- Never Stop Dreaming -
Finally after the long wait it's finally over...or is it just the beginning? I was in Tokyo over the weekend after trailing some charts resembling economic supply and demand representations here in Nagano for over a month. Met up with another fellow SGrean in Tokyo, A, another avid photographer. A was amazing laid back, suave and blended into the Japanese community just like me...but deep in our hearts, we are still very much the Kampung Kids from back home craving for the occasional Laksa and Mee Siam.
The temperature and humidity in Tokyo was relatively similiar to that in SG and despite me coming down from Nagano (dressed to kill), I soon found myself at the mercy of the intense heat. I was literally melting as the scorching heat zapped me of my life-sustaining fluids. To preserve my egoistic image in Tokyo, I disrobed my Jacket only to lost the Iphone I found 6 months earlier, !"#$%&'! Found it and lost it...guess like I am not fated to be with it. Walked around with A following my crumpled map with faded colors printed from a not so decent printer. Kinda reminded me of those SAF topo days...2 of the locations were stripped of the gem I was desperately seeking. I had brought hard cold cash...20 odd pieces of freshly scented Japanese bank notes with no crases ready to spurge them. Finally after sweating so badly, A and I made it to the 3rd and last location which I had mapped. 2 pieces left and I was unable to do a physical check.
Counted those 20 odd pieces of bank notes and handly them reluctantly to the shopkeeper in exchange for a white glossy box in a brown paper bag. A bit relieved since my main motive for this trip down to Tokyo was fulfilled. The nearby Mac at Akiba was the obvious choice for a well deserved break where I unboxed the gem and tested it out. Had brought along a 35L to do the test because of the shallow 1.4 depth of focus (think creamy buttery smooth blurred background with the subject in crispy clear focus!). The shutter count read 0 which of course meant it was brand new and not tested (I presumed). Vid went smooth, pictures were sweet and the sound of the mirror flipping was a little more beautiful than my old one. After the initial checks, I went to Akiba to grab some nice P.L.D filters before parting ways with A who had to attend to personal biz. Anyway a really BIG thanks to A who accompanied me thru this sweaty ordeal.
A mixture of anxiety and dispair filled me as I made my way to Harajuku to meet M, my model from Kyoto. Chilled out for a while at a sweet cafe in Harajuku before heading to Shibuya for my dinner alone since M had a dinner date with her family. Aldgate, which I found thru the net was where I wanted to go for my dinner since I have been craving for decent Fish and Chips. Besides Aldgate was a British Pub with a rather rustic medieval setting. The Fish and Chips were not as fantastic as what the net had described but the British Ale, (Aldgate's Ale) was amazing. Along the years my alcoholic escapades had led me to salivate over a pint of Old Irish or British Ale and this place surely didn't disappont. Kilkenny(s) were superb and my all time favorite but still nothing beats a local British Ale. Too bad such an exquisite taste is not a fad for 1 huge hairy beast of the forest, the Mighty but Tiny Bear...Haha! :p
Since I was alone, drinking alone in a pub would be one of the last thing I want to do. Went over to another table of 3 Japanese girls to join them for a drink since everywhere else were either non-Japanese or Japanese guys. Was really really really taken by surprise to discover that one of the girls was actually the daughter of a Japanese teacher in the next town from mine in Nagano where my friend, another foreigner, taught! What a coincidence...brats! Came some 246km from Nagano to Tokyo and only to find another fellow country bump like meself...how hilarious!
After that, I kinda wanted to do some partying to re-discover my dancing roots but in the end, I skipped that since my funds were slowly being depleted and I had to start getting aquainted with my new TOY!. Well, initially I had planned to party thru the nite to conserve funds but the amount of dirt that I had built up after all that unpleasant sweating experience in the day was just intolerable. All I want now is a nice comfy bed and a shower. Had a confirmation with C that I was granted permission to crash at her place and I knew God had heard my thoughts eventhough I didn't pray. So grateful to C for lending me a shelter for the night for free so I obliged to her request for watching a DVD with her. Her choice was Batman The Dark Knight. At her place, before the movie began, I was testing out my uber expensive TOY for dead pixels on my Mac...thank God there were none visible (Maybe I was testing it wrongly...not sure). Played around a bit more with the 35L 1.4 at movie settings before sealing it back in the bubble wrap. Then the movie began and I snoozed 3/4 towards the end till the morning. While in my little dreamland, I could vividly hear C calling me to wake up and watch it as the plot got deeper. Her disturbance got no further...Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
Woke up in the morning covered in sweat...dang! Took a fast shower and conveyed my gratitude to C who was still in her zombie sleep before taking off. Boarded the 12.30 bus and continued to snooze till I hit Nagano and then my humble mountain shack. Popped in the battery and it was here where the epical journey of the Canon 5D Mk 2 begins....
Showing posts with label Tokyo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tokyo. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Friday, May 8, 2009
The Ultimate Otakus' Obsession
- Never Stop Dreaming -
Today...another gloomy raining morning that greeted me when I woke up. Great...a straight 7 rainy days to ease the incoming heat and the day will go by lazy and lethargic. No lessons on the schedule today so I will just go to "work" and do some productive online "work" and get paid at the end of the month.
So with the new Dynasty Warrior Strike Force in my PSP, I can't help but want to play game all day long. Hmmm that wasn't suppose to be here. Ok ok...Mum and Dad just flew off late last night to Europe and I really hope they enjoy themselves since this is the first time they are putting their SG foot all the way across the continents. Me...I only want them to be happy and come back with lots of pictures because I will be going to Nara in 2 weeks time and then back to SG in the 3Q and then to Canada in Dec. That all aside...
