I’ve always been the type to get excited at the start of a new semester, eager to learn something new. I felt the same way in college, even though I finished my degree much later than most, at 32. I didn’t go straight from high school to college, though I wish I had. That just wasn’t how things turned out for me. When I finally returned to finish what I’d started at junior college, I was eager to learn. I had a goal and went after it with determination.

Now, at more than twice that age, I’m back in school, again eager to learn. This time, I’m focused on photography. I’ve been shooting since I was 16, so I know my way around a camera and all the settings. I know my style and tools. But learning new techniques, being among talented photographers, and having my work critiqued weekly is a new experience. I’m trying genres I never would have before, but each one teaches me something.  One important lesson is that I can still stay true to my style while incorporating those new techniques.  Hopefully, it will just enrich what I bring forward for people to enjoy.  

Going to class each week feels like being a kid heading to the ice cream store. I look forward to it every time. Some of my friends from the photo club are in the same class as me, and we all support each other. Sometimes we go out together to shoot photos for our assignments. If you’re worried about having nothing to do in retirement, here’s my advice: find what you love. Try the things you always wished you had time for when you were younger. Take a class or two. I’m even thinking about trying watercolor painting. I know I’m not good at it, but at this point in life, I can just say, who cares? Do it anyway.

A dear friend reminded me that I hadn’t updated my blog about buying a new camera. Just a note—the date on that post isn’t right; it was actually late 2024. After a lot of research, I stuck with Nikon and bought the Z6 III. I thought about the Z8, but it was a bit bigger and pricier. The Z6iii is called a mini Z8 with the new tech, so it seemed like the best fit. I like its size and weight, and since I already know the menus, switching over was easy. A recent firmware update made it even more like the Z8, which is great for me.

Nikon has released some great new cameras and lenses this year. For my camera, I picked the 24-120 lens because I like its range and sharpness. I tried it out at the South Coast Botanical Gardens during the Butterfly Exhibit and was really happy with how sharp the photos turned out. I also used my 105 macro lens with an adapter and got some nice results.  No focus stacking was used in my example, as those little guys fly off without any notice, but it's still pretty good for a quick shot.  

My husband is thinking about getting a camera, so I’m doing some research for him now. I’ll probably go with a smaller Nikon body so we can share lenses, and I can help him get started. We might consider another Fuji, but I have a feeling Nikon will win again. He doesn’t mind the size or weight as much as I do; I just want him to have a good grip and enjoy using it. We’re planning a trip to Yosemite later this year, so I want to make sure he has the right gear.

Do you think there will ever be a time when we feel we have all we need and no longer need to look at the newest gear coming out?    HA!  Yeah right.

Are you a sucker for Instagram ads? I am. I saw a reel from some guy I’ve never heard of and he’s boasting about his favorite camera - the Diana F+ by Lomography. Fully plastic, very retro looking, shoots 120 film, and gives you nostalgic looking images. Since one of my mirrorless cameras is the Fuji X-T5, I get stopped all the time by people thinking I’m shooting with an old film camera. I love that camera. Retro seems to be in vogue right now. The research begins. My first stop is YouTube and I find Ted Forbes showing off one of his 3 Diana’s. He gives the history of the camera and says you can buy them for nothing. Other videos showed the images that come out of them. Turns out each one can be a bit different and have their own flaws which just enhance (or trash) the finished image. Light leaks, vignetting, soft focus, it’s all good. I checked out the Lomography website and discovered a whole world I was unaware of.

I order a brand new one from B&H and paid way more than Ted Forbes told me I should. It’s got the cutest flash attachment and gives you the option of a 12 image or 16 image roll. I bought a box of Portra 400 and a couple rolls of Ilford HP5 400 BW. Taking it out for my first adventure, I opted for 12 frames on the color film first. I went to Huntington Beach for the US Open of Surfing. Nothing says nostalgia like Surf City USA.

You feel every bit of the plastic build “quality” when you shoot with it. It’s a 75mm lens. You get one shutter speed - 1/60. You have 3 aperture choices based on levels of shady to sunny. It even has a pinhole feature. I’m waiting for my first roll of pinhole shots to be developed at the time of this writing. As for focus, another 3 options. So I shot 3 rolls on my first adventure out. Excited to go for processing, I order the whole shebang - developing, digital scan, and prints - matte paper with a 1/4” border. It took a whole week to get them back. In the world of digital where we shoot 20 frames in a second and see them instantly…..what was I thinking? I’m thinking it’s a slow summer and I needed a toy to play with.

