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May 27, 2007
UIL Solo and Ensemble Contest
Today and tomorrow Anne and Alanna are in Austin for the Texas State Solo and Ensemble Contest (TSSEC). Actually, today they are at Schlitterbahn in New Braunfels, Texas (about 50 miles south of Austin). I had to get them both to McKinney High this morning at 6am so they could board a "yellow hound" for the trip. The weather was damp, windy and ugly, but by the time they got down to the park, the Sun was out and the partying was on.
Tomorrow Alanna performs last in her Solo, and sometime mid-day for her ensemble with Kelsey Kingston and Dylan Malone. She got a "2" last year, and we're not really expecting that to improve this year.
Anne is accompanying around ten kids, so she's busy all day on Monday.
I'll post updates as they arrive.
Posted by Steven at 04:34 PM | Comments (0)
May 26, 2007
It's Also Here!
Lightning struck twice for me this week.
I walked into Cooter's Village Camera in Highland Park, TX and inquired about Nikon's legendary 18-200mm VR zoom lens. I added my name to their "six months or more" waiting list quite a while ago, and I wanted to see where things stood. I was hoping that I could actually buy the lens in the fall, just as band marching season picked up.
That's when they "made my day". They had the lens in stock. I blurted, "Sold!" before the attendant could finish the sentence. After spending months (and not a few mornings waiting outside stores) to buy a Wii, I wasn't going to let this one get past me. The even more amazing thing was that they were charging less than MSRP for this lens: $709 instead of $749.
Nikon's legendary 18-200 AF-S IF ED DX f/3.5-4.5 VR zoom lens
For the camera nerds:This lens is one of Nikon's secret weapons against Canon in the DSLR market. Canon doesn't have a lens with the range and vibration resistance that this one does. It fills a range that for most amateur photographers is the complete span of focal lengths and f/stops, plus the VR mode means you don't have to drag a tripod around in many environs where it's impractical (e.g. museums). The lens is slightly bigger than the 18-55mm DX that Nikon bundles with their better DSLR kits, opening the possibility of not needing a camera bag to bring extra gear and lenses. Read Ken Rockwell's review (link above) to find out more.
Posted by Steven at 08:09 PM | Comments (0)
May 25, 2007
It's Here!
Canon XH-A1 1080i HD Digital Camcorder
After over a year of planning, fundraising and nerve-wracking waiting, I took delivery of a Canon XH-A1 1080i HD camcorder yesterday. It's going to be the work horse of the Boyd Band A/V Team (myself, Cliff Caldwell, Laurie Blackmon, et. al.). I took some quick footage of our cat Forte, which is here (warning: this is a 100+ Mb file and it plays at 1680 x 1050).
Posted by Steven at 02:35 PM | Comments (0)
Happy Towel Day
Posted by Steven at 02:30 PM | Comments (0)