I received my camera on a Friday. I even worked from home so that I wouldn’t miss the FedEx delivery. After unpacking the Fujifilm GFX 50R and a short power boost on the battery charger, I headed out to the only landscape-y scene that I could think of in Austin, Mount Bonnell.
Even a storm warning and the threat of heavy rain didn’t stop me from testing. You get a delightful view of Lake Austin looking west. And, under the right conditions, it’s a great place to celebrate the setting sun. But, the weather alert cleared out the usually crowded mountaintop lookout.
I took some landscapes, but the best camera in the world with the fanciest sensor is not going to magically fix a dreary scene. No dramatic, angry clouds from an approaching storm either, just a dull gray.
Finally, a woman appeared, which gave me some kind of focal point. Shooting wide-open at f2.8, I framed her against the disappointing landscape. At least the camera rendered her sharply with a beautifully soft out-of-focus background. Details robust enough that I can see that she was making a panorama with her smartphone.
An attempt at a beautiful landscape will have to wait.
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The unsettling thing is that her phone panorama probably will be great.
Yes, probably true.
I think Texas “shelter-in-place” must be different than New Jersey “shelter-in-place”. There would be no “crowded mountaintop lookout” nor would another human being let me get that close (unless I have at least a 100-400 telephoto lens).
A month ago I could use the 80mm: https://islandinthenet.com/the-quiet-princeton-new-jersey/
Hi Khürt, A point of clarification. This was from January. There are no crowds of people now, even downtown in the usual party spots. All the bars are closed.
Ah. I see. I wonder what the view looks like now?
I’m sure, and I hope, there are very few people.