Slight thaw and rain showers today, so I smashed up and cleared some of the sheet ice from the paths etc. Making things a bit safer outside. It provided another no effort Blip.

Resisted the temptation to go near town for some shopping, so will have to resort to the backup soya milk, and do without bread for a day or two. Couldn't face the crowds, and it would've be likely that some of the perishables were sold out.

End of the year, and the end of a extra Blipping challenge for myself - one year of just using lenses with focal lengths between 35mm and 45mm (or their equivalent in terms of 35mm format), and using a different lens for each month. Before starting it was obvious that if I could do that, I have far too much gear, and there'd need to be several 'film only' months. 

Turned out there were five months of film usage, split into three of 35mm, and two of 6x6 (meduim format - MF). For two of the cameras, the film isn't yet finished, so some back-Blipping will (hopefully) happen next year.

Eight months of manual focus lenses, and four of autofocus (some of which required to be manually focused - in poor light etc.).

Some lessons learned. A month isn't nearly long enough to get to know any of those lenses. Not with my light usage. The fixed lens Sony has a dust spot on its sensor. Also its electronic viewfinder is very dark when compared to the optical one in a Canon 5D(?) I was handed, and asked to take a photo with. Thankfully the Sony doesn't have the loud clang and jolt from its mechanisms that that Canon had. Don't know if it was faulty or not, but I've never experienced that with any Nikon, only the hulking medium format Bronica. There was confirmation that I prefer B&W rather than colour, with film.

Only equipment let down of the year was the TLR Yashica, with its lens haze on the taking lens, meaning that all of July's photos are a bit foggy.  It was a substitute for the Bronica which stopped working last year.. On a more positive note, it did make me much better at quickly framing up and levelling the (flipped) image in a waist level viewfinder. 

There was no best item. The little Voigtlander 40mm Ultron lens remains overall favourite, but I would like to get to know the Minolta 40mm, and Zeiss Distagons better. If I had only keep one camera and lens, I could happily use any of them... even that humble Olympus Trip. It does surprisingly well with B&W film.

Next year, anything goes, and this past year in a single album, extras and all.

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