[L, diary, ephēmeris] 1) BLOG

The camera I reluctantly use the most (but hate because it is so heavy), is an aging Nikon D90.  It was one of the first digital cameras to also offer video, but the bonus was marred by its noisy, herky-jerky zooming mechanism.  So I gave it up, preferring to make slide shows of stills, adding Ken Burns transitions for a more video-like product. 

Eventually I decided it made sense to just buy a dedicated video camera--was advised that Canon had great lenses (which it did)--and then proceeded to continue taking individual photos for slideshow videos, rather than real videos.  Old habits.  Hard to break them. 

When the Nikon or Canon were not with me, the only other 'camera' available was my prehistoric, dearly beloved QUARTY keyboard cell phone with a Totally Ugh camera.  Thus I never developed the habit of using a cell phone for photography (...and STILL may not, simply because it was a real hassle downloading my first phone photos to the laptop.)

Be that as it may, a week ago, during our last afternoon together, Marlene, my new (and only) 'tribe' member, totally razzle-dazzled me with her deft skill using just a cell phone's editing software to create beautiful photos. Admittedly, I am a bit of a Luddite, so was leery of the instant gratification factor, but was also honestly impressed with the resulting enhancements. So, having overnighted in Dumaguete, the next day --a PERFECT DAY positively screaming TAKE MY PICTURE (and me, the dummy who'd left her heavy camera in the hotel room), I finally took out the new (and hated) smart phone and began snapping photos dementedly....

Here are the original shots of Dumaguete's famous church Bell Tower (looming decrepitly obese; more benign and stately from afar) plus an unexpected shot of the lurking photographer's shadow on paving stones:

...and here are the resultant images after an intoxicating, mind-boggling, mouth-drooling hour of frenzied software editing PLAY:

When I settled down to sanity with the remaining photos, I was desirous of a simple portrait to memorialize my favorite fruit vendor who probably saved my life by insisting I follow her herbal cleansing remedy when I couldn't shake a recent bronchitis that sounded more like tuberculosis to my new friend, Mar. 

So here are the before/after photos of my public market doctor:

She is advising a maintenance routine of slicing and placing one American lemon, one apple, and one pepino (cucumber--I used organic Japanese) overnight in a liter of water, then blending and drinking the whole thing the next day.  Surprisingly refreshing, it really did cure me within a day!

Later, in my hotel room, after struggling to Bluetooth the camera photos into my laptop to create this post, I debated with myself about how satisfied I felt with the process that created these photos.  Yes, I liked them fine, but...well, that is going to have to be a Part Two ephemeris post, as it was a long (and possibly not definitive) discussion with myself.

In the meantime, here's an unedited photo of Mar taken with the Nikon...one of three I chose to edit next, using Photoshop: