WE
LC
OME

"Black Gives Way To Blue"
(feat. Elton John)

I don't wanna feel no more
It's easier to keep falling
Imitations are pale
Emptiness all tomorrows
Haunted by your ghost

Lay down, black gives way to blue
Lay down, I'll remember you

Fading out by design
Consciously avoiding changes
Curtains drawn, now it's done
Silencing all tomorrows
Forcing a goodbye

Lay down, black gives way to blue
Lay down, I'll remember you

My new camera arrived last night and, as luck would have it, I was able to power it on and make a few test photos because I was unexpectedly gifted a 20mm prime and two kit lenses yesterday morning (Thanks JP!). A 17mm prime is also on the way but isn't exptected to arrive until today or tomorrow.

I first took an interest in Micro Four Thirds two years ago when I was exploring alternatives to my larger bodied DSLRs... not to replace them, but as a supplemental system for street, travel, and macro photography. I wanted something that I could take with me when I fly to Alaska or when I go on long  multi day hikes and I wanted a system that would extend the reach of my macro lens.

Of all the small, retro styled bodied camera systems that I considered at that time, Olympus stood out for being a good combination of inexpensive and robust construction. I chose the E-M5 over the E-M1 because there is still a considerable price gap between the two, though I probably would have preferred the pro body even at the cost of weight and size.

/post/olympus-om-d-e-m5-initial-impressions

I have updated the look and user experience of my site again, both on Desktop and Mobile. The header has been modified to stand out more with a clear delineation between the navigation and page content. You can now access my Instagram feed on Mobile from the quick action menu at the bottom left of the screen. Photo albums in the gallery (Desktop Only) now open in an expanded view that stretches most of the width of the viewport so that you can see more content at a glance if your display is wide enough.

Saturday morning into the early afternoon, I attended the surprsingly large (for Roswell) "No Kings" protest which was part of a larger nationwide event. For the most part it was without incident and local law enforcement was on standby. To my knowledge only one arrest... a counter-protester who drove dangerously and recklessly by the Chaves County courthouse where we were assembled. Other than that and a few MAGA types harrassing the assembly in their trucks, it was peaceful. One group in particular did try to drown out the protest with a long religous rant over megaphone but they eventually gave up and left.

https://www.gtripp.com/portfolio/no-kings-protest

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Kings_protests

I'm home after completing my first solo hiking trip in the Gila Wilderness. My entry point took me up the Middle Fork of the Gila River, over the platue, and down the West Fork for a total round trip of 39-ish miles. It wasn't without incident, but I survived and encountered different wildlife species along the way including two bears.

I have returned home after spending a few weeks visiting an old friend near her hometown of Kenai. What a spectacular end to the previous year. We said farewell to 2024 with one of the best light shows that I have witnessed in nearly two decades. Now that I'm back, I am eager to return to work. The gallery has been updated with new photos from my trip.

/portfolio/alaska-trip-2024

I sometimes think that in our culture we are conditioned to believe that we mustn't do anything unless there is a solid tangible return on investment that directly benefets our material wellbeing. It is almost frowned upon that we put in more labor, more time and more of our creative drive than is necessary to turn a profit. We are building a house within the confines and strictures of this philosophy... a philosophy which lends itself only to short-term thinking. Worse, I suspect that this cultural norm might mean that all of our relationships are only transactional; our purpose in accommodating others is so that we might gain, so that we might be accommodated in return.

Of course, it may all be biologicaly rooted. I'm not unaware that it might be our nature, shaped by millions of years of evolution. I'll scratch your back if you scratch mine and all of the other related pro-social behaviors can probably be reduced to a biological imperative that benefits our species. I suppose that my question is whether we can go off-rails and choose to be a people who think in terms of centuries and millenia; to spend our time under the Sun not only seeking our own pleasure, but making choices and doing cool and epic shit that we might not see the fruition of?

"A society grows great when old men plant trees in whose shade they shall never sit in.” — Greek Proverb.