It has been awhile since I have posted anything to the blog post.  But I finally have something interesting to post about.  Me and my wife took a short weekend holiday get away trip for our anniversary to Hocking Hills, Ohio.  There we visited the Hocking Hills State Park along with the Boch Hollow State Nature Preserve Park.  Needless to say we had a blast while we were there hiking the trails and seeing all natural sites they have to see with waterfalls and natural rock caves.  The massive sites were amazing to see, for me it was almost like we had taken a trip to another state.  I kept saying to myself "This is in Ohio!!! I can't believe it!"

We were pretty busy while we were there for only 3 days but we made the best of it even though it did rain Saturday and Sunday.

For more information on Hocking Hills I recommend checking out this website.  They have information on everything from parks and trials to hotels.

https://www.explorehockinghills.com

Well here are some of my favorite pictures from our trip to Hocking Hills, Ohio enjoy.

Ash Cave

Ash Cave

Cedar Falls

Rock House window view

Rock House window view 2

Rock House

Natural Light-Conkle’s Hollow

Old Man’s Cave - Upper Falls

Robinson’s Falls

Tree Roots

Take Root

Well for 2020 during the pandemic I did manage to get outside and take a few photos to add to my galleries.  Mostly landscape photos as I observed all the social distancing rules for my home state of Ohio.  For some reason this year the fall colors were absolutely amazing and were very vivid this year.  So my favorite photos from 2020 were mostly fall color photos.  Hopefully 2021 will be a better year for photography for me and will bring the end to this pandemic.

1. Is a photo I took just outside of my work place while going for a walk during my lunch hour along the Iron Horse trail this fall.  A photo of some back light leaves show casing the beautiful golden colors.

2.  Is a photo I took while hiking with my wife at Glen Helen this fall.  The leaves had started to fall and you can see the tree in the background in full fall color with a trail of leaves flowing down the stream.

3.  Is a photo of the Cedar Cliff Falls trail in Cedarville, Ohio just down stream from the Cedar Cliff falls and the Indian mound reserve. I managed to just catch some light rays as the sun came out from behind a cloud.

4. Is a photo from Oaks Quarry Park near my home.  I was at home and saw that a storm was coming in and rushed to Oaks Quarry Park to capture this photo with reflection of the storm clouds coming in.  

During this time of the global pandemic with COVID-19, Corona virus I decided it was finally time to retire my trusty old Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark 1.  I had been saving for months to get the OM-D E-M1 Mark 2. But was surprised to see Olympus announce this January 2020 the Mark 3 version of their E-M1 Pro body cameras. And I have to say the wait was well worth it.

Comparison: The two cameras in physical design and shape are very similar. This is a good thing in my opinion the ergonomics of the Olympus cameras are best in class. As they are very easy to hold and use for long periods of time without fatiguing your hands. I do find that the weight of the newer E-M1 Mark 3 is a little bit heavier than the E-M1 Mark 1. But this is probably due to the larger capacity battery that the E-M1 Mark 3 has. Which this is a good thing, as you should be able to get many more shots from the camera with the larger capacity battery. The balance of the camera with a lens attached still feels the same on the new E-M1 Mark 3.

New features I am looking forward to the most are the higher pixel count sensor of the E-M1 Mark 3. As My older model E-M1 Mark 1 has the 16 mega pixel sensor and I will now have the newer 20.4 mega pixel sensor. Also with the newer TruePic IX Quad Core processor. I have noticed already it makes the camera a lot faster. Just doing a quick auto focus test. I have noticed it is a lot faster at locking onto the subject and switching subjects quickly. As I do a lot of nature, bird and sports photography this will come in handy. Also with this new TruePic IX Quad Core processor I will be able to use the hand held hi-res shot mode. Letting me make 50 mega pixel images without the need for a tripod. And the new Live ND Filter mode which will allow me to take long exposure photos without the need to carry a ND (Neutral Density) filter with me every where I go.

Needless to say there are a lot of things I am looking forward to with this new camera body. And I can’t wait to share the new images I will be able to create with it. I am a firm believer in “If it isn’t broke don’t fix it.” But I think my camera body up grade is long over due. I have no doubt this new Olympus camera body will impress me like all the previous Olympus cameras I have owned.

• OM-D E-M1 mark 1
• OM-D E-M10 mark 1
• Pen E-PM1