Found a 2 month old news online to share in case you didn't know about it, The Ultimate Otakus' Obsession (TUOO). While there is all the hype about the not-so-new X-men movie, Spiderman 4 and Transformers 2, I am going to isolate Superheroes and talk a bit about robots here. While we, (yes that's including me the OTAKU as well) grew up on a healthy dosage of futuristic mechas from planes and vehicles to robots, from Gundams to Valkyries, from various weird polygonal and menacing looking heaps and chunks of metal from the future, those were just what we or the creators wanted to imagine. These were uber cool with lasers and beams, missiles and boosters and wreaking havoc everywhere. That can't be reality for Man's sake so the more subtle side of us brought out Aibo the cute Sony Dog and Nismo the Honda robot. Yes these were indeed very real robots in real life but they all lack a single element...that is to be the very least bit Human like we are all so used to.
Then sometime back in March 2009, the Japanese "Einstien(s)" at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology threw out a new level of robotics. Enter HRP-4C, a realistic Japanese Girl Fashion Robot with an ass plate carved out from a used StormTrooper costume (Yeah right!). Digg the pics below but if you can shelved out at least USD$200,000, this babe ain't coming anywhere near your home. I do hope they have online firmware updates to make her do the chores...
Today...another gloomy raining morning that greeted me when I woke up. Great...a straight 7 rainy days to ease the incoming heat and the day will go by lazy and lethargic. No lessons on the schedule today so I will just go to "work" and do some productive online "work" and get paid at the end of the month.
So with the new Dynasty Warrior Strike Force in my PSP, I can't help but want to play game all day long. Hmmm that wasn't suppose to be here. Ok ok...Mum and Dad just flew off late last night to Europe and I really hope they enjoy themselves since this is the first time they are putting their SG foot all the way across the continents. Me...I only want them to be happy and come back with lots of pictures because I will be going to Nara in 2 weeks time and then back to SG in the 3Q and then to Canada in Dec. That all aside...
Found a 2 month old news online to share in case you didn't know about it, The Ultimate Otakus' Obsession (TUOO). While there is all the hype about the not-so-new X-men movie, Spiderman 4 and Transformers 2, I am going to isolate Superheroes and talk a bit about robots here. While we, (yes that's including me the OTAKU as well) grew up on a healthy dosage of futuristic mechas from planes and vehicles to robots, from Gundams to Valkyries, from various weird polygonal and menacing looking heaps and chunks of metal from the future, those were just what we or the creators wanted to imagine. These were uber cool with lasers and beams, missiles and boosters and wreaking havoc everywhere. That can't be reality for Man's sake so the more subtle side of us brought out Aibo the cute Sony Dog and Nismo the Honda robot. Yes these were indeed very real robots in real life but they all lack a single element...that is to be the very least bit Human like we are all so used to.
Then sometime back in March 2009, the Japanese "Einstien(s)" at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology threw out a new level of robotics. Enter HRP-4C, a realistic Japanese Girl Fashion Robot with an ass plate carved out from a used StormTrooper costume (Yeah right!). Digg the pics below but if you can shelved out at least USD$200,000, this babe ain't coming anywhere near your home. I do hope they have online firmware updates to make her do the chores...
Friday, April 17, 2009
The not-so-recent gossips
- Never Stop Dreaming -
Seems like I am still in the midst of post-processing my Kyoto pics and although I have not uploaded any of them here until I complete the entire series, the priliveged few from my stagnant friends' list in Facebook were treated to some of the finished ones. Yep and I have to be snobbish to admit that those worthy to be someone whom I know personally than merely a face that I can hardly remember will be showered with nothing less than what they deserve. Ok ok that aside, here is one recent event that I would like to share some thoughts on.
The Noriko Calderon Saga.
As the recent spate of news dying down from economic crisis and job layoffs from Japan, one seems to be the talk of the town recently. Lots of info on the net if you do a Google on it but in any case you just stepped out of your 1000 year old cave meditation, let me summarize it for you.
Noriko is a 13 year old junior high school student whose parents had entered Japan illegally sometime back. Because she was born in Japan, the Japanese government was lenient enuff to let her and her family stay since then so that she can continue her education. Since her parents were recently deported back to Philippines for various reasons, this whole saga have stirred up quite a storm in Japan. While the whole saga have sort of launched a following of both left wing hardcore Japanese who wants the entire family and the daughter out of the country, the other soft hearted and symphathetic Japanese seems to be supportive of them. Though I am not as harsh as the left wing Japanese, I am clearly leaning to the side of the Japanese government for going down stern on this issue and deporting The Calderons. The way I see it is that The Calderon have mistakenly taken the Japanese government's kindness for allowing them to stay for the sake of their daughter for granted and to the extent that justifies the non-existent of their illegal entry years back. Though The Calderons have a on going legal battle, I am simply not impressed.
The following factors have left me wondering...
When the government granted them permission to stay initially, they would have already know that someday they would still have to leave. Why have people failed to see the ugly side of greed to this whole issue? Totally baffles me...And then to exploit the kind nature of the Japanese spirit to lash back at the government for meing merciful...how ironical. If the Japanese government allows them to stay on then the signal to the world would probably mis-interpreted. "Come to Japan by any means legal or illegal, drop a kid and hey presto! You can skip all the tedious paper work that all other foreigners have to go thtu and instantly you are granted permission to stay." Sounds good I say but hell like it's gonna happen...even Noriko herself chose to stay here and abandon her parents so I say save the weeping drama mama saga stage plays. While various articles across the net have been leaning towards human affections and show supportive signals to The Calderons, I am one who will not yield simply because I believe that laws are inplaced because human in general cannot co-exist together with anything and that leniency should never be mistaken as forgiven.
I leave you to make your own judgement on this...
Next is a product update that I would like to share. Casio have recently (Mar 2009) released a Prestige Line Protrek watch dubbed Manaslu (PRX-2000T-7JF). Not sure if it's available outside Japan but the MSRP is ￥99,750 inclusive of tax. Click here for the official page.
