Closed In and Up Close

It's been a couple of weeks since I've posted something on the blog, so I've already broken my resolution to get something up here once a week.  Things got a little crazy around here, and after that adventure in Belgium last month I haven't gotten out to do any scenic shooting.  My husband has been in and out on one business trip after another, I was transportation-less for about a week, and then the weather was just wretched.  Then, to top it off, one of our cats (the esteemed Cat 2) had to have emergency surgery.  His brother, Cat 1, has dealt with skin cancer off and on since we moved to Luxembourg, and we were upset to discover a similar looking lump on Cat 2.  He also managed to break a tooth pretty badly that was getting infected.  So, the vet took care of both concerns and he's been home taking it easy in a private room to keep him from overexerting himself or pulling on the stitches.   That means we've all been shut ins for about a week and we still have 5 days to go before his stitches come out.  He's doing really well and healing quickly, and it has gone a lot better than it could have.  Unlike his brother, Cat 2 is really sensitive to just about anything disturbing his routine and he hasn't been sick a day in his life.  So, we thought surgery and recovery would be a major trauma for him.  Turns out though, in spite of the indignity of wearing The Dog's shirts, he's kind of enjoying all the special treatment.  We're still waiting on the test results, but I'm holding out hope it was just a benign thing and this is the only time he'll have to go through that.  Thanks to everyone who've passed on their best wishes.  He really appreciates the love ;-)

So, most of my photography has been confined to inside the house for the past couple of weeks.  I've added three new additions to my X Series family, the XF 35mm f/2 R WR lens, the MCEX-11 macro extension, and the MCEX-16 macro extension.  Why have two 35mm lenses?  Well, I view the lenses as companions, not competitors.  Obviously, the 35mm f/2 is weather sealed, so that was the biggest attraction for me.  I like to carry one of my cameras on me at all times and preferably with the 35mm f/1.4 lens because it was the smallest and brightest lens in the fleet.  But, the older version isn't sealed, meaning I wasn't shooting too much when we'd head out in the rain (which is a lot).  I'm pretty paranoid about water damage.  Also, the f/1.4 has pokey autofocus.  I was missing a lot when walking around taking candid street shots.  So, since the newer version is so inexpensive, I decided to get it.  I'm mostly keeping it on the X-E2 as an everyday carry since that is the smallest combination, but if I'm heading out in wet weather I'll switch it over to the X-T1.  I opted for the silver version only because I like the aesthetics.  I've been shooting indoors with it almost exclusively and I have to say I'm really impressed with the performance.  That doesn't mean I'm going to get rid of the f/1.4 version though.  It is still a fabulous lens and particularly adept at portraits and product photography thanks to being f/1.4.  And if things aren't moving around too much it is also good for those very low light moments.  So, the f/2 is my street lens and the f/1.4 is my interior lens.

This was taken with the 35mm f/1.4 on the X-T1 combined with the MCEX-11

Now, about the macro extension tubes.  I'm fascinated by macro photography.  In fact, I'm fascinated by the whole concept of photography showing us things about the world in a new way, a way we can't see with the naked eye.  I've been interested in playing around with macro for a while, especially when I come across an image in nature that I want to explore, well,  more closely.  Fujifilm does make a macro lens, the XF 60mm f/2.4 R Macro, but I don't want to purchase it since I don't shoot macro very often.  But, the two extensions are very inexpensive and a much more effective solution for my needs.  It wouldn't require carrying around the weight of a lens that wouldn't get used very often, because they basically turn any lens into a macro.  I only have two primes, both 35mm, so I can't give you a comprehensive review of how they perform in general, but I have found the most pleasing results come from a fixed lens over one of the zooms.  When it comes down to which 35mm lens works best, I choose the f/1.4.  Those extra stops goes a long way to making an interesting image, especially since the primes have such a shallow depth of field.  With the extension tubes on, you are basically able to bring the camera closer to the object.  Hoods get in the way and need to be removed.  Camera shake comes into play here quite a bit, so I've found using the eye piece instead of the rear screen helps reduce the shake when shooting handheld.  Also, it's best to switch over to manual focus than rely on AF.  The brighter the conditions, the more pleasing the results.  Here are a some shots I've taken in the last few days.  I neglected to write down which tube I was using for each shot, but they both do the same thing.  The 16 lets you get closer than the 11, and you can stack them allowing you to get right down on top of the item.  Sometimes getting that close throws a shadow over the subject which can make focusing a bit tougher, so as I said, the brighter the conditions, the better.

Seal on a replica glass onion bottle.

Whiskey glass.

Bicycle chains

Decorative doodad.

Book spine with fraying jacket.  I loved how this picked up the fibers of the paper.

I'm definitely going to throw one or both of these extensions in the bag from now on when we're heading out on the trails.  I'm really looking forward to getting outside and capturing the coming of spring up close.  The only downside to these is that they don't come with any caps.  I'm just as paranoid about dust and hair getting inside my gear as I am about water, and with no protection the tubes could easily transfer such things to inside the camera.  So, I bought two sets of extra lens and body caps when I ordered these.  Those are super cheap, so it wasn't that big of deal.  Speaking of extra things I had to buy, I also bought a different hood to go with the 35mm f/2.  The one that comes with it is a total joke and it really bothered me that it was black when the rest of the lens is silver.  Thankfully, I was able to pick up a €5 metal hood in silver that is the spitting image of the much more expensive LH-XF35-2 by Fuji.

They say winter is the best time to experiment and learn more in photography.  If you can't get out and shoot, it gives you the time to try out other things.  I've taken these several weeks to not only experiment, but also to learn.  Like I wrote last time, I've been feeling very compelled to take my study of photography a bit further and delve into the history and heritage of the field.  So, for the past four weeks I've been participating in the Seeing Through Photography course offered online by the Museum of Modern Art.  I'm almost through it and only have one more quiz and the final project to go.  I'll be filling you in on that whole experience once I'm finished and have been awarded the certificate (barring I don't fail the project or something).  For now let me just say I've been challenged and blown away repeatedly over the last several weeks.  The course hasn't been easy or bug free, but it's been exactly what I was after.  It's also the reason why I haven't been able to post on here.  There is a ton of homework!

