A New Project

As 2016 comes to a close I have been looking forward to new projects to take on in 2017, and part of what’s coming is a little website called Stuart Answers.

 

For years now I’ve been answering (mostly) tech questions for friends and family. I decided to start uploading them in a continuous archive so that they could potentially help others who have the same questions too.

 

There are larger things I have planned for 2017 as well, but they’re not ready to be announced yet. Thanks for joining me this year!

Constellation Prize

I was lucky enough to be able to watch the Perseid Meteor Shower this year, which was a particularly good year for it. I tried my hand at some astrophotography for the first time. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to capture a meteor, but I did this consolation prize (or rather constellation prize, thanks Moh!), instead. It’s not perfect, but I’m proud of this first real attempt. The orange glow behind the tree is actually the Moon setting at about 1:15am.

Constellation Prize
The Moon setting behind a tree with a dramatic night sky in the background.

Squirrel on a Bench

I’ve recently traded in my old Sony a77 for an a6000 and I must say, I’m impressed. It’s tiny, inexpensive, performs very well for both photos and video, and is cheap to put underwater.

It’s also a great platform for adapting vintage glass! The photograph below was taken with the Minolta 70-210mm f/4 “beercan” lens on the first real day I took the new camera out for a shoot.

I can’t wait to get the a6000 underwater and see how it performs in that environment!

Squirrel on a Bench
A squirrel sitting on a bench in the UW Quad.

Grove of the Patriarchs

Devin and I explored the Grove of the Patriarchs near Mount Rainier as a last hurrah before the end of summer. I strapped a GoPro to my shoulder to record the whole experience. Afterward I threw the footage into the Microsoft Hyperlapse Pro preview as a test. I quite liked the end result (especially with some music over the top) so here it is for you to enjoy.

Some photos from the trip: