The gift of a life well lived

Margret Messerer
During our time in Minnesota we had Margret and Don Messerer as next door neighbours. Don passed away in 2009. Don and Margaret are one of my heroes in life. Having a chance to share life with them, living in the same apartment building, was a gift to our family. Don had a life well lived – impacting probably thousands as he consistently worked and ministered all his life.


He had his share of difficulties. But I have observed that those that have a life well lived are not necessarily those that have few or no difficulties. On the contrary, it is those that press on, do not give up, and continue to do what is right that prevail and win the victory.
Unfortunately I do not have a good picture of Don, but above is a picture from 2007 where Margret Messerer is playing in the snow with our kids.

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Homecoming day

Homecoming day
Many churches have a homecoming day in the fall to encourage people to get back into the rhythm of congregational life. This picture is taken fall 2007 at Lutheran Church of the Master Minnesota. Autocord on Fuji 800 negative.

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Alan Bell

This post is the third in a series called “The Autocord Interview.”

Name: Alan Bell
Country: Canada
City: Toronto
Profession: Retired

How did you become interested in photography and why?
I was fascinated by the technology and wanted to involve myself in the creation of b&w photos.

How did you discover the Autocord?
I wanted a medium format camera and heard that the Autocord was a hidden gem. I love very sharp images and the Autocord was perfect for this.


Where did you buy your Autocord and for how much ($)?
I saw it on Ebay and bought it for $114 cdn. It was before people started to discover this camera.

What are some of your favorite features about the Autocord?
It is simple to use and small enough to take on trips, not so heavy. I also like that you shoot from waist level which brings an interesting view.

What has worked best for you in the process of developing and scanning film?
I shoot mostly b&w which I develop myself and scan for flickr or facebook.

Any future plans or dreams in photography?
No, just keep taking photos.

Any final word/comments?
I love my Autocord, you can see other cameras I have here.
All of these cameras are fully functional.

Autocord.com picked these favorite pictures from Alan:

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John at the beach

John at the beach

John at the beach

During our stay we appreciated all the different parks in Minnesota. We called this park the “fish park” because of a fish-like bridge that was part of the activity structure. Here is a picture that shows well the nice bokeh of the Autocord lense. Provia 100 film again.

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Exercise in close up

Exercise in close up

Exercise in close up

This is one of my first experiments using the Minolta Autocord close up lenses. Taken on a campground at the Grand Canyon north rim during our 2007 road trip. Provia 100 again.

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