 
Hey Everyone! Hope everyone is healthy and safe today. Today I want to talk about car camping. First, let's describe what I mean about car camping. There are all kinds of camping. There is backpacking where you carry all of your possessions on your back into the woods to a campsite. There is RV camping where you either drive or pull behind your vehicle an RV (Recreation Vehicle) or camper. But today we're going to talk about car camping where you load up the car and the kids, go to a campground, park right beside where you'll be camping, and then set up camp. Now, I have been camping for almost 40 years, and if you count Boy Scouts even longer. But most recently, since I turned 50, I have been camping quite a lot. I do all of the camping mentioned above, but I probably look down my nose at car camping the most. I don't know why. I actually do it the most out of all the other kinds of camping. But I usually say something like, "I was just car camping" when someone asks me about camping. Last weekend my son and my travel companion Forrest came with me to the mountains of North Carolina, and we did some car camping. And it was great! We
camped at a National Park Service campground. It's an older campground with old-growth trees and large campsites, over 100 campsites at this location even though it doesn't seem like it. This weekend the campground was full. This was my first trip to this campground, so I don't know if it's full like this all of the time or if it is because of the COVID virus and everyone just wants to get out of the house. We camped very simply. My son and Forrest put up a tent to sleep in, and I slept in the back of my truck in the bed that I had made in it. This was my maiden voyage in the truck, and it went okay. I slept well, but getting in and out was a pain. We cooked on an almost 40-year-old camp stove that we use for car camping. We cooked steaks and veggies, and we made fresh ground coffee with a French press we brought. The temps were cool and the weather was great. While I was sitting in my camp chair looking around at the campground, I got a great feeling. I could see all of the campfires going with people huddled around enjoying each other's company, children playing, and people cooking. It was a beautiful sight to see all of these people from all walks of life, rich to poor, all races young and old, and everyone was enjoying themselves and being very polite while doing it. What a contrast it was to the nightly news of riots in the streets, politicians calling each other names, and of course all of the death from the
COVID virus. It was how life is supposed to be, everyone getting along.
Soon it was time for bed. And as old men do, I had to get up in the middle of the night to relieve myself. While I was by that tree I looked up and saw all of the stars. There were thousands of them! I have taken photos of the night sky before, but tonight it was chilly and I wanted to get back into that warm bed in my truck. So I got in and went back to sleep. Now, people that know me know that I am a morning person and a very early riser. So about 4:30-ish I got up and as quietly as I could made some coffee on the camp stove. It was still dark and I didn't want to make any noises, because dogs go crazy when they hear noises and I didn't want to wake all of the dogs in the campground. I got my coffee without much commotion and noise and also got my sleeping bag and sat in my camp chair and watched all of the stars. As I sat there and as the night slowly turned into day, the stars slowly went away. The weaker ones first, and then finally the strong ones just went away when enough light was in the sky. I have to say, this is the first time I have ever looked at the stars that way and it was fantastic, maybe the best part of the trip.
After my son and Forrest got up, we made some breakfast burritos, and they were great. We decided to take an almost 3-mile hike around the lake which was nice, and it was like we were the only ones out there. Forrest had fun exploring new things and smells. When we got back to camp, we packed up everything, cleaned the site, and stacked the wood that we didn't use by the fire pit. Then we departed. This was a fantastic little trip, and I could talk about it for quite some time. The bottom line is, I'm not going to look down my nose at car camping anymore. Although I enjoy the other types of camping, I still enjoy car camping, and I think you will too. So get to your local campground and do some camping. You'll meet some great people and have a great time in nature. So until next week, get outside and make some memories.
Hey everyone! Hope everyone is healthy, safe, and inspired. This week I'm going to talk about something I thought I would never talk about. It's something that I really enjoy and is practical at the same time. Sewing! Yeah, I know, a 50+-year-old man who likes to hike and backpack and do all sorts of camping liking to sew. Well, really it's not too far fetched. I got into sewing to save a few pennies on camping gear by making it myself. So like everything I do, I threw myself into this full on. And now I have my own sewing kit (separate from my wife's), and I love to make things for camping and hiking.
Some of my first projects were very simple, like making storage bags or stuff sacks to put things in, like sleeping bags, tents, and smaller bags for small loose stuff. I'm an organizational freak and love to have everything separated and in its proper place. I was surprised at the quality I got and how with just a little training (YouTube) I got quite good. I even made Christmas gifts for all of my family by making toiletry bags or cosmetic bags for everyone in the family. They were all customized for each person with different colors and patterns. They had waterproof zippers and really turned out well. Everyone was surprised that I had made them myself. I even made some bags for my camera gear also, and everything turned out great.