If you have been following the Casio Protrek line of watches, this new model might be worth checking out. Protrek is the designation here in Japan or Pathfinder where the rest of the world knows it are a line of outdoor watches from Casio that have a few nifty tricks tucked beneath the menacing looking shell. Unlike G-Shock watches, these outdoor watches have digital compasses, barometers, graphs, altimeters, temperature indicators, moon phase, tides and are capable of receiving atomic calibration every night depending on where you are. That way the watch will always be telling the exact time with no excuses from a drained battery. Kinda suitable for the outdoor enthusiasts or techie geek but no vaporizing evil red lasers at the moment.
The initial line of watches were pretty big and sports weird 70s orange and blue color schemes. Until the titanium black series came out not too long ago for the discreet non-attention grabbing stealth profile. The older line have a dual lcd screen so that the blue digital compass can float above the normal display which makes them slightly thick and tough looking. The newer 1300 series have dropped the floating blue digital compass which I loved and replaced it with little dot indicators thus making the watch really thin. Somehow the latest 1500 series comes packed with even more features while retaining the thin profile but gaining a couple of pounds on the width. So this just release prestige model brings back the good old spinning blue compass indicator while retain the thin profile. Too bad it's still in silver and hopefully the all black titanium one will be launch not too long into the future.
Seems like I am still in the midst of post-processing my Kyoto pics and although I have not uploaded any of them here until I complete the entire series, the priliveged few from my stagnant friends' list in Facebook were treated to some of the finished ones. Yep and I have to be snobbish to admit that those worthy to be someone whom I know personally than merely a face that I can hardly remember will be showered with nothing less than what they deserve. Ok ok that aside, here is one recent event that I would like to share some thoughts on.
The Noriko Calderon Saga.
As the recent spate of news dying down from economic crisis and job layoffs from Japan, one seems to be the talk of the town recently. Lots of info on the net if you do a Google on it but in any case you just stepped out of your 1000 year old cave meditation, let me summarize it for you.
Noriko is a 13 year old junior high school student whose parents had entered Japan illegally sometime back. Because she was born in Japan, the Japanese government was lenient enuff to let her and her family stay since then so that she can continue her education. Since her parents were recently deported back to Philippines for various reasons, this whole saga have stirred up quite a storm in Japan. While the whole saga have sort of launched a following of both left wing hardcore Japanese who wants the entire family and the daughter out of the country, the other soft hearted and symphathetic Japanese seems to be supportive of them. Though I am not as harsh as the left wing Japanese, I am clearly leaning to the side of the Japanese government for going down stern on this issue and deporting The Calderons. The way I see it is that The Calderon have mistakenly taken the Japanese government's kindness for allowing them to stay for the sake of their daughter for granted and to the extent that justifies the non-existent of their illegal entry years back. Though The Calderons have a on going legal battle, I am simply not impressed.
The following factors have left me wondering...
When the government granted them permission to stay initially, they would have already know that someday they would still have to leave. Why have people failed to see the ugly side of greed to this whole issue? Totally baffles me...And then to exploit the kind nature of the Japanese spirit to lash back at the government for meing merciful...how ironical. If the Japanese government allows them to stay on then the signal to the world would probably mis-interpreted. "Come to Japan by any means legal or illegal, drop a kid and hey presto! You can skip all the tedious paper work that all other foreigners have to go thtu and instantly you are granted permission to stay." Sounds good I say but hell like it's gonna happen...even Noriko herself chose to stay here and abandon her parents so I say save the weeping drama mama saga stage plays. While various articles across the net have been leaning towards human affections and show supportive signals to The Calderons, I am one who will not yield simply because I believe that laws are inplaced because human in general cannot co-exist together with anything and that leniency should never be mistaken as forgiven.
I leave you to make your own judgement on this...
Next is a product update that I would like to share. Casio have recently (Mar 2009) released a Prestige Line Protrek watch dubbed Manaslu (PRX-2000T-7JF). Not sure if it's available outside Japan but the MSRP is ￥99,750 inclusive of tax. Click here for the official page.
If you have been following the Casio Protrek line of watches, this new model might be worth checking out. Protrek is the designation here in Japan or Pathfinder where the rest of the world knows it are a line of outdoor watches from Casio that have a few nifty tricks tucked beneath the menacing looking shell. Unlike G-Shock watches, these outdoor watches have digital compasses, barometers, graphs, altimeters, temperature indicators, moon phase, tides and are capable of receiving atomic calibration every night depending on where you are. That way the watch will always be telling the exact time with no excuses from a drained battery. Kinda suitable for the outdoor enthusiasts or techie geek but no vaporizing evil red lasers at the moment.
The initial line of watches were pretty big and sports weird 70s orange and blue color schemes. Until the titanium black series came out not too long ago for the discreet non-attention grabbing stealth profile. The older line have a dual lcd screen so that the blue digital compass can float above the normal display which makes them slightly thick and tough looking. The newer 1300 series have dropped the floating blue digital compass which I loved and replaced it with little dot indicators thus making the watch really thin. Somehow the latest 1500 series comes packed with even more features while retaining the thin profile but gaining a couple of pounds on the width. So this just release prestige model brings back the good old spinning blue compass indicator while retain the thin profile. Too bad it's still in silver and hopefully the all black titanium one will be launch not too long into the future.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Some other random pictures of 2009
- Never Stop Dreaming -
"Beer"
"Slave"
"Corona"
"Memories"
"Denial"
And with a Zippo, some Jim Beam Black, a Kangol hat and brandless slippers, I found myself sitting in front of a awesome EF35L mounted on a KDX resting on top of a silver tripod.
"Beer"
"Slave"
"Corona"
"Memories"
"Denial"
And with a Zippo, some Jim Beam Black, a Kangol hat and brandless slippers, I found myself sitting in front of a awesome EF35L mounted on a KDX resting on top of a silver tripod.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Nothing much just some personal updates.
- Never Stop Dreaming -
So after welcoming 2009 in a not so traditional partying way, after buying expensive toys, after meeting up with cousin Denis and Li Fern, after meeting old friends in Tokyo and adding new faces on Facebook, I am left wondering what's next. Because exactly 10 days after the New Year comes a day where nearly a decade and a half back, I taste Oxygen for the very first time. Now it's more like reminding myself that I am racing against Time to do everything necessary in those given constraints. Some really kind friends even reminded me that with each year celebrated, I am 1 step closer to my own grave...how sweet. Then of course I did receive a rather sweet long distance phone call conveying me the well wishes and the numerous other 2 dimensional ones I got on Facebook. Not forgetting the one and only special email well wishes coming for a small bear...Miss ya and my really awesome brother, Law who sent in a sms from Seoul.
Prior to this, I had already expected 10 and 11 Jan to be a rather hectic because of the schedule I planned for myself. On 10 Jan there is a 成人式 (Seijin Shiki), "Coming of Age Day" held in 軽井沢(Karuizawa) and on 11, in 上田(Ueda). Once a year this special event is held in January on different dates in different cities where youth who are of 20 years of age will be invited to attend some sort of ceremony. The main attraction of this event is that all the young ladies will don the 振袖（Furisode) which is equivalent to the 着物(Kimono) except that the Furisode have really long sleeves and is probably only worn to mark this event. Usually the long sleeves of this particular type of Japanese garments denotes an unmarried lady while a Kimono with short sleeves denotes a married woman. The assortment of colors and designs, the faux fur collar trimmings, etc makes it a great photographic journey to embark on. I had wanted to witness this event first hand and also to capture some frames for upkeeing sake so after waiting for almost 27 to 28 years, now was my chance. It's really an eye opener to see how these young girls who will take this right of passage to enter adulthood FORMALLY (because you can choose to not attend the event). Some of the really touching moments were lost due to my slow reflexes in preserving them in frames. Moments like how the parents open the car doors, put the zori slippers for their daughters who will then emerge from the car in their most delicate and gracious manner to slip their feet into the slippers. The scene kinda reminded me of ladies getting married off.
Alrite that aside, after 2 days of the event which usually spans like 2 hours or less, I had fired almost 290 shots in RAW. Much to my surprise, most shots on the second event in Ueda were horendously plagued with bad focusing. I was totally distraught by this set back because I failed to utilise the amazing lens in my hand. Begin still new and adapting to the sheer capabilities of this power lens was no excuse for me to commit such errors. I am unforgiving to myself because I have to work extra hard the next time round. So next will come the post processing which might take a little while.
As for my birthday on 11 Jan, there wasn't really anyone in particular I had wanted to celebrate my birthday with because the usual partying and booze intoxicating scenarios were long left behind in Singapore. In the end, it was just Haruka and her boyfriend, Miguel whom both I met for the first time a day prior in Karuizawa at the Seijin Shiki that graced my little birthday party. So much for living the lonely photographer's life...tsk tsk tsk.
Monday was a public holiday to commemorate the actual Seijin Shiki but I was too tired to do anything so I stayed home and looked thru the photos. Emi, Robin and Andrew who were with me on the Seijin event in Ueda on 11 Jan went ice skating on Monday and from the pictures uploaded on their facebook, it really brings back memories of those ice skating years in Singapore when I was like 14 and 15...geez I have to really stop reminding myself how age had caught up with me. Then on Tuesday, I took leave to go take my driving test to convert my Singapore 10 year licence to the Japanese one. It was snowing and really beautiful but in the end I failed the 10 minute practical test. I had already expected it because it was quite unlikely that anyone could have made it on the first attempt because going back to the basic was one thing but driving RIDICULOUSLY was the main reason I failed. The Japanese made the test to NOT test one's driving capabilities but rather to test how well one follow rules. Well, I didn't really take it to heart because the next schedule date was set on Jan 28 which hopefully I will make this time round.
With almost every single ￥ of my Dec salary gone thanks to the new toy, Tokyo trips, etc. I am forced to eat into my reserves for the snowboarding trip this weekend because I had promised a friend that we would go boarding together. Then before the Jan's salary is being released, I am going down to Osaka for the Singaporean CNY getogether which will whisk of another chunk of my reserves. Dang...must save must save must save but each day I am still looking for camera parts, lens, flashes, tripods, diffusers, reflectors, second cars, toys, etc.
All I need is a little more love in my life so hopefully I can control my expenses because more time is needed to appease a particular someone so less time is spent on shopping spree but where in the hell is that someone I am asking. Hope that God would be shining some light on the love aspect of my life because quite simply, THAT is the one thing that I am missing out now and I need it bad.
So after welcoming 2009 in a not so traditional partying way, after buying expensive toys, after meeting up with cousin Denis and Li Fern, after meeting old friends in Tokyo and adding new faces on Facebook, I am left wondering what's next. Because exactly 10 days after the New Year comes a day where nearly a decade and a half back, I taste Oxygen for the very first time. Now it's more like reminding myself that I am racing against Time to do everything necessary in those given constraints. Some really kind friends even reminded me that with each year celebrated, I am 1 step closer to my own grave...how sweet. Then of course I did receive a rather sweet long distance phone call conveying me the well wishes and the numerous other 2 dimensional ones I got on Facebook. Not forgetting the one and only special email well wishes coming for a small bear...Miss ya and my really awesome brother, Law who sent in a sms from Seoul.
