A Major Milestone Achieved

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Olmos Basin, Along the northwest perimeter of Olmos Basin Golf Course next to
Basin Dr and around the ball field at the north end of the golf course

Today's photos:

I set out from my house today to see what was possible and what my current limits are. As I have pointed out in a few other posts, living in the Olmos Basin, I really don't need to leave my yard to take nature photographs. So my front yard was the beginning and end of my walk today. The mama fox squirrel in the first photo lives in the pecan tree in my yard. She is about as tame as a wild squirrel can get.

I walked for about an hour and a half. I knew that wouldn't be a problem. What I didn't know was if, or how, I'd be able to take photos along the way carrying the dSLR without the tripod. I ended up taking as many photos as I would normally have taken on a photographically prolific walk along the San Antonio River. In other words, way more than I can publish in a single post.

With my right arm still recovering from the break, I still have no active range of motion in my upper arm at the shoulder joint and can support very little extra weight. From the elbow through my right hand, the movement is near normal with just a little stiffness.

What I found is, if I support the weight of the camera and lens, about 3.5 pounds worth, with my left hand under the camera body and back of the lens, I can reach and manipulate the controls and shutter release with my right hand by fully flexing my elbow… within limits. Anything from my feet to about a 45º angle is relatively easy. From 45º to eye level is possible, but the higher the angle the more difficult it becomes.

I managed a few frames a little bit above eye level, but it required some major contortions to accomplish. They really weren't worth the effort, so there won't be any "bird in the tree" or "birds flying" photos for a while.

When all is said and done, it was a truly amazing and delightful experience to once again be back out interacting with the nature I love so much. There are many more photos yet to be published from this walk today.