Car Replacement Therapy

In order to properly deal with our vehicular disability, Laura and I purchased a new car. We had previously been car shopping and evaluating with the idea that we would need to make the purchase at the end of Summer. However, that time was pushed forward to this week. We had some specific criteria when it came down to chosing a new [new to us, that is – we weren’t just looking at new, but used as well] car. Those critera were: 1) the human-driver interface [seat] must be supportive and comfortable, 2) it must be dependable and have a good longevity record, 3) have all wheel drive, and 4) be blue. [the last one was somewhat negotiable, but, hey – it’s on the list.]

In the course of the last 10 years as a travelling consultant, I have had the opportunity to drive quite a large range of cars from a variety of makers. One or two of these makers we have eliminated on philosophical grounds [due to issues the companies support and promote that we do not] or based on bad service/reliability records. Many more, however, we have eliminated due to the fact that sitting in the seats for any length of time made my back hurt. There were a few, however, that both Laura and I found acceptable: BMW, Subaru, and Mitsubishi [although they don’t have many all wheel drives, their seats were quite comfortable]. Having owned a BMW before and driven Laura around it in, we were both in agreement that those seats were at the top of the list.

So, first stop was the Subaru dealer. While the seats we okay, they were not stellar and the car she liked, the Outback, was somewhat hesitant off the mark. So, with the immediate demise of the car, we didn’t have much opportunity to look elsewhere, we knew a place that sold certified “pre-owned” BMW cars. We had long been looking at the X3, which is their small SUV and took this as an opportunity to drive it. The seats were wonderful, but for some reason, the X3 was not built as solid as is usual for a BMW vehicle. We had to pass.

On our way out, Laura suggested we test drive the 330xi, which is the small 4-door sedan with all wheel drive. I was a bit surprised, and immediately agreed [I am a fan of the 3-series and just love them]. We took it to lunch. There was no denying that it was extreemly sollid, no rattles, very stable and in all ways a BMW. The seats were so comfortable and included a power height-adjustable lumbar support and had seat memory [bonus!]. Laura loved it, so we bought it. It’s a 2002 and has 40,000 miles on it, but the lifetime on a car like this will go well past 250,000 miles if treated properly.

It’s not what Laura had her mind set on, and I told her that I would take this one as a hand-me-down so that in due time she can get her some kind of wagon/hatchback car. Oh, the things I must suffer…

Car Go Boom

Ever have one of those days? Yes, I’m sure you have. Today is one for us. It started out okay – until we actually got in the car to take my parents [they’re visiting here] down into DC to sight see. About one mile from the house, the car exploded. Not in fire, but in antifreeze. We began to inhale vast quantities of antifreeze steam through the car’s ventilation system. Something has broken in the cooling system and it’s not any of the hoses that we can see. It looks more like a water pump or seal – that’s going to be expensive. So expensive, in fact, that we might just have to ditch the car and buy a new one this week. So much for “European Delivery”.

In a lighter vein, we have rented a pair of Harleys to ride around the area. Only, now, we’ll be riding to our closest dealer to test drive some cars…

Cherry Blossoms?

Sorry – I haven’t had time to update the “status” properly, although now, the point is moot. Peak has passed and now there are but a few days left of the white-blossomed trees. I’m not even able to go downtown to look at the tidal basin until maybe tomorrow. I hope I can get some good pictures when I go there. Luckily, my parents are here and that means I’m on vacation and will get to play “tourist” for the rest of the week.

I just gotta plug away the rest of the afternoon, and then I’ll be off.

Stars? Nope. Not This Time…

In my ongoing quest to caputre long star trails, I made another attempt last nigh. This time, I tried an hour long exposure with the big dipper just above th trees and moving upward. It would have been a lovely shot. I let the shutter stay open for an hour and then closed it. All was well at this point. However, the camera has that really nifty feature of long exposure noise reduction that kicks in after a long shot. It came on and I waited for the shot to de-noise. About 15 or so minutes into the de-noising exposure [I can’t remember how long, but it was at least 15 but no more than 30 minutes] I noticed that the camera “busy” light was not on anymore. I checked the camera and discovered that my battery was completely dead. I lost the shot.

