So I packed my "tons" of equipment and more or less concentrated on my Sony Video Camcorder. This past couple of years something new came along. Digital photography! What they have accomplished in these past few years with them is mind boggling to say the least. I have been doing some research on them and although they are rather pricy, when you get right down to it ... they really are not. Fortunately I have a brand new DELL computer with all the "goodies" and have been doing a lot of graphics work this past year. I have everything needed to do whatever I want with pictures on my computer. My first choice of course was the Nikon as it is probably the ultimate in cameras. However my "champagne taste" kept listening to my "beer budget" so I was almost ready to go for something like the Hewlett-Packard as it was cheaper. Fortunately my good wife was with me when I went out to buy one and she knew that I wouldn't be satisfied with nothing but "the champagne" one! I had seen the latest one ... the Nikon 950, owned by my son's future wife, Morenike (who lives in jolly old England) and immediately fell in love with it. However ... a much more sophisticated one has since come out ... the Nikon Coolpix 990 with many more features and capabilities so "I let my wife talk me into it!"

Because I am old and lazy I am simply moving a small write-up about my new camera from another page on my Web Site to this one so I'll maybe change it later. I do intend to put quite a lot of photos in this section ... mostly local stuff but I hope you enjoy them anyway.

I would be remiss if I didn't tell you a bit about my new Camera. I bought it on the 10th August which is my son's 39th birthday but he can get his own :-) :-) I have been into photography for years now but never with digital, which is a relatively new technology. I guess you would say I have enough equipment over these past years to start my own camera store but this one also I couldn't pass up! I researched them on the Internet for a couple of weeks and just knew I had to have the ultimate ... the Nikon "Coolpix 990" that just came out. I have to confess that one almost has to have a degree in electronics to run the sucker but when you get even the basic "mysteries" figured out so you can at least point and shoot ... you wouldn't believe what this thing can do. The pictures are out of this world! That's a picture of the camera I'm talking about at the top left of this article. You have to use one to really find out what it can do.

I got a 16 meg "flash card" with this one. I find the 16 meg to be sufficient as I can take 100 "Fine VGA" pictures with it and if I want to drop the resolution down, I can get 333 pictures from the one card!! Amazing!! ****Addendum**** [15th September, 2003 ... two years or more later! This 990 has been surpassed with more new technology but for my purposes I find the one I have sufficient.] When I want to ... all I have to do is download them onto my computer right from my camera in seconds and "Bob's your uncle!" I can do what I want with them from there in my PhotoShop! Look out ... I formatted a "read/write" disc today and reserved all 650 megs of space for my digital pictures only. No telling what you may see in this Web Site from now on. I do guarantee there will be no "porno" in here though .... to damn old for that!

**** Update 16th February, 2001 **** I recently added a 64 meg flash card for the camera and that mutliplies the capacity by FOUR! In other words I can now get from 40 pictures at the "Fine" setting instead of 10 and up to 1303 "VGA" Basic on this card. Now with the two of them if I am on a long trip I can save all the pictures I would ever need .... from 40 +10=50 at the finest setting to 1636 pictures at the VGA Basic setting! **** [As of 15th September, 2003 I now have more Flash Cards and am thinking of getting one with about TEN TIMES the capacity!!] Of further interest, it has the capability of shooting "continuous" and "movie" pictures as well plus many other settings too numerous to mention here. All in all I would say that this camera is way ahead of its time and the pictures are superb!

I thought this might be an interesting picture, especially when you hear the conditions it was taken in. It is a picture of one of Joyce's many flowers around the house and the night I brought the camera home and learned to simply "point and shoot" on automatic plus turn the flash on and off. I went outside and got right down to within a few inches of this one, focused it on Macro, set for NO FLASH and took it. I have to tell you that it was early evening, low light and had been a very dull cloudy day all day. In my opinion I would not have gotten as good a picture without some extra light source with a 35 mm but I wanted to see what I could get under these conditions with the existing light using digital. I'll let you decide. If you look closely you will even see a "late-in-the-day" worker honey bee gathering nectar in the center of the flower! Also note you can even see his wings, blurred as they should be at that shutter speed. I did not touch it up in any way. I would not have been able to take this picture with any of my other cameras without either very fast film or some lighting apparatus set up. The Nikon Coolpix 990, a good camera or not? I leave it to you to be the judge.

