Today was the most peculiar experience ... not exactly new, but in the light of current developments, decidedly schizophrenic.
First and foremost, I really had a blast shooting today - so much so that I'm almost embarrassed by the huge number of images I really wish to share. I hope you're not too unhappy with me because of this ... I'll just keep them coming ...
I also have decided that I'll rest all serious gear change/purge plans for the time being because in all honesty, I simply don't have a single piece of gear that's not worthy of being used at this point - I feel it'd be frivolous to just sell things off to swap them for others. Case in point as of today: the Sony A6000 with the lens I literally bought it for, the Sigma 30mm f/1.4 Contemporary. I want to be able to use that lens on APS-C - and the A6000 is still an amazingly capable platform for that (until the lens is available for Nikon Z mount - at which point I'll swap mounts). I'm frankly no longer favouring incremental changes and want to stop trying things just for the sake of it - either I can really do away with something (i.e. really don't run the risk of re-buying it later), or I'll keep it until I have a clear "upgrade" path - which means that I can replace it with a Z mount solution. That's not to say I'll not sell stuff or replace. But I'm not actively looking for opportunities to do so (so, for instance, no Sony A7C for me - the A7 II basically does what I need, and the rest is again a case of Sigma coming through ...). I'm lucky there ... finally, the dust seems to want to settle ...
Okay, now for the counterpoint and the really, really sombre stuff: Switzerland has one of the most terrifying surges of Corona cases in the world right now - but our politicians still try to get away with the least severe measures they can possibly take. Our national bank made billions of Swiss francs of profits this year - yet they say we cannot afford another lockdown; instead, they urge people to wear masks and keep their distance. Which - they don't, at least not the ones I saw outside today. As a matter of fact, most of them didn't take enough - if any - precautions; they don't seem to understand the latest restrictions and regulations at all - they still seem to think that when you're outside, Corona basically ceases to exist. I carried a mask and kept my distance; in populated areas, I wore it. But I was the only one doing that ... and not even I was cautious enough at all times: I was once caught out by an elderly gentleman wanting to talk to me and stepping closer much too quickly for me to get ready in time; I retreated instead and told him to keep away because getting closer might be dangerous for him. He didn't seem to mind ... This makes me feel utterly despondent ...
I have (not: want!) to make a prediction here: We're facing hundreds of deaths a day within the next couple of weeks in Switzerland - and it'll go on like that for at least a month after we reach that stage; which means tens of thousands of victims. Countless other people will suffer, grieve and be traumatised. If this outlook were still capable of depressing me, I'd probably break down right here and now. But I've had to accept all this as inevitable by now, so all that's left to do is brace myself - and I'll have to continue work as long as we're obliged to, so I have to persevere anyway. I so hope I'll be proven wrong in this matter - but so far, all worst case scenarios I've had to contemplate have actually played out ... It's really, really scary - and it's very, very stupid because it wouldn't have been too hard to avoid. But now these thoughts are just academical: What we can't change, we have to face.
M.