new content & posts


Photography: Nikon F Photomic FTn
Posted: June 2024
The Nikon F is the dinosaur of Nikon's professional F-camera series, a mechanical, all-manual SLR camera built for ultimate quality, performance and reliability in professional photography. The production of the Nikon F has ended in October 1973, but the letter "F" became an everlasting synonym for the king of press photography in the 1960's and 70's.

Travels: Beautiful Austria - touring our homeland
Posted: May 2024
For too long time we have ignored to tour our homeland and experience its gorgeous landscapes and sights waiting right in front of us, because anyway we could go and see it anytime. To arrange with restrictions during the Covid pandemic in the recent few years we've set out for getaways within Austria, to see regions we've never visited.

Travels: Gorgeous Sicily - a journey to a famed island
Posted: January 2023
It was about time for us to visit Sicily, which continues to seduce travellers with its diversity of impressive landscapes and cultural sights. Well, in late summer 2019 we finally made it happen and have spent our vacation on Sicily. On our return trip to Vienna we have brought with us wonderful memories of the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, as well as of pleasant people we've got to know on Sicily.

Reel 2 Reel: Updates and bug-fixes for the Reel 2 Reel 2006 © audio tape and record database
Posted: January 2023
The Reel 2 Reel 2006 © database has come into its years. Available for download since 2009 as a Microsoft © Access .accdb file version it can still be run with either the licensed Access 2007 and later versions including Access 2016, or with the free Access Runtime 2007 software and very probable also with later Access Runtime versions. A new database file "Reel to Reel 2006 V2007.accdb" is now available for download, which has received some improvements and bug-fixes. Except for some potential bug-fixes in the future, it is the final version of the Reel to Reel 2006 © database, no further upgrades for compatibility with future new Microsoft © Access versions will follow.

Travels: California Dreams - and a romantic Santa Barbara beach wedding
Posted: December 2018
After a few trips of our younger generation to California, it did not come as a surprise to us that Joanna and Michi were planning their wedding in the sunny Golden State. After Michi has asked for our blessings, as it is with all good Austrian men, his proposal was in the cards for quite some time . . .

Photography: New galleries and new photographs
Posted: March 2018
An update by new photo galleries with new pictures in a potpourri of Landscape, Street, People, Eat & Drink, Still Life, and photographs from Austria and Venice.

Travels: Puglia - Italy as we love it (2017)
Posted: December 2017
Summer in Puglia, in the very south of Italy. Busy days of sightseeing, relaxing leisure at the fabulous Masseria Palombara Resort, sun and sandy beaches and festivities in Oria - our program was diverse. We came to Puglia at exactly the right time to experience the Palio in Oria, a great medieval festival.

Travels: The ease of being - in the Alps (2016)
Posted: December 2016
Summer 2016 was something very special. We had a great time together with our lovely relatives from Texas, who visited us in our hometown Vienna. Busy days of sightseeing, barbecuing and relaxing evenings, going to the mountains, to real mountains in the Austrian Alps nearby Filzmoos at the Dachstein massiv, a flying visit to Hallein and Salzburg – the program was diverse and we had a lot of fun.

Travels: The taste of Italy - Umbria & Le Mache (2015)
Posted: October 2015
We have spent our summer vacation in Italy, to be more exact in Umbria and the Marches where tourism comes in smaller portions. At the Palazzetta del Vescovo, surrounded by farmland and vineyards, we could listen to the sounds of nature, and for another week enjoy the gorgeous coastline of the Riviera del Conero - fresh seafood guaranteed. We have let fade away our blissful holiday in the Romantikhotel Seefischer at Millstättersee in Carinthia - a marvellous place to relax in Austria.

Travels: Southern Styria - walk the wine roads (2014)
Posted: August 2014
We are back to Vienna from a short but very nice summer vacation in Southern Styria, one of Austria's most interesting provinces. Southern Styria is often compared to Italy's Tuscany for its characteristic landscapes, but to us it appeared unparalleled and absolutely unique. Southern Styria is a symbiosis of lovely people, gorgeous landscapes, slow food and excellent wine.

Travels: Lazy days in Venice
Posted: November 2013
It became a beloved habit of us to travel to Venice in autumn, remember our wedding anniversary and swap happy memories with each other. During our previous visits we always did these "things you must do". But this time we threw that overboard.

