Around ten years ago I gave a number of micro four-thirds cameras a try at bird photography. Some of the lenses were really good. The Olympus (now OM System) 300mm f/4 PRO was roughly the same quality as the fabled Leica 280mm f/4 APO-Telyt-R, no small feat when considering it was capturing so much detail…

After I finished walking the Camino Francés route of the Camino de Santiago a little over two years ago, I kinda figured I’d have plenty of images for a book if I ever decided to do one. Two things held me up a bit: one, I was still traveling, up until the end of last…

After several months of “meh” images with Nikon stuff, along with frustrations with having to use the appliance-like FTZ adapter with my AI-S lenses, the siren voice of my one remaining R lens grabbed my attention from the back of the dry cabinet. One thing led to another fairly quickly, and most of the Nikon…

After a two-month break from the ant farm as well as a two-month pause in chasing birds, I headed over to one of the local parks in search of some of my avian friends. The minute I got there it started raining. Still, I managed a few shots. It was a couple of days before…

Anyone who follows what I write here knows that in the past I’ve expressed my doubts about china-made lenses, in particular those that are made for manufacturers based outside china. Although lenses made by china companies several years ago at first seemed to be low-priced novelties, a few of the makers upped their game quite…

Since I’ve been back in the ant farm, chasing birds has been pretty much my only photographic pursuit. And, unlike ten or so years ago when one could find any number of confiding birds willing to have their little countenances recorded, nowadays “chase” is the operative word. There have been some afternoons I’ve been out…

f there’s one thing good about being a mediocre bird photographer, it’s that people who see your work know you’re not using AI. There’s a local Facebook forum where people post the latest bird sightings here in the ant farm. People grab shots with everything from their iphones to bridge cameras to expensive bazookas. Only…

Funny how often “never” turns into “inevitable” in my little picture-taking world. In this case, it’s both a ditching and a re-acquisition. After all the charm, mystique and <insert word of your choice> of Leica faded, I opted for Nikon, a Zf for shooting short and a Z50II for shooting long. The Z50II was my…

A few of the photography rumors sites have now reported that the owners of Leica are looking to sell a majority stake in the company, perhaps to a business entity in China. Is anybody really surprised? For the past several years, we’ve seen numerous instances of co-branding, licensing the name, and an ever-diversifying portfolio of…

After adding an APS-C Nikon body some time back for critter chasing, I dared to see if they might have a full-frame body that can autofocus accurately. Once I found one, there was no further reason to hang on to my well-worn Leica stuff. So I’ve made a complete brand change, partly motivated by my…