For my next attempt, I will put in a freshly charged battery to try again. The one I was using I had taken a good amount of shots with, so I don’t know how close it was to it’s charge capacity. If I can’t do an hour exposure with a fresh battery, I may try and get the “battery grip” expansion that allows me to put in two batteries at once and extending the exposure life past that 1.5 hour maximum that I’ve hit. Or, even better, I could try the external power adapter.

Flash!

I love updating the BIOS on hardware devices. I just put the latest version 1.0.5 on my new Canon EOS 5D. It’s actually a fairly easy process – much easier than flashing the BIOS on, say, a computer. I simply take the card out, put the new BIOS image in the root, put it back in the camera, select the “update” option, and BAM. Less dangerous than doing that to a PC… and not all my machines have floppy drives anymore to do that with! Flashing the camera also retained all of my customizations, whereas flashing a computer would wipe out any system level configurations which would then need to be reset. Fun!

Comment Fix

In my quest to “de-spam” my email server and sites, I had inadvertently broken my comment notification system. So, if you were one of a large handful of people who commented and waited hours or days for your comment to show up, that should not happen again. At least, not while I’m anywhere near a computer. So, for those of you who like to comment and were frustrated by a lackluster posting response, COME BACK!!!

All better now.

Long Exposure Success

Once again I have attempted the long exposure and this time, I waited even longer and the camera came back with this picture. Patience is rewarded and I can now see a circular rotation pattern which illustrates the rotation of the earth in the night sky.

What I now have to learn is to take this technical technique and bring some art into it. I definitely have to make it more interesting than sitting on my back porch. I will have to do some more experimentation – and try some even longer exposure times.

I’d better bring a good book…

Blossom Update

Today was supposed to have been the “peak” blossom day for the DC area. As you can see from this picture, that is not exactly true. I think we’re more like two days out, but this is really my first season watching this so I don’t really know how all of this unfolds.

Most trees look like this, but a very few are covered in white blossoms. I suspect they are of a different variety than the majority of the trees. I may drive by here on Wednesday, but most definately Thursday and take some more pictures.

It seems, also, that the trees here in Reston are several days behind. Looks like I might get a double blossom season!

EOS 5D Quirk

For the most part, I am overwhelmingly happy with my 5D. There is one issue, though, that is causing me confusion. I have been playing with long exposures and hoping to do more with star trails and such. Those exposures require sometimes hours of open shutters to really look good. I have tried one for 10 minutes and it looks pretty good, but the star trails aren’t long enough. So, a while back I tried one at 30 minutes and the camera locked up. I thought maybe that since I messed up some settings that I had done something wrong, so just now, I tried it again.

It didn’t work. In fact, it locked up my camera. When I close the shutter after 30 minutes, the red light [which stays on during exposures and data writes to the CF card] stays on for at least another half hour – basically until I pull the battery. I can’t even turn it off with the switch. The LCD flashes how many pictures are left on the CF card, but no other information other than the word “busy” on the screen.

This concerns me and I have no idea how to fix it. I’ve tried searching the ‘net for it, but nothing pops up. Then again, this camera is so new that I may just be the first person to experience this difficulty. I sent Canon an email and maybe they’ll send me a fix.

Has anyone else seen a similar problem to this on this or any other model of camera?

[UPDATE:] Silly me: I enabled a nifty feature. For long exposures, there’s an “auto noise reduction” setting… so, for my 30+ minute exposure, the camera said to itself: “hmmm… there might be too much noise in this shot. I’ll fix it.” and then proceded to expose an equal length “black frame” shot to be used a a “hot pixel” frame of reference for de-noising the original image – thereby causing a 30+ minute lock up in which I could not use my camera. And, of course, that means I lost my picture when I pulled the battery. Oops.