Travels: Italy - The sweetness of doing nothing (2013)
Posted: October 2013
By the time you read this, we are back in Vienna from a blissful two-week summer vacation in Alto Adige (South Tyrol) and the Ligurian coast in Italy. Our sore muscles are fit again, the tramping boots cleaned and stored in a cabinet waiting for the next walking tours. It was supposed to be lazy summer holidays, but our sturdy shoes run hot from hiking in the Dolomites.

Stargazing: Inside Milky Way (2012 - a logbook of beginners)
Posted: October 2012
Whether it is time, speed, distance or mass - cosmic dimensions are extremely vast and far beyond anything humankind may ever fully understand. It is so huge that we are unable to even vaguely imagine the universe in its entire magnitude. Amidst such huge dimensions of space mankind appears negligible and Earth like a mere particle that can disappear within the blink of a cosmic second. Relative to the universe as man believes to know it, Earth appears insignificant, and yet so precious as a lonely living planet.

Travels: Portugal - um jardim no atlântico (2012)
Posted: September 2012
We have spent this year's summer holiday in Portugal, Europe’s westernmost country. During a conversation in Lisbon someone has compared Portugal with a large garden on the Atlantic. This is probably the shortest possible portrayal of a country, but in respect of Portugal it is perfectly true. Portugal is among the most beautiful regions of Europe.

Travels: Italian Detour (2007)
Posted: March 2012
Initially posted in 2007, here is a new link to our "Italian Detour" webpage, which has got a new dress. It is about our journey in 2007 into the heart of Italy, which ended in Portonovo, a small village nestling at the seaside of Le Marche.

Travels: Absorbed in Venice
Posted: October 2011
One could write books about Venice, but to put into words how much we enjoy this wonderful place would be in vain. We let our photographs talk instead, photographs of "the other Venice".

Travels: Un viaje a Galicia
Posted: August 2011
Well, we did it again, travelling at the north coast of Spain during our summer holiday in August 2011. Only, this time we went a good way farther towards west, until we've reached the west coast of Galicia. Not only, but most of all the landscapes of Islas Cies were simply breathtaking, or as we used to say, painfully beautiful.

All pages are updated with the Radio Swiss Jazz webradio
Posted: May 2011
The music on Jazz.FM91 is excellent, but the listening experience turned out to be marred by too much talk, including an emphasis on making donations and advertising. Radio Swiss Jazz is vastly superior to this format, and does not require the Windows Media Player Firefox plugin respectively the Flip4Mac plugin on Macintosh computers. It simply plays with Adobe Flash Player, which can be found on almost any computer.

Travels: Venice - the city of romance
Posted: October 2010
Photographs from our weekend trip to Venice in October 2010. Venice, known as the city of romance, was the perfect place to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. Venice is our destination in October since then, as often we can.

Photography: Leica M9
Posted: September 2010
Not long time ago, when digital sensors set out to conquer the world of photography, I thought that M-Leicas will soon be part of history. However, things turned out quite differently, and in 2006 Leica introduced its professional, digital M8 rangefinder camera. Although in 2008 Leica's M8.2 tried to weed out some shortcomings of the M8, still some compromises remained. Only in 2009 Leica's superior digital M9 made it clear: Leica rangefinder cameras are back.

Travels: Impresiones de España
Posted: August 2010
Photographs from our journey in August 2010 along the green north coast of Spain from San Sebastian to Castañeras and back to Bilbao. Our route brought us to lonely bays embraced by steep coastlines, as well as to the impressive green mountains of Asturias. We've experienced the genuine way of life in various provinces and the variety of marvellous food of this part of Spain. The landscapes we've seen are magnificent, if not breathtaking.

Photography: Nikon F2A Photomic
Posted: June 2010
Legends never die. The F2 is one of the dinosaurs of Nikon's F camera series, which have substantially contributed to the success of professional Nikon cameras. The F2 is a high end product that evolved from the original Nikon F camera, it went on sale in 1970 and was produced until 1980. Like the Nikon F, the F2 was the only professional Nikon with purely mechanical shutter and most popular with professional photographers.

