J. F. Campbell on his Terra Trike, 4 August 2012
... and trike rider (as of 8/2012)
(click photo for larger image)
2013 Photo Walks in
Mason, Michigan (USA)

My Olympus PEN E-PL2 micro four thirds camera system has continued to serve me well in 2013, though I must admit longing for an upgrade to my system. Unlike my previous "walk cameras" the Canon G9 and Canon G11, which had fixed zoom lenses, the Olympus E-PL2 takes interchangeable lenses and can use a variety of accessories, such as the add-on viewfinder, various flash attachments, adaptors to fit non-Olympus lenses (such as my old Nikon manual focus lenses and 420mm F6 telescope and other equipment. Links to various web pages with information about this camera system can be found on my page with links related to the E-PL2 camera as well. Hopefully in the near future I'll add one of the more recent advanced models and new lenses.

As mentioned on the 2012 page, I now have a Terra Trike Rambler (pictured at the left), which I frequently use for exercise to control my blood sugar readings. However, my use of the trike for photo purposes has been limited. I sometimes carry my photo equipment in a saddlebag and make occasional stops to take photos, but I haven't yet worked out a good routine for taking "photo rides".

2013 Photo Walks


Photo Walks Home Page

2013 Mason Photo Walks:    14 March 2013 | Fire on Cherry Street | 
2013 Mason events:  Mason State Bank 5K May 2013 | Spring Fling May 2013 | High School Play May 2013 | 
            4th of July 2013 | County Fair: Part 1 / Part 2 | Mason Aviation Day | 2013 Sun Dried Music Fest | 
            Mason HS Homecoming | 

Other pages: Olympus E-PL2 links  | Canon G9 links  | Canon G11 links

Photo Walks for Other Years:   2009  | 2010  | 2011  | 2012  | 2014  | 2015
Mason High School Homecoming, 18 October 2013, Olympus PEN E-PL2 with Olympus 14-150 or 9-18 lens

18 October 2013

Mason High School Homecoming Parade and Football Game

This annual Mason High School event is always fun for the community and an important part of the calendar of the Mason High School. The parade with the Mason High School marching band, floats created by the students of Mason High School, homecoming celebrities (King and Queen announced later at the football game), and many other participants started it off at 6pm. The football game started at 7pm, an important league game with Waverly High School. It was a gripping game with Mason dominating the first half and Waverly the second half. Mason took a 21-0 halftime lead only to see Waverly come back strong in the second half, scoring the apparent tying touchdown with about 30 seconds remaining. The crowd erupted with Mason broke through and block the extra point to score a 21-20 win, go to a 6-2 record to tie for second in the league, and to qualify for the playoffs and postseason play. The halftime show was a stirring performance by the Mason High School Band and introduction of the King and Queen of Homecoming.

Go to: Mason HS Homecoming

Sundried Music Fest, Mason, Michigan (USA), Olympus PEN E-PL2

23-24 August 2013

4th Annual Mason Sun Dried Music Fest

The photos on this web page show the event (apart from the bands) with separate photos for the childrens' area, the vendors and the Farmers Market (that was displaced to a local park to make room for the vendors on Maple Street). A separate page is devoted to photos of the 12 participating Bands.

Go to: 2013 Sun Dried Music Fest / Bands Page

Mason Aviation Days at Jewett Field, 17 August 2013, Olympus PEN E-PL2 with Olympus 14-150

17 August 2013

Mason Aviation Day at Jewett Field

Mason Aviation Day is an annual event here. The last one I attended was in 2009. See 2009 Mason Aviation Day for my photo report on that one. This year I rode to the airport on my tricycle, which led to a "stinging" situation. There was an interesting array of airplanes on view, many take-offs and landings, a few rides in planes available (for a price), a display of model rockets, and food. We had an excellent day for it, clear and a bit warm.

Go to: Mason Aviation Day.

Fire on East Cherry Street, 17 August 2013, Olympus PEN E-PL2 with Olympus 14-150

17 August 2013

Fire on East Cherry Street

The sirens alerted me to some local issue, so I checked outside and, when I was the emerency vehicles in the street a short distance from my house I headed out, camera in hand, to see what was going on. In December 2010 a larger fire occurred just a little further down the street on Cherry Street, which ended in the total distruction of the house. See 21 December 2010 for my report. This was a much smaller fire. The wooden fence at the back of a parking area had been on first, damaging the fence and the car parked near it. At the right is one of the firemen who took care of this fire with a nice spray of water behind him.

Go to: Fire on Cherry Street.

Ingham County Fair, 29 July 2013, Olympus PEN E-PL2 with Olympus 14-150 or 9-18 lens

29 July 2013

Monday - Opening Day of the Ingham County Fair in Mason

A lot happens on the first day, including judging of the baked goods. I made a point to attend the baked goods sale. For judging a single piece of the entry is taken for the judges to taste and a second piece is preserved for display, along with any earned ribbons. The remainder is placed on the tables for the bake sale. The prize winners justifiably command the highest prices, but in my experience all the products are excellent. I was moderate this year and only bought four items, concentrating on those with chocolate. Family duties prevented me from being there at the listed start time for the sale, but fortunately a number of events were running late, so I got there before all the "good stuff" was gone.

