• Merry Christmas!

    Four-eyes

    Someone has run off with my Santa hat, so I had to go without.

    If you thought this would be pictures of happy people unwrapping Christmas gifts, or stuffing their faces with Christmas lunch, you are going to be disappointed. I decided that Christmas day was a self-imposed ‘no-camera day’. Apart from one Merry Christmas video to the family, access to technology was limited — and the video took at least five takes owing to technical problems with Ginger’s phone (operator error really, but I’m feeling generous).

    It was a quiet Christmas. Ginger’s parents were away, Katie is hiking in Ecuador, and other family members are scattered to the four winds visiting relatives. So it was only Ginger, Alek, Lanie, and myself at home on Christmas morning.

    I’ve taken to buying goats, and micro-loans … the donations make a difference to someone with a need rather than some unnecessary gift bought just for the sake of being seen to buy it.

    The trouble with Christmas for me is that everyone has pretty much what they need, and things people want are either prohibitively expensive, specialist purchases, or both. As it turned out, the things on our gift lists were fairly modest, comprising practical things we’d normally make do without but were very helpful or much appreciated.

    I have same problem when it comes to gifts for my family in the UK, they have what they need. Therefore, unless I think of a really appropriate gift — which does happen every now and then — I’ve taken to buying goats, and micro-loans on their behalf. They probably think I’m mad, but I’d like to hope that the donations make a difference to someone with a need rather than some unnecessary gift bought just for the sake of being seen to buy it.

    After unwrapping our presents we decamped to Susan and Dennis’ place for lunch. Sickness had taken its toll on the lunch numbers, so there was only seven of us. I had a great time, and the depleted numbers meant I won both the after lunch games we played (I mention this because I am normally trounced by the many eager game-playing members of the family. So, I’ll enjoy this brief, probably unrepeatable moment of gaming success while I can).

    Boxing Day in the UK; December 26th or St. Stephen’s Day here in the US, I was Feeling the need to take at least one picture (and my fumbling over the controls of the camera show that I need a lot more practice with it) so I took the easy route out, and shot some pictures at my desk. I am that lazy (it’s also below freezing outside).

    Here’s the details on some of the items of swag

    Ginger got a swanky Fitbit to replace her Flex (no pictures). It gives her a lot more health / exercise information which is useful for her exercise regimen. She also received some pretty blue glass from the kids.

    Lanie bought me the special glasses I’m wearing at the top of this post. They have exchangeable magnification lenses to help me with close-up work and include a light for working in those small dark places one finds oneself in — like inside the washer, where up to now I’ve had to try and work blind.

    Photograph of a brass Zippo lighter with a butane insert
    Ginger bought me this brass lighter for those occasions when I want a little more bling than my everyday carry silver colored lighter case. I guess I should have wiped the insert clean.
    Ginger bought me this brass lighter for those occasions when I need a little more bling than my everyday carry silver colored lighter case.
    Ginger bought me this brass lighter for those occasions when I want a little more bling than my everyday carry silver colored lighter case. I’ve yet to decide if I will keep it exclusively for special occasions, or if it will supplant my current EDC lighter case.

    Ginger bought me this brass lighter for those occasions when I need a little more bling than my everyday carry silver colored lighter case. I’ve yet to decide if I’ll retire the silver case or not, I think this brass case needs a bit of use to give it a well loved and worn look. So far it’s only collected a few scratches, it needs a lot more to give it character.

    My main present from Ginger — new speakers for my desk. The lower quality Logitech one’s I had will be moved to the workshop.

    Finally my main present from Ginger was this pair of desk-top speakers. I spent ages going through reviews before I selected these to go on my list. They are a luxury item that I wouldn’t be able to justify buying for myself, my old Logitech speakers worked fine — though they weren’t very high quality. This pair are more than good enough for my modest needs (before some audiophile picks holes in them).

  • The Road Goes Ever On

    The Road Goes Ever On

    I loved the way the light caught all the compressed leaves on the trail.

    Taken on the White Trail at Busiek. It looks like there’s lens flare on the tree trunk. It’s not, it’s a trail marker.