Prior to this, I had already expected 10 and 11 Jan to be a rather hectic because of the schedule I planned for myself. On 10 Jan there is a 成人式 (Seijin Shiki), "Coming of Age Day" held in 軽井沢(Karuizawa) and on 11, in 上田(Ueda). Once a year this special event is held in January on different dates in different cities where youth who are of 20 years of age will be invited to attend some sort of ceremony. The main attraction of this event is that all the young ladies will don the 振袖（Furisode) which is equivalent to the 着物(Kimono) except that the Furisode have really long sleeves and is probably only worn to mark this event. Usually the long sleeves of this particular type of Japanese garments denotes an unmarried lady while a Kimono with short sleeves denotes a married woman. The assortment of colors and designs, the faux fur collar trimmings, etc makes it a great photographic journey to embark on. I had wanted to witness this event first hand and also to capture some frames for upkeeing sake so after waiting for almost 27 to 28 years, now was my chance. It's really an eye opener to see how these young girls who will take this right of passage to enter adulthood FORMALLY (because you can choose to not attend the event). Some of the really touching moments were lost due to my slow reflexes in preserving them in frames. Moments like how the parents open the car doors, put the zori slippers for their daughters who will then emerge from the car in their most delicate and gracious manner to slip their feet into the slippers. The scene kinda reminded me of ladies getting married off.
Alrite that aside, after 2 days of the event which usually spans like 2 hours or less, I had fired almost 290 shots in RAW. Much to my surprise, most shots on the second event in Ueda were horendously plagued with bad focusing. I was totally distraught by this set back because I failed to utilise the amazing lens in my hand. Begin still new and adapting to the sheer capabilities of this power lens was no excuse for me to commit such errors. I am unforgiving to myself because I have to work extra hard the next time round. So next will come the post processing which might take a little while.
As for my birthday on 11 Jan, there wasn't really anyone in particular I had wanted to celebrate my birthday with because the usual partying and booze intoxicating scenarios were long left behind in Singapore. In the end, it was just Haruka and her boyfriend, Miguel whom both I met for the first time a day prior in Karuizawa at the Seijin Shiki that graced my little birthday party. So much for living the lonely photographer's life...tsk tsk tsk.
Monday was a public holiday to commemorate the actual Seijin Shiki but I was too tired to do anything so I stayed home and looked thru the photos. Emi, Robin and Andrew who were with me on the Seijin event in Ueda on 11 Jan went ice skating on Monday and from the pictures uploaded on their facebook, it really brings back memories of those ice skating years in Singapore when I was like 14 and 15...geez I have to really stop reminding myself how age had caught up with me. Then on Tuesday, I took leave to go take my driving test to convert my Singapore 10 year licence to the Japanese one. It was snowing and really beautiful but in the end I failed the 10 minute practical test. I had already expected it because it was quite unlikely that anyone could have made it on the first attempt because going back to the basic was one thing but driving RIDICULOUSLY was the main reason I failed. The Japanese made the test to NOT test one's driving capabilities but rather to test how well one follow rules. Well, I didn't really take it to heart because the next schedule date was set on Jan 28 which hopefully I will make this time round.
With almost every single ￥ of my Dec salary gone thanks to the new toy, Tokyo trips, etc. I am forced to eat into my reserves for the snowboarding trip this weekend because I had promised a friend that we would go boarding together. Then before the Jan's salary is being released, I am going down to Osaka for the Singaporean CNY getogether which will whisk of another chunk of my reserves. Dang...must save must save must save but each day I am still looking for camera parts, lens, flashes, tripods, diffusers, reflectors, second cars, toys, etc.
All I need is a little more love in my life so hopefully I can control my expenses because more time is needed to appease a particular someone so less time is spent on shopping spree but where in the hell is that someone I am asking. Hope that God would be shining some light on the love aspect of my life because quite simply, THAT is the one thing that I am missing out now and I need it bad.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
The journey of EF35mm F1.4L USM for a new home
- Never Stop Dreaming -
Bear with me people because I really feel that I have to give credit to this lens, how it all started to playing with it in the end. Before I got my hands on this first L prime from the Canon uber expensive range, I didn't really think much about the possibilities that I would wield in my hands. Indeed I have read numerous opinions and comments regarding Canon L lenses and most would have suggested that good equipment does play an important part in capturing great pictures. Back then I was really a greenhorn in photography with no prior knowledge about it...it was thru the numerous field experiment and set backs that I began to see more open doors of opportunities ahead. As time progresses, gone were the painful wall banging pitfalls...as my appetite for information grew, so were the time spent on reading and gathering resources online. Inspirations like Dazza and Joey Lawrence's style of photography drew me deeper into the never ending tunnel of creativity.
Where I reached a point of time where my photoshop skills grew along with my photography skills, I knew it was only a matter of time before my current set up would be limiting my ultimate potential. This afterall is an expensive journey of building up the essential gear to enhance the entire photographic experience. When your current gear from years back where you started out as an amateur began to limit your hunger for higher achievements, you tend to look for better upgrades to compliment your current skill level. Think of it as playing an RPG game...you start out as a novice with fairly acceptable default equipment. Though the best Boss-slaying powerful weapons might be available, your level and gold coins are your only limiting factor. Then again you can always apply "cheats" in game to get these high end items. But in real life we all know that this is not possible unless you really strike Toto or 4D. So moving along, you gain more experience to level up and at the same time increases your gold coins. Better upgrades are readily available now since you have already fulfilled the necessary criteria. Same in photography...you would probably start up with some basic or mid level equipment and as you progress, your skill will level up accordingly and you acquire better, more expensive gear. Though sometimes by a stroke of luck or sugar daddies or mummies, you are granted some level of wealth to start off with the best equipment. But your skills are not on par with the best equipment so you are most likely under-utilizing them which I have no intention to further this discussion.
Photography from the start which I have already known will be an expensive hobby to pursue. Afterall I might just be pretty unlucky to have so many expensive hobbies. But hey, I happen to be just one of those pesky kids who can't sit still since young because I was simply overflowing with creativity and silly antics. Thank God I picked up photography because not only did it allow me to channel my creativity energy in the right direction, my photoshopping skills and understanding of this whole idea of relating light and elements to artificial enhancement and abstract alterations of alternate reality greatly improved as well.
