New Camera!

panasonic-lumix-lx5
panasonic-lumix-lx5

As I stated in a previous post, I lost my camera (Panasonic Lumix LX3) while in transit in Switzerland.  I filled out all of the paperwork and put in a claim to our insurance.  They sent me a big check that covered the cost of the camera, a memory card, and a new case.  The camera, a Panasonic Lumix LX5, arrived last week.  Panasonic is phasing out the LX3 and replacing it with a new and improved LX5.  It's an amazing compact camera.  I haven't used it much, but I love it so far.  My favorite feature of the camera is that it shoot in different aspect ratios with the flick of a switch; you can shoot in 1:1, 4:3, 3:2, and my personal favorite 16:9.  Here's some more specs...

High-end point and shoot features a 10.1-megapixel CCD with sensitivity ranging up to ISO 12,800, which is paired with a new f2.0 ultra-wide-angle 24-90mm Leica lens. Other features include a dial with dedicated manual, shutter, aperture, and programmed priority modes, 720p video recording, a 3-inch LCD, and a hotshoe for connecting flashes, view finders, and other unnecessary equipment.

LOVE IT!

Cairo

I'm finally going through hundreds of digital negatives from all the trips I went on in the past year or so.  These images are from a trip I took to Cairo in October 2009.  Most of the photos needed touch up work, and I played around a lot with black and white filters.  I also had to go through all of the images with blue skies and remove the sand spots which appeared after a trip to the beach in Barcelona.  I really need to send my camera in to Pentax to get it cleaned.  Anyone want to donate a couple hundred pounds to get the inside of the camera cleaned? Here are a few photos from the trip.

Photo Book

 

A couple of Christmas' ago, I created a photography book of my dad's photography.  Check it out on Blub.com.

Here's the intro to the book...

Charles Kator, my dad, was born in 1950 and raised in Dubois, Idaho. He is the proud father of three children – Travis, Corinne, and Kristen (that's me!). He is currently living and teaching in Soda Springs, Idaho where he raised his family.

This book is a collection of my father's photographs taken from 1975 to 1999. Many of the images in this book were found scratched and faded in an old box in Dad's basement. I was determined to save and preserve these photos. After scanning and patiently retouching each photograph, I carefully selected, cropped, and re-colored the best images. I then created a book design and laid them out into the following pages. Now the photographs are here for us all to enjoy.

The chapters in this book are arranged by photographic subject. The chapter titles reflect the interests and hobbies of my dad, who is often found hiking the hills of Idaho, bird watching on the banks of the Alexander, and taking photographs at Mike's ponds.

In Mourning

So, I'm mourning the loss of my Panasonic LX3 digital camera.  I left it on a train in Switzerland while there on holiday with my parents.  Not only did I lose my camera (and my mind), I lost hundreds of photos that I took from a trip to Canterbury, a visit to Sissinghust Castle in Kent, a long weekend in Paris, and a few days in the beautiful mountains of Switzerland.  I had some really great shots and was loving my new camera.  It was about a month ago, but I'm still having a hard time getting over it.  I had some amazing shots of the Louvre at night with bicycling tourists and a wondrous night sky.  Oh well, lesson learned.  I submitted a claim to the insurance company, so we'll see if I get any money to replace the camera.  The photos are gone forever.  I guess the only good thing to say about the whole incident is that Panasonic upgraded the LX3 to a new and improved LX5.  If the insurance money comes in, they'll have paid for a new upgrade.  I couldn't wait for the whole insurance process, so I went ahead and ordered the LX5.  It should be here by the end of the week, allowing me to take more photos and make more posts to the blog. :)