Wow, it’s been a good couple of weeks since my last blog post.
Firstly, sorry about that. It’s been a mad two weeks or so. Largely because I’ve changed jobs, which has required a lot of spare mental energy to adjust to new circumstances, after being at my previous employer for 7.5 years.
Thankfully, in a couple of weeks time, Lisabet and I will be happily frolicking around the Loch Lomond & the Trossachs National Park in Scotland. We’re definitely looking forward to it.
What else has changed in the last couple of weeks? I upgraded my phone!
“Pacific Blue” iPhone 12 Pro Max. Image courtesy of Hendrik Morkel/ Unsplash .
I’ve “jumped ship” once again to a brand spanking new “Pacific Blue” iPhone 12 Pro Max, after 3 years or so with the Google Pixel 3XL.
I’ve had a long interest in the camera technology of smartphones. For me, this started in earnest with my Motorola/Google Nexus 6.
The Motorola/Google Nexus 6 “phablet”. Image courtesy of 9to5google.com
This was the first smartphone to debut Google’s “HDR+” computational photography feature. In short, it worked by shoot several frames of photos, aligning all the images together, and merging them into a single photo that contained more light information than a single frame on its own. I really enjoyed the images I got out of the Nexus 6.
Then, in 2016, Apple announced the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus. I was intrigued by the 7 Plus as it featured a new “telephoto” lens (equivalent to 56mm on a full-frame camera) as well as the standard “wide” lens (equivalent to 28mm). So the iPhone 7 Plus became my main smartphone of choice for a good couple of years.
Google changed the game in 2018 when they announced their Pixel 3 and Pixel 3XL smartphones. The subsequent reviews suggested the images from these phones were miles ahead of the competition and unmatched by any other smartphone on the market. Was I willing to sacrifice the 2nd zoom lens on my iPhone for just the one lens on the Google Pixel 3XL plus superior image quality?
Yes, I was. So the Google Pixel 3XL became my main smartphone for the next three years, and its photos served me well. We were all blown away by the image quality this smartphone could produce.
In fairness, it took the same amount of time for other smartphone brands to catch up with Google’s Pixel image quality. But catch up they did. By 2020 Apple announced their iPhone 12 series of smartphones, now featuring their “Smart HDR” computational photography, “Night mode” for shooting in the dark and more. In particular, the iPhone 12 Pro Max featured three cameras: the standard wide (26mm), a new ultra-wide (13mm equivalent), and a new telephoto (65mm equivalent).
With the choice of three cameras, plus image quality on a par with the lead Google’s Pixel phones had created, I switched once again.
So here I am, in 2021, with a massive iPhone 12 Pro Max.
I’ve been putting the cameras on this beast through their paces. Have to say, I’m pretty impressed with the capabilities.
Today we decided on a local hike through Singleton Park and up onto Paddy’s Lane before descended the fellside again via the Old Sedbergh Road. It started off fairly dry, if severely overcast, but as we ascended the drizzly mist arrived and we got pretty wet for the rest of the hike. Thankfully the iPhone dealt with the drizzle absolutely fine.
All photos taken on my iPhone 12 Pro Max using all three of its cameras. Edited using RNI Films’ Kodachrome film profile.
Colourful. And tempting. But don’t eat them. They’ll make you sick.
Beautiful Miller Bridge with Benson Knott rising above in the distance.
Plenty of mills, warehouses, and old factories around Little Aynam and Canal Head, a testament to Kendal’s history as an important trader and manufacturer.
This area of Kendal, known as Thorny Hills, really puts me in mind of Harrogate.
These houses are cute. Just a shame that they flood.
The Castle Inn pub, recently saved by the community.
Can never resist a shot of this bridge as we head towards Castle Green Lane and Singleton Park Road.
Some rather massive sunflowers growing in the allotments along Castle Green Lane.
Snowberries! Or Symphoricarpos , if you will.
Near Castle Green Hotel, these houses always catch my eye. I love their shape. Almost like a Dutch barn.
Our way to Singleton Park and up the fellside towards Paddy’s Lane.
The lane is dark, dank, and slippery underfoot.
After popping out of the top of the lane, before the railway bridge, there’s a little woodland containing these ruins. They’re not labelled on any map I’ve seen. I wonder what they once were?
Some kind of chimney nearby indicates that maybe these were some sort of mill, maybe?
A quick snap of the railway before heading up through Singleton Park.
The heavens closed in and the misty drizzle fell. You can barely make out Scout Scar from here.
By this point it was better for me to take my glasses off and squirrel them away.
In the fields below Paddy’s Lane, some Texel ewes wearily stared at us.
And up on Paddy’s Lane! The autumnal colours really starting to appear in Cumbria now.
Greyhound House and its lovely bright red doors.
Opposite the house, this is Greyhound Farm.
Down the Old Sedbergh Road we go, with the rain increasing in intensity.
More autumn colours, please.
Then support me