#APicADay 2020: Day 244

 I went on a bit of a walk this afternoon.

Today's image:

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/8.0, 1/105 s, and ISO 160

This leaf was pretty. I had to work a bit to get a good composition, but I like this one.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 50mm, f/4.0, 1/850 s, and ISO 160

Maple leaves are starting to change. It's looking like a pretty fall will happen.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 18mm, f/14, 1/40 s, and ISO 160

It's fun to look through leaves up at the sun.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 36mm, f/8.0, 1/100 s, and ISO 160

These pine cones were interesting, and had some sap or something on them.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/8.0, 1/45 s, and ISO 160

We're also getting to the end of berry season.

Quote of the Day: 31 August 2020

 “The strange thing about what lawyers have fun with is that no one else ever sees the joke.” -Terry Pratchett

[Happy Love Litigating Lawyers Day. An easy target, as no one likes lawyers, until they need one.]

#APicADay 2020: Day 243

 The family went for a little walk this evening. 

Today's image:

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/125 s, and ISO 160

The sunlight was falling on this rose really nicely.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/56 s, and ISO 160

My wife wanted me to take a picture of these roses. She really liked the coloration.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/100 s, and ISO 160

Quote of the Day: 30 August 2020

 

“In order to enjoy the refuge that Jesus Christ and His Atonement offer, we must have faith in Him—a faith that will allow us to rise above all the pains of a limited, earthly perspective. He has promised that He will make our burdens light if we come unto Him in all that we do.” -Ricardo P. Giménez

#APicADay 2020: Day 243

 My family went up into the Mount Hood National Forest today. We met up with some friends, and spent the day in a campground.

Today's image:

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 18mm, f/16, 1/40 s, and ISO 160

I had taken some other pictures while we were close to this bridge of rafters coming down the river next to us, but I failed to account for the shutter speed reduction of shutting the aperture down so tightly, and as a result I have no good pictures of the rafters. I thought the composition was stronger with a raft in the lower left corner, but those shots were all blurry because I didn't increase the ISO high enough to allow for a fast shutter speed while the aperture was set to f/16.

Quote of the Day: 29 August 2020

 “[T]ruces are only durable when they create real justice.” -Charles Duhigg

[If a truce does not create justice, the aggrieved party will foster a sense of resentment, and eventually the truce will fail.]

#APicADay 2020: Day 241

 Just a short walk fairly late today.

Today's image:

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/15 s, and ISO 400

I liked the look of the bright maple seeds with the changing leaves.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/15 s, and ISO 400

This is an alternate composition without the seeds in the frame.

Quote of the Day: 28 August 2020

 “Where freedom was concerned, the founders of socialism made no bones about their intentions. Freedom of thought they regarded as the root-evil of nineteenth-century society[.]” -F. A. Hayek

[Socialism is not concerned with freedom, except in so far as it is an impediment to the goals of the socialist in question.]

#APicADay 2020: Day 240

 I went on my walk in the same way I did yesterday.

Today's image:

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 37mm, f/4.0, 1/85 s, and ISO 160

I don't know what kind of flowers these are, but I saw them last night on a subsequent walk with my family, and so I went to get a picture of them today.

Quote of the Day: 27 August 2020

 

“Experience shows that once government undertakes an activity, it is seldom terminated. The activity may not live up to expectation but that is more likely to lead to its expansion, to its being granted a larger budget, than to its curtailment or abolition.” -Milton Friedman

[The slow accretion of power by the government, at whatever level, is a danger to the freedom of the individual.]

#APicADay 2020: Day 239

I went for a walk carrying The babydoll with me today.

Today's image:

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/60 s, and ISO 160

I don't know what kind of plant this is. I only noticed these berry things on it, and thought it was interesting how the light played in them.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/85 s, and ISO 160

 I also don't know what this plant is. It's just one I haven't taken a picture of before.

Forest Grove Police Log excerpt, 26 August 2020

 The selection from the log of local police activity is about roommates who do not get along.

