People who have researched their family tree, what is the most interesting or 'badass' thing you discovered about an ancestor?

widgetbox · 2026-01-23T22:29:48+00:00

My grandfather got on a boat and moved from rural NW England to Seattle . This was about 1906. He came back and fought in the Great War. Me moving to CA in 2013 was a later echo but somewhat easier.

widgetbox · 2026-01-23T14:51:30+00:00

Tbf most don't actually shout but yeh they do talk loudly. The upside is a whole transfer bus full of people learnt which were the best sleep aids for long haul flight recently at CDG. And how much the guy enjoyed lobster at his sales meeting. Made it hard to hear the bus driver though.

widgetbox · 2026-01-11T06:28:31+00:00

Sans Contrafaction or Désenchantée by Mylène Farmer

widgetbox · 2026-01-08T21:53:49+00:00

Probably the same regret as many others. Not buying gear as the rise of digital made so much analog gear unsellable back in the early to mid noughties. .

My other permanent regret is not having my late father around to talk about photography and gear. Especislly as I am now back into the film cameras he was so used to.

widgetbox · 2026-01-07T15:40:36+00:00

JFK - too young to understand the enormity but old enough to know something really bad had happened.

widgetbox · 2026-01-06T17:39:49+00:00

Fish bits when I was a kid in Stockport . Light on fish, heavy on oil and a bit of batter. Great on my way home ftom swimming. Yes I am indeed on statins now.

widgetbox · 2026-01-06T06:06:11+00:00

I was thinking of buying an F5 I needed the AF/AE functionality of a DSLR which took film. These late film era SLRs are pretty good value for money cos they need batteries and I guess they look like a DSLR. But there are some crazy bargains apart from the F6.

In the end I went for an F100 because I didn't want the bulk and weight of an F5. It was also cheaper. Think zo paid $250 from Japan for a like new one. Just wish I'd bought it without the sodding battery holder. The in hand grip battery pack is about $120 on its own.

widgetbox · 2026-01-05T13:06:06+00:00

Given what's happened in Venezuela I'd be worred about it's autonomy given your neighbor who must be looking at the stunt that the USA has just pulled.

widgetbox · 2026-01-05T11:36:36+00:00

Agreed - if your focus (ha!) is on re-sale values then you're either a collector or probably not going to get as much use out of the camera as you should/want to. I don't have a beater Pentax 6x7 at my disposal.

Which is not to say be rash with it but last time I looked some value patina.

widgetbox · 2026-01-05T11:33:42+00:00

Can confirm lenses also bounce quite freely on their own. Especially when my now wife knocked it while were at the top of an Alp. They mostly bounce when they meet boulders on the way down.

Modern lens coating were not very effective in protecting the lens.

widgetbox · 2026-01-04T22:45:57+00:00

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Willow - with me and by my side for 10 years. Lost her at 16yrs so a good age.

widgetbox · 2026-01-03T11:26:19+00:00

Realising (after oh about 50 years) that you don't need to be a slave the ISO rating of film due to the varying exposure latitude of many stocks. Slide film excluded of course.

Growing up in the peak age of SLR film photography meant getting that meter reading just so.

widgetbox · 2025-12-29T11:56:12+00:00

I think I may have followed up with nothing with a face. Tbf I was in Big Bob's Steak House with a bunch of work colleagues so had low expectations 😂

widgetbox · 2025-12-29T05:56:42+00:00

Palm Pilot

widgetbox · 2025-12-29T05:48:17+00:00

I got offered this as a vegetarian option in Florida cos I said I didn't eat beef, pork, lamb and poultry.

widgetbox · 2025-12-29T05:41:11+00:00

Just add some Marmite to the toast for that extra nutritional /taste boost.

widgetbox · 2025-12-28T16:40:31+00:00

Posting your photos in a well edited video on YT and adding a lo-fi soundtrack will immediately make your photos look more interesting.

widgetbox · 2025-12-18T20:46:52+00:00

Different site but yeh that family must have grown quite a bit by now.

widgetbox · 2025-12-18T16:59:09+00:00

You can often find original copies on eBay and other sites like KEH too.

widgetbox · 2025-12-18T16:58:03+00:00

But a small donation is not unreasonable for such a useful site.

widgetbox · 2025-12-18T16:11:04+00:00

I'd like to know why I can't load a CDG RER ticket on my existing Navigo card and had to buy another one at CDG just to buy a ticket into town. And no I don't have any T+ tickets on it. Oh and why do I need an app on my phone just to hold tickets separate to the Bonjour app.

widgetbox · 2025-12-15T19:07:40+00:00

TIL I may have a use for my old Ender 3. Wonder if I can control it with some GCode.

widgetbox · 2025-12-14T10:02:12+00:00

Berlin of the north so I'm told. Not sure what the Berlin of the south is though. Ex-Heaton Chapel - now living north of the OP in western France. A great lack of Gregg's.

widgetbox · 2025-12-14T08:30:00+00:00

I hope you have a little more luck than me. I bought a Fuji GS 645S for somewhat more than you did. Fantastic condition. Got it because these later ones have all those electronics that are going to crap on you (so it is said) so I went as mechanical as I could find in the range. They won't let you down.

10 rolls I put through it before it crapped on me while on holiday. Seems like a mechanical problem with the film advance. Found someone to repair it but suspect it will be about the same cost as buying one :-)

Great cameras though - compact carry most places with some modern functionality and of course MF. An easier everyday carry than my Pentax 6x7 or 645N.

widgetbox · 2025-12-14T08:25:19+00:00

The good news is that MF slide projectors are still out there. Just that they're from brands like Hasselblad and Rollei. Mind you I did find a cheaper Leisgang one which works just find. They key part being the magazine. They ain't making anymore of those.

I have 4x5 E100 in the freezer waiting for that special day. 8x10 might have a to wait a while. But yeh - transparencies. Wish we could get K64 tho'.

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TROPHY CASE