I'll turn 73 in December... where did the time go?
I had to cut short my latest trip to Southeast Asia in March when the Australian government ordered its citizens to return home. I was in Sarawak and it took me ten days to book four flights Sarawak-Singapore-Surabaya-Bali and finally Melbourne. It was a wild, uncertain, hyperactive time but I coped surprisingly well, the stress probably outweighed the physical exertion and mental effort involved - I did go to bed for a 12 hours marathon sleep when I finally made it home...
For my age I'm still in surprisingly good health, given the amount of good red wine I've soaked up over the decades - I don't smoke and still try to stay as active as the current crisis allows. I've slowed down a lot - I can still walk fairly long distances but I now find six-kilometer treks satisfy me physically as much as the ten-kilometer hikes did in 2018. So maybe wiser as well as older. I do come from long-lived relations, my mom is alive at 101, three aunts passed away in their mid-90s and my mother's father managed to hang in and stay at home until six weeks before his centenary. Who knows how long I'll be toting cameras around the globe or spending long hours scanning old slides, but for now, I'm doing okay.
I no longer carry two DSLRs and a backpack of lenses as i used to do - nowadays one Nikon and one or two extra lenses suit me fine. Or a Nikkormat and an extra lens. Or a Rolleiflex, a few bits and pieces and a meter. Nothing else.
I find photography keeps my body active and also occupies my brain. That and reading, writing, planning to set up a new small web site for my travel images (something I've wanted to do since 2006 but never quite found enough time, ha!), and my latest brain-kick hobby, playing Scrabble on my own. Two sets of letters and off you go. My partner works full-time even during this crazy crisis, so we do things at home and play these word-games together on weekends.
With more time than usual at home my motivation to get out and about and make images has diminished, but I still carry a camera on my walks and find I can muster up enough interest for a few shots. In May I was given an as new Panasonic Lumix GF1 with two lenses which has got me more keen to reshoot old images (as we all do, don't we, when we get new gea?r) and the quality from this small camera truly surprises me, tho' I dislike using rear screens to view and compose images and I'm finding it difficult to get used to the iffy clip-on electronic viewfinder.
My annual medical in July didn't turn up any nasty surprises and I'm grateful if conscious that it all could change quickly I hope to maintain my current level of fitness for a few more years until the time comes to buy a recliner chair, a new film scanner and a set of quality wine glasses to enjoy my (alas, by then severely diminished) consumption of good Tasmanian red wines. Life's small pleasures, long may they last.
You're living your life (lives) well...your adventures, challenges, and the work you're attempting and doing are your living rewards.
There are optometrists who have advanced training in treatment of the eyes, the main difference seeming to be surgery limited to opthmologists. Such optometrists are also more aware of eyes diseases that should be referred to opthamologists. It could be that recognition of this difference among optometrists with and without this additional training may be determined differently from state to state. From my own experience opthamologists are concerned with health of the eye, not so much with vision.As to vision, I strongly recommend OPTHAMOLOGISTS, not optometrists because they have more training and skills. In the end, optometrists want to sell frames whereas OPTHAMOLOGISTS base their business on return visits and referrals...tho they're a lot more expensive.
Although I turn 88 this month, photography is still productive and sometimes even fun. Decline probably started maybe 10 or 15 years ago with reduced energy and stamina. More recently it's memory and problem solving. We all have to adapt, and do the best with what we have. Last night it was photographing the old hometown high school football team losing for the first time this season. The yearbook staff might find something useful in the 210 digital shots, and other photos will be available online for proud parents. This is more rewarding than merely hanging photos in galleries or exhibitions. My advice to you youngsters is: take care of your bodies and keep stimulating your minds. Curtail alcohol, tobacco, and other harmful drugs (including over-prescribed medicines). Modest exercise keeps us going. Life is good.
That was my experience also. Walked outside and viewed vegetarian without the yellow cataract filters, and WOW, a fantastic moment.Peoplemerge -- Balsom separation can usually be fixed and cataract surgery made my world beautiful again.
Being 24, this makes me want to stop crying about the weight of my Mamiya RB67 and just take it out for a hike.
It is a pity I don't use it more.
Such an enjoyable camera. Last month the waist level viewfinder that I ordered off ebay for it arrived. Got to download a light meter app on my phone and take some photos.
I’m not *that* old at mid-forties, but am definitely wise to not packing things I probably won’t use if going out, and making do with what I do bring.
that being said, my biggest problem over the last couple years has been vision. I went from having very good vision to less good vision and more difficulty seeing in less light, reading small print, reading low contrast print, etc. very frustrating. My eye doctor has told me that this is not unusual and that I’m best off to roll with it and adapt. I’m resisting glasses as much as I can, but will have to do something soon for seeing fine detail up close as my near vision is very quickly going away. My far vision has gotten pretty awesome, which is great, but not that helpful when in the darkroom.
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