NSA Sets up Instagram Account, @NSAToday

In a surprise announcement, the NSA announced on Thursday that they were setting up an Instagram account, @NSAToday. The idea is the brainchild of NSA intern Roger Winter, a recent graduate of American University. Winter is a DBA (DataBase Administrator) at the NSA and an avid amateur photographer.

With the fastest growing collection of photography in the world, Winter knew that the NSA was just sitting on a treasure trove of great photography.

Reuter's Jason Reed takes a stunning and I mean stunning photo of Ted Cruz

Photo of Ted Cruz taken by Jason Reed/Reuters

This photo simply stopped me in my tracks. I can imagine the situation-a scrum of reporters and photographers jostling around Ted Cruz. And in this madness, a lightbulb goes off in Jason Reed's head, and he gets this angle. Wow. Even the disembodied audio recorders and microphones - the way that they envelope Cruz - is just divine?

I first saw this in a Salon story. I've since discovered that they've used this photo more than once by Salon. And the Chicago Tribune. And the Wall Street Journal. And the New York Daily News. And Al Jazeera. And the Toronto Sun. And with good reason, it's fantastic.

Well done, Jason Reed!

This is what democracy looks like. New York General Assemblyat #OccupyWallStreet #OWS

This is what democracy looks like. New York General Assembly at #OccupyWallStreet #OWS, originally uploaded by john m flores.

There used to be a time when someone with a little bit of skill and a healthy dose of motivation could make a decent wage for themselves and their family. That was the middle class - the American Dream. That was this country's unique strength, and that's what carried us through two world wars and to the top of the global heap.

Over the last 40 years that dream has been dying a slow death. The chances of carving out a decent living has diminished with each generation, as we have ceded job after job and industry after industry to foreign competition. The very motivated and talented will still find a way to improve their lot in life. They always do, regardless of political structure or economic climate. But until we can make that formula work for a larger swath of Americans, I would say that our leaders - political and corporate - have failed us. Unless things change, we will be ceding our vaulted spot on the global stage within most of our lifetimes.

This is why I support #OccupyWallStreet #OWS

Move to Amend - Princeton Junction NJ

Move to Amend - Princeton Junction NJ, originally uploaded by john m flores.

Brought the GH2 to it's first indoor event, a political meeting at a local library. As with most places of this ilk, the lighting is mostly poor dim fluorescent and the room colors a mix of drab and more drab.

The night was spent at ISO1250 mostly and the GH2 was mated to the slow but image stabilized 14-140 kit lens. I also had the Metz 50 AF-1 flash for a short spell.

Overall, the results were meh. Ok, but nothing special. Some of it has to do with the setting - it would be hard to get anything real nice in this poorly lit monotone room. But if my memory serves me, the Pentax K-x has performed better in similarly drab situations - the extra ISO and the faster 2.8 glass probably helping a lot.

And the flash - still a work in progress. Not as "set and forget" as the Pentax is, which is kind of damning with faint praise.

I suspect that my results will improve with more experience and faster glass, but we may be bumping up against the limits of this camera a bit...