My first big project was a backpacking tarp made for my hammock setup. It was made out of silnylon and waterproof. If you have watched any of my videos, it's an orange tarp and it works great! I have been through a few rainstorms in it, and it's held up great. I even made doors for it so when it rains the mist doesn't waft in. The sewing on the first big item did have some mistakes. But it has been a good functional tarp for a few years, and my son has been using it lately.
My next big project was an Under Quilt for my hammock. An under quilt provides insulation underneath the hammock to keep you from getting a cold butt. The wind or air that goes under a hammock can pull all of the heat off of your body and make you cold. Even in summer. So I made an adjustable underquilt with insulation inside and all of the attachments to hook it to the hammock. It's good for about 50 degrees. I wouldn't go much colder than that without getting a bigger underquilt. This one works great and is the underquilt that I use in the summer.
Making a hammock and a separate bug net was my next project. The hammock was simple enough to make, and my sewing had gotten much better. The bug net, which is actually a big sock that encases the hammock to keep the bugs out, wasn't too bad either. This particular hammock is the one my son uses now with the bug net, and it keeps the bugs away and works great. There are also other parts of the hammock that are not the cloth part that have to be made too, like tree straps, the ridgeline, and a storage bag. Tree straps are the straps that go around the tree and should be webbing that is at least an inch wide so as not to harm the tree that you are anchored to. Whoopie slings are adjustable cord made out of kevlar and are very strong. They hook to the hammock and to the tree straps to hold the hammock in place. And then there is the ridgeline, which goes from one end of the hammock to the other to keep the hammock in a good "hang" if you will no matter what the distance is between the trees. I also make the bag that all of these things fit into and then can also be used as an organizer to put your phone, wallet, water, and what not on the ridgeline. I make all of these items.
My biggest and toughest project was making a hammock with a zippered bug net that could be zipped off and on. It took me some time to make it, but what was neat was I could customize it to fit my needs. I call this hammock the red canoe because it looks like one when hanging alone. It works great, and I can zip the bug net on or off as needed. It has clips to help keep an underquilt in place and can be staked out for more comfort if needed. This is my personal hammock, and I do have plans for making another one with some more modifications. I have since made a winter tarp with built-in doors for privacy and to keep the wind out. I used it last weekend for the first time, and it was great.
All of these projects would not have been possible without the help of YouTube and Ripstop by the Roll, a company out of Durham, North Carolina, where I get my materials for all of the projects, from the fabric, cordage, and accessories. They are a great company and have lots of projects you can do, and they even make kits with all of the materials that you need for a very good price. Now with the time I put in and the cost of the materials, I could probably get a hammock cheaper, but I don't think I could get one that is customized to me. And it's just fun and a good feeling seeing the finished product in use. While camping the other weekend, someone asked me where I got my hammock setup. I just looked and smiled and said, "I made it."
Well, that's about it for this week. Remember, keep shooting and get outside and enjoy life!
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Hey everyone! Hope everyone is healthy and safe. Last weekend my son and I took a trip to the mountains for a little backpacking and to visit some waterfalls. While out, we visited two North Carolina State Parks, Gorges State Park, which is the farthest from our house, and Crowders Mountain State Park. The main theme for the trip was people and crowds. It was Labor Day, one of the busiest weekends of the year. And with the COVID virus keeping people home and hungry to get out, the crowds were heavy. Both parks were
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managed very well, especially Gorges. We had a young female ranger who we came in contact with throughout the weekend, and she was professional, courteous, and informative. Very professional! We weren't in Crowders Mountain long enough to come into contact with many rangers, and they all seemed to be busy directing traffic.
We left the house in Eastern North Carolina at 7:00 in the morning for a six-hour drive to Gorges. We left on a Friday and the traffic wasn't too bad. We arrived at Gorges and went to the Visitors' Center, which was closed. I
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would like to come back when it is open because it is a beautiful, very modern-looking building with a waterfall coming down one of the walls. We got back to the parking lot at the trail head and hiked into a primitive campground. It was only a 3/4 mile hike and very manageable. My son and I have taken backpacking trips in the past where we hiked 10 miles or more in, but I was healthier then. I'm trying to get back into hiking shape. OFG is what I call myself, "Old Fat Guy." We set up our campsite, which had a small creek just behind us and a small lake nearby. We used hammocks to sleep in which are lightweight, but more importantly, they are comfortable. After setting up, we decided to hike to Rainbow Falls, which is a 1.5-mile hike to get to. The trail is
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ranked by the park as a strenuous hike, and for a non-hiker, I would say that is accurate. My son, who works at a job where he's on his feet all day and probably puts in 25,000 steps a day, thought it was a breeze. I, however, who sit for most of the day and am out of shape, thought it was a good strenuous hike. It was a nice small waterfall, and we had a good time photographing and hanging out there. After that we hiked back and chilled out at camp, cooked dinner, and had a good night's sleep.
