I appreciate your patience as I revise this site. Comments, thoughts, or just a friendly chat, use the response box below or email me at patrickgroleau@gmail.com.

November 24, 2017

LENS TEST WANDERABOUT

... although in like-new cosmetic condition, the iris diaphragm of my canon 200mm lens stuck in the open position, something that's not all that unusual in 30+ year-old lenses ... repair is possible, of course, but the procedure is rather complicated and time-consuming, so i opted to purchase a vintage 200mm nikkor ...

... i went for a little stroll this afternoon to test the lens ... a 200mm lens on an aps-c sensor camera is the full-frame equivalent of 300mm, which is a focal length a bit long for effective hand-holding, so these're just some casual shots ...

... the aluminum wall studs in the new colby college dormitory catch the evening light ...

... a seagull takes a break in the parking lot by the river ...

... focusing and composing with a hand-held 7-1/2 power camera lens in low light is working towards the very edge of its performance envelope ...

... a waterville squirrel taking a little stroll across the 2-penny bridge to visit friends in winslow, or, perhaps, maybe it's a winslow squirrel returning from enjoying the nuts in waterville ...

... takeoff from runway 045 ...

... the cool water of the kennebec mirrors the railroad trestle ...

... i'm sure i could dig into the boxes containing my kodachrome and ektachrome slides and find many similar images from when i first began taking color pictures ...

... iron oxide, of which there are eleven forms ... so beautiful ...

... a last bit of evening sun managed to make it over the bank of the river ...

... not quite sure if this is a part of the dam structure ... a bit freaky ...

... the old hathaway building patiently awaits new life ...

... from my living room i shared the sunset with my favorite tree ...

... for a brief moment i disappeared into the western sky ...

... what a wonderful day ... how so incredibly lucky i am ...

November 20, 2017

THE FISH HATCHERY

... "girls're coming over for late lunch, but, sure, let's go for a few hours and see if we can find some pictures" ... john arrived and waited a few minutes for me to put the turkey in the oven, then we were off to wanderabout ... from parameter ridge you can almost see the roof of my building ...

... last year i took pictures of the barn that was occupying this spot, but it seems that it's been carted away for historical preservation ... no matter, i think the dam which used to be hidden from sight is quite scenic ... i'm going to recommend to the town that during the holiday season they put a tree with pretty lights atop the old foundation pedestal ... that'd be rather cool ...

... the old house next to the pond is a bit spooky ...

... soon, very soon, ice ...

... we stopped at the fish hatchery in palermo ... i'd been talking with john about how the back roads we were driving reminded me of alaska, and how once or twice a summer pa would treat us with a visit to state fish hatchery ... as we walked down to take pictures along the sheepscot river i was suddenly struck with a powerful memory rush ... the gushing sound the water made as it twisted around a sharp bend at the base of a sand bluff brought to me an image of my father standing in the current, casting his line as he chuckled across to me, "supper's just about to arrive" ... so real was the image that i sat down on a fallen tree, waiting for the fish to be handed to me for cleaning ... when i realized i was the only person present i cried, momentarily sad, but soon the tears were naught but of an ever so soft melancholy ... 

... we visited the fish hatchery ... while standing in this spot a slithering mucous dripping tentacle grabbed my leg and pulled me beneath the dark surface ...

... john waited a bit, then drove home ... my last act had been to to toss my camera to him, "check the pictures, see if i got any good ones" ... in my memory he decided to use this one ...

... beneath a turbulent sky the green slimy thing swam its way downstream, seeking new hunting grounds ...

... the end ... ??? ...

November 10, 2017

WIND CHILL WANDERING

... after clearing the crusted ice from my windshield i headed north on college avenue to pick up john ... left waterville in rather brisk conditions and drove to the coast ... at lincolnville beach the combination of cold air, perhaps 28°f, and winds gusting 25-35mph found us shivering in wind chill that was at the edge of dangerous ...

... in rockland we watched a small ship struggle its way past the mile-long breakwater into the harbor ...

... the sea was calm in the lee of the hill ...

 ... courageously ignoring the ice forming along his earlobes, john worked the scene with his fantastic super-duper canon "l" zoom lens ...

... it's a mile from where i took this picture to the lighthouse at the end of the breakwater ... a 30+mph wind from the west pushed blew huge sheets of spray across the rocks ... we decided to skip the walk this day ... 

... on the drive home we took a pause at "john's tree" ... i instantly became aware of this rather classic composition ...

... cold, windy, more than just hinting of winter soon-to-be, but still a wonderful day ...