Partly because of what I'm learning and partly because I'm stuck in the house, I've started up a couple of side projects.  One of them is, obviously, messing around with macro photography.  The other is a personal project about the time I've been cooped up.  I've been spending 95% of my time, day and night, in my office where we've set up Cat 2.  We have to keep a pretty close eye on him while his incision is healing and he can't be left alone very long (he loves that).  I've been shooting a lot in that office, and not just cat photos.  My camera has been basically attached to my wrist, and I think I've shot more in the last 5 days then I do on a typical trip!  It's kind of a way to document the weird and surreal experience of being voluntarily locked in a small room for 10 days, and also to explore the concepts of space and objects in that space.  Watching the light play on the walls, seeing the exact same views from the windows, fixating on things in the room- the texture of the wall, the lampshade.  Part of it includes some macro work, but most is just with the 35mm f/2 on the X-E2.  I'm not sure if I'm going to upload all these images anywhere or print them or what.  We'll see.  Photography is relevant to every aspect of life and I've become more and more interested in including it beyond the obvious, spending more time with the camera, enjoying it, and seeing more because of it.

Chip Out of the Wall, 15:23, Tuesday.

Or maybe I'm just loosing my mind.  Ha.  Anyway, the cat get his stitches out on Monday and we'll both be free.  Shortly afterwards, we (my husband and I, not Cat 2) will be hopping on a plane to Reykjavik and then we'll be in a huge wide open space and socializing instead of alone in a tiny room.  It should be interesting!

What Is This, Why Is This?

Morning Snowfall

I read a ton of articles on photography, at least 5 or 6 a day.  All of them are written by what appears to be professionals or semi professionals who have, I think, been doing this a heck of a lot longer than I have.  The subjects are usually technique or tech based.  With the internet, we no longer have to have a one on one lesson or take a class or even read a book about how to operate a camera properly, or use off camera lighting, or whatever.  Everything is right there in videos or 6 paragraph blurbs.  It's great.  Except that it kinda isn't.  I have been having the feeling in the back of my mind that I've been missing something about photography.  It wasn't comprehension on the technicalities and it certainly wasn't to do with the love of taking photographs.  I just had this suspicion that I had skipped over something vital in my journey of learning and falling in love with the art.  There are tons of things out there about how to use a camera, or set up a shot, or edit it, or sell it, or sell yourself, but all that stuff started to seem superfluous.  There had to more to photography than f-stops, the rule of thirds, and Lightroom presets.  Photography has been around since the 1830's in one form or another, and what we have now is a descendent of those earlier endeavors.  Today everything is focused on tech and technique, but very few people even think about the actual images.  Now it's all about pixels, and sharpness, and bokeh, and chromatic aberration.

But a perfect technical image isn't necessarily as pleasing as one that is blurred and grainy.  Why?  What makes one photograph impactful, while another is just a blah entry into the over saturated catalogue floating around out there?  Then I realized what was missing.  Nearly all of us who are out shooting today, who came to photography well after the digital revolution, who learned about it online in blogs, and forums, and just basic shooting were missing a huge slice of the field- the soul, the heritage, the intimate knowledge and comprehension of what photography is.  Today, so many people discover the love shooting and jump into the field as a professional or semi professional without ever educating themselves about photography itself.  How many enthusiasts out there who shoot their friends' weddings or sell calendars (like myself) have a library of photography publications?  Could they look to the photography of the past and see its value?  Or is it just like everything else, and no one gives a second thought to the past?

But, I think knowledge of what came before is vital to understanding and improving what we do, be it photography, or creative writing, or design.  Would someone who wants to write novels seriously jump in without ever introducing themselves to the greats- Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Morrison, Steinbeck, Joyce?  I certainly hope not.  Then, why do those of us who pick up a camera with some semblance of seriousness, not honor photography in the same way?  We know a novel is good or bad because we've read a good one before.  Photography, of course, has a more personal effect on us, as other art forms do, but still we know a good photograph from a bad one.  The trouble is, it seems, a lot of us don't know why it is good.  I think that is because we jump in feet first and start snapping away and never get around to educating ourselves about anything beyond sensor sizes and flash settings.  Why?  I don't really know.  Maybe it is because we can learn anything on the internet, or because this world we live in is in such a rush, or because smartphones have caused photography to be so accessible that it has become banal.  Maybe we leap too soon because we get some good feedback and encouragement and our social media culture almost demands that we market ourselves and do so quickly.

I look at a ton of photographs everyday, hundreds.  I scroll through the Instagram feed a couple times a day because I genuinely love looking at images, but I start to see in the end the same photography over and over and over again.  Ok, it's not the same photograph exactly, but it is basically the same extrapolation of an image.  Commercial portraits of newlyweds, or engagements, or kids are usually done in natural light, usually in golden hour, someone must be wearing flannel, and it's all about the bokeh.  Studio photographers perhaps in the response to the hipster outdoor look respond, it seems, by taking on a harsher look with more dramatic lighting.  Landscape photographers have started to add people into their shots, usually dead center and shot from behind.  Starfield shots now all seem to have someone in them lining their flashlight up with the Milky Way.  Long exposures (an admitted favorite of mine) have been around for a while, but are certainly making a strong resurgence.  Then of course, there are the trends in post, thanks to Instagram.  Split toning is back, and so is the film look (oh the irony).  I'm not saying these images or trends are bad, in fact they are very effective.  But, I've begun to ask myself if we're all just shooting like this for marketing, the fine art photographer becoming just as commercial as the commercial photographer?  Maybe we're all just copying each other because someone somewhere said this or that makes a good photograph, but the rest of us, the rabble, don't know who it was or why they said it.  Maybe if we looked back, before digital and smartphones, and the internet, when photographers used simpler, yet more finicky technology, when their goal was a great image, not the camera, not themselves, we can fathom the complexities and the essence of photography itself.  Then maybe, just maybe, we can see the world as photographers should and create impactful, authentic, and unique images all our own.

