blurmagic

very organized and "professional" looking!

The big cities are becoming hell holes. My daughter lives in Minneapolis Minnesota USA and was deeply affected by the terrible George Floyd riots that took place just a few blocks from her home last summer. As the big cities continue to degrade, people will flee to the small towns and rural areas. What is keeping most in the big cites are the higher wages that they can make in the big cities. But in time, many will realize that peace and safety are not a price worth paying for a job that pays a bit more money. While the current exodus from the cities is now only a trickle; just wait, all that is needed to turn it into a flood are future riots that go into the areas where the rich live. Dallas, you are fortunate that your skills allow you to work where ever there is an internet.

Dallas, the decay you speak of sounds like what I see in American cities. The big difference here is that in addition to the dangerous/degraded areas, you also have the parts where the super rich live that are beautiful and pristine. The rich are oblivious to the conditions of the poor. It's like there are two worlds, with the rich paying no mind to the poor because the rich are isolated in their fancy areas and only ever interact with their affluent friends. But I'm thinking this might be changing in the future.

The link opened much faster than the current server you are using. maybe 4 or 5 times faster. Dave in Wisconsin USA

. Got my first shot, didn't feel a thing. It was the "Moderna" vaccine. My second one is scheduled for a couple of weeks. I talked with a number of folks who've already had their second shot. A few had unpleasant reactions - fever, feeling miserable, sore arms, etc. for a day or two. Some had no adverse reaction. None-the-less, the wife and I do plan to go ahead with the second shot. In my area, some doctors are advising their younger patients NOT to get the shots, because of possible sterilization. Well, I'm in my 60's, and already have 5 kids and 12 grand-kids - so that's not a concern of mine. Dave

. For decades now I've gotten a flu shot every year. Next Tuesday I'm scheduled to get my first Covid vacine shot. I believe it's the Pfiser one. Hundreds in my area have already received one (or both) of their vacine shots and no one has had a serious reaction. Also, virtually all of the nurses and Doctors in these parts have gotten both of their vacine shots too. After my second shot on February 2, I'll have a 95% less chance of getting Covid, and my personal medical doctor has told me that after the second vacine shot I can go back to my gym and start working out again if I want to. Besides that, I might also start going to movies again.

. Indeed, this website is getting better each year, and it has been enjoyable here in 2019. I'm here for one reason - there are 3 members here whose photography opinions I hold in high regard. I have learned a few things from their posts. However, I ask myself, is it worth $25 per year to stop by every week or two to see what these members are talking about? I currently pay about the same amount to subscribe to two other photo websites. On one (Flickr) I can post an unlimited number of huge photo files. It's much cheaper photo storage than paying $10 USD per month for either the Google or Dropbox clouds. The other, I subscribe to in order to be able to sell my used gear there. Each year I save much money selling gear at that site over what it would have cost me to sell it on Ebay. Rather than a donation, I see such requests for support as a a value proposition. But it's not clear to me yet what exactly I'd receive with a supporting membership here. The new groups here hold promise, but being that my main cameras are not used by anyone else here, and the fact that I mostly build/create/adapt my own lenses, I don't see much value in starting a new group here in which I would be the only member.

Both Kirk Entrerprises and Really Right Stuff in the USA sell replacement tripod collars specifically designed for this lens. These collars (I own both) totally clear up the problem mentioned above, making this my favorite telephoto Nikkor.