There's quite a story to this tree. It is near the Golf Course just north of Shelburne, Ontario on County Road 124. A few years ago it was fully branched out and was your typical beautiful Maple tree in all its glory. Then about six years ago we had a very bad ice storm in the winter and all the large branches but one pointing to the east were broken off. I watched that tree and its "lopsided branch" for two more years thinking for sure it was a "gonner" but it actually survived! Then about three years ago we got hit with that very large ice storm that caused so much havoc all over eastern Canada. It took down the one remaining large branch! I thought it would be the end of it for certain after that disaster but low and behold, each year it keeps making its "come-back" and is now (July, 2000) beginning to take shape once again. It may sound corny but I have cherished and rooted for that old tree and watched it like a hawk all these years as I drive by it. Nobody ever did anything to try to preserve it as it's "just another tree" in a farmer's field next to the Golf Course but regeneration is taking place more and more each year. Over the years I have grown very fond of that piece of God's creation and maybe ... just maybe ... the Good Lord has been aware that I have been genuinely concerned for it and gave it the strength to come back to display itself proudly once again in all its glory. The power of Nature! The power of the Creator! **** Update **** It is now 1st of July 2003 and this morning as I was going into town for my usual coffee clutch, I thought I'd stop and take a picture of it again this year. Here it is ... still gaining ground slowly and I still say it will once again become a beautiful Maple Tree in a few years when Mother Nature has done her job. God willing, I'll try to keep you up-to-date each year I am around at least.

Although I cannot take the credit for this picture myself, my son, Harry sent it to me when I first started "on the Web" and have cherished it ever since. As I fell in love with the desert and mountains out west in Arizona and Nevada, I naturally had to make this one a "keeper." I had it on my computer as wallpaper for a long time but since I am now doing photography again .... replaced it with many other ones that I have taken. (Commonly known as an ego trait I believe.) I now have a new DELL computer with a program called "Picture It" on it and I was exploring the many different things one can do on it when I found that I could make a sort of "fading ... bevelled edge" around a picture. Naturally I just had to give it a try so what you are looking at is Yosometie Valley taken near sundown with the bevelled effect around it. Maybe it's just me but I think it makes an interesting effect. I'll have to experiment some more as I go along.

I have to tell you that I had more fun with my new camera today than thus far. I dropped into my Niece's place this early afternoon and visited with her daughter Shannon and her new baby, Ryan. It was a beautiful sunlit day and a perfect time to get pictures of the little beggar. He had just awakened and as usual was in a good mood. I simply sat across the table from him where he was sitting on his Mom's knee and she got him to make all kinds of facial expressions for me. Of course most of them were of him smiling but being the sadistic old "great-great" uncle that I am .... I thought this one was priceless. I caught him when something startled him and you see the result in the picture. I swear I have never seen anyone that could change moods so fast because the very next second he was smiling gleefully. Just to prove he doesn't cry all the time, I put the one on the right in here. It's not a full smile but the "twinkle" in the eyes and the hint of one is sure there. It's hard to catch them when you see exactly what you want as they change their expressions so fast. I took over 60 pictures of him at the one sitting but I think two wilI suffice for now. I also have to say that this kid just has to be the most photographed kid in the County at least. His Dad, Rob is a computer "guru" and even had video pictures of him on his website the day he was born!

Well ... it's now 7th July, 2003. My but how time flies! I must confess that I've been somewhat of a proscrastinator this past year or so (age you know) so I have to insert here that there was another addition to Rob and Shannon's family named Rachel. Here is quite a recent picture of the two of them together. As you can see by the picture that Rachel has "that look" in her eye for sure. She's full of smiles and grins ... but also (to me anyway) one can see the twinkle of "hellry" in her eyes for sure!

Well here we are at one of our favourite escapes ... CASINO RAMA. I thought I'd take a picture of our car parked at the rear where the buses drop the visitors off. It's a wonderful comfortable long covered entrance way with all kinds of tables and seating accomodations. A good place to step outside and "save some money! :-) Notice the Indian artwork all around the casino walls outside. (Inside as well.) The large pictures were manufactured and placed on tile with every piece cross referenced, numbered and filed on computer in case a chunk might get broken. If that happens, all they have to do is go to their computer ... locate the tiles with that part of the particular design on it and replace it and this is all done by computer! All the artwork in and around the Casino was done by Indian artists and there is a great selection of Indian art and artifacts displayed there for sale in their boutiques inside. All in all, even if you do not gamble, it is a worth-while place to see and especially to eat as they have three restaurants now and are building a 350 room Hotel which will have even more restaurants. Take a run up and see it. If you go to the V.I.P. desk and either Sharon or Karen are on duty, tell them "the old grouch" sent you. They'll know who you mean. I personally guarantee you will get excellent service if you do.