    You can see all the pictures taken today here: Ginger and Gary on the White Trail at Busiek

  • Trees and Sky

    Trees and Sky

    Taken while we stopped for a breather on the White Trail at Busiek.

    You can see the rest of the pictures I took today here: Ginger and Gary on the White Trail at Busiek

  • Ginger and Gary on the White Trail at Busiek

    Can you tell I’d just stuffed a chocolate bar in my mouth? … Photo by Ginger

    We managed to get out on a quick four-mile hike. The weather was very mild but windy. Nice for mid-December. We stopped at the high point on the White Trail to catch our breath before the descent back to the trailhead.

    Busiek White Trail in December. The trail branch on the right goes up to a small stock pond.
    Busiek White Trail in December
    Trees and Sky
    Trees and Sky
    The Road Goes Ever On I loved the way the light caught all the compressed leaves on the trail
    December 16, 2017 | www.breakfastinamerica.me | Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved
    Ginger powers away while I check my pictures
    Trail-side rock
    Trail and rock
    Walking down the switchbacks. The ‘bike friendly’ route includes a load of switchbacks where there used to be a very steep climb.
    Oh well you can’t win them all. It looked like a good picture … The lesson is that I needed to get closer to blur the background more (Or had my 35mm lens with me). This was at the top of a steep bank. I thought I\’d climbed high enough and nailed it, but not so.

  • On becoming more forgetful

    is not taking my medication regularly making me forgetful?

    Or, is it the other way around?

  • I splashed out on a new anodized shutter button

    FujiFilm X-E3 with a red anodized aluminum shutter button
    FujiFilm X-E3 with CamDesign 10MM Diameter Red Metal Convex Soft Shutter Release Button – Close-up of my new red shutter button. Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    When I bought my Fujifilm X-E3 I also bought a red enameled shutter button to go with it. I didn’t like the way it looked, so I replaced it with an anodized button.

    After a couple of weeks of use, I have decided that I don’t like the orangy-red color and shiny finish of the enameled button, so I have changed to the anodized shutter button pictured above, a CamDesign 10MM Diameter Red Metal Convex Soft Shutter Release Button. The enameled button came with little rubber washers, so I’ve used one of those to hold my new red anodized aluminum button in-place. (By the way, ‘Splashed out’ is $7.99 for two buttons and a lens/wristband.)

    I much prefer the color and finish of this button. I just wish that the supplier would provide washers too, instead of the unwanted wrist/lens band.

    FujiFilm X-E3 with a red anodized aluminum shutter button
    The red shutter button in place. Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    The picture below shows the enameled button on my X-E3 (left) compared to the red anodized version on the FujiFilm X-E2s (right).

    Photograph of a FujiFilm X-E3 & Fujifilm X-E2s camera.
    FujiFilm X-E3 with red enameled shutter button & Fujifilm X-E2s with a red anodized button.
    Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Updates

    • July 2025. Eight years since I first bought it, and it is still in place and working fine. Highly recommended.
    • May 2021. It looks as good now as it did on day one, which considering I take my camera out backpacking regularly and that has taken its toll, is as good as you can get. I’d buy another if I somehow lost this one, no question. It makes the shutter so much easier to use, especially when holding the camera one-handed.

    A note about the links. The links marked with a this icon – – are affiliate links, if you buy through them, it doesn’t cost you more, and I get a tiny percentage which helps me offset the cost of keeping this website running. However, please buy from the source that makes the most sense for you!

  • Blue Glass Collection

    Blue Glass display on four wall mounted shelves
    Ginger’s Blue Glass Collection. Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    As the sun gets lower in the north the sunshine streams into the office.

    This afternoon I noticed that the sun had got low enough to shine on the wall opposite the display shelves, lighting up Ginger’s blue glass collection. I’m more of a ‘red’ person myself, but I have to admit, it does look pretty.

  • At My Desk — Black and White

    Black and white photograph of Gary Allman standing at his desk

    Working from home has its advantages,

    I can wear comfortable clothing without (too much) ridicule. In August I bought a lightweight utility kilt to see if it would be any good for hiking. It was, and I was very impressed. The kilt was very comfortable and also practical.

