Stretching iPhone 11's focal range beyond the camera's default setting

As most photographers know, a phone camera comes in very handy when you find yourself without your regular gear. And if you have a quality phone camera, which is what you have in the iPhone 11, it's also handy when you need a shot pronto ... and/or just don't feel like stopping to mess with preparing a camera, lens and settings.

I didn't have my gear with me yesterday when I took a stroll through Preston Ponds Park, a modest neighborhood green space in the Preston area of western Cary. The park has a pond equipped with a fountain and a habitat that includes turtles.

So I turned to the iPhone, and these are a few of the dozen or so shots I took during my visit. This time, I didn't see any turtles, so I just used the phone for a few landscape shots.

One of the 11's features is to allow you to stretch the focal range beyond the default parameters, which I've already used on quite a few occasions since getting the phone last month. The photos leading off the post and the one immediately below are good examples. I'm not sure I would have been able to fit the entire pond in a composition this close to the water even with my Canon 24-70mm.

The stone pathway along the pond (second photo below) is new since I was there last; the whole area you see in that photo had been simply mulch. The pond waters were so still, I grabbed several reflection shots (also below). Along the park's perimeter flanking Creek Park Drive are several holly bushes, and as the photos near the bottom depict, they were display some bright red berries.

'Tis the season ... for all things Christmas

If you've followed this blog in recent years, you know that I'll stop in stores during high-traffic holiday seasons to photograph interesting merchandise displays.

So it was today -- Christmas Eve -- when Lee Ann and I happened to stop at a Kohl's store near the heart of Fuquay-Varina, a community in far southern Wake County. We were there primarily looking for a solitary string of white/clear lights to replace a string that had ceased working on our tree (don't you hate when that  happens?).

As it happened, Kohl's didn't have light strings. But a Big Lots store next door did have some, and we made off with a relatively inexpensive box of lights for $2.50. The bulk of the lights are guaranteed to continue working if one of them burns out (I'm sure we'll find out in time how that goes!).

But Kohl's did have a photogenic variety of holiday or seasonal merchandise on display and for sale, such as the faceless angels shown in the image leading off the post or one or more of the stuffed animals shown in the image below. So I pulled out my iPhone 11 (I upgraded from 10 recently) and started firing away ... then decided to try and pull together a Christmas Day post about my shoot to possibly bring some cheer to those who might need some this season. (Note to readers: Many of these were already marked 50 to 60% off, so if you see anything you might like to add to your yuletide decor, you know where to look ... )

For those of you who've heard about the ever-improving quality of images you can get from the cameras in iPhone upgrades ...  I can vouch for the dramatic improvement of images taken with the 11 over the 10 -- especially in low light. I've already captured some remarkably lit shots in low, available light since I got the 11 over the Thanksgiving holiday.

In addition, the phone's auto-edit function is spot on about 90 percent of the time, and what's more ... the other image editing functions available in the phone offer a sharpening option. Pretty remarkable. I've not gone too crazy with that feature, mostly because the phone does a pretty decent job focusing at the point of shoot if the photographer knows how to select the primary focus point when capturing the image. All of the photos you see in this post were taken with the iPhone 11.

As always, to pull up a larger, sharper version of a photo, simply click on the image. This is particularly helpful when accessing the blog from a mobile device. And if you'd like to see the full gallery of images I took at the Kohl's store, click on the link in this display.

Merry Christmas, everyone ... and Happy Holidays!

A bright red yuletide bow (above) and examples of house furnishings (first two below) emblazoned with the word "Noel." 

Above and below: Two more vehicles, and this time, I don't think there is a practical use for them ... other than decoration. But Lee Ann wasn't around for me to check with at the time I took these pictures, so I could be very wrong about that. 

A tri-snowmen photo holding display (above) and a boot filled with a cute, but tired, puppy (below).

If the angle of the above snowmen pillow appears a tad artsy, it wasn't by design. It was situated on an upper shelf, requiring me to elevated the phone to capture the composition. Below, one of several aquamarine colored tree ornaments and decorations in a modest display. 

Above, a musical glass globe (not sure if it's a snow globe; I didn't explore that), and below, a basket of sundry pillows decorated in designs and colors for the season.

Above and first three below: Various hats with clever holiday-related quips.

The tri-snowmen tapestry above appeared to be a table place mat; the hand towel below, designed to appeal to the grandmothers willing to part with their money because it reminds them of the little ones. 

Above, a sign playfully alluding to the puppy in the house. Below, a narrow, all-red tree with same-colored ornaments.

Snowman-bedecked plates (above) and Santa and Mrs. Clause salt and pepper shakers (below). 

Celebrities such as Will Farrell (above) and the HGTV's Property Brothers, twins Drew and Jonathan Scott (below) showed up in the store. Farrell's was promoting "Elft" movie-related merchandise; the Scott brothers were sort of just isolated from everything, including the men's clothing, so I'm not sure what they were there for.

Above and below are products promoting the movie "A Christmas Story." 

There was a period in my later working years -- when I made a practice to dress up at the office -- where I began to "collect" and wear Christmas ties and wear them during December. I think I even had enough to wear a different one every work day in the month. That's what I thought of when I ran into these ties (above and first three images below). 

Above and below: Christmas season socks for men, presumably to use as stocking stuffers? 

I had to ask Lee Ann if the cars above had any functionality or were they just decoration. I was embarrassed not to have realized it when she told me they were decorative cookie jars/holders. Below, perhaps also as a stocking stuffer, are "sleep pants" (perhaps the euphemistic way of saying "pajamas" so men will be more included to wear them). 

Immanuel United C-C, Southside Indy

While I was in Indiana over the Thanksgiving holiday, I made a point to stop by a church I'd had my eye on to photograph for many years on my many drives up South East Street between Garfield Park and downtown Indianapolis.

Immanuel United Church of Christ, 402 Prospect Street, isn't architecturally spectacular by any means. But I've always found it architecturally interesting. I'm glad I could add it to my church collection. My one challenge was weather; just as I started to begin shooting, a light rain began to fall. I succeeded in making 10 pictures before the downpour became heavy, and I made a dash for the car.

The church is on a small parcel of land at the northwest corner of Prospect and East streets, just south of the I-70 interstate highway. The longest portion of the building fronts Prospect Street; it's the facade you see in the first photo below. The side you see in the very last photo of this post faces the parking lot on the east side of the property, along East Street.

As always, to view a larger, sharper version of a photo, simply click on the image. This is particularly helpful when accessing the blog while using a mobile device.