November 8, 2017

SUNSET WANDERABOUT

... i had to go to the grocery store for the fixin's i needed to make liz supper, and i'd taken my camera along just in case i found a moment ... about 3:30pm just as i was about to pull into the hannaford lot my car (!) announced john was calling ... "hey, how about a little sunset photography" ... when i picked him up he suggested we head out to great pond ... "nah, that's not going to work this time of day this time of year," so i steered us up towards hinkley ... sky darkening i turned to cross the bridge over the kennebec ... glancing ahead to the eastern riverbank i saw "diana's church" painted with sunset light (she said once, "i like that little church," so that's how i think of it) ... i quickly parked the car, grabbed my camera, and, as fast as my broken ankle would allow, hobbled to the center of the span ...

... on the flipside i strolled slowly, my vision captivated by the giant sappi paper mill ... as the second machine was being finished i did photography for the corporate offices, and i'm still proud that a tiny bit of the mill's $1,000,000,000 price tag was directed my way ...

... we stopped where as it enters the kennebec the carrabassett stream forms a little pond ... i am a bit mystified, wondering if this is the same stream that flows through north new portland, hopefully someone can clear up my confusion ...

... although there's still well over a month to the winter solstice, with hinkley astride the 44.77° parallel today's sunset was at 4:17pm ... 

... with the sun below the horizon i wandered back to the car ...

... as their like have for over 400,000,000 years, this lichen pays no attention to the season ...

... this leaf seems taking its time ...

... finally, from a few days ago, little grant explores his first uncut pear ... 

My sorrow, when she's here with me,
thinks these dark days of autumn rain are beautiful as days can be;
she loves the bare, the withered tree;
she walks the sodden pasture lane.
ROBERT FROST

November 3, 2017

BEANTOWN WANDERABOUT

... the recent semi-hurricane had cut the railroad tracks between portland and brunswick, so john and i ended up driving the interstate to newberryport where we boarded the light-rail for a most comfortable ride into north station at the center of boston ... a quick trip on the green line and, after a brief stroll in summerlike sunshine, we reached our destination, the museum of fine arts ... if the sign over the door, the ticket stubs, free coat check, and the nice cafeteria weren't clues enough, the view looking up into the atrium was in and of itself proof we were in the right place ...

... this shot is a more "realistic" interpretation of the scene ...

... john and i have great discussions about certain "abstract" art ... i'm thinking these people might have some of the answers i can't seem to find ...

... then again, here it is i who couldn't resist combining the view out the window to further abstract a glass geometry ...

... i'd very deliberately brought along only my 30+ year-old olympus zuiko 50mm f/1.4 manual lens ... on my fuji t-2 (ooops, i can but wish) xt-1 aps-c sensor camera the lens is effectively 75mm, or approximately two-power magnification ... a great focal length for natural portraits, but, as far as i'm concerned, otherwise rather constraining for general photography—which, of course, was my entire point in carrying just it ...

... in art museums i especially like watching others ...

... we had traveled to the museum to view the exhibit of images captured by alfred stieglitz ...
ALFRED STIEGLITZ - 1907

... a long, long time ago so desperate was i to become a photographer that i tacked copies of his photographs (and many others by the "greats") across my bedroom walls ... i would stare at them over and over, examining and inspecting and analyzing, "someday—someday i'll take photographs like these," i vowed ...

... however, as it has been all my life, three-feet in front of any painting by vincent van gogh is a most sublimely perfect spot to be ...

... given the opportunity, i might steal this painting ... i would hang it in my basement, telling no one i possessed it, and simply enjoy looking at it whenever i desired ... i would not do this with one of stieglitz's pictures, not even a photograph by ansel adams ... nor, for that matter, would a picasso, gauguin, wyeth or remington even tempt me ...

... if you understand this you understand two things ...

... art ...

... and me ...

... i like this image ... i don't know why ...

... it's a museum rule, you aren't allowed to touch the sculptures ... sad ...

... there are so many beautiful things on display ...

... life choices, perhaps ... ??? ...

... a glass filled "infinity room" ...

... again, i'm drawn to the people ... the relationship that develops between them and the art is the reason for the museum ... i'm not sure, but perhaps it is a reason for the art, too ...

... i wondered if he was talking to himself ...

... architects are artists whose medium is space ... 

... there're times i witness life juxtaposed with tiny details ...

... other times i become focused on detail itself ...

... i see it, i process what i see, and sometimes anew great mystery emerges ...

... each of these "fronds" is two feet or so long, the entire glass plant is over twenty-feet from its base to where it brushes against the skylight ...

... for me, this gallery was a bit of a time warp ... i had that album ... odd, while back then i enjoyed listening to hendrix it's now i much more seriously appreciate his art ...

... stairs, as i see them, are more than mere spatial transition ... 

... after a quick stop at the mary baker eddy library for a most enlightening viewing of the mapparium, we crammed ourselves back on the green line for the return to north station ... caught the northbound 3:15 with a full minute to spare ... with a stop for supper in portland we had a relaxing drive home ...

... what a wonderful day ...