One of the articles I read was about what a photographer (Carla Coulson) would tell themselves if they could go back in time before they started their business.  This grabbed my attention, because I suspected it would touch on some of these questions I was currently having.  Sure enough, it did.  Nearly everything she brought up- letting your creativity breathe, taking time to learn and build the portfolio for a long a while before putting pressure on yourself to make money-  is exactly what I was thinking.  Photography, like anything else, needs to be understood and learned over time, patiently and carefully.  It should be cultivated.  If we are going to subscribe to this field and call ourselves photographers, we should be willing to take the time to do that.

For me, part of that process is really delving into the heritage of photography, immersing myself in great images of the print era so I can learn more about what makes a photograph truly great.  I also have decided to learn the theory behind photography, so that means reading a lot of books.  Lastly, it means going to see great photography, not just scrolling through Instagram.  Sure there are great images on there, but there  many more great and far more significant images hanging on gallery walls, in exhibitions, and in museums.  I want to learn more about the field than the tech, I want to get to know its soul.  If that helps improve my work along the way, even better!

The Orchard

Misadventures in Wallonia

So, last weekend we drove over to Belgium to celebrate the Valentines holiday (it's not really observed in Germany) and pick up some of Belgium's finest beer (also not celebrated in Germany as a rule).  But, because it is Belgium one must always expect things to go a bit awry.  The weather is the biggest factor which affects whether things go well or, um, go differently.  Belgian weather, either Walloon or Flemish, is notorious.  With that in mind, it seemed like this little jaunt was the perfect time to test a  XF 16-55mm f/2.8 R LM WR lens.  This is the only piece of Fuji gear I wanted to add to the kit this year.  A weather resistant camera is all well and good, but without a weather sealed lens, it's still a vulnerable setup.  With the trip to Iceland fast approaching it was time to fill in this last hole and a weekend in Belgium seemed like the perfect test.

The XF 16-55mm f/2.8 R LM WR is a really cool lens.  It's hefty, for sure, but with its nice range, it's difficult to argue for another lens in the bag anyway.  For a trip that mostly focuses on landscapes 16-55mm is all that's needed and if those landscapes are prone to cold and moisture, weather sealing is a must.  So, I stuck the X-T1 with the new lens in the bag and the  XF 55-200mm f/3.5-4.8 R LM OIS

just in case something specific in the landscape caught the eye.  

Well, all good plans of mice and photographers... Enter Belgium.  Now, we spent two years living down the road from the Ardennes.  Its fickle weather puts the weather of other places to shame.  Seriously, people from just about everywhere say "if you don't like the weather here, wait five minutes."  In Belgium, you not only need wait, but you can also drive 3 kilometers and be in a completely different situation.   

It all started out well enough.  We crossed the border into Belgium around lunch on Saturday after a very brief pause in Luxembourg to do some shopping (it's the only place I've been able to find molasses).  As we crossed into Wallonia the weather took an immediate dive into the worst.  Rolling over the hills of the Ardennes, we passed from pouring rain into sleet and then full blown snow and then back through the previous two when we'd lose elevation.  It was all very Belgian and authentic, but unfortunately far too blustery to photograph, the only reason being that we couldn't see a darn thing.  

Reprieve From the Toils Courtesy Handpresso

And, of course, being Belgium, it was no surprise to discover when we pulled into our beer shop's parking lot that they had shut for the week.  So, no crafts beer for us.  Sigh.  With nothing else to do, we headed on to our final destination for the weekend, the hunting town of Saint-Hubert.  The weather was getting progressively worse so we brainstormed on how we could salvage the errand.  Instead of setting up for wide landscapes of the Ardennes (which didn't appear to be present anymore) I was shooting close ups of our espressos on the dashboard as we paused at a rest stop.  I'm happy to report the new lens performs admirably in these conditions.  We opted to stop at the next Delhaize supermarket we came across to pick up a case of whatever unique beers they might have on hand.  That was quite the experience, the story of which I'll spare you at this time.  The feeling of trepidation rose the closer we came to Saint-Hubert.  While we weren't concerned about our dinner that evening (our favorite restaurant of all time never disappoints), the fact that we were forced to book a different hotel was starting to cause us some concern.

One of the hotel's finer specimens

Folks, you should always trust your gut.  I can't quite put my finger on the feeling we had when we stepped over the threshold of the "hotel" we had booked for the evening as it was a cross between amusement and horror.  You know that scene in Psycho (1960, or course) when Norman is talking to Marion Crane in his office and there's all these horrible taxidermy sculptures(?) all over the room?  Well, when production wrapped, I'm pretty sure the lot of stuffed animals was sold to the proprietor of this hotel where they have hung or sat on shelves ever since (never having been dusted or preserved in any way).  The fur was eaten away by time and whatever creatures eat dead animal fur, feathers were missing, the plastic eyes had fallen out or were positioned at disturbing angles.  The first of these horrors was a snarling fox that had been positioned in an anthropomorphic position that included a walking stick.  Stepping into the office we discovered more moth-eaten terrors and what seemed to be a hoarder's den.  Tools, magazines, books, papers, and Lord knows what were piled on every imaginable surface and some unimaginable ones.  It looks like most had been sitting there since the Reagan era.  This did not bode well, my friends, and the situation did not improve when we met the proprietor.  By all appearances "The Hotel By The Abbey" is operated by a boy of about 12 years of age.  He was very professional, despite his sweatpants and Crocs, and patient with our dusty French.  He gave us the key to room 11 and instructed us that any further questions should be directed at his Papa, who for all we knew was the lone patron at the restaurant.  Then the boy went back to tending the bar, yes, tending the bar.  As you can imagine Room 11 wasn't any better than the rest of the establishment.  Smokers could get all the nicotine they needed from the hazy atmosphere.  Something green and slimy that I believe guest starred in an episode of the X-Files (original run, of course) had taken up residence in the shower.  The bathroom was outfitted with fixtures and accessories one normally finds in a public restroom, complete with supplied sanitary paper for the toilet seat.  I half expected to find a condom dispenser hung inside the door.  By the way, every guest room in this hotel was equipped with a small orange light over the door that could be switched on from the inside.  Interpret that as you will.  Anyway...the long and short of it is, we were stuck.  There wasn't another available room in town and the only hotel with a free room was 15mi away.  This was just going to have to be something to laugh about in the future...if we made it to morning.  We deposited our locked suitcase in the room (and nothing else), stepped out our door and over the stain which suspiciously looked like evidence of the expiration of some poor guest or perhaps one of the moldering creatures on the wall, and headed back out into the gale.  Anything was better than this hotel.

