This kahu (Australasian or Swamp Harrier; Circus approximans) flew off from its breakfast of road-killed rabbit after I'd turned the car around further up the No. 1 Line road and had slowly inched back down for a photograph.
Perhaps a photograph of something departing is appropriate, because I doubt I'll continue posting here on The Ruins of the Moment. Despite my irritation with Instagram, I have to admit it's more convenient, and, as far as I know, more people get to see my photographs there — and sharing the photographs so others can get a small insight into the world I'm so lucky to enjoy is, after all, the main reason for putting in the effort. To those of you who've followed me here over the years, and particularly those of you who've made the effort to comment, thank you. I deeply appreciate your support and encouragement.
You can find regular new photographs on my Instagram account, @pohanginapete, and my main and original blog, Pohanginapete, is still ticking over.
All content © 2018 Pete McGregor
That is one glorious image, Pete and a technically brilliant photo. A good one to sign off on this blog.
ReplyDeleteRegrettable though; another one goes to the instancy of Instagram and another one deserts the blogosphere. It must be a January thing, since I stopped my blog about this time last year for much the same reasons as you - no one was visiting. Although, as you see, I still comment on my special blogs (those who still write one). Salutary thing is that only two (you and "Tone Deaf") are the only ones since last January that have posted on.
I do not need(nor ever will) a "smartphone". I probably only use my mobile phone, which I reserve for emergencies when out and about, about once a month. However I do view family posts on Instagram on my PC/Laptop, neither of which allow me to post on Insta, although I can comment on others posts there. So I shall continue our "relationship by adding you to my Insta list and asking for your permission to "follow" you.
Avus, thanks for that very generous and thoughtful comment. I'll miss the commenting here, though. Instagram's not good for that; it encourages the quick-&-easy style of commenting. I do intend keeping the main Pohanginapete blog going, though, and I've always considered that more important than the photoblog.
ReplyDeleteIncidentally, it is possible to post to Instagram from a PC. It's a bit fiddly, but I find it much more satisfactory posting directly from the laptop rather than having to transfer the photographs to my phone to post them.
Kia Ora Pete...I too write this with a wistful feeling of melancholy. I often return here to look at photos in your "Ruahine library". And it is somewhat sad that the blogging hey day has virtually died on the vine. There were some real gems out there, and certainly yours is one. It inspired me to make my own effort and I still stubbornly carry on. Kia Ora e hoa.
ReplyDeleteRobb
Sad to see you leave this one..I'm not sure about Instagram,but with facebook it is not easy to browse the archive ..which it is on a blog.
ReplyDeleteKia ora Robb. Thanks for the kind words, and you're right about the gems — some are still going, but others, sadly, have gone. I wondered what would happen to my primary blog when I started this one, and I wonder now whether this one was partly responsible for the reduced frequency of posting on the main blog. Maybe the fact that Instagram is very poor as a means of sharing text might encourage me to post more on Pohanginapete. We'll see.
ReplyDeletegz, I agree entirely about facebook, which I detest but still use, and I agree that most blogs are fundamentally easier and more intuitive to navigate.
I have always enjoyed visiting you here Pete and love seeing glimpses of your world on these pages. I have mixed feelings about instagram ... useful for tiny windows into friends worlds who have never blogged, but lacks the substance and conversation that is more common in a blog.
ReplyDeleteThanks Leonie. You're right — Instagram does seem superficial compared to a proper blog. It does what its name suggests but nothing more.
ReplyDeleteI will miss you here. Your images are stories, the edges stretching out to infinity.
ReplyDeleteBut, I am also withdrawing from Blogistan, not intentionally, just working out that way.
Thank you, Zhoen, and I'll miss your consistent, thoughtful comments, which played a big part in keeping me going for as long as I did. I'm sad to hear you, too, are withdrawing, but as long as you're posting, I'll keep reading — and appreciating — it.
ReplyDeleteI will miss your beautiful photography very much. There have been times, especially these last few years, when your images of birds have reminded me our hearts and minds can still take wing and soar. Of course I will visit your other blog;). And though I know I’ve been rather AWOL I am not giving up on the blogging. All the best - and if I haven’t said it yet, Happy New Year!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Barbara. I've always appreciated your comments and have been struck by how consistently you've managed to put your finger on something I either hadn't noticed or had been unable to put into words. And Happy New Year to you also :-)
ReplyDeleteIt's been such a long time since I check in here. First I see this stunning photo, but then read the post and see that you won't be posting here anymore. I understand, but still it is so sad that blogging has fallen away to the immediacy of Facebook and instagram. I still keep up the blog Dharma Bums, and try to do two posts a week. I so prefer it to Facebook. I just love the old blogosphere. I'll look for you and your beautiful photos in other places. Take care, friend.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Robin. I'm beginning to wonder whether blogs might make a comeback, particularly now the justifiable resentment about facebook seems to be translating into a search for alternatives. Also, so much of facebook seems facile, and I'm sure I'm not alone in valuing blog content, which usually requires more thought and effort — often far more — and therefore is more likely to reward time spent reading.
ReplyDeleteHi Pete, I'm sorry I am so late to this story. As you noted, blogging just isn't what it used to be anymore, and so I don't visit the blogs that have held me entranced for so long. I've been rearranging my own blog, (and had to put in draconian security measures to put a stop to the unbelievable amount of malware, spamming, and hacking I was getting) but don't know if it is worth the effort. I prefer the book-like presence of a blog, and dislike the spotlight-like, dancing for the audience style of interaction with people that Facebook, Twitter, and especially Instagram represent. I'll work at the blog again to see how it does with people reading, but it will also mainly be a support blog for my writing, illustration, and field education business that I am in the midst of launching. Hopefully it will work out.
ReplyDeleteI will miss your posts here, but I am glad you are continuing Pohanginapete. And I still get to see your Instagram photos through Facebook, so it's not as if I stop seeing your photos. I would hate very much to lose touch with you!
Thanks for the years of beautiful and inspirational photography, and all the encouragement you and the photos gave me over that time!