Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone!

It’s Christmas day morning and I am ready for a feast of Christmas dinner later.

Yesterday I received the scans back from the lab for my latest camera a Yashica Electro 35, they turned out pretty well and I have uploaded them here for you to see. It is a rangefinder camera and I was a little worried things would not be in focus correctly as I had trouble viewing through the view finder. But all the frames seem OK apart from a few due to my silly mistakes. I’m happy the camera is working as it should!

This camera was introduced in the mid 60’s and it is well made and very popular at the time working in aperture priority auto mode. I purchased this from eBay and it came with a nice leather case.

We have had a fair few storms recently and flying conditions have not been ideal. But I have flown my drone a couple of times to capture the beautiful morning sun rises.

I’m trying my best not to get drawn into the usual festive sales that happen this time of year. But I have been doing a lot of research into Leica cameras. A very well known and respected photography brand. I do like the history of Leica and how it as developed over the years into using digital. The cameras are perhaps outside my budget but who knows, maybe I will get to use one, one day )

I hope everyone is well and can find some joy and happiness at this time of year!

Stay safe guys

What about Medium Format?

Hi guys hope everything is good with you and thanks for taking a peek at my website!

During November I had such a good time with photography. The Autumn colours were amazing and I shot several rolls of 35mm film. I also used my FujiFilm XT5 quite a bit as well. I bought a used lens from MPB, it was a XF 50mm f/2. The lens was in superb condition and I really liked the results I was getting from it.

I flew my DJI Mini 3 Pro drone to capture the snowy landscape we had briefly, and also to watch some really breathtaking sun rises.

Something new to me is Medium Format photography… It seemed logical to try this as I am really appreciating analogue photography. I did a bit of research and found a cheap way into it. I found a cheap LOMO Lubitel 166B on eBay. It is a soviet camera from 1980 and classed for beginners. It is a TLR which means ‘Twin Lens Reflex’ , two lenses to compose and take a photograph. It is fully mechanical and manual operation. It seems all functions are working on this camera and I have just shot my first roll of Kodak Gold 200 120 film through it. I have a roll of Kodak Tri X 400 to try also. Hopefully I will have the film developed and scanned in a weeks time. I will post the results, good or bad on my website.

I also tried a bit of night photography using a roll of CineStill 800T 35mm film. Over several cold nights I ventured out in the darkness to try and capture some urban settings. I used a tripod and a cable release with my Canon AE-1 camera. If I’m honest I’m not expecting a good outcome… I’m pretty sure I messed up with the exposure settings. Hopefully I will have something to show from this roll of film!

So I feel a lot of good things happened regards photography during November, I hope I can keep this positive momentum going!

Thanks for reading and take care

All Hallow’s Eve

It is Halloween today and I have spent October watching horror movies. Long Legs has perhaps been the best one of the bunch. I really liked the vibe of this movie and it looked awesome. Some great performances too.

My adventures in analogue photography has been going well. I’m having to learn to be patient and slow down and be more thoughtful when I press the shutter button. But I am really enjoying the process. The Canon AE-1 camera I bought from eBay has been brilliant. I have shot about 5 rolls of film so far. I’m trying out different ones to gauge the different qualities of each. My current roll of film in the camera has already been exposed to light and I’m really curious how my images will look after it has been developed!

Talking of developing I can tell you I have actually developed my own roll of black and white film at home. I was a bit nervous that something would go wrong, and it did! The chemical side of things was easy enough. But I had a lot of trouble fumbling around in the change bag trying to put the film on to the spool that goes into the development tank. It got stuck and I made a mess trying to put it right. Several frames were damaged… and left a anomaly on the negative. But most of the images came out OK. I’m really chuffed at my varying degree of success but it was a good lesson learnt. I can do it and it is fun to do, so I will be doing more developing when I can.

I have upload the images from my analogue camera to this website. It is a good reference for me to see if I can improve!

I bought a TTArtisan 40mm F2.8 APS-C Macro Lens for scanning the negatives from my analogue camera to digitize them. It was the cheapest I could afford at the time and offers better image quality over the cheap and nasty negative scanners available. I have also shot some macro shots of various things. I will have to wait to Spring and Summer when I can try and get some good bugs and insects shots.