We jumped back in the car and desperately drove around the countryside hoping the weather would clear or at the very least calm down enough to see the countryside.  No dice.  We had to accept defeat and return to blighted Saint-Hubert (for my Ohio readers, think Warren).  The only option left to us was a pub.  Now, if Wallonia is struggling in everything else, there is one thing you can always count on being reliable, albeit with the potential for mild creepiness. That is the pub.  Saint-Hubert is well supplied.  We opted for The Miami as it wasn't full of grumpy old men or seedy young ones and settled down for a nice session with some dearly missed Trappist Ales.  The great and wonderful thing about Belgium is that nearly every pub has Trappist beers on the list.  Things could definitely be worse.  These couple hours at the pub were the only time I decided to take out my camera on the trip, and you know what?  I'm totally ok with that.  The pub was by no means full, so it also provided the chance to test the updated Fujifilm remote camera app and the electronic shutter.  Fujifilm finally updated their remote app when they announced the X-Pro2 last month and for the first time I was able to get it to work.  Let me tell you, that app paired with the electronic shutter makes for a perfect clandestine operation (PIs, take note).  Leave the camera on a table and operate it with your phone, and no one will be the wiser.  In a quiet environment like a nearly empty pub, this is certainly a helpful set up.

Regulars at The Miami
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 50mm Exposure: 1/60, f/2.8, ISO4000

Pinball and Orval
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 16mm Exposure: 1/8, f/3.6, ISO4000

After we finished our beers (Rochefort 8) we could finally head to the restaurant for dinner.  Things certainly improved when we stepped in the door of L' Ancien Hopital and before long the woes of the day were fading away.  There is no better balm for a disappointing trip than a fantastic meal.  It made up for the lack of craft beer in the trunk, the hour lost at Delhaize, the wretched weather, the taxidermy creatures and cigarette smoke, and the complete lack of photos on my card.

The next morning, we tipped our hats to Wallonia and headed home.  The weather was still the same and we were exhausted.  Sometimes things go wrong and plans fall apart.  That's ok.  That's totally ok.  I'm just relieved we survived that horrid hotel.

To Those Who Stand With Us

Surrounded
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 15mm Exposure: 1/250, f/5, ISO800

Most of the time when talking about photography, or any art form for that matter, we focus on technique and the tools of the trade.  Photographers in particular love talking gear, especially since there's a new camera or accessory hitting the market every couple of days.  Then, of course, talking about technique and tips are other favorite topics of conversation or articles.  But, there is one area we often overlook, and that's a shame.

One of the most important aspects of pursuing an art, whether it's photography or something else, is feeling free to do so.  I don't mean freedom in regards to time or resources.  What I'm referring to is the peace of mind that allows us create.  Unfortunately, not everyone has that freedom.  There is nothing worse then being compelled to create, but not having the support from those around us to pursue our creativity.  Instead of encouragement and positive or constructive feedback, the process and efforts are degraded or trivialized. When that happens, the act of creating becomes excruciating and our works are soulless shadows of the original visions that we can't even see clearly anymore.  In the end we put away the clay, the brush, the pen, or the camera and when we look back upon our art it is viewed as a passing fancy, or worse, with regret.  I'm not sure if people realize how important they are to the creatives in their lives.  Our ability to create something stems directly from where our heads are at.  Let's face it, the people that surround us have a great deal to with that.

So, to all of those partners, friends, spouses, and family members who stand behind their creative, thank you!  Thank you for letting us ramble on about the next project, our worries, and the pros and cons of some bit of gear.  Thank you for understanding that we're not in it for the money, but because it's who we are.  Thank you for not trying to convince us that we should be in it for the money.  Thank you for not insulting us by equaling sales or social media likes with success .  Thank you for not nagging us about missed meals or weekends away because we were working.  Thank you for not demeaning our work by demanding that your schedule is more important than "our hobby."  Thank you for allowing us to lock ourselves in our office or studio for days on end while we're on a roll.  Thank you for looking past our clutter of gear, tools, papers, and books.  Thank you for not sighing with disapproval when we need to pick something up at the supply store or camera shop.  Thank you for not voicing impatience when we stop for the 100th time on a walk to we can get another shot.  Thank you for not insisting that we have enough shots.  Thank you for not throwing a tantrum when we need to chase the light or stand in the same spot for a long time while we wait for it.  In short, thank you for your time, your support, your smiles, your understanding, and, most importantly, your love.  It all means more to us than you could possibly know.  We wouldn't be able to be who we are without you.

If you're a creative and there are people in your life who stand with you and thus bestow that peace of mind which allows you to pursue your art with freedom, make sure you thank them.  You owe them quite a lot.

Train Ride

Dresden Hbf
Camera X-T1 Focal Length: 10mm Exposure: 1/30, f/6.4, ISO1600

Our train was due to pull out at 12:00 sharp from track nine.  We arrived by foot to Dresden's main train station with plenty of time to spare, time to grab sandwiches at the Bäckerei and double check our ticket information with what was on the board.  Sandwiches and a couple bottles of Coke in hand, we enter the terminal of the station.  This is a station to be admired.  It is spotless, well marked, and airy, a far cry from the stations we usually find ourselves in.  Back in Frankfurt, you can't escape the feeling that you could be jumped at any moment which causes everyone to race around in a panicked and frantic state, eyes wide with fear.  But, this morning in Dresden, no one grasps our arms begging for spare coins, no one collides with us as they tear out of the station as fast as their legs will carry them.  In the corner of the lower terminal, a model railway sits under a Plexiglas display case.  A couple Euros will let you operated the mini world, but we're happy just to let it go at its own pace.  There's a small ruined castle on a hill, police arresting drunken brawlers at a lilliputian biergarten, construction workers standing in an accurate fashion around a road works site, a soviet era tire factory belches cotton smoke, and a tiny potbellied retiree sits smoking on a bench in front of his Schrebergarten.  This minuscule world under Plexiglas is part documentary, part satirical depiction of the world that will flash past our train windows in a short time.  While the whole installation appears to have been erected sometime during the 1960's, there's little within that wouldn't be familiar to today's passersby.  Apart from the models of the cars and the Soviet factory, its seems things haven't changed as much as we would think.

