Lomo-A-Go-Go

(all photos should enlarge, which shows the odd detail better)

I grabbed a few minutes yesterday, in between laundry, studio clean up and hurting from therapy (they are trying to throttle me, yes!) to further play with the new Zumi. Above is one of it's unexplainable features.....what I call *washboard* texture. Nope, nothing to set---it just does it.

Here is almost the same shot, just a very very slight change in angle when shooting. Suddenly, the *washboard* is gone and there is this interesting spotlight effect, and I assure you, there are none in this corner of the studio!

During the clean and purge, I came across a cardboard box that had been high on a shelf, well out of my reach but certainly not out of the grasp and range of the nefarious "Mr. Dust". I decided to get it down, to throw out and what should I find but a perfectly preserved robin's nest, eggs and all.

Well, that certainly was fair game for the Zumi!

The grain in this picture is perfect for effect; I love the old look it gives the nest. And, this was not a small file size blown up; this is pretty much how it came from the camera except for a bit of cropping.

I did several shots and I will admit right here and now....I cannot figure out the macro yet. I guess I shall have to resort to reading the backwards book.......grrrrrrr.......

So I switched back to the regular *lens* and clicked off a few more frames and I get THIS:

Couldn't believe how the eggs and grass are overexposed here, and the grain seems to have laid down, or for the most part, disappeared. It makes me wonder how much is luck or if there is something programmed into the little beast to make it do this odd collection of unplanned exposure tricks.

I will confess that I am a bit like a child when I got my first point and shoot Kodak; I am clicking away at absolutely nothing and having a ball! Yes, I am getting the remainder of the studio put back into working order, but the fun of just clicking off frames and having no idea what I'll get is pretty cool.

A lot are throw away; this is not going to be a reliable source for that once in a lifetime perfect picture, but if you have a creative mind, and love surprises, you'll love one of these little stinkers!

Oh, in case you're wondering, RAWWWWWR is doing just fine; he has accepted his position as Guardian of the Rolodex very well, and looks over my left shoulder to proof as I type.

So if there are typos, I refer you to Mr. RAWWWWWR. I am sure he will deal with you in the appropriate manner.

Now, I'm out of here. This is the last weekend DH has off for a month, and I am hoping we can get some rest and spend some time sharing a few laughs.

Or beers. Or both!

Have a fun and funky weekend! RAWWWWWR says so!  ;-)

Pax.

Zumi and Rawwwwwr Come To Live With Anne......

Before I begin this post, I have been remiss in welcoming new followers, and I beg forgiveness.....my brain has seemed to take a vacation and leave the rest of me here trying to function. I am delighted you are along for the ride and hope you enjoy the odd and rambling content of this blog! WELCOME!!!

And now to today's serving of brain dribblings......

The other day after I had done my *turtle  on it's back* routine on the living room floor thanks to the errant knee, and was feeling extremely sorry for myself, I broke down and ordered a digital camera I have been debating about for a long time. It is a Zumi, and it is a digital that does lomography. If you don't know what that is, I'll have a few bad photos a bit later in the post. I recommend googling it and seeing what people are doing with the medium, some of which is amazing, a lot of which is just quirky and fun.
I ordered from Photojojo, a company that has a great sense of humor both in their online writing and in their text for billing. I mean, they made me laugh when I opened the box. The contents are above.

I did not know that besides getting the camera and the necessary battery, mini (and I do mean MINI!) SD card and USB adapter, I would be the proud mother of Rawwwwwr, the little dinosaur! He looks fierce but was quite happy to get out of the box and seems to be adapting well to studio life.  He did ask I rephotograph him, as his other side is more colorful with brighter green stripes......he's my little "Desk-Dino" and keeps an eye open for typos!

The one thing I figured out quickly is the learning curve on a lo-fi camera with the book printed and reading from back to front (made in Japan) leads to a little confusion, and it will take some time to get all the glorious lo-fi technique under my belt. The above pics were shot with my FujiFilm  S 5100 digital, DH bought me a small Canon PowerShot which I am learning (it's a carry along camera) and now I have the nonglorious Zumi to learn.

I definitely need Springtime and outdoor color!

This is a bad example of the hazy quality the Zumi offers; it IS intentional, made to duplicate the cheap plastic cameras of the film era. You are not sure what you will get until you upload the pics!

Rawwwwwr, of course, wanted his photo taken with the new camera too, so to be fair, here he is:

I think you can see what we're working with here...... reeeeeeeally LO-FI.

And WHY would I want this? Because with a little practise, I can produce what I would have had to spend a fortune on in real film and developing, or developing and printing myself, and I was not ready to think about trying to set up a darkroom again, though I have all the equipment still.

So the Zumi adventure begins!

Now I need good, colorful photo-fodder.

And a sedative to learn where all the little adjustment buttons are on this very small camera that my big hands seem to completely encompass. A new journey to start amongst all the others in progress.....LOL!!!

Of course, on the up side, if I use my good cameras for blog pics, and they turn out bad, I can just blame it on the Zumi........or Rawwwwwr getting mischievious and readjusting the settings....  ;-)

Have a dino-sized good day--have fun--be creative and above all.....

Pax.