    A special offer from the vendor tempted me to buy another. I’ve been wearing a utility kilt most of the time at home since our hiking trip in August. It’s a lot more comfortable than shorts or linen pants — my other preferred clothing. And that explains why I’m wearing a kilt in the photographs I took today.

    I have no idea what’s going on with my hair in the above pictures. The backlighting makes it look like I have a Mohican cut. 🙂

  • At My Desk — Color

    Color photograph of Gary Allman standing at his desk

    Working from home has its advantages,

    I can wear comfortable clothing without (too much) ridicule. In August I bought a lightweight utility kilt to see if it would be any good for hiking. It was, and I was very impressed. The kilt was very comfortable and also practical.

    A special offer from the vendor tempted me to buy another. I’ve been wearing a utility kilt most of the time at home since our hiking trip in August. It’s a lot more comfortable than shorts or linen pants — my other preferred clothing. And that explains why I’m wearing a kilt in the photographs I took today.

    I have no idea what’s going on with my hair in the above pictures. The backlighting makes it look like I have a Mohican cut. 🙂

  • Playing

    I’m suffering from a severe lack of motivation at the moment.

    I can’t be bothered to go out and take pictures, but the urge to press the shutter button remains, So I pick random objects and take quick — typically fairly badly executed — pictures of things on my desk.

    Here’s the latest bunch.

    This was in my cracker at the diocesan Advent lunch.

    Clockwork Snowman

    I take pictures of my journal when I feel the need to take a picture, but lack the inspiration to go and find something to photograph.

    Another Journal Picture

    This was my response to a question on one of the Bullet Journal Groups I’m a member of. The Question Was, “How do you decorate your journal’s cover page?” Well, this is as cutsie as mine gets.

    Cover Page

  • Supermoon – 2017

    Super Moon

    I missed the full ‘Supermoon’, it was cloudy. Rather than not bother at all, I thought I’d try and capture it the following night.

    The resulting image didn’t have the big jump in image quality I was expecting moving from the X-ES2 to the X-E3. In part, because the moon was further away (and therefore smaller) than when I took my original ‘Beaver Moon‘ picture last year. And also because it was darned cold and I rushed things — forgetting to turn off the image stabilizer, and not bothering to use a remote shutter release.

    The interesting thing (for me) about this picture, is that the in-camera jpg image was better than anything I could reproduce from the raw image. This seems to be a trend with the new camera. I find myself deleting the Raw files and working with the much better (and smaller) jpgs the camera produces. In fact, I’ve even caught myself going back to the camera and getting it to recreate a jpg from the raw file when I’ve decided that slightly different processing is required.

    I’m not sure if this says bad things about Lightroom or my processing skills. I think (hope) the former.

    Supermoon. Inset: the full frame.

    Original Uncropped Supermoon image

  • Installation of Fr. Jim Lile at All Saints’ Episcopal Church, Nevada

    The Rev. Dr. James Lile, Jr. Rector of All Saints’ Episcopal Church Nevada, Missouri

    Sunday I went on a 200 mile round trip to Nevada, Missouri.

    There I attended the installation of Jim Lile (or the Rev. Dr. James Lile, Jr. If you prefer) as rector at All Saints’ Episcopal Church in Nevada. This was my second outing with the X-E3, and I was generally very pleased with the results. The above picture is another personal edit of what will be published as a color image. Below are a few more pictures from my trip.

    I also got to meet up with my fellow expat friend Robert Smith – who sneaked a crafty picture of me at work. I’ll have to steal a copy and post it.

    The Installation of the Rev. James Lile
    The Installation of the Rev. James Lile
    The Rev. James Lile’s first Eucharist as Rector at All Saints’ Episcopal Church, Nevada, Missouri.
    The Rev. James Lile’s first Eucharist as Rector at All Saints’ Episcopal Church, Nevada, Missouri.
    Image credit: Gary Allman
    All Saints’ Episcopal Church, Nevada, Missouri
    All Saints’ Episcopal Church, Nevada, Missouri
    All Saints’ Episcopal Church, Nevada, Missouri
    Altar – All Saints’ Episcopal Church, Nevada, Missouri
    Altar – All Saints’ Episcopal Church, Nevada, Missouri

  • Installation of Fr. Jos Tharakan at St. James’

    My own processing of one of the pictures I took at last night’s installation of Fr. Jos Tharakan at St. James’. Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Tonight was the first run out for the X-E3. It was either a bold or a very dumb idea.

    I’ve not taken any pictures with my new X-E3, apart from a few test shots, so it was a bit risky deciding to use it for photographing the installation of a new rector – Fr. Jos Tharakan at St. James’. I had every confidence in the camera, but not quite so much in my abilities with it.

    The camera is fundamentally the same, but like British English and American English, it’s the subtle differences that can not only surprise you but also catch you out. Fortunately, nothing about the camera blindsided me. I did an excellent job of that by myself; I also decided to change the way I work. My theory was that I might as well get all the changes over in one go. So, I went from shooting with one zoom lens to using a couple of prime lenses. The advantages are smaller size, less weight, and much better low-light performance. The disadvantages are less “reach”, the 135mm zoom lens can work from the back of an average-sized church, and of course, now I have to change lenses, which also involves anticipating which lens is going to work best for different parts of the service. And that was the problematic bit.

    I reverted to using the zoom for one set of photographs, where I’d have had to get right in the way to take the pictures I wanted, and earlier ‘test’ shots suggested that the primes just didn’t bring me close enough. Inevitably, it turns out that my favorite picture of the night (above) was taken with the zoom lens.

    My other battle of the night was the lighting. I don’t know why, but someone had decided to light the nave with fairly under-powered daylight colored lights, at the same time retaining incandescent spots and lighting around the outside. The clash of the different light temperatures was a bit of a nightmare. Personally, I would not light a space with daylight colored lighting unless it is a workspace or display area. For example, I use daylight lighting in my office because I need to be able to see colors accurately and it makes photography easier, but not in our living areas. Daylight is also cold and uninviting.

    Of course, the evening wasn’t about me, the color of the light, or my camera. My role was just to do my best at documenting the proceedings without getting in the way. The jury is still out on how successful I am at doing that when I’m using the primes. The problem is that I have to be a lot nearer to the action. For now I’m going to carry on working with the primes and review how it’s working after a while. If I can get good shots without being obtrusive it’ll be fine.

    Putting my woes and photography to one side, it was a great service and evening.

    Sunday afternoon I get to do it all again, only this time at All Saints’ in Nevada, Missouri.

  • Lazy Camera Picture — Fujifilm Finepix F30

    Photograph of a Fujifilm Finepix F30 digital camera with the lens extended (on).
    Fujifilm Finepix F30. Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    I guess it had to happen. I bought a new camera and the ol’ photo-mojo does a complete runner, and apart from some training/test shots I’ve not taken a picture with it.

    This uninspired and lazy picture was taken on my desk. Lazy because if I was serious about it I’d have gone to the ‘photo closet‘, and set the camera up on a tripod so that I could get a good depth of field. Studying the picture more closely I would have also removed the hair stuck to the camera.

    Whatever. This is my first digital camera — a Fujifilm F30 — bought in 2006. It’s been sitting on my ‘antique’ camera shelf for a year and a half now, and much to my surprise it still had a charge in the battery, and it works! I know it’s been on the shelf for that long because I looked at the pictures on the memory card — though it took me ten minutes to find a suitable USB cable so I could check.

    Photograph of a Fujifilm Finepix F30 digital camera with the lens retracted (off).
    Fujifilm Finepix F30. Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    The F30 still impresses me, it takes wonderful pictures. The wear on the shutter button shows how much it has been used. The picture quality, longevity, and customer support from Fujifilm was a major factor in my decision to buy my X-E2s and X-E3 cameras. Customer support because Fujifilm repaired it free of charge when I broke it by very stupidly getting water in it, totally my fault.

