You, too, can be Ansel Adams

I've been down to one camera for some time now -- a little Canon point and shoot -- and enough advancements have been made in the field to make me wish I had something a bit more sophisticated. So I picked out a new camera for myself for Christmas, and then gracefully agreed that perhaps it would be good to purchase it before leaving for our annual Thanksgiving trip, so that the family calendar pictures could benefit.

This is not a particularly elaborate camera; it's only a step or two above what I've been currently using. And this is a small, lo-res picture, made that way for internet publication. But, ohmigosh, look at the detail! This is a bank of live oak trees in Fort Worth, and all those tiny little leaves are surprisingly distinct. Makes you wonder what miracles Ansel Adams might have wrought with a simple little digital camera... (and, no, I'm not claiming this even begins to approach the art of the master...)

Anyway -- I did want to say I'm back, have been exploring some new worlds through the lens, and am looking forward to sharing them with you. And don't worry; they won't all be black and white -- I just converted to that to emphasize the contrast in this one.

Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving --