David Johnson K7DMJ
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thedavejohnson.bsky.social
David Johnson K7DMJ
@thedavejohnson.bsky.social
190 followers 370 following 170 posts
Australian-American mineral exploration geophysicist, living the dream in Saint-Vaast, Belgium and Alpine, Utah, USA.

My photos: https://www.flickr.com/people/93464106@N04/
My business: http://ziongeophysics.com
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thedavejohnson.bsky.social
David Johnson K7DMJ @thedavejohnson.bsky.social · Feb 8
Bathroom stall wisdom. Relevant to this 57 year old professional from an industry that shits the bed every four years or so. At some stage, many of us just need to make a fundamental change in our lives. What about you?
Graffiti: If everything in your life is going wrong, you might as well try the things you were afraid of. - Olia
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
It's pretty cool that, with this setup and a length of wire hanging out my upstairs window, I can chat with people all over Europe. No internet, no mobile phone.

#hamradio #amateurradio #vara #varac #preparedness #prepping #digitalmodes
December 3, 2025 at 12:04 PM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
My wife Natalie at Weissensee, Austria. The weather was dreary but we made the best of it.

Canon FTb with Kodak Gold 200 film.

#filmphotography #35mm #canon #analogphotography #colorfilm #kodak #shootfilm #filmisnotdead #believeinfilm #weissensee #austria
December 3, 2025 at 8:27 AM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
The church at Hochosterwitz Castle, Austria in October. The crop on this thumbnail isn't good - click on the image.

Canon FTb with Kodak Gold 200 film.

#filmphotography #35mm #canon #analogphotography #colorfilm #kodak #shootfilm #filmisnotdead #believeinfilm #hochosterwitzcastle #austria
A solitary person walking along a narrow gravel path toward an old stone church with a tall, pointed steeple. The path is bordered on one side by a high stone wall—part of a fortification—and on the other by trees and autumn foliage. The church is built from light-colored stone with a steep, shingled roof and a clock on the front façade.
December 2, 2025 at 2:07 PM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
One approach to pinhole photography is the one used by Ari Jaaski: use solid, sharp objects as your subject (he says this fools the observer into seeing a sharp image when pinhole is inherently fuzzy). This awesome photo represents the polar opposite approach. Brilliant.
December 1, 2025 at 7:38 PM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
WTF, Bluesky. I am trying to customize a feed to remove nudity (not that I particularly dislike nudity, but I don't want others to accidentally see it when I'm scrolling in public). I added the Remove block in SkyFeed, but I'm still seeing nudes. This is crap. Why isn't this implemented properly?
December 1, 2025 at 4:20 PM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
Natalie waited in the car while I ran down the road, snapped this photo of the Marterln then ran back in the rain. Raindrops on the lens give it a fuzzy look that somehow works.

Canon FTb with Kodak Gold

#analogphotography #filmphotography #canon #filmisnotdead #believeinfilm #shootfilm #colorfilm
Wayside shrine or Marterln beside a harvested field, with a farmhouse in the distance and cloud-covered mountains behind. Shot with a Canon FTb SLR that my Dad bought in 1978 on Kodak Gold 200 film.
December 1, 2025 at 10:16 AM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
One of my first attempts at capturing a nighttime scene on film. This is the Basilica of Saint Nicholas in Amsterdam, shot on Cinestill 800T with a Yashica MAT 124 medium format camera.

#filmphotography #analogphotography #yashicamat #120film #nightphotography #mediumformatfilm #film #amsterdam
Night scene. Old church with a rose window and two towers, flanked by houses, viewed across a canal, lit by street lights.
November 30, 2025 at 6:35 PM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
Images from my first roll of film shot with a pinhole camera.

I used a 6x9 format Reality So Subtle camera with Ilford HP5+

#pinhole #pinholecamera #pinholephotography #blackandwhite #120film #realitysosubtle
Gare de Mons Gare de Mons Lucy and the Butterflies Searching for Utopia, Citadel of Namur
November 30, 2025 at 8:43 AM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
Photos taken with my new-to-me 1950's Balda 120 format folder at St Pancras Station and my hotel room in Kensington. Despite the shitty lens with balsam separation, this thing takes decent photos. Does anyone have any experience with swapping out lens elements?
#Balda #mediumformat #photography
November 24, 2025 at 5:23 PM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
Just bought this Balda camera at a stall in the Portobello Road Market in London. Does anyone out there have experience with the Baldix 120 format model? The rangefinder calibration is out and the shutter doesn't work on slow speeds. Just shot a roll of HP5 so we'll see if anything comes out.
November 17, 2025 at 2:55 AM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
Nighttime photography in Amsterdam using a Yashica MAT 124 medium format camera loaded with Cinestill 800T film.
November 15, 2025 at 5:44 AM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
Bruges at night. Magical.
November 12, 2025 at 4:05 PM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
My FX-4C, which I'd used on many SOTA adventures, decided to suddenly die during the summer. Yu just sent me a replacement: brand new FX-4CR. Excited to try it out. Not many SOTA summits in Belgium, but I'll make do.

#hamradio #SOTA #summitsontheair #radio #FX-4CR
October 30, 2025 at 6:26 PM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
Spent the day in Ljubljana with my wife. Tonight we're meeting up with friends for pizza and going to the symphony. Tomorrow we start driving back to Belgium, stopping overnight in Salzburg. I spend a lot of my work hours in the field so being in civilization for a while is a bonus.
October 24, 2025 at 3:47 PM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
I really enjoyed my time in Amsterdam the weekend before last; wandering around, eating pancakes with my wife, visiting the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum, taking nighttime photos with a Yashica medium format camera. A bit tiring after flying back from our other home in the US. But worth it.
October 23, 2025 at 6:38 PM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
I've been in southern Austria this week with my wife, sightseeing and doing SOTA activations. I wonder if anyone following my posts cares about this. Probably not. I'm starting to feel that Bluesky is a little pointless. No real engagement. Probably my fault for not engaging more with others.
October 23, 2025 at 6:28 PM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
Antelope Island in the Great Salt Lake, Utah. Photos taken with a 120-format Yashica MAT 124 twin-lens reflex camera. The panorama is a three-frame composite.

Antelope Island is the best place to see the Great Salt Lake. Wild and rugged, with lots of wildlife, including a herd of introduced bison.
September 27, 2025 at 10:44 PM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
Barrel racing at the Alpine Days 2025 Rodeo
September 10, 2025 at 3:24 AM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
Alpine Days 2025 Rodeo in Alpine UT. Shot with Dad's old Canon FTb 35mm camera on Ilford Delta 3200.
September 10, 2025 at 3:21 AM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
Yesterday I hiked 4 miles up the canyon near my house in Utah, climbing about 3,400 ft in elevation until I was in alpine meadows on sunset. Hiked home in the dark by the light of a headlamp. Took some shots with my wife's old Canon DSLR.

#utah #photography #mountains #sunset #Canon #EOS #DSLR
Mountain scenery with waterfall in the foreground. Some of the trees are showing autumn colors. A grove of conifers is next to the falls. The top of the mountain is bare and rocky. Half moon in a dark sky seen above shadows of pine trees on a steep mountainside. Mountain in the background. Aspen and fir trees lit by the setting sun surround an alpine meadow in the foreground. Sunset shadows of mountain ranges in the haze. The foothills are dark and the ranges fade into the haze with increasing distance. An alpine meadow is in the foreground, lit by the setting sun.
September 3, 2025 at 2:56 AM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
The main street of Eureka UT. Shot with a Yashica MAT 124 medium format camera. The City Hall, combined with the Sheriff's Office and Fire Department illustrates small government in 1899. The old Levis ad harkens back to the days when the brand was all about workwear.
August 23, 2025 at 4:47 AM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
Back on Antelope Island today, shooting some monochrome landscape photos with my Yashica MAT 124, and I drove past this big boy. I need to go back with a decent telephoto lens for my Canon FTb and take more wildlife photos.
August 18, 2025 at 1:11 AM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
Bison herd on Antelope Island UT shot with my Dad's old Canon FTb. I was disappointed by these photos. In some cases, it looks like I messed up my focus, but in general the level of clarity isn't great. I don't think the off-brand reflex lens helped. Nor did shooting F/8 aperture at these distances.
bison standing in long grass with six birds perched on his back Canon FTb with Kodak Portra 160. 500mm F/8 reflex lens 1/250" three bison lying down, one standing guard, looking into the camera Canon FTb 35mm camera with Kodak Portra 160. 500mm F/8 reflex lens 1/500" bison walking across the frame, stirring up dust and birds Canon FTb with Kodak Portra 160. 500mm F/8 reflex lens with 1/500" young bison bull standing in the long grass, looking off into the distance away from the camera Canon FTb with Kodak Portra 160.
August 15, 2025 at 3:46 AM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
I went back to Eureka UT to take more photos of the old headframe and winder building with my Yashica MAT 124. This time, I used Kodak TMAX 100 film and an orange filter.

My indoor shots could use some help. Overall, I'm happy.

#Utah #mining #Eureka #photography #blackandwhite #Yashica
Wooden mining head frame against a sky with light clouds. Yashica MAT 124 camera with Kodak TMAX 100 film. Orange filter, f11, 1/125" Large pulley wheels and pipes in a ruined building with part of the roof gone and the wooded mountainside and sky visible. Yashica MAT 124 camera with Kodak TMAX 100 film. Orange filter, f11, 1/15". Lots of editing in Lightroom to bring down the exposure of the hole in the roof. Rusty pipes and machinery in a ruined building with holes in the roof. Yashica MAT 124 camera with Kodak TMAX 100 film. Orange filter, f5.6, 1/15" Winder mechanism. Large steel pulleys and a drum of heavy cable inside a ruined building. Yashica MAT 124 camera and Kodak TMAX 100 film. Orange filter, f8, 1/4". This one was really tough without a flash. Massive contrast.
August 12, 2025 at 11:37 PM
thedavejohnson.bsky.social
Wildflowers along the trail to Catherine Pass from the Alta ski area, Utah.

I shot this with the Yashica camera my wife bought at a garage sale years ago as an ornament. It works great. I need to work on my selection of exposure settings.

#Utah #photography #Yashica #KodakPortra #wildflowers
Shaded meadow with yellow wildflowers. A sunlit mountain ridge is in the background. Yashica MAT 124 with Kodak Portra 160, f/11, 1/500 sec
August 5, 2025 at 3:51 AM