Life is Full of Surprises – Vulture Edition
When you set off on a trip, do you take pictures of your motorcycle (or car) as if they are a travel companion? Looking back over the years, I have dozen of “start” photos or first stop snaps commemorating the beginning of our wanderings together.
What’s so exciting about snapping this photo of my motorcycle at the first gas stop since I left home? A not so great gas station, at that. There isn’t anything scenic or interesting going on here. The power of bike compels me.
Finishing my first fill up since leaving home, I snapped this pic as part of some weird routine. But, with a quick nod to the idea that even in the most mundane activities there can be little sparks of joy, I give you… these guys:
::shrug:: Turkey vultures. Just, you know, chillin’ by the gas station in the early morning. If you look at the bike pic, you can see them on the fence in the distance.
Maybe where you’re from these dudes are no big deal. Here where I live on Long Island they may be around in the greater sense, but I’m not sure I’ve ever seen any.
Maybe there really is something to the idea that there is always something interesting to look at if you are just willing to see it.
I do snap photos as I ride along and when I stop. Stuff that I find interesting, knowing that the photo won’t likely be as interesting to the people I show it to later.
But that’s OK, I enjoy the memories of things I’ve done and places I’ve been.
Yep.
Ride alone and constantly take pictures of my motorcycle.
I feel a really partnership with it.
There’s me in my gear, the motorcycle below, and then the rest of the world…
I feel a weird kinship with that collection of aluminum and steel, rubber, oil and plastic. A deep, grateful respect that we get to move through the world together.
Going to chalk them birds hangin’ out to climate change. Traditional range is south of your Island, though they move north for the March-June breeding season…. Or so I’ve read.
Cheers
Very nice photos! You should post info on what camera(s) you ride with. Always enjoy your posts.
Always loved following your adventures. Are you snapping with a cell phone cam (which I know are dang doo these days) or do you travel with an actual camera to pull out and curate these great images?
Hi Ed & Lowell – thanks for commenting.
Most of the time I am just using my iPhone. It keeps my life simple. It does a surprisingly good job of picking up detail overall. But my purposes are pretty simple. I take snapshots. I’m not a photographer.
However, when there is any need for zoom the iPhone just isn’t great. I do carry a point and shoot camera on a lanyard around my neck. Nothing fancy. I’ve had the same one for 7-8 years now, a Canon SX720 hs. It has a 40x zoom and a small footprint. I would be disappointed if something happened to it or I broke it, but it isn’t a piece of equipment to “worry about” if you know what I mean. I’m not careful with stuff so having a nice camera doesn’t work for me.
I do sometimes run pics through the Snapseed app, but more often than not, I just make adjustments in the native iPhone camera roll editing tools.
Hope that helps and thanks again!