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Saturday we woke up, and I had figured out that White Water Falls and Dry Falls weren't too far a way. So we hiked out after some coffee and drove to Dry Falls. This is a waterfall that you can walk behind and mostly stay dry. This was my son's first visit, and he had a blast going behind and filming the falls. We saw Bridal Veil falls on the way. Then we traveled to White Water Falls to see the largest waterfall in North Carolina. After that we decided to travel to Brevard and get us some lunch and then went to a local park to eat. We headed back to the campsite to relax a little, and when we got there about 2:00 the park was closed. We told the ranger that we already had our stuff at a campsite, and she told us to come back in an hour. So we went to the local country store and hung out, ate ice cream, and looked at all of the traffic. And there was a lot of traffic. After an hour, just like the ranger had said, the park was back open and we got into the park and hiked back to our site, slid into our hammocks, and took a good nap. We
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decided to get up early the next morning and head to Crowders Mountain State Park.
I really slept good that night, even though the ranger had told us of a momma bear and four cubs in the area! We got up early, packed up in the dark, and hiked out under the light of a headlight. We got to the car and went to the Visitors Center to take photos of the sunrise from the observation deck. We then headed out for a 2.5-hour drive to Crowders Mountain. But first we stopped at the country store and got ourselves a breakfast sandwich (sausage, egg, and cheese biscuit ). Best Biscuit Ever! When we arrived at Crowders Mountain, I had my son pull over so I could get a photo of the welcome sign. We had 15 or more cars pass us as I took the photo. We thought maybe there was some type of event happening since there were so many people. There were two
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parking lots that were full and an overflow parking lot. We got lucky and slipped into a spot. Having never been to the park before, we just followed the crowd into the park to the Visitors Center that was closed. We hiked to a fork in the trail with two trails that go to mountain peaks. We took the shorter of the two, the Pinnacle Trail. It was a four-mile hike to the top and back, and I do mean up to the top. But if you look closely you can see the Charlotte, North Carolina skyline. After we made it back, it was a ride home.
Overall it was a great trip, and we had a ball and can't wait till the next trip, which is soon! I've got 29 of the 34 state parks visited this year, so I've got 5 to go before I reach my goal of visiting all of the North Carolina state parks in one year. We got to see some wildlife too, from a heard of buffalo, deer, snakes, and I even got to see a white squirrel. So until next time stay safe and get out and shoot!
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Hey Everyone! Hope everyone is healthy and safe today. This week's blog is a review of the Lume Cube Mini bi-color light. This is a small but powerful LED light that helps you control the color of your photos. This light is perfect for video conferencing and small lighting projects. It's about the same form factor of a business card and about 1/2 inch thick. I originally bought the Lume Cube 2.0 light and have it in my camera bag. I wanted a companion to it and almost bought another Lume Cube 2.0, but when I saw this light I thought it would be perfect. This light is great for video conferencing and for macro and tabletop photography. It can be used for video work and fill light. It is not a waterproof light like the Lume Cube, so I wouldn't recommend it for use in inclement weather. What's neat about this light is that you can control the color of the light from 3200 kelvin to 5500 kelvin to match the light that you are shooting in. Very cool! It cannot be controlled via Bluetooth like the Lume Cube, but it has a digital readout on the back of the light to tell you what your light is set at and how long much longer the battery will last. Here are the specs for the light:
Mount Type - 1/4"-20 Female
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Dimensions - 3.6 x 2.2 x .5 "
Weight - 3 oz
Power Input Connector - USB Type-C
Power Source - Integrated Battery
Battery Runtime - 1.2 hours Full Power
Color Temperature - 3200 to 5600 K
Number of LEDs - 60
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I really like this light. It comes with a built-in white semi-diffused panel and an external flexible diffuser that will go over the light. Like the Lume Cube, it can be adapted to fit all sorts of mounts to include GoPro mounts, tripod traditional 1/4-20 thread. This means there are all kinds of mounts you can connect this to, and most of it you already own. I can see all kinds of situations that this little light could be used for. At around 60 bucks these little lights are affordable and could really come in handy as portable lights to use for your photography and video needs.
So until next week get out and shoot!
Hey Everyone! Hope you're doing fine today and are safe, healthy, and inspired. As you all know I sometimes have GAS (gear acquisition syndrome), the act of buying expensive gear to take photos with. This blog is about inexpensive things that can spark your creativity instead of buying a new body or lens. I got this idea from a podcast that I listen to, "The Digital Story," by Derrick Story who gave his ideas of inexpensive things, so I'll use some of his ideas and some of mine also. It only takes something different to spark creativity, and you can think of these ideas as anti-GAS items. Most of these things are less than 100 dollars, or at least in that ballpark, and can spark some kind of creativity. We all can get in a rut sometimes where we seem to take the same kinds of photos that we always do, or we just get bored and don't even pick up the camera. This could be for weeks or months on end, but we must recognize it and do something to correct it. Sometimes it's big gear that we need, like a lens or a new body, but it can be something small too to get those creative juices going again. So let's start with the list. This list is in no particular order, just what popped up into my head first.