That’s all for this month folks,

Happy Halloween!

Return to Analogue

Something exciting started in September. I rediscovered analogue film photography and I think it could help my photography get better. It is something I have been thinking about doing for a while now. I still have an old Minolta Riva AF35 point and shoot camera that I bought 30 years ago. I was curious and wanted to see if it still worked. I went looking for a roll of film I could use and discovered how much more 35mm film is these days. I settled on a roll of Kodak Gold 200. I shot the roll of film on a nice sunny day at the weekend and then posted it off for developing. I sent it to a place called Analogue Wonderland which seems to be a very popular place for 35mm film enthusiasts. I had to wait patiently for about a week for the film to be developed and scanned before I could see the results. I got them back and was pretty impressed how the photos looked. They were not tac sharp but they looked pretty cool indeed. I’m pleased the old Minolta still worked after all these years!

My interest grew from this… and I decide to buy a more serious 35mm camera from eBay, a used one. Looking on eBay for a suitable camera was a good idea. There are many options to pick, a great choice of cameras available. I decided to purchase a Canon AE-1 which was produced in the early 80’s. I received the camera and was immediately impressed with its quality. It had certainly been treated well over the years. It came with a 50mm lens which was equally in good condition. I loaded a roll of Kentmere 400 black and white film and went for a walk with my dog looking for suitable subjects to test the camera. Right now I am waiting for the film roll to be developed and I am really excited to see what they turn out like! I am keen to try different types of film too as there are many that have there own quirks.

I am also going to try developing rolls of 35mm film at home to save time and expense. I bought a kit that has everything you need to start doing this. Black and White film is the easiest and cheapest to do yourself. This is also something I have wanted to do as my father would do this often himself and he told me it was very rewarding to see your photos develop.

Hopefully next time I will have some photos worth showing you taken with my eBay Canon AE-1

The End Of Summer…

August is over and Autumn is coming…

So these past few morning have been chilly, on several occasions my fingers have been cold on our early morning walks. I see leaves fallen from the trees and I notice the shorter days. August was very nice indeed. I visited the Lickey Hills in Birmingham. It is a country park that has nice woods to explore. I had not been there in a few years. In the past I would visit most weekends on my mountain bike when I was a lot fitter. This time I visited here with my Mum and my dog and to do a spot of drone flying. The weather was great but there was a bit of a wind. My DJI Air 3 drone handled it rather well though. I had a great time on Beacon Hill and captured some cool footage and photos.

Slava Ukraini ! I am still supporting Ukraine anyway I can and I like to keep up to date on all events there. I do hope there will be peace soon, but I would encourage your support to continue as they need all the help they can get to end this dreadful war.

New products from DJI will appear for sale soon I am told. A mini drone with lots of functionality but low cost called the DJI Neo. It looks cool, kind of similar to an Avata. Also a new updated OSMO Action camera, which I am thinking of getting as it it seems to improve a lot over previous models.

As ever the UK is in political turmoil and now free speech is under threat! There are a multitude of reasons for this. But things are not as clear cut as the MSM make out. I know for sure my grandparents who served during WW2 would not be happy with the state of the country right now. I can only hope people see sense and put and end to all this chaos and poor judgement.

During September I’m going to try and use my FujiFilm XT5 camera more, maybe capture some Autumn vibes!

Adios amigos

A very warm last day of July

Have you heard of or been to Bidford On Avon? I was there yesterday enjoying the pleasant summer weather we now have. I was walking with my dog who had a nice dip in the river to cool off, bless him. It is a lovely place and quite scenic, I took my drone and got some great shots and footage.

I’m sat here at the PC and the PC fans are working extra hard, much more noise as well. It is about 28°C and I’m certainly feeling it. Thunderstorms are forecast to appear overnight which I’m looking forward to.

I see on social media much gossip of new DJI drones again. Possibly a new DJI Air 3s and possibly a new DJI Mavic 4. It is suggested the Air 3s may have a larger sensor, which would be most welcome. Apart from that I’m not sure how they could improve the Air 3 as it is ridiculously good as it is. The Mavic series needs the new improved transmission you get with the current new controllers, that the Mini 4 Pro and Air 3 have. I don’t think we will have long to wait before something official is announced.

That is all for now, I hope you are all having a great summer!

