some whom i hold dear

excited

It's tough being a visiting parent. You want to treat your children like small children instead of adult children, to reach out and protect them still. The hardest part is acting with restraint. You offer praise without being asked, and carefully nuanced advice when asked and only when asked. It's a different form of parenting. It goes to underscore that you never stop being a parent. Your parenting continues in small and surprising ways as long as you live and breath.

This is by no means everyone. This is a small fraction. And it's extending, slowly, as my daughters build their lives. The things I have, especially my cameras, are far more important as instruments to capture moments of what is really important to me than as things to own unto themselves.

wary

annoyed

I have begun to shift (or perhaps the word is "pivot") in my photographic technique. Here's a surprising personal revelation. I find I don't quite like the added exposure latitude that the E-M5 sensor adds to the files as much as I thought I would. I use the added exposure latitude to pick out subtle details. I'm beginning to dial "blown highlights" and "blocked up shadows" back into my photos in little ways. I'm beginning to push away from heavy saturation and more towards a light pastel look. I'm doing what I should have done all along, and that's aim towards the middle of the exposure curve, putting the subject at that spot, and letting the rest of the composition come what may.