Now this is the little guy I have often made reference to throughout my Web Site. This is my niece and nephew's dog, "Bud." As I say, they pay for his license, feed and shelter him but I laughingly have always called him "my dog!" He will do pretty well anything I want him to with one very strange exception and that is ... pose in front of a camera. I can and have taken "tons" of video of him and it never bothered him but every time I point any other kind of camera at him, he simply slinks off out of sight! Perhaps someone took a picture of him with a flash and that might be the reason. Certainly I never have. It's a complete mystery. However, here he is on the left after I ORDERED him to stay. He stayed but made certain he kept a respectable distance just the same. You can see how his ears, which are normally pointed right up, are laid back to show how unhappy he is. The little bum is sulking because I was making him do something he didn't like doing. **** Addendum, March, 2002 ****Well finally! My niece and her husband went to Texas for a couple of weeks last month and we were "dog-sitting" Bud. Too bad for him but I bugged him and bugged him with the camera until he finally gave up and let me take some shots. I don't think he found it as bad as much as he thought he did. This is one whereby he had been hiding behind Joyce in the kitchen to avoid the camera. He thought he was safe hiding behind her legs but I got ready to shoot and told her to step away from him. Voila ... I got him! Here he is as he should look on the right. That's my "Bud" and no matter what ... in my eyes, he can do no wrong. The little bum:-)

I guess it really wouldn't be fair if I didn't include this short tale that goes right along with the one above. Bud is around twelve years old now and about two or three years ago, Daren, my great nephew brought a pure-bred German Sheppard home when little more than a pup. Of course it wound up with "mom" keeping her at their place. He did the same when he brought Bud home years before when he was only a little "fluff-ball." The big difference between the two dogs of course is the size. Ellie is a giant beside Bud and by the way, has the longest tail I've ever seen on any dog. However, she is quick to learn, super smart and very gentle. I found out very early when I was trying to teach her a few things that she responded instantly when I gave her the commands in French! She would just look at me with a puzzled look if I spoke English to her yet she had never heard French in her life!

Needless to say I grew very fond of her as well as "my other dog, Bud" and she is fond of me as well. So fond as a matter of fact that when they see me coming into the driveway, Ellie will go to any lengths to prevent Bud from getting near me. She will actually hold Bud down with one big paw to stop him! Bud gets awfully mad at her and the snarling and snapping are something to behold yet they never hurt each other. I have to admit that I have been "nipped" by mistake occasionally when I try to pet one of them during one of their misunderstandings.

****Addendum Well since writing the above about Bud and Ellie, I just have to relate this story to you just to show how easy it is to get oneself entangled in rather odd situations. My niece and nephew, owners of the dogs, took a one month trip to New Zealand and we looked after the big one .... Ellie while they were away. My favourite small dog, Bud was grabbed up by another uncle in Toronto for the month and we got "stuck" with the giant! As she is supposed to be an outside dog, they brought her doghouse down and put it where we could see her all the time from the kitchen window. We would bring her in to feed her as it was now winter and damn cold out there.

Well .... guess what happened? Yup .... you got it right ... we spoiled the hell out of her and let her spend a great deal of her time inside the house. Now she is not what you would call your average "house pet" by any stretch of the imagination and I swear she has the longest tail and body of any damn dog I ever saw in all my 72 plus years. She's a bloody giant to say the least! Okay .... so they come back home after their travels and take her back but guess what? Yup .... you got it right again ... she is always at our damn door when she gets loose and of course, cannot understand why we are hesitant about letting her inside the house. Now there's more coming. You see, my niece and nephew are going away again for another month and boy oh boy .... are we ever lucky .... we will have her another month! The people that "house sit" for them have a very large pure bred German Shepard as well but it has a rather nasty disposition and the two dogs do not get along at all. Now for sure she will feel that this is her home forever! That's alright except that our house is not very large and she needs at least a forty acre lot to run in .... not the living room. Oh well .... we adore the big brute so we will spoil her again regardless. I think ... just to spite my niece and nephew, I'll get her completely away from English to speaking only French to her and then when they get back, they won't be able to tell her anything!! Gads but I am evil ain't I? I thought I'd pop in a picture of a typical pose of hers when she's here. That chesterfield is a very large one so you can get an idea just how big she really is!

It is now 12th July, 2001 and on purusing my Web Site I try to keep it as up-to-date as possible. This past spring Ellie's owners found a nice home FAR north of here for her. They figured it would have to be a long way from here or she would inevitably find her way back ... so she's gone and of course we do miss her. Just thought I'd let you know.