The Red Arrows & Armed Forces Day

June has been short but productive. I caught a sighting of the Red Arrows flying over head at the start of the month. But they approached from a different angle this time and caught me off guard as they were so quick! I did not fill the frame with all the jets but got most of them in shot, oops!

I’ve added a few more videos to my YouTube channel this month. I’m very pleased to of hit 400 subscribers, but progress has been slow. I am not really getting the views I think I ought to be getting (( I think most drone videos of a location are not nearly as successful as ‘How To’ videos in general. I need a new strategy to grow my channel for sure.

It was Armed Forces Day here in the UK on Saturday 29th of June. I’m glad we have something like this but the event seems very low key compared to anything the USA has, sadly. In uncertain times I would hope the general public appreciate our Forces more…

Election fever has gripped the nation. In a few day we will undoubtedly have a new government in place. It is pretty obvious who will become PM. However there has been mischief and dirty tricks being used by the MSM. It is surprising how biased they have been. Which is why I turn them off and use other sources for information on topics I care about.

I need a camping trip, that is my short term plan. A getaway will be marvelous!

51 times around the Sun

I thought I would squeeze in a post before I forgot.

May has been pretty good. I saw the aurora borealis above my house here in the Midlands, flew my drone at a place I have wanted to showcase for while, made a star timelapse, got a new Casio G-Shock to replace my Apple Watch and had a birthday!

I might be looking old but I’m feeling youthful and optimistic for the future.

April 14th 2024

Hello everyone, apologies that I did not post anything during March. I guess I did not have anything important to report!

Well Spring is truly here with the clocks going forward. The days are staying lighter for longer. However the weather has been absurd! Far too much rain and floods. I’m doing well with my new camera the FujiFilm XT5, I have taken some good video and a few good photographs. I think though the feel of the camera is less nice than my Previous XT3. It feels a lot lighter and less robust. I’ve now sold the XT3, so there is no going back! For the XT5 I have bought a SmallRig Cage and Viltrox camera Monitor to be more serious about film making. I like how this set up works for filming video and hope to shoot more interesting content going forward.

I can also inform you I have upgraded to a better Hotas Joystick a Logitech G x56 with throttle. I am learning how to fly in DCS and Microsoft Flight Simulator on PC. It is interesting and good fun. I’m often inspired by Big Jet TV and Ted Coningsby on Youtube.

DJI has released the Avata 2 FPV drone which seems like it has improved a lot over the previous model. I am keen to try one out to find if I would like to own an FPV drone and be something I would enjoy flying.

Thanks for reading and take care!

February 29th

Oh it is a leap year, I never noticed!

I’m a bit late with this months Blog post. I’m not sure anyone reads it anyway )) But February has been quite a good month for me. Well it has rained a lot with much flooding. The weather forecaster’s have been promising snow in this area, I think it was clickbait because we have had none! I’ve flown my Air 3 drone when I could and got some good footage of a local stately home which is now on my Youtube channel - Resonator Productions

I bought a new camera! yes I’m naughty. I got the FujiFilm XT5 and I am really liking it so far. It is considered a more photo orientated than video than my old XT3. But I’ve found it does both photo and video very well. FujiFilm knocked down the price so it was hard to resist. Now I just need to get a good price for my FujiFilm XT3, MPB and Wex have offered peanuts for it when it is clearly worth more!

I spend far too much time on Twitter, but I use it as a way to keep informed about current world affairs, mostly Ukraine/Russia War stuff. I’ve noticed though on Twittter and other social media platforms that everyone is angry with each other, with an increase in extremism from both the right and the left. It’s fuel for these social media websites as they appear to be encouraging it. I’m seeing a lot of extreme points of view than clearly don’t align to mine constantly pushed through my feeds. It’s a boiling pot of non stop hatred. It is probably time we ditch these places and get our dopamine hits elsewhere.

Into the New Year

Hello everyone hope you are all well. I’ve been busy with bits and bobs since my last post. We have had several severe storms in the UK so it has not been suitable conditions to fly a drone. Lot's of flooding and fallen trees in the area.