    Just to prove it still works …

    Taken with my Fujifilm Finepix F30. This is straight out of camera with just a tad of artistic vignette added in Lightroom. Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Link: Pictures taken with my Fuji Finepix F30


  • New Camera — Fujiflm X-E3

    Photograph of a FujiFilm X-E3 & Fujifilm X-E2s camera.
    FujiFilm X-E3 & Fujifilm X-E2s. Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    I love my Fujifilm XE2s.

    In fact, I like it so much I could not resist investing in the Fujifilm X-E3, which while only slightly smaller, looks and feels a lot smaller — I included a quarter in the picture to show just how small these cameras are. The X-E3’s higher resolution sensor and improved lowlight handling should be very useful for a lot of the pictures I take. I’ve already uncovered a load of little ergonomic improvements that are really good. A frame around the image in the viewfinder so you can see where the image ends when shooting in the dark, the addition of a customizable menu, and RGB exposure histograms — complete with an overexposure warning.

    I’ve spent the afternoon setting it up and generally playing with it. Now I’m looking forward to getting used to the E3 and learning how to get the best from it. Next weekend I’ll be using it for work — I’ve got a couple of new rector installations to photograph.

    By-the-way, my X-E2s isn’t going anywhere, it will become Ginger’s studio camera replacing the trusty ten-year-old Nikon D40x which just keeps on going (and is what I used to take this picture).

    Fujifilm X-E3 — First Impressions, and My experience vs Comments I’ve read

    • It’s so small! I know it isn’t really a lot smaller than the X-E2s, but it feels and looks like it is. I’ve not had any trouble handling the camera — but I’ve yet to try my heavy 18-135 zoom on it.
    • The EVF works a treat, and I’ve not had any problems with the change in EVF size or eyepoint. If anything it’s clearer for me than the X-E2s. Note: I wear glasses and have a strong prescription.
    • Lightroom reads the Raw files with no problems whatsoever (the latest Classic version of Lightroom).
    • The Arcos film simulations are well worth all the brilliant reviews they’ve been receiving.
    • On-Off switch I’ve read some criticisms of it, I found it fine.
    • The Image quality is not a huge leap up from the X-E2s (comparing shots taken side-by-side) but the improved cropping options from the increased number of pixels are very welcome.
    • The Remote Tethering to a cellphone is great (when it works), but getting Bluetooth to find and recognize the camera/phone is really painful. However, anyone who owns a Fitbit will already know how awful Bluetooth can be at finding and making connections.
    • The Swipe Function to replace the Dpad – is totally unusable. My experience so far is that about one in ten swipes gets correctly recognized, the other nine times the swipe is either completely ignored, or the wrong option comes up. That’s just not good enough.
    • I do like the touchscreen for reviewing and zooming in on the pictures I’ve taken.
    • The High ISO options are so noisy as to not be of use. 8000 is about as high as I’d want to push it. So a slight gain. I’ve yet to do a comparison at 6400.

    Fujifilm X-E3 — Things I missed or didn’t read in the reviews

    • Picture Frame – This has been on my wishlist for ages. You can turn on a frame around the image so that you can see where the edge of the frame is when shooting in the dark. So simple – I hope this appears in a firmware update for the X-E2s.
    • My Menu – So much better than the Q-menu. Your very own menu, no indecipherable icons with indecipherable acronyms for the options. When I’m working on a shoot, and under pressure, my memory goes. I need all the help I can get in making changes fast. Having a list of your most used menu options in plain English with the options listed in full is great. Only having to scroll rather than move in two dimensions is much faster to navigate too. Next, I need to reassign the Q button to My Menu. I hope ‘My Menu’ also appears in a firmware update for the X-E2s.
    • RGB Histograms, with overexposure indication. I’ve assigned this to the Fn button, and it is great.
    • Sound, You can’t disable all the sounds with a single option selection. On the X-E2s, you can disable Flash and sounds with a single option. I can’t find an equivalent on the X-E3. So I’ve decided to turn all the sounds off permanently. I can’t have beeps when I’m shooting a church service. With my X-E2s I’d only disable sounds during the service.
    • ISO adjustment on the front dial. Magic.