Track 9
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 20mm Exposure: 1/30, f/10. ISO1600

We climb the steps to the upper tracks and find track nine.  Our fellow travelers are already milling about the advertisement boards, vending machines, and benches.  Car 28 is going to be our home for the next 5 hours and that will supposedly end up in section D of the track.  I love how organized Deutsche Bahn can be when it really wants to.  The train rolls in promptly and we wait a few moments for some of its passengers to disembark.  Then we climb aboard.  We happened upon a convenient deal on tickets for this trip.  So, for the journey home we will be enjoying the plush seats and quiet repose of a first class car.  This is an ICE train, which will end its run in Frankfurt with only a few pauses in cities along the way.  This sort of ICE sports a dining car, free WiFi, and WC's that probably have paper towels and soap.  Even in an era far past the Golden Age of rail travel, there is still something very comforting and pleasing about a form of transport that speeds through the best parts of the countryside while still allowing you see it accompanied by the possibilities of fresh coffee, a cheese bun, and the ability to use a civilized bathroom without temporarily halting the journey.  On some trains the difference between first and second class is barely noticeable, but on a DB ICE it means you get a porter who offers to bring your drinks and most of the seats come paired with a table. Five hours on this train? I'd happily take 10!  Without any worries of transfers, a fresh blanket of snow outside, and a nice plush seat to settle into, I could happily ride this train for a very, very long time.

The train pushes away from the platform and we slowly begin to roll through that strange wasteland of cables and rails that make up the suburbs of a major rail station.  We pass the backside of the Dresden's famous Yenidze, the former tobacco factory built to look like a mosque.  Today it houses offices, but still appears quite out of place amidst the outskirts of Dresden.

Yenidze
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 28.9mm Exposure: 1/180, f/9, ISO1600

I snap some pictures of this bizarre, blighted environment. Derelict cement buildings of unknown purpose sit between the operational and abandoned rail lines.  Most are covered in graffiti, very few have windows.  They look like houses, but none appear to be in use.  However, as we pass the last one, I jump at the sight of a man in a sleeveless undershirt leaning out of a window (with no frame or glass) to smoke a cigarette.

Wasteland 

Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 19.6mm Exposure: 1/180, f/11, ISO16000

We finally pass into the suburbs of Dresden itself.   We glide through neighborhoods of apartments over small shops where we gaze in a voyeuristic way onto back balconies strung with laden clothes lines and neglected oddments and through windows to see people watching television or having lunch.  Then we move into the neighborhoods of single family homes with their perfectly level lawns and manicured shrubs, all draped in the morning's snow.  We see abandoned trampolines, sagging slightly from the weight of the snowfall, but most of this world is hidden behind hedges.  Then, we enter the strange world of the Schrebergärten.  It is miles and miles of tiny garden allotments cordoned off by fences constructed of anything its owners could get their hands on, from corrugated tin to car doors.  This region seems to be a vast set from a post-apocalyptic movie.  Some gardens are dearly loved and well maintained even in the winter, others have been left to their own devices. We can see through the grimy back windows of sheds and trailers, catching glimpses of glass jars and spray cans.  Beer bottles lie behind some in vast piles, with the intent that no one would see them.  You can learn a lot about people from a train window.  Then, suddenly and without any warning we burst into the open countryside.  It is a vast, wide open world of white, dotted here and there by rows of trees.  

Speeding Through Winter's World
Camera X-E2 Focal Length: 18mm Exposure: 1/180, f/14, ISO2000

Hills rise and fall and sometimes we enter the deep clefts of a river valley.  The sight of people walking, seemingly in the middle of nowhere, is not rare.  Sunday is Wandern Tag.  You see them moving through the winter blasted landscape alone, in couples, or in groups.  Dogs leap through snowdrifts, children pull each other on sleds.  Occasionally, we see tiny specks of sledders on distant hillsides, gliding down or veering off and dumping their passengers in the fresh powder.  When I think of Winter, I often visualize these scenes in my mind's eye.  I take each frame, captured in the edges of our window, and store them as small postcards.  This is the way January should look, grey skies, drifts, swirling snow, smoke rising out of chimneys, ice forming on river banks, and people walking with red cheeks and laughter and the promise of a hot drink at the end.  

The level of snow increases and decreases as we pass further west.  Sometimes it sits at a half meter along sidewalks, sometimes it is just a powdery dust on farm fields, sometimes it is barely there at all.  The conductor announces our imminent arrival in Leipzig.  We once again pass the Schrebergärten, neighborhoods, apartments, and quiet outskirts of yet another city.  The elderly couple across the aisle from us begin to wrap up their newspapers and casually organize their things.  They have been laughing quietly every now and then over articles in their papers and ordered teas instead of coffee.  They remind me of retired couples we know at home, the ones who are always impeccably dressed and well informed.  They contribute money to the symphony, listen religiously to NPR, and collect New Yorker cartoons on their fridges.  This couple strikes me as the sort that know a great deal about a great many things and that having a conversation with them wouldn't be a waste of time.  

Catching Up on the News
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 32.9mm Exposure: 1/60, f/3.6, ISO1600, LR Custom Preset Edit

Before long, we begin to slow as we enter the massive steel complex of Leipzig station.  Pylons rise above the tracks forming a skeletal forest of steel and the massive canopies of the station begin to loom in the distance.

Steel Forest
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 39mm Exposure: 1/125, f/9, ISO2000

I get the feeling that this scene could be exactly the same a century ago, that train stations have always looked this way- a snarl of metal on a foundation of gravel and cinder.  Perhaps the air was blacker in the past, but this is the way it has always been, more or less.

