Serendippity

 

On an evening when I'm not usually home, on a whim I went out to get some food with someone I don't usually keep company with. On a whim I took my cameras, thinking I might just look over the day's shots. It was a clear night. On the drive, we noticed a small carnival set up in a parking lot. While we were in the restaurant, without warning, it started to pour down rain. My companion offered to drive over to the carnival so I could get some shots in the rain. So, we did.

This was my first carnival in the rain, at night. A delight, as I enjoy motion-blurred shots & capture them with the Lumix every chance I get, usually while driving home from work at night. The shots on top are those I got w/the Lumix.  The car wasn't moving, of course, but I got the motion blur by moving the camera as I usually do.

I had a bit of a learning curve with the Sony, as I had never used it to capture night shots. It's too big to operate safely while I drive. But this time, I was lucky, I had a driver. I found I am at a point with the Sony that I can operate it fine in the dark, by memory. At first my shots weren't working out. The white lights were blowing out. Then I remembered the camera can do in-camera HDR, so I set it for that, & it worked. These are the shots I got w/the Sony.

 

I did not use motion blur with the Sony because I was shooting with a competition in mind. The deadline for entry was 11PM. It was 10PM when I got home. I am used to taking much more than an hour to PP my shots & decide which to enter.

The whole thing felt like an incredible coincidence, but you know I think every moment of life is an incredible coincidence. We don't usually acknowledge it, is all. I have spent my entire life to get to this point that I'm at right now. Made many sacrifices, spent a lot of money, traveled great distances to get right here where I am now. Every moment is deserving of my rapt attention, I wish I could remember to live each moment of my life with rapt attention.