Wednesday, August 22, 2012

More Preparation

Dan bought a new lens for his camera! The lens that he used for museum work has been failing intermittently for a couple of years, and he finally broke down and replaced it. The key feature of this lens is that it can take pictures in very low light throughout its zoom range ( 2.8 17-55 zoom). Sunday we went to the Legion of Honor Museum to test it out. He really enjoyed the steady and reliable action of the new lens. Here is a sample of the photos he took that day.

Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (Venetian, 1696-1770)
The Empire of Flora, ca. 1743
Gift of Samuel H. Kress Foundation
Palace of the Legion of Honor; San Francisco, CA

I bought the latest generation iPad for the trip. It has super fast Verizon connection so its mapping device works great. It also has an HD Video camera that takes excellent video. I discovered Sunday that video is not allowed in museums, even when photos are. Too bad.

Dan made reservations for several more nights yesterday. We're covered up through Bentonville, Arkansas. Only a few more motels to figure out.

We made a similar trip in 2010, but our preparation was inadequate, our car was old, and Dan had problems with his camera. It really pleases me that this year we have time to think everything through in advance. I know most people are into 'spontaneous,' but planning ahead really works for us. To see the detailed itinerary, click here: Itinerary

Saturday, August 18, 2012

Preparation

Is anyone interested in following our Art Journey for 2012? We are driving across the US for the fourth time for the purpose of viewing art museums that have opened since our last trip.

Here's the new car we bought for the trip, a Town & Country mini-van by Chrysler. Dan took this photo right after we got the car.


This link should take you to an interactive Google map showing our route. Our outbound journey is the northern route. We'll return on the southern route.
Art Journey 2012

We are departing Sunday, September 9. We have to keep a tight schedule, because we have advance reservations for various events, such as visiting the 9/11 Memorial in New York City. Dan has already made motel reservations through Buffalo. Our planned return date is 11/8, almost 9 weeks later.