We linger in Leipzig to change conductors and porters.  The elderly couple disembarks.  Our empty coffee mugs are gathered up and we take the pause to open up those sandwiches from Dresden.  They are small with just turkey, cheese, lettuce, and tomato.  But, the bread is soft and whatever sauce they spread under the cheese has a nice tang.  I could easily eat two more if given the chance.  We watch the new arrivals stroll along the platform to find their cars.  Someone jumps out for a quick smoke, just before the whistle blows and stuffs their lighter and pack of cigarettes back into their coat in frustration before leaping back inside.  We roll back out the way we came, back into the white wilderness between German cities.

Sunshine Cometh
Camera X-E2 Focal Length: 18mm Exposure: 1/180, f/14, ISO2000

We stop again in Fulda and pick up a new occupant for across the aisle.  He hauls on a suitcase, wardrobe bag, and a jumbled assortment of sacks.  A slight man, he reminds me of an eccentric professor or perhaps a writer.  Papers are soon strewn all over his table and he's constantly getting up and down to retrieve a forgotten item from his luggage.  He orders a snack and a coffee from the porter and attacks his bun in a mouse-like manner, ripping it apart carefully into tiny pieces before eating the bits one at a time. 

The Writer
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 24.3 Exposure: 1/180, f/3.6, ISO2000, LR Custom Preset Edit

 The light gets lower in the sky.  There are less people out now, and the snow is fading from the landscape to just a dusting.  Frankfurt isn't far now.  More towns and small cities flash past the window, more sheds, gardens, balconies, and hedges. More lives and stories glimpsed for an instant, never to be seen again.  This is the strange dimension of a train trip.  You can see the world from your window, but you are not a part of it.  In fact, you dwell within your own.  It smells of upholstery and plastic.  Its sounds are of rocking train cars over tracks and hushed voices.  Food and drink come wrapped in plastic.  Your fellow inhabitants come and go with barely a word, though hours spent beside each other make you members of an unspoken tribe, that of the traveller.  This tribe is made up of bankers, writers, progressive retirees, families, children, grandparents, police officers, students, tourists, conductors, porters, engineers, backpackers, and the occasional photographer.  Our little world encased in steel and plastic passes through the outside world of sky, snow, and concrete and the scenes of the old model railway play out before our eyes.

Dash Through Dresden

Dresden at Night
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 26.5 Exposure: 15.sec, f/11, ISO200 

Last weekend we kicked off our 2016 travel with a quick day and a half in Dresden.  We took an evening train from Frankfurt and arrived late Friday night in the city.  The weather had finally become cold where we live in northern Bavaria, so it was certainly colder up in Dresden that weekend.  I decided to go as simple as possible and take my two cameras and just two lenses, the 10-24mm and the 18-55mm.  That way I was set up to get most shots and I wouldn't have to change lenses at all, something I like to avoid when the temperatures dip below freezing or the weather is nasty in general.  What I'm learning to accept since I've begun my journey in travel photography is that I'm not always going to get the shot.  We might get to the location and discover that a major landmark is completely covered in scaffolding and tarps for refurbishment or the light may just be really crappy the whole time or we're inside when the light does something amazing outside or there's a rally and the roads are all closed.  Such is the reality of travel photography, no matter how much you research and plan a lot still hinges on luck.

I initially thought that a winter weekend would be sufficient for Dresden.  The Altstadt is pretty condensed and very walkable so I could get those nice morning and evening scenic shots without having to take a bus or tram.  Then, in the afternoons we could duck into the museums to stay warm and get a little culture.  If the weather was more mild we could head to the Neustadt to visit the markets and do a little street photography.  But, we soon discovered that Dresden deserves more than a weekend and that a return visit will definitely be needed.

The train from Frankfurt is about five hours, so we arrived at our hotel about 10:30pm.  By then, the sidewalks had been rolled up and there was hardly a soul around.  The forecast I had been watching made it look like there would be snow waiting for us and I was really looking forward to getting out early the next morning to catch the soft light on fresh snow in the city center.  But, there wasn't a flake to be seen.  Oh well, I thought, perhaps it will come overnight for us.  Still a little revved up from the trip over we decided to walk around the city for a bit to get the lay of the land and make some mental notes about locations for the morning.  Even though the Alstadt center is compact, I quickly deduced that there was no way I was going to capture everything.  For once, we had arrived in a city that wasn't under complete construction.  Only a few cranes loomed in the sky, and there few tarps draped over the massive buildings.  Years of travel has taught me to plan around the most important landmarks being enshrouded in construction materials so when a whole city center is almost construction free it's like being a kid in a candy shop.  Winter is probably the most risky time to shoot a city (besides the weather) because that is the time to get refurbishment projects done while the tourist count is low.

Anyway, our first night there we walked a good portion of the Altstadt and along Brühl's Terrace.  With it being so dark by then I wasn't planning on doing any real shooting, so we left the tripod in the room and I just carried the X-T1 with the 10-24mm.  The first shot of the Fürstenzug was just done handheld.  I never shoot handheld when it's this dark, and I have to say I was really impressed with X-T1's performance.  For the second shot the ground was obviously used as the tripod.  I developed the RAW in camera, something I haven't played around with too much.  While I will likely stick with development in Photoshop for most shots, for a simple scene like this it certainly is the faster and easier route.

Fürstenzug
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 24mm Exposure: 1/30, f/5, ISO 4000

Schlossplatz at Midnight
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 10mm Exposure: 2 sec, f/8, ISO200

The next morning we got up well before sunrise, suited up in thermals and parkas, slapped on some foot warmers, and headed out to get that magic morning light on the beautiful buildings of the Alstadt.  Unfortunately, there was just a little snow here and there and the sky was a blank slate as the sun began to rise, but this city center has plenty of interesting features to shoot even in the most uninteresting conditions. 