Therefore after using my current set up from 1.5 years back where that was all that I could afford back then, I have come to discover the limitations I was facing in pursing the style of photography I was after. As usual the net was covered with lots of essential info so I took quite a bit of time to go thru the different aspects studying reviews, comments, etc. before settling for a L prime instead of zooms or L zooms. The wide aperture offered only by L primes was the main factor that governed my choices with my 1.6x cropped sensor being second because every choice is subjected to a 1.6x multiplier. Price of course is factor present in everything be it in monetary or time measures but I had saved up sufficient to afford a decent L prime. Therefore I wasn’t considering non L primes as well because I wanted the huge leap and also to experience the much acclaimed L lenses. From the vast collection of comments on the EF35mm L prime, most claimed that they really should have got this lens earlier because it is simply too awesome to miss out on. Well it's the same for me because only 1 day after attaching it to my camera, I really can't find any reasons to remove it.
Of course the there are limitations of using a prime that is you really have to move around a bit to get the focal length right. Unlike zooms where you can simply stand in one stationary position and fiddle with the zoom ring to fit everything into the eye piece. But I guessed I could overcome this limitation to trade for a better image quality and also interaction with the subject which tends to be people and street objects that can span from anything to an unsightly trash can. The 2 primes that I was ideally considering was either the EF85L or the EF35L. Both offers excellent wide aperture for low light photography and also creamy bokeh and I wasn't really a pro in the strobe aspect so most of my pictures were taken without flash. Because the 35 would be roughly equivalent to a 56mm on 35mm film format, this marginally coincides with the actual field of vision of the human eye. While the 85 would be a good telephoto lens, the confine of spaces where I am most likely to take my pictures was too much of a limiting consideration. Besides the 85 L would be a behemoth to be fitted on my tiny EOS Kiss Digital X which might have balance issues. Of course I do not rule out the possibility of acquiring the other 2 lenses from the Holy Trinity of Canon Primes (35L, 85L and the 135L) in the future, right now I am really glad that I had the 35L “superglued” to my camera. Slowly I have come to terms to use it as a walkaround lens and work myself a weny bit more to get the focus correct.
Initially I was considering a used piece to conserve more ￥ so I went poking around MapCamera online, and other online sites for price comparisons between used and new. Then when I went down to MapCamera in Shinjuku, they had (I think) 5 used pieces. The prices were from ￥136,000 to ￥148,000. After spending like 45 minutes checking each and every piece right down to the seams of construction, 4 were rejected for scratches on the external plastic casing, dirty spots on the rubber focusing ring or fine wear lines on the inner groove and contact plates. Only 1 really remarkable second hand piece in a really 99.9% mint condition was calling out for a decent home this winter. Box with everything included including the plastic Canon wrapper for the lens. However there was no warranty for it so I went ahead to check out new pieces in Yodobashi (Shinjuku) because I could accumulate the points and use them as cash. Price was quoted as ￥183,000 which was significantly higher than the most online stores but because I am paying a rather hefty sum for such a delicate instrument of precision engineering, I thought I was better off "feeling" the actual thing than getting it virtually online. Thanks to tips and tricks from the internet I was able to bargain the price with the shop staff in Yodobashi to ￥152,000 for a brand new piece but he suggested that there were no points available. Now that clearly is not good so my options now were a second hand piece with no warranty at ￥148,000 and a new piece with no points at ￥152,000. With only ￥4000 difference, I would definitely opt for a new piece.
At this point I was actually questioning myself about the stringent and unsympathetic checks that I had passed on the used pieces. Afterall if they are not flawed in anyway I might as well be buying a brand new piece instead. Not convinced, I hesitated and re-organised my thoughts before fleeing to Yodobashi (Main) in Akihabara to try my luck there instead. Because I had brought my ￥ and was really determined to buy the lens on this trip to Tokyo but from where was the question. While browsing thru the selection at Yodobashi (Akiba), the staffs were indeed courteous and accommodating until I approached one young male staff draped in prominent black vest with red bold “Canon” scrawled across the back. He was nice and explaining politely when I inquired about the EF35L lens. Things took a drastic sharp and acute turn for the worse when I pulled the same stunt to force the price down to around ￥150,000. He was not convinced and gave me a much disgusted look but I wasn’t any feeble novice either when I exhibited my arrogant and uptight attitude to counter his because I believe that if you scratch my back I will tear off your face and make it into a butt warmer for my toilet seat…FEARLESS! I swore I had worse arrogance in other situations in SG as the worse customer any store could have imagined because the whole dramatic ga-ga at Yodobashi was a mere 5% of what I am actually capable of.
