the isolation diaries - week five

Bored, bored, bored.

And when I'm bored I often turn to therapy to help me get through it.  Retail therapy in particular!

For ages now I've been using an old Nikkor macro lens adapted to my Fujifilm camera.  It works to a point but the shortcomings were starting to really frustrate me.

So, I decided to solve that particular problem, but not by splashing out £1200 on a Fujifilm macro lens.  Instead I spent a much more reasonable £245 on an old Nikon D700 camera, plus £30 or so on a new battery, memory card (it takes a special type that I no longer own) and a card reader to extract the images from said card.

I've owned a Nikon D700 before.  It was the first "full-frame" camera I bought way back in 2013.  It made some stunning images and is one of the few things I really regret selling in my lifetime.   It's a camera that produces a very distinctive film-like "look" and sense of emotion in its images.

that D700 look

Hopefully this new purchase will see me actually get any good at macro photography.  But gear is only a small part of the overall package.  The most important thing I need to learn is patience.  I mean, it's no good shouting at a beetle to keep still.

my first attempt

Anyway, the following weeks will see me bore you all senseless with close-up images of things you didn't know you ever wanted to see!

On the coronavirus front, I've at last received a letter telling me what I already knew - that I am to be shielded from the illness by having to stay home for at least twelve weeks and even isolate as much as I can in my own home.

I'm sticking to this by and large apart from the odd walk around the block with Dexter.  I think that staring at the walls inside and the fence outside is more detrimental than an absolutely zero risk 10 minute stroll with my dog.

I'm relieved to get the letter in a strange way though.  It's confirmation of what I already suspected and more importantly it means that should Lisa get unwell and be unable to shop or pick up medication I can access services to get these things.

Stay safe and stay well - both physically and mentally.