Morning Travels with a camera. Set on "Photographic Nostalgia" mode.

The lens of the day is the 42.5mm f1.7 Panasonic. It's sweet. It's tiny. It's sharp.

I spent all last week shooting what my clients wanted to today I got up with the sunrise and headed out the door to shoot stuff that was just for me. My style. My subject matter. Nothing serious or well thought through but satisfying to my eye and my ongoing curiosity. I cut my teeth with square cameras like Rollei twin lens cameras, Mamiya twin lens cameras and an endless assortment of Hasselblads. For years pretty much nothing but Tri-X film saw the inside of my personal cameras. So, when I found the dynamic monochrome filter setting on the GH5 I thought I'd see how close I could get to the feel of yesteryear in modern Austin. 

I parked at Barton Springs Pool and headed around the lake to First St. where I left the hike and bike train and lurched into downtown. I shot along Second St. and then, after buzzing through the Seaholm Power Plant I reconnected with the hike and bike trail for my long looped return to the big pool. 

The photography this morning was fun. The GH5, in square, black and white mode is very satisfying, mostly because the EVF is so incredibly good. But the real nice thing is how life affirming early morning is in central Austin. Hundreds and hundreds of people are running around the hike and bike trails, people are already swimming laps in the brisk waters of Barton Springs, couples are walking their dogs, talking and laughing. 

When I walked across the street and into downtown I saw so many people biking to work, walking down the broad sidewalks with their cups of coffee and already having animated conversations with their work mates. I saw people with stabilizing rigs shooting their video versions of Austin morning and a number of photographers doing just what I was doing; getting exercise and working on their vision the world. It was glorious. 

It makes me wonder why we go to work at all; there's so much other fun stuff to do!