This is the beauty of a digital camera. I was out for my usual morning coffee in town (2nd September, 2000) and it was a typical misty autumn morning. I saw something that I thought may be of interest for later use, got out of the car, pointed and shot! As I was driving through the back roads on my way home I realized alongside of me were some great pictures of what I would label "A Misty Autumn Morning" what with the golden rod, etc. so I stopped and took a picture of them for my files. Further on down the road I stopped at a group of farm buildings in a valley with the mist in evidence and as it had once been one of my nephew's farms not long ago, I took a picture of it. Neither of these shots were touched up by PhotoShop either. They are just as I shot them. Again ... the Nikon 990 Digital Camera ... a marvelous piece of technology!

Always looking for something a bit different in pictures, I stopped the car when I saw this old barn ... shot a couple of pictures of it, trying to get something in the foreground to help enhance it. As it is autumn now (September, 2000) I included some long dried out weeds and timothy as my foreground but had to put in the clouds as it was a fairly dull day. When studying the picture, I thought of my childhood on the farm and how important a barn was to the survival of each family over the past couple centuries. I also thought of today's society being a "throw-away-society" and the Caption I put in came to mind. Maybe I'm an old romantic but to me, it's the only one that fits this picture. Forgotten are the traditions of our forefathers and mothers. Forgotten are the traditions of hard work, honour and genuine concern for our neighbours. Forgotten are the basics of just plain good and decent principals that we were raised by. Forgotten is this old barn! Purely a symbol of our modern decadent society. We don't need it any more so let it rot. Why should we tear it down as that would take too much time, effort and money and besides, there's no profit to us if we did. Oh yes .... we would have it done in "Jake time" if someone made an offer to buy the land cleared for a new home though! Tradition? Honour. Gone!

Now here is a little guy that you just cannot help but fall in love with at first sight. A friend of mine and I met today, Sunday, 17th September, 2000 for a coffee. He had just purchased a new pet, a "toy collie" and introduced me to her when we went out to his car. As she is only three months old, you can imagine just how co-operative a little guy like that can be when it comes to being photographed. He did everything possible so I could get some "shots" of her. I must have taken at least forty of them. As the sun was pretty bright, I found that the LCD display on my digital is quite hard to see, so I had to shoot by viewing "through the viewfinder!" Quite a chore as you do not really know what you are getting until you download the pictures onto your computer.

When I got home, I was amazed at the great pictures I had! Only about three of them had to be deleted due to the unpredictability of the dog's movements but am really pleased that the Nikon 990 came through with flying colors as usual!! There she is on the left and I have to say that she is one loveable little puppy. I did do some work on the picture with Photo Shop by putting a "blue cloud background" behind her. It really shows her off nicely and Dave, hopefully will be quite pleased with the results. I truly hope so anyway.

Just to show you that I am a sadist at heart, I felt compelled to insert this picture of the "old tepee" we live in when the weather is going the "other way!" Here we are during a typical December (16th as a matter of fact) day. I've seen a lot more snow than this over the years so this is not that bad .... as yet! There have been times when the snow banks were well over twelve feet high .... not unusual at all. As this is "ski country" and we are up on about the highest point in Ontario .... plus the influence of all the surrounding very large lakes, we get our share of the white stuff. The lakes involved are Lake Ontario to the south .... Georgian Bay (a part of Lake Huron) to the northwest and Lake Simcoe to our east. We are smack dab in the middle of them as they are sort of a triangle with us as the "center point!" That in itself isn't too hard to live with but we are also on top of a great plain where the prevailing winds from the west have a habit of drifting that nice white stuff around into gigantic drifts at times. It is not uncommon for a half inch of snow to fall and the wind drift the roads closed in minutes!!

Now far be it for me to criticize Mother Nature but I do have to admit that the "old girl" can and often does play some fairly "nasty" tricks on us once in a while. Here, for instance is one of those times when she must have got a real chuckle at my expense. This picture on the right is the very next day after I took the one above it .... you know ..... "winter and all it's splendour." As is my custom every day, I generally drive into Shelburne and meet some of my "old cronies" for coffee. I've been doing this now for the past 16 years when weather allows. I pulled into the Coffee Time that morning and as I was sitting in having my coffee, I happened to be looking at my car (pictured on the right) when a great pile of that wonderful white stuff came off the roof and landed .... guess where .... that's right .... did it ever "rock the car" when it hit! I am being overly generous here by sharing the picture I took of it with you all ... so go ahead and enjoy it. The laugh's on me. Hmmm .... I wonder if it's a good enough claim to the insurance company to replace that "pitted windshield!"

This page © H.Heatherington, 2003