Delays also allowed me to be present for the start of the traditional 4-H Clubs Float & Animal Parade. It wasn't large, but the enthusiasm was impressive. I spent my remaining time inspecting the small animals and the Fairway. As always, there was a ton of food available. The photo to the right shows the proud owner of the Grand Prize winning rooster with his remarkable entry.

Go to: 29 July 2013.

Preparations for annual Ingham County Fair, 28 July 2013, Olympus PEN E-PL2 with Olympus 14-150 or 9-18 lens

28 July 2013

Preparing for opening of annual Ingham County Fair in Mason

It's frequently interesting to visit the Ingham County Fairgrounds just before a big event. People are starting to gather, the facilities are being prepared, and there is often a certain amount of electricity in the air, so to speak. This fair always has a lot of animals and exhibits, so there is a lot of preparation required. It appears that most of the animals had arrived by the day before the opening of the Fair and people were busy attending to them. The Fairway rides were there (in various states of assembly). They weren't open yet, but the excitement was certainly building. I visited during the day and also in the evening, so some of the progress in preparation was obvious. The gates were all open so I rode my trike right in and covered a lot of territory quickly.

Go to: 28 July 2013.

Annual Independence Day parade<br>Mason, Michigan, 4 July 2013, Olympus PEN E-PL2 with Olympus 60/2.8 macro lens

4 July 2013

4th of July in Mason

We had great weather for the annual Independence Day parade and a huge turnout. The route was line with spectators, many of them waving to friends and family as they passed in the parade.Children passed by tossing candy to the spectators. Even the class of 1960 from Mason High School participated in the parade in an empressive fashion.

The entrants in the parade very much reflected the local character of the community. The local tractor clubs provide a variety of classic tractors of all colors. In the morning there was a car show in downtown Mason, and some of the cars participated in the parade. After dark the traditional fireworks display was presented at the local Ingham County Fairgrounds. Alas, I was not up to photographing any of that display. Maybe next year.

Go to: 4 July 2013.

Mason High School musical production In the Heights, 4 May 2013, Olympus PEN E-PL2 with Olympus 14-150 lens

4 May 2013

Mason High School musical

Mason High School has a fine drama department and the students can always be counted on to give stellar presentations. They gave their final performance of the musical "In the Heights" tonight, a fine performance. This was the third night in a row that the play was presented. My grandson Tobias Webb , a Junior at Mason High School, was was one of the performers (wearing the green shirt in the photo at the right).

Go to: 4 May 2013 High School Play.

Photos of Mason Spring Fling, 4 May 2013, Olympus PEN E-PL2 with Olympus 14-150 lens

4 May 2013

Mason Spring Fling

Every Spring Mason celebrates the season with the Spring Fling with booths set lup surrounding the historic Ingham County Courthouse in the Mason Square. There are merchants, food vendors, children activities, information booths, entertainment, and other activities. This is a fun time in Mason, a time to enjoy and celebrate the coming of Spring.

Later that evening the Mason High School gave their final performance of the musical "In the Heights", a fine performance. I took a few shots of this performance. My grandson Tobias Webb was part of the performance.

Go to: 4 May 2013.

Mason State Bank 5K Race, 3 May 2013, Canon G11, photo by Anne G. Campbell

3 May 2013

Mason State Bank 5K Race

For the 4th straight year I participated in the annual Mason State Bank 5K race. I still have a few photos to add to the page but most of them are there now. I find it difficult to carry a camera during the race so I usually only have photos of the area before the race starts. This year my wife Anne and daughter Meg took photos of the start and finish of the race. My daughter took some sequences that proved to be amenable to combining into animations, so both the start and finish of the race are shown in this format. I still have a few photos of my granddaughter Hazel that will be added later.

Thanks to Anne and Meg for their support and for providing most of the photos for this page. Thanks (and congratulations) to Hazel for joining me in this race and finishing her first 5K race!

Go to: 3 May 2013.

Photos of Mason, Michigan, 14 March 2013, Olympus PEN E-PL2 with Panasonic 20/1.7 lens

14 March 2013

2.7-mile walk

The long Winter is nearing its end. After a long break from photo walks I went out tonight with my camera in hand with a goal in mind, photographing the "maintenance shed" built by the railroad company this winter. The shed is actually a tall building with huge doors capabile of admitting a full size locomotive. After starting out I decided to photograph a few local businesses pretty new to Mason. I also got a few shots of a local group of skateboarding enthusiasts on their practice hill on Elm Street.

The real impetus for my walk was an unexpectedly high blood glucose number following my "low carb" dinner. Exercise was called for to bring it down, so even though it was starting to get dark I headed out with my trusty Olympus PEN E-PL2 camera with my only low-light lens, the Panasonic 20/1.7. All photos were taken at ISO 800 at the beginning and ISO 1600 at the end as it got darker.

Go to: 14 March 2013.

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