August 18

A caller reported issues with their roommate whom he alleged stole their cat and phone.

 I don't know why someone would steal a cat. But, I am, admittedly, not a cat person. I would have to be paid quite a sum just to consider letting someone give me a cat, let alone take one from someone else. A phone could be more understandable, but it's still a bit of personal property.

Quote of the Day: 26 August 2020

“[E]xperience is something you get right after you need it[.]” -Jim Miani

[Thankfully, you are able to apply the experience of one instance to others as well.]

#APicADay 2020: Day 238

 We took the children to a cheap ice cream event, and intended to have them feed ducks afterwards. Unfortunately, the ducks were not present, and it was getting dark.

Today's image:

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 19mm, f/2.8, 1/15 s, and ISO 1600

The low levels of light meant I had to bump up the ISO to get a crisp shot, even with the aperture wide open. I also took a few frames to ensure that there would be at least one with little subject movement.

Quote of the Day: 25 August 2020

 “It will be of little avail to the people, that the laws are made by men of their own choice, if the laws be so voluminous that they cannot be read, or so incoherent that they cannot be understood; if they be repealed or revised before they are promulgated, or undergo such incessant changes that no man, who knows what the law is to-day, can guess what it will be to-morrow. Law is defined to be a rule of action; but how can that be a rule, which is little known, and less fixed?” -James Madison, The Federalist No. 62

[This is part of why I follow A Crime a Day on Twitter. Since ignorance is no excuse for breaking a law, and the laws are so voluminous that there is no way to be in any state other than ignorance, you are almost certainly guilty of breaking some law or other. It is a terrible state, and we must do something about it, or the law will become nearly meaningless.]

#APicADay 2020: Day 237

 I went for a little walk today. There was nothing spectacular on the walk, but it was an enjoyable experience to get out of the house, and go looking for beauty.

Today's image:

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/150 s, and ISO 160

I liked the way the sun was striking these pine needles. I thought a detail shot would look good, and I like the result.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 41mm, f/4.0, 1/56 s, and ISO 160

This was another evergreen that I thought looked good. Fairly pleased with the result, too. Making the subject be in the middleground, and allowing a foreground element to go strongly out of focus is something I don't do often.

Quote of the Day: 24 August 2020

 

“Roosevelt transformed millions of Americans from citizens into clients. The direct effect of this was evil, and the indirect effect was even worse, for all these people were robbed of their self-respect, supposing that they had any to begin with.” -H. L. Mencken

[FDR is the Roosevelt in question, here. And it is true that a safety net that becomes a hammock is as dangerous as a safety net that does not exist. For different reasons, but still dangerous.]

#APicADay 2020: Day 236

 We actually went on two walks today. One late this morning, and another this evening.

Today's image:

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 46mm, f/4.0, 1/2400 s, and ISO 160

I don't know what kind of flower this is, but we've got a lot of them close by.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/28 s, and ISO 160

This little guy was honging out outside my front door.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 28mm, f/3.2, 1/56 s, and ISO 160

Lovely light hitting this maple tree in the evening sun.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 28mm, f/3.2, 1/60 s, and ISO 160

Same tree, just back a bit further.

Quote of the Day: 23 August 2020

 

“[T]he Christian life is not one of gloom, but of ever increasing joy in the Lord.” -Dietrich Bonhoeffer

#APicADay 2020: Day 235

 We took The pup and The babydoll to feed ducks this evening.

Today's image:

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/90 s, and ISO 400

We were in the shade, so I had to bump the ISO up a bit to get good exposures.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/13 s, and ISO 160

A detail shot of the color patches on the back of the wings.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/1900 s, and ISO 160 (cropped)

This little western fence lizard was hanging out on a patch of cement under a broom.

Quote of the Day: 22 August 2020

“Ignorant as a child is, he knows more than he can say and feels not only atmospheres but fine shades.” -G. K. Chesterton

[We often underestimate the abilities of children. We do so at our peril.]