    A note about the links. The links marked with a this icon – – are affiliate links, if you buy through them, it doesn’t cost you more, and I get a tiny percentage which helps me offset the cost of keeping this website running. However, please buy from the source that makes the most sense for you!

  • Incense Holder

    Just fooling around.

    I thought I’d be able to burn incense inside this holder, but it didn’t work — there’s not enough air-flow. It’s okay for sticking joss sticks in, but that’s it.

  • Radio

  • My Desk

    My Desk. Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    I’m about to take delivery of a new camera, so I took a few test shots of my desk with my current camera to be able to compare the results.

    Believe it or not, this is how my desk looks most of the time — give or take a magazine or two and my cell phone.

    What’s On My Desk

    Let’s have a bit of fun, and I’ll point out the obvious. Along the back…

    • Speakers. D’oh! that’s fairly obvious.
    • Cell phone stand & charging cable. I made the stand a while ago. It keeps the phone out of my way.
    • Book of Common Prayer. I have a pdf version, but I prefer to thumb through the pages.
    • Photographs. These glass frames are double-sided, I turn them around every few days.
    • Buck 110 Knife. I love this knife, but it’s just a bit too heavy for every day carry, so it sits on my desk.
    • Pilot Metropolitan fountain pens. I probably should find somewhere else to keep my collection, but I like having them close to hand, even though recently I’ve been pretty much exclusively using the Conklin Durograph.
    • Desk Tidy. One day, when I get around to replacing the desktop I’ll add drawers and all this stuff can be kept out of sight.
    • PC. I’d rather not have the PC on the desk, but it is a standing desk, and the computer needs to go up and down with it. At some point I may suspend the computer underneath, but I am not keen on dealing with limited access. One could argue that access to the innards of the machine is not needed very often and my experience tends to agree. But, when I need to get inside it’s typically a hardware emergency, and I won’t want to waste time unstrapping it from a sling.

    At the front…

    • Leather writing pad. This is so good. And — as I’ve said before — I wish I’d made one a long time ago. I also get a huge amount of pleasure from conditioning and polishing it.
    • Journal. My hand-made leather journal cover containing my bujo, personal journal and mini sketch pad.
    • Conklin Duragraph. My current favorite fountain pen. The inks I’m favoring right now are Diamine Ox Blood and DeArtramentis Cherry.
    • Keyboard & Tablet. I don’t use the tablet as much as I should, and I really like this three-quarter size keyboard. Both are wireless, which is great. I can use them from my office sofa when I’m feeling that way inclined.

  • Fall Sweet Potato Chip

    Photograph of a sweet Potato Chip looking very much like a fall leaf.
    Fall Sweet Potato Chip

    In honor of the season, it’s a Fall Sweet Potato Chip.

  • Sunday Make & Mend – Weekly Journal Insert

    Tools required to make a weekly Bullet Journal (bujo) insert.
    Making my Weekly Insert. Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Today my Bullet Journal Ran out of Space.

    It’s time to set up a new notebook. While I was doing that and setting up for the new week, I took some pictures to answer a question asked on one of the Facebook Groups I’m a member of. So here’s how I put together my bullet journal, along with how I hold my weekly inserts in place.

    It is all very simple.

    I have a gatefold insert I use each week for time recording and some basic planning. To state the obvious, I edit the insert for the right dates and print it on Inkjet paper (Inkjet paper is fountain pen friendly).

    It only takes some basic tools to make:

    • a straight-edge,
    • cutting wheel (scissors would do),
    • corner trimmer,
    • cutting mat.

    The template includes folding marks so I know where to make the folds. It typically takes less than five minutes to make my insert.

    By the way, the big stack at the top of the picture is around 18 month’s worth of filled-in weekly inserts.   

    Holding a bullet journal - bujo - insert in place with shockcord.
    The insert is held in place with 1mm shock cord. Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
    Weekly insert in place. Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
    Inserting a new notebook into an A6 Bujo (Bullet Journal)
    Inserting a Notebook into the leather cover. I also use 1mm shock cord to hold my notebooks in their leather cover. Copyright © 2017 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    And that’s it …

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