1. A new LED light. I have just done a blog on the Lume Cube 2.0, but there is also the Mini from them also. Any brand will do. These lights
are portable and can be used in all kinds of situations, like tabletop photography if you're worried about going outside or for extra lighting when you're out in the woods for fill lighting. They can also be used for light painting while doing astrophotography. It's just something to get you thinking more creatively.
2. How about a new camera strap or attachment system? I am not a camera strap guy. I don't like the camera hanging around my neck or shoulder, but sometimes its more convenient to wear one. I use the Peak Design system for all of my straps. Personally, I use a wrist strap 99 percent of the time, but what I like about the Peak Design system is the ease of changing or taking the straps off with their unique attachment system. When I'm using a tripod, I don't like to have the strap dangling from my camera giving me movement if the wind is blowing, so I can easily detach it from the camera in a second. They also make easily-detachable and secure clips to put the camera on a backpack strap or your belt, which makes hiking or whatever else you're doing hands-free and allows you to easily get into different locations. I think a new camera strap or system or even a case, like a leather half case, can get you looking at the camera differently and taking it with you more, thus taking more photographs and being more creative.
3. Neutral Density Filter, A ND Filter can be a very creative tool, used to slow down the shutter to create motion blur. It's commonly used on running water but can be used on all kinds of things like clouds and other moving subjects. This tool, which can be commonly found for $100 or less, comes in different degrees of density measured in stops. 10 stops is darker than 3 stops. I carry 3 with me a 2, 6, 8 stop filter. Usually, the more expensive the better the filter. I use Breakthrough Photography filters, but there are others that will work fine. A ND filter can make a ho-hum scene, like a barn with puffy clouds, look mysterious with streaking clouds coming over the barn. It can even make people disappear. If you're at a busy crowded scene, you can put on a 10 stop filter and let it go for 20 seconds or more, and the people that are moving just disappear. It's a magical tool and every photographer should have one.
4. Small tripod or stand. I have a platypod plate that I got, and it's like a small tripod that will easily fit into your bag and will give you a stable
platform on the fly. You could also get a Jobo tripod that is small and will do the trick. Small tripods come in handy, and when used usually give you a different perspective of what you're shooting, usually from down low. Go out and try to take only tripod shots from a little tripod and you'll discover a whole new world that you've just been passing by. You can easily get one of these devices for 100 bucks or less. Make sure to size it to your camera size. If you have a large DSLR, you will need a larger one than if you're shooting a mirrorless camera that is smaller.
5. New Software. Try getting some new software to add to whatever you're already doing in your editing software now. I am a Lightroom and Photoshop user, but I purchased Luminar editing software and run it as a plugin in Lightroom. It has features that Lightroom doesn't, and I can easily go back and forth between Lightroom and Luminar. It has lots of AI (Artificial Intelligence), so it can do stuff like replace skies, make fog, make sunbursts, and lots of stuff for portraits also. It runs about 80 bucks and is worth every penny. It can super charge your creative mojo while you're editing.
6. How about a vintage lens? Maybe an old lens from the system you're using or another company. Manual focus is a plus. If you're using a mirrorless camera, you can get an adapter for 20 or so bucks and put almost anything on your camera and use it. You can easily pick up one of these from a pawn shop or yard sale or eBay and really cheap also. I use a vintage Nikon macro lens for my macro work on my Sony. I have a cheap adapter that I got for under 20 bucks and it works great. So I have a macro set up for about 150 bucks that has a max aperture of f2.8. These old lenses can really make shooting fun. Everything is manual so everything slows down. These are film lenses and may not be as sharp as the newer ones, but they have character that newer lenses don't have.
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7. 5x7 Picture Frames. Simple, cheap black picture frames are a great way to get you started taking photos again. I have about 10 or so in my little office/studio/gear closet/laundry room. LOL This is a room I took over after my daughter moved out of the house. It's what I call "my room." I have a little photo gallery, and I change the photos every couple of months. I'm way behind on this. But photos look good in a plain black frame. Everyone has some sort of printer that they can print a 5x7 on. And while I'm talking about printing, there are all sorts of different types of paper you can print on, and different papers will give you different looks. These plain frames are cheap, and printing your best work from the last month or so and displaying it (even if it's only for you) is kind of cool. So this one you got a two for one - frames and papers.
As you can see, there are all kinds of things that you can do to get your photography jump started. I've listed a few, but I'll bet you have a few more that could help someone or yourself. Most of all of these things can be purchased from Amazon or any of the photography sites like B&H or Adorama. So get your creative MOJO going again and get out and start shooting. Until next week stay safe, healthy, and creative.
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