Monkey of the Day

Here we have a sad, stuffed monkey from Tito's museum of sad, stuffed animals...

Monkey of the Day

LABIN, CROATIA

From the Archives: Semana Santa in Santa Rosa de Copan, Honduras, 2006

LUND--When I went to Central America a few years ago I shot a fair amount of film as usual. That was the trip, however, that I discovered SARA and was introduced to the currileros. Upon return most of my energy was put into printing shows of that one subject and raising money to make the film, "News From El Salvador: The Children of the Mangroves" which I finished this winter. Many of the printed stills, in fact, were taken digitally with a Nikon D1x though many were shot with the Leica as well. The point remains, anyway, that the huge majority of the film I shot on that trip has never been scanned or printed. The additional fact is, out of a four month trip no more than two weeks were spent in El Salvador. In other words there is a large amount of widely varied material from around Honduras and Guatemala.

A while back I began chatting with a guy working at a local photo lab. Turns out he is an American named Justin who has lived here about nine years. The other day I asked him if he could give me some tips on my negative scanner as he is not only a knowledgeable and skilled photographer but a highly experienced lab man. So he came over and gave me some tips on my Nikon CoolScan V and then we tried to unravel the mysteries of Sweden and the Swedes. I don't know if we accomplished that but we did manage to scan this picture (shot on Ilford HP5 with a Voigtlander 15mm on the M6) drink a few beers and have a good conversation.

Salva-dillo: From the Archives...

USULATAN PROVINCE--We turned from the main highway down a narrow, two-lane road that until only a few years ago had been a dirt track that often washed out during the rainy season leaving the coast cut off from the rest of the world. We saw these two boys playing with their pet, perhaps future dinner, and I asked the driver to stop. The armadillo didn't seem all that happy with the attention, would most likely have been off doing whatever it is that armadillos do, but he posed politely anyway.

What Was I Thinking Anyway??

LUND--I don't want a D700. I want a Nikon D3. Of course I want a D3. Yeah, the 700 is smaller but not so much smaller I'd carry it anytime I wouldn't carry a D3. If I wanted a small, easy to carry SLR that would be a D40 or D40x. Even if it is an amateur model it is still an SLR and takes real lenses. And if I really want to carry a small camera it would probably not be SLR time anyway but pocket camera time. So there, that is it, this time I mean it. The D3. Now I just need $4,500. But I did finally get a Swedish freelance job today. It even pays real money. Just not that much...

Monkey of the Day

Nikon D700

LUND--I went by one of the local camera stores the other day and played with the new Nikon D700 with the full-frame sensor. Awesome. Incredibly fast. It had a 50mm f1.8 lens. The auto-focus version of my very first lens. It is a big camera but not nearly as large as the old D1x or the D3. And so much faster than the D1x. Did I mention the full frame sensor. And a big, big focusing screen. I use a lot of manual lenses on the D1x and the screen is really tiny. My eyes are good but I have to be very careful with that screen not to be slightly off-focus. The old screen of the FM was a true luxury. Anyway, I like, I want, a D700. Good job Nikon. Now if you'd only make a digital FM. Basically something digital like the FM3, I would be happy. And don't trick up the body. Make it as close as possible to the FM design that worked so well for so many years (and still does).

Now the question. Why does Nikon, who does and has always done so well with their SLRs (and rangefinders for that matter) make such unsatisfactory point and shoots?