The weather in May 2023 has been pleasant, mostly sunny and not too warm, with occasional late-night rain showers. And I had a new camera to try, a newly replaced Canon R7 kit with an 18-150 mm RF-S kit lens. Jim and I arranged to visit Roger Williams Park on Friday morning.
Table of Contents
The Replaced Canon R7 Did Very Well
Since this was also a visit to test the newly replaced R7 with a better version, I present the color photographs for quick evaluation. Observe their presence, clarity, and sharpness that generally were lacking in the previous camera results. I even took a small bird that I could hardly see in the shadows, and even that was in focus! Imagine that, Canon! I have a new article in progress about the long saga of the Canon R7 kits. And, compare these photographs to those from Stepstone Falls.
Roger Williams Park Was Pleasant, But Just Waking Up
We first stopped to see the roses in the rose garden. Whatever was in bloom was pleasant, but most roses were still in the bud stage. We admired the well-supported Giant Sycamore Tree with huge branches extending with twists and turns and went to the Japanese Gardens.
Click on the images to see them larger, uncropped, and read their titles.
The Japanese Gardens
Another pleasant section of the park, the Japanese Gardens, includes water channels surrounding a small “island” connected to the park with arched bridges. We walked around, exchanged a few words with a pair of Canada geese, and then spotted a tall bird with a long neck walking by. Jim said it must be a great blue heron. Now, I know diddly about birds and have my personal naming system: it was a long-necked, tall blue finch! I photographed it from quite a distance with a few frames. Other trees, bushes, and water reflections gave other opportunities for photographs.
Click on the images to see them larger, uncropped, and read their titles.
The Bandstand
We walked towards the car and photographed the Bandstand as we reminisced about photographing ballerinas for a project, Ballet Off Stage! That was fun.
I had my infrared camera, and I took several frames with that as well. One pair was for an experiment of blending two photographs from two cameras, one for infrared light and the other for the visible spectrum. They have “full spectrum” infrared conversions, but this combination may be “fool’s spectrum” infrared! That image is the two frames blended in Photoshop (no AI!)
Click on the images to see them larger, uncropped, and read their titles.
Visual Pollution
A very disturbing pattern in the park, probably elsewhere too, was electric bikes or scooters just dropped where the rider had enough of them. I understand how convenient and fun they may be to their riders and how much money they may make for the companies running those businesses. But, should we not have collective ownership of public places and be responsible for their wellbeing? I hope the local governments impose some regulations to eliminate the eyesores.
Click on the images to see them larger, uncropped, and read their titles.
Lunch At Rigatoni’s
After we had taken enough photographs, we decided to have our Friday lunch, fish-and-chips at Rigatoni’s in Warwick. But I will switch to something else next week as fried food does not agree with me!
Bahattin Gürsöz (1945-2023)
Haluk Atamal
Fantastic photos, Cemal. Thanks for sharing.
The long necked bird is a blue heron; Jim is right. As for the visual pollution, I thought it was special to Türkiye.
You are on the correct track with fried food. I do believe (and hope) that one day they will be banned. Still..
..afiyet olsun!
Rgds, Haluk
A. Cemal Ekin
Thank you, Haluk. My bird name ignorance also amuses friends, I continue the trend! The visual pollution is disturbing for its lack of any system. Anywhere, anytime, leave it and move on. No responsibility, no caring whether someone may trip over it, … By the way, do you see and feel any difference between these photos and the ones from Stepstone Falls?
As they say, it’ll be a cold day in hell before they ban fried food! But, I will control my urges.
Take care,
Cemal
James Turner
I very much enjoyed our excursion yesterday. Those R7 images with the new replacement camera that Hunt’s provided look sharp. Don’t ask me about Red/Green colors. It would be nice to return to the rose garden in a few weeks as most plants had plenty of buds yet little in the blooming category.
Too bad fried food is becoming disagreeable with you. Then again? c’est la vie”
A. Cemal Ekin
Yes, Jim, it was enjoyable indeed. We will do it again before the weather gets too hot.
Take care,
Cemal
Paul White
I I really enjoy your post. I really laugh at you calling every bird of Finch. It does eliminate a lot of problems. Your images were definitely sharp and very fun to watch. Thanks!
A. Cemal Ekin
Good to hear from you, Paul, and glad to make you (and many others laugh!) If you compare this collection to the one in the Stepstone Falls article I wrote a couple of weeks ago, you can easily see the difference. But, stay tuned for a highly detailed saga that will be published soon.
Take care,
Cemal
Bill Clark
Beautiful images from one of my favorite places to photograph!
A. Cemal Ekin
Thanks, Bill. The park is indeed a gem and the Japanese Gardens is the sparkle!
Cemal
Hali S
Great article, Cemal! I’m glad the new camera is working out well. I do love photographing around RWP, it’s such a gem.
A. Cemal Ekin
Welcome to Kept Light, Hali, thank you for stopping by. There are so many little, and big, places in RI that should appeal to photographers.
Take care,
Cemal