I bought another drone, it is a DJI Air 3 and I am very impressed with it. My initial reaction to this model when it was released last year was a bit negative. Since then I have warmed to the idea of a drone with two cameras, with similar features to the Mavic 3 series. But for less money. The official ND filters I bought are way over priced though. But on the whole I enjoy its bigger size. Especially in the wind as it is more comfortable in those conditions. I have a feeling this model will be updated again soon enough with something better from DJI.

There is a lot of tension in the world, in Europe and the Middle East. The army is too small to cope with the growing threats we see coming. Some have suggested that we initiate conscription to build up our forces… Its been interesting seeing all the negative responses to this. It is all well deserved of course. HM Forces have been diluted way too much over the years, so this is what we end up with, at a time we need to show our strengths as a country.

A curious thing happened just yesterday. I believe an Amazon delivery driver jammed my WiFi so my door camera would not work. Was this to hide his identity? Why would he do it? I’ve read other people have similar experiences. You can purchase WiFi jammers on the web and they are effective. I’ve mentioned this to Amazon and they are looking into it.

That’s all I have at the moment. Thanks for reading!

Happy Holidays

I would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Christmas Eve is tomorrow and I’m all set to enjoy some lovely seasonal food, which I think is the best thing about Christmas time. I’ve held back on devouring copious amounts of mince pies though!

I picked up a new lens for my XT3, a 18mm-135mm WR. I have wanted this for a while and sold another lens I was not using so much to fund this one. It’s pretty good as a walk around lens and liked that it is weather proofed.

I also bought a 3D Printer, AnkerMake M5C. It has recently come out and is a good printer for new comers. I am really having fun with it. I’ve had 3 failures so far but I think it is quite common to do so…I think it it is a useful tool and have already printed some bits and boobs for my drone etc.

The photo I’m sharing for this post is of some rainbow clouds that appeared one morning this week.

Take care!

Lest We Forget

On Sunday, November 12th, the National Service of Remembrance will be held at the Cenotaph on Whitehall, London. For veterans, including myself this day is very significant in honouring the British military and civillian servicemen and women involved in two world wars and later conflicts.

October Musings

I have not been feeling too good recently or very creative sadly. However today I did fly my drone around the local hood after a long time of not flying. Hopefully things pick up soon as Autumn is here and there are loads of photographic and video opportunities ))

DJI’s Mini 4 Pro drone is out and I’m kinda glad I did not jump in and buy one. There has been a shift in restrictions being implemented in Europe (UK soon to follow) this drone will be restricted to 120m. This is a problem if you want to fly amongst hills and mountains. This restriction is also coming to previously available drones from 1st January 2024. So like many other people I will not be buying the Mini 4 Pro or updating the firmware on my current Mini 3 Pro. I guess we will have to wait and see what unfolds in the coming months of the new Year.

The new Chemical Brothers Album, For That Beautiful Feeling is superb, I picked it up on vinyl!

There is a lot of bad stuff going on in the world. I have been following the situation in Ukraine and Israel closely. Much to my own detriment. I wish things were better for everyone and we could have some PEACE in the world.

DJI Mini 4 Pro leaked?

It seems there has been a leak of the new DJI Mini 4 Pro drone this week. It does look real enough with those specs on the side of the box. So all could be officially revealed soon! Maybe even this month (September).

I’ve wanted to try Waypoints on my Mini 3 Pro ever since it was introduced to the Mavic 3 series. Also having omni-directional sensoring is also welcome. The camera appears not to be updated, but we will soon find out for sure I guess. I imagine it will also have the new improved signal technology too.

The Mini 3 Pro has been a fantastic drone that users have been able to fly in areas without restrictions that bigger drones have. So I’m pretty excited to see what DJI has done to improve this model of drone.

August Thoughts

So August has been OK really. Lot’s of walking with my dog, a few movies and also watching the FIFA WWC Football. I was really pleased with the England Team as they managed to get to the Final and play against Spain. The were sadly beaten in the final by a better team on the day. They have been fantastic though, very likable and good at what they do. I do not follow football really, the men’s game is not something I enjoy. My home team would have to be Nottingham Forest though.

DJI launched the Air 3 drone and has had a lot of coverage on Youtube. I’ve waited for the reviews and the initial hype to die down and I think I won’t be jumping on the band wagon in getting one. I think it is a good drone but I feel I don’t need one at the moment. My Mini 3 Pro is perfectly fine for my requirements at present.