He conceded defeat when he suggested that he would ask someone else presumably with much more authority. Hey I used to work in various sort of front line to back line customer or sales related jobs so I know the SOP and tricks like as if there were inked on me. He came back moments later that he could offer the price at ￥152,000 which was what the other Yodobashi branch had quoted but…with the purchase of something else extra like a lens filter or something just to fill in \5000 more. At this point the entire situation actually reminded me of the usual practices in SG in Lucky Plaza and Sim Lim Sq which of course disgusted me a lot. None the less he did sweeten the icing on the cake by offering full points. Because I would have needed a lens protector anyway so I took the deal after some serious consideration. Getting the lens protector online would have been cheaper but I would have to wait until I get back to Nagano and this simply means that I CANNOT use the lens straight away. Yep I bit the bait that he offered despite the really unpleasant attitude I received. The drama continues because after paying for the items, I sat there for a cool 30 minutes testing the lens for back focus, defects, fault lines and anything that I could fault to make an exchange. In the end nothing much displeases me so I packed up and went over to the same F***** up staff, smiled and shook his hands with the harshest sarcasm in my smile to disgrace and rev up his hate meter. As I was exiting thru the escalator, I could see him gossiping to the rest of his co-workers who took snares at me but hey I got a good bargain so who cares. Besides I know I will definitely go back there to make more purchases in the future so the
This Canon EF35mm F1.4L USM prime lens is indeed a rare piece of gem superbly crafted. Although the AF might not be as fast as the EF-S17-85mm IS USM I was using prior and occasionally the lens tends to do a auto re-focus, the image quality was like what everyone else on the net had claimed, “Almost looks like post-processed”. This is indeed true but I wasn’t gonna take it for granted because for the first time in my photography escapades, I ended up shooting everything in RAW format and then twitching the sliders in Light Room before editing it in Photoshop. No matter how good the lens or camera is, post processing is still a strict routine that I follow but as compared to the previous lens, there is really less post production work. Playing with such wide aperture like 1.4 is indeed creative because the colors that fade into bokeh in the background was really surreal and the foreground colors were really sharp and full of contrast. Of course this little baby weighs more than my previous lens because more elements of glass were used. The size is acceptable and the obnoxious “Red” ring around the tip of the lens screams to the rest of the world that this is a L lens. Occasionally there will be other Japanese folks who really know their camera stuffs commenting discreetly about this lens which of course ended up with me discussing photography topics with their half acceptable Engrish. Usually before departing, I find myself trailing these random camera pros that use 1Ds and 5Ds and trying their humble magic to concert me to a FF devotee. I really have nothing major to complain about this amazing lens or to doubt any of Canon’s L primes except that they are really dangerous because they hooked you like poison in your blood. Once you get your hands on one, there is no turning back or denying it simply because it is really that good. Now that I have joined the ranks of Canon L primes, it is only natural that I sing nothing but praises for it. Though there is a huge range of Canon L primes, personally for me, I really like the 35, 85 and 135 at least for 1.6x bodies. Next I am actually considering the new 50D and the 580EX 2. Although the 5D is really tempting with it’s HDMI video recording function, I am not really sure I am ready for a FF camera yet and price would of course be another issue. So far there are many limiting comments concerning the 50D and the lack of video recording which will most likely put me off and wait for hopefully the 60D which Canon might be kind enuff to include video recording features.
Then one might wonder why a true bred photographer would want to include the video recording function in a DSLR. While there will no doubt be many conflicting arguments, for me it’s just a nifty feature to spice up the whole photojournalism experience. All in all I am still pretty happy with my tiny and feather-light EOS Kiss Digital X and EF35L combi. Packing an extra huge 580EX 2 or an EF85L would look ridiculously tormenting on the tiny camera body. Until then I guess I am better off playing with this current set up until a better camera body shows up.
Picture on.
Bear with me people because I really feel that I have to give credit to this lens, how it all started to playing with it in the end. Before I got my hands on this first L prime from the Canon uber expensive range, I didn't really think much about the possibilities that I would wield in my hands. Indeed I have read numerous opinions and comments regarding Canon L lenses and most would have suggested that good equipment does play an important part in capturing great pictures. Back then I was really a greenhorn in photography with no prior knowledge about it...it was thru the numerous field experiment and set backs that I began to see more open doors of opportunities ahead. As time progresses, gone were the painful wall banging pitfalls...as my appetite for information grew, so were the time spent on reading and gathering resources online. Inspirations like Dazza and Joey Lawrence's style of photography drew me deeper into the never ending tunnel of creativity.
Where I reached a point of time where my photoshop skills grew along with my photography skills, I knew it was only a matter of time before my current set up would be limiting my ultimate potential. This afterall is an expensive journey of building up the essential gear to enhance the entire photographic experience. When your current gear from years back where you started out as an amateur began to limit your hunger for higher achievements, you tend to look for better upgrades to compliment your current skill level. Think of it as playing an RPG game...you start out as a novice with fairly acceptable default equipment. Though the best Boss-slaying powerful weapons might be available, your level and gold coins are your only limiting factor. Then again you can always apply "cheats" in game to get these high end items. But in real life we all know that this is not possible unless you really strike Toto or 4D. So moving along, you gain more experience to level up and at the same time increases your gold coins. Better upgrades are readily available now since you have already fulfilled the necessary criteria. Same in photography...you would probably start up with some basic or mid level equipment and as you progress, your skill will level up accordingly and you acquire better, more expensive gear. Though sometimes by a stroke of luck or sugar daddies or mummies, you are granted some level of wealth to start off with the best equipment. But your skills are not on par with the best equipment so you are most likely under-utilizing them which I have no intention to further this discussion.
Photography from the start which I have already known will be an expensive hobby to pursue. Afterall I might just be pretty unlucky to have so many expensive hobbies. But hey, I happen to be just one of those pesky kids who can't sit still since young because I was simply overflowing with creativity and silly antics. Thank God I picked up photography because not only did it allow me to channel my creativity energy in the right direction, my photoshopping skills and understanding of this whole idea of relating light and elements to artificial enhancement and abstract alterations of alternate reality greatly improved as well.
Therefore after using my current set up from 1.5 years back where that was all that I could afford back then, I have come to discover the limitations I was facing in pursing the style of photography I was after. As usual the net was covered with lots of essential info so I took quite a bit of time to go thru the different aspects studying reviews, comments, etc. before settling for a L prime instead of zooms or L zooms. The wide aperture offered only by L primes was the main factor that governed my choices with my 1.6x cropped sensor being second because every choice is subjected to a 1.6x multiplier. Price of course is factor present in everything be it in monetary or time measures but I had saved up sufficient to afford a decent L prime. Therefore I wasn’t considering non L primes as well because I wanted the huge leap and also to experience the much acclaimed L lenses. From the vast collection of comments on the EF35mm L prime, most claimed that they really should have got this lens earlier because it is simply too awesome to miss out on. Well it's the same for me because only 1 day after attaching it to my camera, I really can't find any reasons to remove it.