Dresden has a glorious and tragic history.  Although smaller than Leipzig, Dresden is the capital of the state of Saxony.  It was ruled for generations by the Wettin Dynasty, one of the oldest houses of Europe.  The most famous Wettin of Dresden is Augustus II the Strong (1670-1733), and statues and mentions of him are seemingly every few hundred feet.  He was not only a Prince Elector (a noble who participated in the elections of the Holy Roman Emperor), but he was also a King of Poland.  During his reign, Dresden became a center for culture and art and one of Europe's most important cities.  It was under Ausgustus that Dresden and Meissen became the first places in the world outside of Asia that produced porcelain.  It was known for its ceramics ever since.  Unfortunately, its size and location made it a prime target during conflict.  It suffered heavy damage during the Seven Years War and the Napoleonic Wars.  The center was also somewhat destroyed during the May Uprising in 1848.  In the 19th and early 20th centuries, Dresden became a center for the modern age.  It was known for its auto factories, cigarette factories, camera factories, food processing, and medical equipment works.  It was also a European center for the modern art movement.

Of course, what Dresden is remembered most for today is the tragic firebombing which took place February 13-15, 1945.  The bombing was carried out supposedly to destroy military production in the area, to prevent retreating Nazi troops from regrouping in the location, and to cause panic and confusion.  It is also widely held that it was in retaliation for Nazi bombings in England. Over 90% of the city center was leveled beyond recognition and between 18,000-25,000 people (a majority of women and children) were killed.  It wasn't until 2005 that the final reconstruction project ended with the completion of the Frauenkirche.  So, in fact, the Altstadt is rather quite new and the Neustadt (which wasn't bombed) on the opposite side of the Elbe is older.  However, even with this knowledge, it is hard to believe that the beautiful structures of the Alstadt haven't been standing for hundreds of years.

Brühl's Terrace
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 15.1mm Exposure: 5.3sec, f/11, ISO200 

Academy of Fine Arts
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 10mm Exposure: 2sec, f/11, ISO200

Dresdner Residenzschloss
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 10mm Exposure: 1sec, f/11, ISO200

Semperoper and statue of King John I of Saxony
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 10mm Exposure: 1.3sec, f/14, ISO200

We rounded out our morning walk at the Zwinger Palace, where we hoped to spend the later half of the morning having a leisurely stroll through the Old Masters and Mathematics & Physics galleries.  The Zwinger palace is not massive compared to the average European palace from the Baroque era, but it is home to some rare collections.  We figured a morning there would be well spent enjoying them while staying out of the 20F weather.  It is the only landmark building in the Altstadt undergoing major refurbishment, so I didn't spend too much time shooting inside the palace itself.

Looking back to Theaterplatz
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 10mm Exposure: 3sec, f/11, ISO200

Zwinger Courtyard
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 14.5 Exposure: .5sec, f/14, ISO200, Lightroom Edit

Unfortunately, the Old Masters Gallery was completely closed for refurbishment.  That just left the Mathematics & Physics gallery and the Porcelain Gallery, but for the same price as it would be to visit all three.  Now, having spent a good portion of my life looking at ceramics as an archaeologist I wasn't real keen on the Porcelain gallery.  I love looking at old stuff, but ceramics bore me to tears.  I can't say there was a lobby to see it coming from my husband either.   The Mathematics & Physics exhibition sounded very interesting, but we couldn't argue paying the full price of the museum to only see one third of it.  It was the Old Masters that had been the real draw for the Zwinger as this era of the German, Dutch, Flemish, and Italian masters of light is our favorite period in art.  Even though the gallery only displays 40% of its collections at a time, I knew we could spend the majority of the morning basking in the beauty of the pieces.  Oh well, it wasn't meant to be.  So, instead of grabbing a bun and coffee at a bakery before heading into the museum for the morning, we returned to the hotel for its more lavish breakfast and then hit the town for some more strolling, window shopping, and shooting.  

Detail of the Zwinger
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 55mm Exposure: 1/60, f/4.5, ISO640

Detail on the Georgenbau Gate
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 44.4m Exposure: 1/30. f/4.5, ISO640

Dresdener Residenzschloss Inner Courtyard
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 42.5mm Exposure: 1/60, f/8, ISO640

Pause in the Commute
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 55mm Exposure: 1/60, f/5.6, ISO640

Taschenberg
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 27.7mm Exposure: 1/125, f/8, ISO540, Fujifilm Classic Chrome profile

The famous Frauenkirche was due to open in the afternoon so we headed back there around 1pm to climb the dome and see the interior.  The Frauenkirche has become one the symbols of Dresden and one of the most significant landmarks of the destruction of Europe during WWII.  The original church was completed in the 18th century and immediately became one of the most unique churches of Europe with its Protestant design and 315 foot dome.  It was the symbol of Dresden, surviving cannonball fire during the Seven Years War and the conflict of the May Uprising.   However, it was not to survive the Firebombing of February 1945.  The dome collapsed on February 15th and the church was destroyed beyond recognition.  It would remain in complete ruin for 45 years as a war memorial (and propaganda symbol against the West) under communist rule.  But, after the reunification of Germany, work began in 1994 to rebuild the church.  It wasn't completed until 2005.  The new church is reconstructed of its original materials as much as possible.  The original darkened stones are clearly visible amongst the lighter new sandstone.  The original cross which topped the church and was crumpled and smashed now rests inside near the altar.  Its replacement was cast by the son of one of the British airmen who dropped the bombs in 1945.  Today the church is a symbol for many things, but most especially as one of reconciliation and renewal.  Climbing the dome is a must for visitors to Dresden and provides incredible views of the city and the Dresden basin region.

Looking Down on Dresden
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 13.8mm Exposure: 1/60, f/11, ISO320

Dresden and the Elbe
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 13.8 Exposure: 1/50, f/11, ISO320 

View of the Neumarkt
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 13.8mm Exposure: 1/50, f/11, ISO320

Once again, however, we managed to time our visit poorly.  For a reason that wasn't clearly given, the interior of the church was closed to the public that afternoon.  We were only able to get a glimpse down through the dome as we walked up the wrap around ramp to the top of the dome.  So, clearly we will have to return to Dresden!

