Rocco Galatioto, nice photos and good food

I have bemoaned on many prior occasions the deleterious effects that relying solely on tourism has on a place. My beloved Castellammare was once a thriving fishing and agricultural town.Then came the economic miracle and the farms were subdivided into country villas and the fishing became too hard for the new generation who believed that an university degree would assure them economic success. Almost all the fishing is now done in nearby Mazara del Vallo that wisely expanded this enterprise making it the largest fishing fleet in Europe. So the town tries to live off the plethora of government employment with the so called posts and with tourism. The problem is that in the off season, the old and historical part of the town, very busy in the summer, is deserted. You see another outcome of prosperity was the development of modern elevator apartments at the outskirts where the larger part of the people live. My house is located in the old section and I actually enjoy the quiet of the wint...

I'm continuing with the previous post's theme and that is of the way Sicily is full of colors in the winter. These photos were all shot on January of 2013 in the Countryside above Scopello the lovely tonnara in Castellammare's territory on it's western sea shore I have posted many lovely photos of ths enchanting place. Thesewre shot with the Panasonic Lumix LX-7. This camera, alas, was commandeered by my son Josef. C'est la vie.  

The color of the sea assumes glorious colors in the fall and winter months. Here we see Guidaloca Beach one of Castellamare's beaches in January. This is interestingly a beach similar to those in the Riviera as it's composed of small pebbles. The other beach the Plaja , is much bigger and is made of fine sand.There are of  cale or inlets that are of all assortments of rocks and sand.

Micro four thirds marches on Panasonic Revises LUMIX G 20mm / F1.7 Lens Panasonic has just released a revised lens today for their G-series of Micro Four Thirds digital cameras. The LUMIX G 20mm / F1.7 II ASPH (model H-H020A) is more compact and lighter than the previous incarnation. It supports Panasonic's Contrast AF for "high precision auto focusing," features a durable metal mount, and uses multi-coated lens elements that "minimize ghosts and flare to further enhance its optical performance." The 20mm lens (equivalent to 40mm on a 35mm film camera or full-frame DSLR) uses two aspherical lenses to "minimize both distortion and chromatic aberration." The only real catch is that, when recording video, if you leave Continuous AF on, you will hear some noise. Panasonic recommends leaving AF off for video. The LUMIX G 20mm / F1.7 II ASPH will be available mid-July (2013) for around $399.

After a really heavy rain, the sun came out and the light played it's  magic.          The camera was the Olympus  E PL-2.

No interesting light, no interesting photo. This is one of the main tenets of photography. One must learn to see light in a totally different way. One must pre visualize how it will work on an image. Here we have three images all on the Canal Grande , that show that as the days draws closer to it;s end, the light becomes even more dramatic.

  More from Fuji but without a viewfinder it's not a very appealing camera. At least for me. Now Fujifilm adds a new ILC to their X-series; the X-M1 Fujfilm USA has just introduced the latest addition to their popular X-series of ILC models, with the addiution of the X-M1. Sharing similar specs to the X-E1 that was earlier this year, the X-M1 has a 16-megapixel APS-C  X-TRANS CMOS image sensor, phase detection AF, their new EXR II processing unit, a 3-inch tilting LCD screen, their X-mount interchangeable lens system, full 1080p HD video at 30fps with stereo sound, a plethora of exposure options and various creative filters, and built-in Wi-Fi connectivity. All this is packed into a slightly smaller footprint than the X-E1, and it's available in three appealing color options; dual tone silver, black, or a brown "leatherette". Body only pricing starts at  $699. With the X-M1, Fuji also unveiled two new X-mount lenses. One of which is the new XC 16-50mm k...

In New York, summer means Coney Island. However for me, the best time to photograph this very strange place is off season when it becomes totally different. These are all scans and they date from the early eighties. Sorry for the posting delay. Murphy's law made it's umwelcome presence with my internet connection.

I feel that these lovely children are worth posting again. I apologize to those who expect fresh material daily but at times it's not that easy. They were shot with a Canon D-30.