Anyway, my first round turned out great. A little dark but that’s easily adjusted in post. Of course, this also spurred me on to getting out the old 35mm Minolta and shoot a roll. All of a sudden I’m wondering how I’m going to possibly fill a roll of 36. This medium certainly teaches you to slow down and be more discerning in what you take pictures of. Anyway, it’s fun. I’m certainly not selling all my mirrorless but for those occasions when you want specialty stuff, I’ve got my Diana!

One thing to know about me: I research everything thoroughly—almost obsessively. Days can turn into months before I make a decision. Recently, I’ve been considering purchasing a new camera.

Currently, I use two systems: Nikon and Fuji. I don’t know how common it is to shoot with two brands, but I didn’t use to. I started my digital journey with Nikon, after first shooting film on a lovely Minolta. When I moved to mirrorless, Fuji’s design drew me in—I love the old-school look of the X-T3 and X-T5. Nikon later introduced the Z-fc, but upon researching, Fuji’s capabilities won me over.

I love my Fujifilm X-T5 for street photography. It’s small, fast, stylish, and bottom line it’s just FUN to shoot with. I purchased a used X-T3 from KEH, then upgraded to a new X-T5. I still love the X-T3’s click, so I’ll never sell it. It reminds me of my old film cameras. Update:  I converted the X-T3 to Infrared so it’s a very special toy.

Over the years, I’ve collected a large inventory of Nikon bodies and lenses. My workhorse is the D-850, a camera I saved up for and love. It never lets me down, so it may seem odd that I’m considering switching to Sony. The main issue is weight: the D-850 and my 105 macro get heavy over a long day. My back and arthritic hand start to struggle after hours of shooting. Still, when I look at my shots, I wonder why I’m considering a change. But then I take the D-850 out to a butterfly garden and get a shot like this and wonder why would I sell my gear. I’m sure weight and advanced technology will win out and I’ll make the change.

May 24

Yesterday, I learned a tough photography lesson, and my friends got to see it happen. I spent the day in Laguna Beach, taking street photos. I snapped a girl practicing martial arts on the boardwalk and took pictures of cute dogs with their owners. I ended up with about 200 to 300 photos. Most weren’t anything special, but a few made me excited to get home and look at them. My friends and I tried out ICM, or intentional camera movement, on cars driving by, but my shots didn’t turn out well, so I started deleting some from my card. That was a big mistake. Suddenly, I had deleted everything. My camera gives you the option to delete one photo or all of them, and I must have picked 'all' by accident, because every shot from that morning was gone. I couldn’t believe it. I checked both cards, took them out and put them back in, turned the camera off and on, and even removed the battery, hoping the photos would come back. But they were gone, just like that.

At home, I searched for ways to recover my images. There are many apps promising data recovery for Macs, but their free trials typically allow only a small amount—too little for my large files. Since these were just fun photos, I decided not to spend $89 on a software upgrade. I did learn, however, that images from earlier shoots can stay on an SD card long after formatting—my chosen app still showed old images. I’m unsure how many are retrievable, but they appear in searches.  

So, the lesson here is simple: don’t delete any photos until you’ve uploaded them. Now, I use my second card to back up my shots, and I wait until I’m home before deleting even the bad ones.

Turns out you really can get your kicks on Route 66.  We took a little road trip from Barstow, CA, to Williams, AZ, and saw some iconic places, including Roy’s Cafe, the Sign Museum, and the Bagdad Cafe (note the spelling difference), as well as a train ride to the Grand Canyon.  

10 photographers from varied backgrounds all camped out and caravaned our way through so many towns.  It’s so much fun when a group of strangers comes together with a common interest - photography - and becomes great friends in only 3 1/2 days.  We even discovered that we can like each other despite some very delicate differences - camera brands.  How can Canon get along with Nikon, or Nikon see eye to eye with Sony?  And no way a Fuji can be welcomed in, but it was.  Amazing.  

Big thanks to Hernan Godoy for an awesome workshop. It’s one I’ll always remember.