In the Dome
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 42.5mm Exposure: 1/30, f/8, ISO3200

  Nighttime comes quickly in the Winter.  My main goal for the trip was to shoot Dresden's famous Altstadt skyline from somewhere along the Elbe.  Originally I was thinking I would shoot directly across the river, but I'm never 100% committed to my plans until I've actually "ground truthed" a city.  Upon looking at a few postcards (a great travel photography tip, by the way), I decided I wasn't as inspired by the flat view directly across the river.  Also, since we didn't have time or plans to get into Neustadt, it seemed like a bit of a waste to cross all the way over just to walk all the way back.  So, the idea came to look for a slightly more unique angle from one of the bridges during blue hour instead.  We walked down to the Carolabrücke instead of the more well-known Augustusbrücke and then shot back towards Brühl's Terrace.  This view shows the Ständehaus, Hofkirche, Residenzschloss, Augustusbrücke, and Semperoper.  I particularly liked the lines of the street and moored boats below the terrace and thought it was a bit more interesting than the standard horizontal view across the river.  Plus, I wanted the Elbe to be a star of the shot too.  It is such an important player in the city's history as not only its original highway, but the city's greatest threat.  The Elbe has flooded three times since catastrophic floods in 2002, once nearly destroying the Opera.

Dresden at Blue Hour
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 42.5mm Exposure: 10sec, f/13, ISO200

 On the way back to the center we snapped a couple more shots (including the one at the beginning of the post).  Blue hour only lasted about 30mins because of the heavy clouds and by the time we were back to the Frauenkirche it had become quite dark.

Frauenkirche and Martin Luther
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 10mm Exposure: 28sec, f/10, ISO200

Every photo trip comes with at least one regret.  My regrets are the things that I made a mistake on, a bad call, a missed opportunity, or just poor time management.  I don't regret that we couldn't get in to see the Old Masters or the inside of Frauenkirche since that was out of our hands.  But, I am disappointed that I didn't look out the window of our hotel when I woke up around 3am Sunday morning to get a drink.  The forecast said there wasn't a single chance of precipitation overnight.  Any snow was due to show up well after we got on our noon train back to Frankfurt.  Neither of us had slept well Friday night because the hotel's beds are in dire need of new mattresses and pillows.  Since it appeared that the light would be the same as it was Saturday morning and we had gotten everything we wanted then, we decided to sleep in on Sunday, have a leisurely breakfast, then wander through Pragerstrasse on the way to catch the train home.  But, if I had looked out the window at 3am I would have seen that it did snow overnight and it snowed quite a bit.  But, I was thirsty and suffering from another fitful night on the soggy mattress and pulling back the curtains didn't cross my mind.  Sigh.  So, we missed the opportunity to get the buildings topped in all their snowy splendor in the morning light on Sunday.  Lesson learned:  Always plan to get up early.  You can always go back to bed if you don't need to shoot.

After breakfast, we checked out of the hotel and headed out for one last look of the powdery city on a circuitous route to the train station.

Trees or Tree
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 10mm Exposure: 1/60, f/10, ISO500

On The Terrace
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 10mm Exposure: 1/100, f/11, ISO500

Snow Commute
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 55mm Exposure: 1/250, f/11, ISO1000

Terrace Steps
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 23.3mm Exposure: 1/180, f/11, ISO1000

One of the Four Times Of Day 
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 50.5mm Exposure: 1/180, f/7.1, ISO1000

On Pragerstrasse
Camera: X-E2 Focal Length: 46.3mm Exposure: 1/5000, f/4, ISO1000

So, that sums up our first excursion of 2016.  I have to say I was very surprised by the city.  Dresden has been in the news quite a bit lately because of pro and anti-PEGIDA demonstrations and occasional violence against refugees or people in general who appear to be of Arab or Jewish descent.  Even though we stuck to the tourist area, we weren't sure what to expect.  Frankfurt has become rather edgy since the beginning of the refugee crisis so we expected to at least come across some anti-immigrant graffiti or posts in a city where this movement is more popular.  However, there wasn't a single indication of this while we were there.  Dresden is quite cosmopolitan with a great shopping district, the opera, and the museums.  It is a city definitely worth a second visit.  We would like to get to the Zwinger and inside the Frauenkirche next time, as well as Neustadt.  Perhaps we may even be able to explore some areas outside the city like Sächsische Schweiz.

Below is the kit I brought for shooting in Dresden last weekend.  Even though it is pictured, I didn't end up bringing the 55-200mm lens and thankfully didn't need it all.  I switched over to the ThinkTank Retrospective 7 for my bag since I was carrying two cameras.  I brought, but didn't need the ND filters.  My tripod is a 3 Legged Thing Brian.  I carry it in its own case and since Brian is pretty light that's not a problem.  For short trips like this I bring along my iPad to do some quick edits in Lightroom Mobile, and despite having access to the internet in Germany, we always stick a guidebook in the bag as a backup.  Other bits and bobs here are a shutter release cable (because it's faster and warmer than using the Fujifilm Camera remote app), spare SD cards, chargers, and a notebook for jotting down thoughts and ideas for a return trip.

Shot with an iPhone 

I did quite a bit of street photography, trying to capture some of the local characters in this grand space.  Most of the shots will be on my Flickr page by the end of the week, but I wanted to share this one here.

Will See You In 5 Minutes
Camera: X-T1 Focal Length: 12.6mm Exposure: 1/30, f/4, ISO6400

Normally I wouldn't use the 10-24mm lens for street shots, but when we passed under the Georgenbau Gate of the Residenzschloss, I wanted to not only capture the people passing through the space, but the architecture of the gate as well.  It was quite dark under there so I cranked up the ISO to its tolerable limit and opened the lens as wide as I could at the focal length.  Originally, I was focusing slightly back into the further passage as people passed directly in the center, making it more of an urban geometry shot than a standard street photo.  However, this guy was passing much closer to me and there was something about his pace and complete immersion in his phone that stood out to me.  Everyone else was strolling through at a Saturday pace.  Most were couples, many of them were tourists.  But, this guy was clearly not concerned with sightseeing, but instead on getting to his destination as quickly as possible while texting on his phone.  So, I snapped the shot, even though I knew he would be out of focus.  In fact, that was imperative for me; this hurried, distracted character breezing through this static symmetrical space.  I know it's not a clean or perfect shot, but it's one of my favorite from the trip.  Cities are built, destroyed, and rebuilt, but we are just fleeting players, usually indifferent to the spaces around us.