Sometimes I see a lot of meanness on this site. People without understanding the economies of other members, throw out recommendations about buying like they are the ultimate authority on a subject, or right out boast like they think others are stupid for not buying the best on the market. Some people skimp whenever they can due to their financial situation. Obviously, you can't buy a generic Nikon, Canon, Sony, or Olympus body so while someone may have funds for that, they may need to skimp elsewhere. Someone in another post actually said they would not buy a non-OEM battery because it might be made in a foreign country! Guess what -- your OEM batteries are made in a foreign country! Other answers berate members for buying 3rd party items like battery grips. Hey, maybe they don't need the grip that can fall off a 100 ft. cliff and survive, maybe they just like a grip that affords a better hold when using the camera in a vertical orientation. Someone else said they would only buy HP cartridges -- I have an answer for that -- professional equipment like printers using eight or more cartridges notwithstanding, if you own a printer that you paid a couple of hundred dollars for, you didn't buy a printer, you bought into a very expensive ink program. Those lower-priced printers are so cheap because when you buy one, HP, Canon, or any others the manufacturer has you by the balls! You will be paying through the nose for your ink. Epson, and now Canon and HP have printers that use tanks which are easy to fill and cost a fraction of what cartridges do. Another possibility is that when it comes to batteries who knows who makes them? There may only be two plants in Japan/China/Taiwan that make all of them and just put different names on them. Look at the round head flash from Neewer, Bolt, and Godox they are all the same unit, just a name change. When someone asks for advice, it would be nice to see people respond with their recommendations and not put others down for things like not using OEM equipment. I would bet 75% of people here who act like people are stupid for not spending the extra bucks for a Nikon/Canon/Sony battery, use a flash that is not OEM. I work part-time at Sam's Club and I've had people tell me they would only buy Everyready Batteries over the store brand. Guess what -- they are the same battery! They don't understand marketing -- they can't believe Everyready would sell us batteries that would undercut the name brand. I explain that most big retailers will have an inhouse brand and Eveyready knows if they don't sell us a generic, someone else would! This way they get all the business. Ever see two gas stations owned by the same company across the street from each other -- it's about limiting competition. While I understand some of the group has the money to buy top-drawer on all their equipment, I think putting others down (and that is what you are doing when you state I would only buy xxx) is insensitive and is an opinion you should keep to yourselves. When I was 15, I worked in a manufacturing jewelry shop. We sold Rolex watches both 14 kt. and gold plated. They looked identical so one day I asked Mr. Hays (the owner) why anyone would spend 1200 or more for a Rolex when they could have an identical watch in gold plate for a third of the price. I said no one would know the difference. Mr. Hays looked me in the eye and said, "Oh, but the owner would know". That has stuck with me for the last 58 years and I have tried to live life in a way so as not to flaunt what I have but to just respect my good fortune when something good comes my way. So UHHers, lighten up. Respect each other, give recommendations when asked, and don't come down on others for their choices. (If you are wondering about the cheap prices for Rolex Watches -- while I worked at the jewelry shop the US went off the gold standard. One day gold was 37.00 an ounce, the next day it was like 387.00 an ounce!)

I don’t know how everyone else feels about the new format that UHH is using, but I hate it. I used to look forward to reading the new posts in my favorite sections. They were on my home page everyday when I opened the UHH app, not so much anymore. I now rarely check the UHH app each morning, it is too screwed up. I haven’t a clue as to why UHH changed from the old format.
Maybe I’m too old to adapt to this change, just wondering if other senior reader/photographers feel the way I do.
If UHH stays with this format, I will probably just delete it from my computer. It just frustrates me too much.

The new Lightroom 13 has a new Blur Tool. Tonight I tried it for the first time. And from what I have seen, no need to fear using mirror lenses because of the Bad Bokeh Donuts.

Here is my first experiment. Using the Minolta 500mm f8 Reflex Lens. This one is famous because it has the ability to auto focus with Sony cameras.

Image #1 is the before, and there is no way you can miss seeing these donuts!

Image #2 is the after. Its automatic, but I did have to use the touch up blur tool to overcome one really bad donut.

Totally pleased with how this is working.

AAADD – Know The Symptoms


AAADD, Age Activated Attention Deficit Disorder. Thank God there is a name for it at least I feel a little better, even though I have it. This is how it manifests

I was going to water the garden. As I picked up the hose in the driveway I looked at my car and decided it needed to be washed. As I start toward the shed I notice the mail on the porch railing that I brought up earlier. I decided to go through the mail before I washed the car. I lay the car keys on the table and put the junk mail in the garbage can under the table. I notice that the can is full. I decide to take the garbage out first and lay the bills on the table. But since I’m going to be near the mail box on my way to the dumpster I decide to pay the bills first. I take out my check book and see that there is only one check left, the extra checks are in the desk in the living room. On the desk I find a can of Diet Coke that I had been drinking. I’m going to write the checks so I move the can out of the way and feel that it is warm. I should put it in the fridge to cool. On the way to the fridge I see that the flowers need water. As I put the Coke can on the counter I discover my glasses that I’ve been searching for all morning. I had better put them on the desk so I can find them later. But first I’m going to water the flowers. I set my glasses on the counter and fill the container with water and see the remote on the kitchen table. I realize that tonight when we want to watch television I won’t remember that the remote is on the table so I had better bring it to the sun room where it belongs, but first finish watering the flowers. While I’m doing this quite a bit spills. So I set the remote on the table and get some towels to clean up the mess.
I head down the hall trying to remember what I was planning to do.

At the end of the day:
The car isn’t washed, the bills aren’t paid, there’s a warm can of Diet Coke still sitting on the counter, the flowers don’t have enough water, there is still only one check in the check book, I can’t find the remote, I can’t find my glasses, I can’t remember what I did with my car keys.

Then I try to figure why nothing got done today. I can’t understand it because I know I was busy all day and I’m really tired.
I know this is a serious problem and I need to get some help with it. But I’m going to check my e mail first.

Don’t laugh. If this isn’t you, you’re day is coming.