Happy Holidays!

Bet you thought I'd gone for good!  A new hard drive, some frustrating challenges, a new photo-editor, and....a new-to-me camera!  It's a steep learning curve for this luddite, and I'm still working on replacing all the settings and software I lost (like my preferred font, all my labels and past blogger layout, etc.), but I still have fantasies of returning to blogging. I like writing and I like posting photos with prose - things that are rather limited on facebook.  However, only a very small handful of people actually read my blogs, even when I do a link to it on facebook, so is it worth the time, effort, and frustration?
Maybe.  Some of the eight or so blog followers have been with me since the early 2000s, when I used to blog for a sanctuary, and most have been with me since 2008 when I began this blog. And I value that sort of friendship.  Plus, sharing photos and stories is fun. 

So, here we are....my first attempt at making a card with the new photo-editor.  This photo was taking last week with my compact Sony, the camera I bought a year or two ago but which has been a big disappointment (especially with regard to sharpness, colour capture and the zoom feature) compared to my earlier versions of the same camera.  But Maggie doesn't care - she just likes posing for the camera!  I've done a bit of photo-editing on this to not only turn it into a card but also to sharpen the image. 

The following photos were taken with the new-to-me Canon Rebel I bought at my favourite household consignment store this week. It is much like the Canon I inherited from my sister ten years ago (which finally gave up the ghost).  It's an oldy - a Rebel T3 - but very lightly used and in outstanding condition, and it came with two lenses (one a telephoto 75-300) as well as charger, a nice case, battery and card.  I took the photos at the Wildlife Refuge near me and I'm happy with the results.  I've done no editing to the images except to add the watermark. 

So between a new hard drive, a new-to-me camera,  and the new photo editing program I just signed up for, I will hopefully get back to blogging.  Meanwhile, Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, and stay safe!