Category: Slice of Life

Cage Work

, , Slice of LifeLeave a Comment on Cage Work
"At the Cages" Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/15 sec, ISO800
 “At the Cages” Cedar Park, 2016

こんばんは！

Well, the weather is heating up around here. ☀️ I received an email from the electric company asking us to try not to use lots of energy between the hours of 2pm and 6pm. They recommend setting the thermostat to 80° F and not to use appliances. I guess setting the thermostat to use less energy is a good thing at all times, right?

Today’s photo is of my son Koa at the batting cages. This session, he did great, and was hitting the balls much better than last time. It was funny because the batting cage facility was crowded with high school girls practicing their softball batting. I think Koa was trying to concentrate more because of the female presence! He usually goofs around more, but tonight he was more serious and the results were that he was able to connect a lot more consistently. One of the softball coaches actually told Koa that he had a good swing!

For the photo I used a slower shutter speed of 1/15 second so I could show some of the motion instead of just freezing the action. The shutter clicked right after he hit the ball, and you can see the white streak of the ball shooting up towards center field.

I hope you had a nice Wednesday!

おやすみなさい！ – B Barron Fujimoto

トトロトトロ。。。🎶🌱🌪️

, Slice of LifeLeave a Comment on トトロトトロ。。。🎶🌱🌪️
"トトロトトロ。。。🎶🌱🌪️" Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/6.4, 1/45 sec, ISO3200
 “トトロトトロ。。。🎶🌱🌪️” Cedar Park, 2016

こんばんは！Hello, how’s it going?

Today’s photo is of… Totoro! Do I even need to say what these little creatures are? I feel like everyone knows them… well, if not, they should. 😃

I first saw My Neighbor Totoro (となりのトトロ) in maybe 1989 with my girlfriend. She was from Hong Kong, so we watched the Cantonese version, with English subtitles. I remember distinctly that the when the blue totoro was being chase by Mei, it made the sound “tsee-tsee-tsah, tsee-tsee-tsah!”. I thought it was strange when I saw the Japanese version that it didn’t make that sound. 😕

But anyways, it’s such a great movie… I still enjoy watching it because the summer feeling is so nice… the sounds of the insects, and keeping the house open to the outside. I miss summers in Japan so much! 🎐

Speaking of summer, just one more week until it officially begins. Woohoo! My favorite season.

Well, I hope you have a good rest of the evening! (or nice day, wherever you happen to be)

おやすみなさい！ – B Barron Fujimoto

Sunday Downtime

, , Slice of LifeLeave a Comment on Sunday Downtime
"Sunday Downtime" Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/250 sec, ISO800
 “Sunday Downtime” Cedar Park, 2016

こんばんは！Hello, how’s it going?

Today was a relaxing day, although I did do a couple of DIY tasks (cutting some wood for a shelf, and fixing a toilet), but what was the best part of today was watching TV! In particular, by chance, there was a television program on called “Kyo、burari” which is sort of like a walking tour of Kyoto neighborhoods. Today’s episode was around Kyoto University and they visited a small boarding house apartment for students. It reminded me of my first apartment when I lived in Japan.

It’s funny, but because the episode took place in summer and I moved into the apartment at the same time, I felt memories coming back to me that had been long forgotten. The sound of the cicadas, the look of that old, small apartment room, filled me with a natsukashii (nostalgic) feeling. Also, because the tv program is sort of a walk around the city, the transition to the empty apartment was something that I experienced firsthand. When I lived in that apartment, I didn’t want to stay inside… I spent most of my time out in the city, walking around and exploring.

So, it was really nice to watch the show today and relive some of those feelings. And it was very unexpected to see that show, because it’s not scheduled on our TV Japan programming, but for some reason the previous show was cut short and they had to fill the time with another program.

Today’s photo is of our family room, and you can see Koa and Anko on the sofa,and the tv showing a different Japanese program. That was our Sunday!

Anyways, I hope you had a nice weekend!

おやすみなさい！

– バロン Barron Fujimoto

Dorama Saturday

, , Photo Life, Slice of LifeLeave a Comment on Dorama Saturday
"Weekend Morning" Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.5, 1/100 sec, ISO640
 “Weekend Morning” Cedar Park, 2016

こんばんは！Good evening! How was your Saturday?

Mine was pretty good. Very busy taking care of things, but it was all good. I spent a lot of time watching a Japanese television drama, or “dorama”, called “Hayako-sensei, Kekkon Surutte Hontou desu ka?” which translates as “Teacher Hayako, will you really get married?”.

The story revolves around a 34-year-old unmarried elementary school teacher and her coworkers as they try to transition from single-life to getting married. It’s pretty funny and lighthearted, and I like the main actress, Nao Matsushita a lot. Her character is good natured, but clumsy personality-wise. Come to think of it, there’s not really much of a plot except for them going on dinner dates and trying to make connections with possible love-interests, but it’s fun and not too over-the-top silly as many dorama sometimes get.

I made it through episode 6, and this series will end at 9. It’s been a while since I watched an entire dorama series, and I’m glad I found this one! Looking forward to the next episode!

Today’s photo was taken early this morning. Two essential items for me to start the day, a cup of coffee and my email. I guess that is typical of life these days for many people, isn’t it?

For the camera settings, I used the standard Fujifilm film simulation Provia, and added some sharpening and grain in Lightroom. It’s a simple photo, but I am pleased with the overall feeling. And I love the Provia colors. Fujifilm really did a great job with their jpegs… they really have a nice character to them. I always felt that my Sony and Canon jpegs lacked any feeling… they looked so sterile, cold, computerized, and precise, whereas the Fujifilm jpegs are very warm, natural, inviting, and analogue in feel.

Take care, and see you tomorrow!

おやすみなさい！ – B Barron Fujimoto

On the way to the cages

, , Slice of LifeLeave a Comment on On the way to the cages
"On the Road" Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.5, 1/5400 sec, ISO400
 “On the Road” Cedar Park, 2016

こんばんは！How’s it going? Have a good Friday?

This evening, I took Koa (12) to the batting cages to get some hitting practice in. He was a little rusty, not connecting so much at the beginning, but after about 10 minutes he improved and was smacking them with pretty good power. He love baseball so much, both playing and watching pro games on TV. I hope he continues to enjoy it through middle school and even joins the high school baseball team. That would be cool! ⚾️

Tonight’s photos were taken on the way to the cages. Before we left, I pre-focused my camera to a distance of maybe 50 feet and left it in M focusing. But I goofed and didn’t stop down the aperture. It was pretty wide at f/2.5 but it still came out in focus for the most part. Of course, I am not looking at the camera while I drive, but just kind of shoot in the general direction. It’s kind of fun to take photos this way, especially on the street. I’ll sometimes set the camera so that the LCD screen is off and just point the camera and snap. Since my X100T is a 35mm equiv. focal length, I have a very good chance of framing it close enough. And with each try, I seem to be getting better.

In Lightroom, I used a preset that I created to get to a good starting point, then I adjusted the exposure and lessened the vignetting a bit. I chose one of my 3 grain presets to give it the look I wanted before exporting.

Here’s another photo I took on that drive to the batting cages. I used similar settings as the first photo.

"Neighborhood Sun" Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.5, 1/5400 sec, ISO400
 “Neighborhood Sun” Cedar Park, 2016

Well, I’ll see you tomorrow! For now, I’m going to watch some Japanese dramas before going to bed.

おやすみなさい！ – B Barron Fujimoto