I ticked off another drone bucket list shoot by filming another Redditch landmark, The Water Tower in Headless Cross, Redditch. It has been done before by others, but I wanted to do my interpretation. You can find it on my Youtube channel.

I don’t like to brand myself as a gamer, but I do enjoy video games if I can find the time. The new Starfield game is due at the end of this month. There is a lot of hype about it and I am too waiting to play it eagerly.

Unidentified Aerial Phenomena

There has been a lot of interest in UFO’s or UAP’s (Unidentified Aerial Phenomena) recently because of the recent testimonies in Congress under oath in the USA. As a fan of the X Files TV show, I have wanted to believe there is another form of intelligence out in the universe. I try to keep an open mind when in comes to alternative theories and information out there. I’m not a conspiracy nut. But with the recent revelations from these whistleblowers for me it shows there is definitely something strange going on! I’m still thinking about what was said. What these witnesses said is compelling, more so because they are legit professionals. I hope we learn more in the coming months.

For now as a photographer and drone pilot I will continue to observe the sky in an attempt to capture something phenomenal.

Has society gone soft?

Today’s date is the 20th July ‘23 and here is a little update on things…

The weather recently has been very mixed for much of July. While most of Europe are suffering a terrible Heatwave, we in the UK have had sun, showers and wind with cooler temperatures. The wind has been crazy annoying for me. I often feel not at my best for some reason. Plus it means there is little chance of flying my drone until it is calmer. I did get a chance to get airborne for about 30 minutes on Tuesday. I created a video from it and it is now published on my video page. I also went back into my collection of unused clips and made a showreel video, which was pretty fun to make.

DJI have announced an event for the 25th July for a new product, I’m pretty sure it is the new Air 3 drone. I’m looking forward to see what they have done!

Also this week I stopped a crime. I go to the local shops early in the morning to get a few essentials most days. While being served a youth entered the shop and tried to run off with some expensive washing detergent. I imagine he could sell this for drugs or something. The cashier who was serving me went to apprehend him. I reacted also and caught him before he left the shop and held him while the staff retrieved the goods he wanted to steal. They told me to let him go… I was a bit perplexed but I released him. He then made his way out the shop. I asked if the Police would not want to arrest him, and they told me they will do nothing but let him go anyway! Apparently these drug addicts do it all the time at this shop. I’m left wondering if I should of done anything at all? There seems no deterrent these days for criminals wanting to do crime. Has society gone too soft? I think we have and I find it very frustrating…

July ‘23

Dogs are the best are they not? I’m having a great summer so far with my best buddy. Lots of nice walks, exploring, a bit of photography and drone flying. I’m more of a colder climate person, but this summer has been good so far!

I picked up a DJI Osmo Action 3 camera from the refurbished site on the DJI Store. I’ve always used a GoPro from my cycling days and decided to see how the Action 3 fares. Again the product was in as new condition despite being refurbished. I like the magnetic mounting system and the onboard menu. The footage seems to match my drone camera footage, so that is good. I hope to be using it more in my future videos.

The buddleia bush has started to bloom in my garden. I think it is also referred to as the butterfly plant. So I’ve kept my Fuji XT3 and 100-400mm lens at the ready to get a few shots of the insects that are attracted to the buddleia. However it has been windy, so the flying insects have been hiding!

OK this is just a quick update. I know some people are now using AI to write interesting blogs. I’m not a fan of that, I’m trying to keep it real.

A New RC

I mentioned previously that I intended to buy a new drone, mainly focussed on the Mavic 3 Pro…

Well it has become apparent that DJI may soon release a DJI Air 3 and new controllers. So I am going to wait a bit longer to see what comes out and how it fairs with the Mavic 3 Pro.

However I had insomina again and during the early hours I bought a DJI RC Pro! This is specced higher than the standard RC I got with my Mini 3 Pro. Upon arrival this week I can clearly see that it is better quality and has more useful features. I’ve flown a couple of sorties to test it out and I am quite impressed so far. The controller compass was a bit off, but I believe that was caused by the magnet holding my Mic to my T shirt. The weather is poor at the moment and until it clears I will not be able to do much flying, sadly.

Also I have uploaded a few more photos to my gallery.