his handiwork all over the riverfront complex since he had presented many to the neighbors there. I still don’t know where this one is going to be placed. Note the bird-sized satellite dish. Click on the image to enlarge.

bird-house.jpg

01 Apr 2012 by Arizona Home & Garden Retirement

Preparing to Photograph the Eclipse

filter.jpgI ordered some solar filters for all of our cameras so we can try to get images of the annular solar eclipse in May. The filters aren’t very substantial since they are made with cardboard tubing and have polymer filters, but they are cost-effective (~$10 each) and they work.

The filters come with an adhesive felt liner that you install to allow a snug fit when you slip the filter over the objective lens of the camera. Once installed, the filter doesn’t interfere with the auto-focus mechanisms nor with any other camera function.

Image: Solar filter slipped over my Canon SX-40 with inset of solar photo – click to enlarge

After some experimentation, I found that trying to use the cameras in auto modes (other than auto-focus) does not give good results; camera motion would blur most images. I tried using a tripod, but getting the image centered in the camera was taking too long. The eclipse would be over before getting all the proper adjustments.

I finally settled on using the camera in manual mode where you can independently set the film speed, aperture and shutter speed. I settled on ISO 3200 film speed, F5.6 for the aperture and 1/1250 second shutter speed. Holding the camera in my hands, the image was good enough to resolve sunspot 1445 currently transiting the solar surface. I uploaded a large image of the sun to the image viewer. Click on the link to view.

31 Mar 2012 by Astronomy Photography Retirement

More Thoughts About the New Camera

telephoto.jpgI’ve had the new Canon SX40 HS camera for over a couple of weeks now and I am still getting used to all the features. This camera is just enough different from the old PowerShot that I have to think about how to operate it.

One thing I like a lot is the camera’s ability to zoom in on distant objects and get a clear image even though the camera is not on a tripod. The cottontail in the image above was sitting under a cholla about 25 yards up the wash behind our house. The red-eyed black bird was a bit closer, about 10 yards up in a mesquite tree across the road.

The viewfinder is sort of interesting; it’s not optics but rather there is an LCD display monitor behind the eyepiece. It acts as though it were a viewfinder on an SLR like Damsel’s Canon XTi. It takes a little getting used to it, but it works OK. If you open the flat panel display, it becomes active and the viewfinder is disabled.

Later this week, we’re going to take a trip across the Arizona Outback and head to some friends that live on the Colorado River near Parker, AZ. I plan to take a lot of pictures during the excursion. It will be our first trip in the new mobile home.

Click on the image above to enlarge.

25 Mar 2012 by Photography Retirement Travel

Hitched!

Damsel took this photo shortly after the dealer hitched our new travel trailer to the CapnBobMobile. The trailer is now safely parked in the RV pullthrough at our home in Wickenburg. Click on the image to enlarge. You can see the trailer in the RV port here.

hitched.jpg

14 Mar 2012 by Retirement Travel Wanderlust

New Camera Preliminary Evaluation

composite.jpgAbout a week and a half ago, I blogged about a new camera I ordered. Yesterday, the post office delivered my new Canon SX40 HS. I unpacked the box last night and followed the getting started instructions this morning.

Image: composite of four photos I took today – click to enlarge.

As soon as I finalized the order last week, I downloaded the users manuals from the Canon website. I browsed through the manual to get familiar with the camera’s controls and specifications which gave me a head start on operations.

So, several times today, I took the camera outside and shot some sample photos. The top left image above is a bird perched in a mesquite tree about fifty feet away. At top right is a neighbors flagpole taken at a range of about 400 feet. Bottom left is a view of the home taken this morning. Finally, bottom right is a Cleveland sage flower I took in the courtyard this afternoon.

I am reasonably pleased with the performance, notably the telephoto images. The image stabilizer works much better on this camera than the old one. Close up photos aren’t usually my thing, but I think the camera performed well on those as well.

Speaking of the bird in the photo above, you may be able to help me identify the species. It is black with white stripes on the bottom of its wings, has a topknot like a jay or cardinal, jumps into the sir like a mocking bird dancing and has a whistle-like call ascending in pitch like a human whistling for a dog to come. You can click here for a large view of this bird. We can’t find it in any of our bird reference books.

09 Mar 2012 by Photography Retirement Travel

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