#APicADay 2020: Day 234

 I went on a walk alone today, while the children were sleeping and just needed someone else in the house in case something went wrong.

Today's image:

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 41mm, f/4.0, 1/220 s, and ISO 160

I like the way this daisy sits in front of the black eyed susans (not that you can tell that's what they are) and has a companion to the right.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 32mm, f/3.6, 1/75 s, and ISO 160

Maple leaves are almost always pleasantly colored when they start to turn.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 30mm, f/3.6 1/480 s, and ISO 160

These roses are about done for the year.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 44mm, f/4.0, 1/140 s, and ISO 160

These are the same type of flower I took a picture of yesterday, and I think this one came out a bit better.

Quote of the Day: 21 August 2020

 “What am I after all but a child, pleas’d with the sound of my own name? repeating it over and over[.]” -Walt Whitman

[Happy Poet's Day.]

#APicADay 2020: Day 233

 There was no walk today. Instead, I was practicing the blues shuffle on the piano, mowing the lawn, and grocery shopping.

Today's image:

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/4 s, and ISO 1000

This was the clearest of the shots today. Even my safety shots at higher ISOs were less clear than this one. I think I failed to get a good shot today, but I got an image in.

Quote of the Day: 20 August 2020

 “Unfortunately, if you’re hoping to learn all the ways that you could possibly become a federal criminal in America, this book can’t help you. In fact, no book can.” -Mike Chase

[It is very easy to become a criminal these days. It is much harder to know how you can become a criminal because of the proliferation of laws that make it essentially impossible to know every infraction.]

#APicADay 2020: Day 232

 The babydoll went with me on my photo walk again today.

Today's image:

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 48mm, f/4.0, 1/75 s, and ISO 160

These apples are growing on an apple tree in someone's parking strip. It looks to me like they could have used a good thinning sometime in the spring.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/85 s, and ISO 160

These late season roses look very little like the roses earlier this year on the same rose bush.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/210 s, and ISO 160

I don't know what these are. I had thought they were leaves, but they might be flowers.

Forest Grove Police Log excerpt, 19 August 2020

 The selection from the log of local police activity this week is about sleeping in appropriate places.

August 7

A caller reported two suspicious persons were drinking or possibly doing drugs on the railroad tracks late at night. Officers arrived and noted that one party suddenly made himself scarce. Contact was made with the first subject who told police they were simply hanging out. Police walked the tracks and found a hat oddly situated in the shrubs, pushed back the blackberry brambles and located the much scratched up second party who told police he was sleeping.  They were advised not to drink in public, to stay off the railroad tracks, and perhaps find less painful places to nap.

 I don't have any commentary on this. It was just funny.

Quote of the Day: 19 August 2020

 “Your reward for giving your life over to a politician is Pain. As it should be.” -@LOLNeverTweet

[There are so many that have made politicians their objects of worship. It saddens me, but they will eventually be disappointed by these same politicians.]

#APicADay 2020: Day 231

 I took The babydoll with me on a walk this afternoon. We had a good time, but it was hard to get the shots I wanted while carrying an infant.

Today's image:

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/20 s, and ISO 160

I'm enjoying the look of spiderwebs right now. I couldn't tell you why specifically, but it's a bit of fun.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 48mm, f/4.0, 1/1700 s, and ISO 160

The variegated petals on this rose are interesting. It's not a look I would want on roses in my yard, but they are interesting nonetheless.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 36mm, f/3.6, 1/3500 s, and ISO 160

Fun with light and leaves. I was just playing with this exposure. Though I think it came out OK.

Fuji X-T3 with XF 18-55 @ 55mm, f/4.0, 1/56 s, and ISO 160

These are the same pink flowers I have already featured a couple of times. Had I not done that already, they probably would have been today's featured image instead of the spiderweb. But I wish I'd picked that bit of twig off the stem before taking the frame, now.

Quote of the Day: 18 August 2020

 

“[P]oets do not write to be understood.” -Richard Feynman

[Happy Bad Poetry Day.]