I'm still working full-time for the next couple of weeks, and then we are heading off on a holiday. But I'm using every spare minute to start my preparations for when the project kicks off. One of the first things I needed to do was to get a compact camera that I can take with me on my daily tree-meeting endeavors. I needed something simple to use and light, as I don't want to spend hours recording the pictures, but I do need to take a good log of the trees I'm meeting. In the end, I settled on an Olympus OM System waterproof camera. I've been reading the manual and trying out all the settings, I think I'm starting to get the hang of it today. I've ordered a simple tripod to take some pictures of the fruits, leaves and intricate little bits and bobs that trees like to produce and drop.
Another thing I needed, was a decent pair of hiking shoes. We hit up the Uni Hill Shopping Centre last weekend and I bought myself a nice pair of Merrell grey and light blue hiking boots, that I tried out yesterday on a lovely walk near Eltham North, at the Diamond Creek Trail. The shoes felt great all day, no blisters, perfect with my Smartwool socks that I was sent when I signed up to an Adventure movie session last year. I took my binoculars, my thermos of tea, some light snacks, camera and notebook - and walked about six kilometers. It was a glorious day, and I just took my time. One of the highlights was an adorable flock of cockatoos who were eating something yummy on the ground near the Scout Hall picnic area. On closer inspection I found two corellas with the bunch, and they were very tame. So pretty! The trees were just beautiful, of course. So stunning. At this stage, I'm just getting a feel for what's coming up. I'm trying to learn the names of trees, but I'm a slow learner. But that's the idea of this, too, is that trees are for everyone. It's not about having to have the 'right' name for things - after all, trees have many names, depending what culture the language is in. You can get to know them in much more intimate ways - via their scent, your own observations. Right now, a pied currawong is calling outside in one of the trees in my backyard, or maybe my neighbors. I love living near trees. It's such a privilege, even though I have just a small backyard, to be able to hear birds in it is wonderful. More and more I'm starting to wonder if I'm a country girl at heart.
Today I did a little climate tour at Cranbourne Gardens, which enlightened me to the 'Climate Watch' app. It was quite interesting, but I wasn't really wanting to look at my phone while I'm out in nature, so I practiced using my new camera a bit instead. I'm definitely going back to spend a day there when it's a bit quieter and not the school holidays. Oh no, I'm turning into a grumpy old woman ... well, it had to happen eventually I guess.
So, camera is ready, boots are ready, some comfy pants and tops. Gee I'm getting excited! Okay, back to my research. Photo of the cockatoos taken before I had read the camera handbook - so pretty average pic, but they were too cute not to include.
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