Photography: Nikon F3 HP
Posted: June 2010
In 1981 I came across the F3, Nikon's finest manual focus camera styled by the Italian designer Giorgetto Giugiaro. After several years with the Nikon F, it was simply an amazing experience to hold such modern, masterfully crafted camera body in my hands. It was clear from the very first moment that my Nikon F got to go in exchange of the F3.

Photography: Nikon F5
Posted: May 2010
Fourteen years after the F5 went on sale this highly versatile SLR camera didn't lose much of its fascination. "The new standard in professional photography" was Nikon's slogan in 1996. That wasn't an overstatement but a rather modest announcement of Nikon's new professional flagship of that time.

Photography: Nikon 35Ti Quartz Date
Posted: May 2010
The Nikon 35Ti is a rare camera, I have never seen it in the hands of others. Its look and finish is exclusive, and specifications are impressive. The 35Ti is built to uncompromising optical performance and at a quality hardly found in other compact cameras. It's a "she" ..., an eye-catching prima donna.

Photography: Nikon FM3A
Posted: April 2010
The Nikon FM3A belongs to that kind of cameras which inspire us to careful manual photography, it submits to the skills of the photographer. The Nikon FM3A is a star among these old-school cameras, probably the last of its kind. It is a camera against the Zeitgeist.

Photography: Leica M7
Posted: April 2010
Even as a true fan of professional Nikons I've always had an eye on Leica M cameras. Their simple, sturdy look and built quality gave me kind of a thrill every time I saw one in a shop window. The Leica M is a true legend, a statement of exceptional quality.

Photography: New b & w images in my gallery (general photography)
Posted: January 2010
I discovered some of the famous Agfa APX black & white films, and couldn't resist to buy. Developed in Agfa Rodinal developer, these two photographic products turned out to be a pretty good combination.

Photography: Prepare black & white negatives for the web
Posted: November 2009
Enlarging black & white film on photographic paper can be highly creative work. After taking photographs and developing the negatives, it is the completion of that kind of photography we consider our personal work of art, which can take an image to absolute perfection. But still, as fine and artistic our photographic prints may be, to make them seen by other people is quite another matter. Only few non-professional photographers have the privilege to exhibit their photographic prints in art galleries.

Photography: How about digital?    a safe method to get into a conflict ...
Posted: November 2009
Inventive talent and technological progress are major elements inherent in our western world's economical system and the only reason why we can use sophisticated equipment, whether it is a mechanic rangefinder camera or a digital SLR. Whether we like it or not, nothing will stop progress, neither our personal preferences, nor tedious discussions of analog vs. digital photography, which are doomed to fail in finding out which is the better, apples or banana.

Photography: Rollei Retro 400S panchromatic sensitized black & white film
Posted: October 2009
The Rollei Retro 400S is a panchromatic sensitized Black & White film material with a speed of ISO 400/27°. The film can be used as a general purpose photographic film suitable for all professional task. It has excellent sharpness and contrast, high edge sharpness as well as good tonal range, and is easy to scan. The only (small) problem to me was to find consistent, reliable technical information. To finish my long search for reliable development starting points of the Rollei Retro 400S, I decided to find out some practical results by testing this film with a simple trial and error method.

Photography: ... a lifetime passion
Posted: Summer 2009
I shoot slide and black & white film by preference since thirty years, using all the Kodachrome, Velvia, FP4 and Delta films, knowing that one roll gives me 36 shots only. Whether it is photographic or audio gear, I am attracted by the haptic of vintage apparatus of durable and lasting value. Taking photographs with such equipment is a defined culture using the creative endeavour beyond the mainstream of purely electronic cameras.

Travels: Summer in the City
Posted: August 2009
Some say, you always need a plan for your vacation. In summer this year, we had absolutely no plan. Spontaneously we decided to spend our summer vacation in the heat of the city, to be exact: in Munich, Bratislava and Zurich. Here are some notes about our zig-zag tour.

Reel 2 Reel: New database version - Reel 2 Reel 2006 V2007 !
Posted: January 2009
Finally I've made it. Besides of the versions for Access 97™, Access 2000™ and Access 2003™, Reel 2 Reel 2006 is now available in its latest version for Access 2007, which you can run with either the licensed Access 2007 software, or the free Access 2007 Runtime software. Access 2007 Runtime is free Microsoft software, a stripped Access 2007, that you can download from the Microsoft website free of charge without a license. Reel to Reel 2006 © for Access 2007 has the most advanced features among the various database versions, and future updates of the Reel to Reel 2006 © database will be made only in the Microsoft ® Access 2007™ file format.

Reel 2 Reel: The Studer A810 tape recorder explained in brief
Posted: November 2008
It was the year 1982 when Studer Revox has first presented the Studer A810 tape recorder. In this year Studer Revox has moved to its new administration and manufacturing facility in Regensdorf nearby Zürich, and the company Willi Studer was changed into the stock corporation Studer Revox AG. The Studer A810 was last built in the year 1989.

Travels: Capri, pearl of the mediterranean
Posted: September 2008
Capri - what a lovely name. Incredibly beautiful, chic and sometimes shockingly expensive; this is Capri, one of Italy's most fabulous resorts that has long been famed for its glamour and style. We think of the settings of glamorous films and novels, and lush greenness spotted by flowers on an island looming out of a turquoise sea.

Reel 2 Reel: Legendary Nagra... "it will record"
Posted: July 2008
If there is anything that can help to understand the fascination of tape recorders, it is the recorders made by Nagra Kudelski and StellaVox. Built for extreme ruggedness and reliability, but at the same time fine like mechanic swiss watches, these machines have set the standards of sound recording systems for motion picture productions.

Reel 2 Reel: Tape recorder maintenanc - an overview
Posted: July 2008
Due to their exceptional performance professional tape recorders are a match for the finest audio equipment available today, provided proper calibration and maintenance is made. It requires quite an effort to make them sound good. But once properly aligned and calibrated, they sound really good; actually incredibly good.

Reel 2 Reel: X for extended, R for resolution
Posted: June 2008
JVC's XRCD..., nothing completely new, but made much better. Today we almost can't remember that we had to turn our longplay records every 25 minutes, which sometimes determined our petting intervals, or the .......tack........tack.......tack...... crackle when the diamond stylus has reached the lock groove that told us "it's time to turn off and to go to bed".

Reel 2 Reel: If memory serves me right, it sounded better last time
Posted: June 2008
What to do, if your Studer Tape Recorder suffers from severe loss of memory? Reel to Reel tape recorders are precision equipment and require professional service by proper mechanical alignment and exact calibration of the audio parameters, otherwise a recorder will neither match the properties of the audio tape used, nor will it make or replay tapes to professional standards. The exceptional performance of precisely calibrated professional and even semi-professional tape recorders is a match for the finest audio equipment available today.

Reel 2 Reel: Sonic Perceptions - what to listen for?
Posted: January 2008
For many people who enjoy listening to music, their pleasure expresses in a kind of musical and emotionally moving experience. But how can we turn simple music listening to an emotionally moving experience? Buy the some of the most expensive high-end audio equipment and "Voodoo" cable connectors? Or buy an ultra-expensive CD Player, or both?

Travels: Italian Detour
Posted: August 2007
At long last, after many years, we've made up our plans to return to Portonovo, a unique and tiny beauty on a small peninsula at the Riviera del Conero. But what would be a journey to Italy without a detour to the Tuscany in the heart of Italy. The time was good as August 16th was near, the day of the 2nd Palio of this year, a spectacular horse race on Il Campo in Siena. It was a very good day.

Reel 2 Reel: Demagnetizing a tape recorder
Posted: March 2007
Many questions and opinions concerning maintenance of reel to reel tape recorders circulate in the Web. Although quite important, one of the least-documented topics is how to correctly de-magnetise the heads and the tape path of a reel to reel recorder. Here is what I think I know about.

Reel 2 Reel 2006: How does it work?
Posted: September 2006
Beginning with a simple database table with just one primary key field, which helped me to trace duplicates of recorded songs, I've ended up with a complex database application. Knowing about relational database concepts makes it much easier to work with database applications, helps to understand both, benefits and limitations.

Reel 2 Reel: What made me do the Reel 2 Reel 2006 database
Posted: August 2006
It all began when I have purchased a reel to reel tape recorder in autumn 2005. Somehow I got quite fascinated by these reels, that produce sound while they turn in a circle. Kind of magic. I just wanted to have it (looks cool...). But I had no idea of how much passion I would develop with time. It didn't take much time until I've started to develop a database application to keep control on my recordings.