Of course the there are limitations of using a prime that is you really have to move around a bit to get the focal length right. Unlike zooms where you can simply stand in one stationary position and fiddle with the zoom ring to fit everything into the eye piece. But I guessed I could overcome this limitation to trade for a better image quality and also interaction with the subject which tends to be people and street objects that can span from anything to an unsightly trash can. The 2 primes that I was ideally considering was either the EF85L or the EF35L. Both offers excellent wide aperture for low light photography and also creamy bokeh and I wasn't really a pro in the strobe aspect so most of my pictures were taken without flash. Because the 35 would be roughly equivalent to a 56mm on 35mm film format, this marginally coincides with the actual field of vision of the human eye. While the 85 would be a good telephoto lens, the confine of spaces where I am most likely to take my pictures was too much of a limiting consideration. Besides the 85 L would be a behemoth to be fitted on my tiny EOS Kiss Digital X which might have balance issues. Of course I do not rule out the possibility of acquiring the other 2 lenses from the Holy Trinity of Canon Primes (35L, 85L and the 135L) in the future, right now I am really glad that I had the 35L “superglued” to my camera. Slowly I have come to terms to use it as a walkaround lens and work myself a weny bit more to get the focus correct.
Initially I was considering a used piece to conserve more ￥ so I went poking around MapCamera online, and other online sites for price comparisons between used and new. Then when I went down to MapCamera in Shinjuku, they had (I think) 5 used pieces. The prices were from ￥136,000 to ￥148,000. After spending like 45 minutes checking each and every piece right down to the seams of construction, 4 were rejected for scratches on the external plastic casing, dirty spots on the rubber focusing ring or fine wear lines on the inner groove and contact plates. Only 1 really remarkable second hand piece in a really 99.9% mint condition was calling out for a decent home this winter. Box with everything included including the plastic Canon wrapper for the lens. However there was no warranty for it so I went ahead to check out new pieces in Yodobashi (Shinjuku) because I could accumulate the points and use them as cash. Price was quoted as ￥183,000 which was significantly higher than the most online stores but because I am paying a rather hefty sum for such a delicate instrument of precision engineering, I thought I was better off "feeling" the actual thing than getting it virtually online. Thanks to tips and tricks from the internet I was able to bargain the price with the shop staff in Yodobashi to ￥152,000 for a brand new piece but he suggested that there were no points available. Now that clearly is not good so my options now were a second hand piece with no warranty at ￥148,000 and a new piece with no points at ￥152,000. With only ￥4000 difference, I would definitely opt for a new piece.
At this point I was actually questioning myself about the stringent and unsympathetic checks that I had passed on the used pieces. Afterall if they are not flawed in anyway I might as well be buying a brand new piece instead. Not convinced, I hesitated and re-organised my thoughts before fleeing to Yodobashi (Main) in Akihabara to try my luck there instead. Because I had brought my ￥ and was really determined to buy the lens on this trip to Tokyo but from where was the question. While browsing thru the selection at Yodobashi (Akiba), the staffs were indeed courteous and accommodating until I approached one young male staff draped in prominent black vest with red bold “Canon” scrawled across the back. He was nice and explaining politely when I inquired about the EF35L lens. Things took a drastic sharp and acute turn for the worse when I pulled the same stunt to force the price down to around ￥150,000. He was not convinced and gave me a much disgusted look but I wasn’t any feeble novice either when I exhibited my arrogant and uptight attitude to counter his because I believe that if you scratch my back I will tear off your face and make it into a butt warmer for my toilet seat…FEARLESS! I swore I had worse arrogance in other situations in SG as the worse customer any store could have imagined because the whole dramatic ga-ga at Yodobashi was a mere 5% of what I am actually capable of.
He conceded defeat when he suggested that he would ask someone else presumably with much more authority. Hey I used to work in various sort of front line to back line customer or sales related jobs so I know the SOP and tricks like as if there were inked on me. He came back moments later that he could offer the price at ￥152,000 which was what the other Yodobashi branch had quoted but…with the purchase of something else extra like a lens filter or something just to fill in \5000 more. At this point the entire situation actually reminded me of the usual practices in SG in Lucky Plaza and Sim Lim Sq which of course disgusted me a lot. None the less he did sweeten the icing on the cake by offering full points. Because I would have needed a lens protector anyway so I took the deal after some serious consideration. Getting the lens protector online would have been cheaper but I would have to wait until I get back to Nagano and this simply means that I CANNOT use the lens straight away. Yep I bit the bait that he offered despite the really unpleasant attitude I received. The drama continues because after paying for the items, I sat there for a cool 30 minutes testing the lens for back focus, defects, fault lines and anything that I could fault to make an exchange. In the end nothing much displeases me so I packed up and went over to the same F***** up staff, smiled and shook his hands with the harshest sarcasm in my smile to disgrace and rev up his hate meter. As I was exiting thru the escalator, I could see him gossiping to the rest of his co-workers who took snares at me but hey I got a good bargain so who cares. Besides I know I will definitely go back there to make more purchases in the future so the
This Canon EF35mm F1.4L USM prime lens is indeed a rare piece of gem superbly crafted. Although the AF might not be as fast as the EF-S17-85mm IS USM I was using prior and occasionally the lens tends to do a auto re-focus, the image quality was like what everyone else on the net had claimed, “Almost looks like post-processed”. This is indeed true but I wasn’t gonna take it for granted because for the first time in my photography escapades, I ended up shooting everything in RAW format and then twitching the sliders in Light Room before editing it in Photoshop. No matter how good the lens or camera is, post processing is still a strict routine that I follow but as compared to the previous lens, there is really less post production work. Playing with such wide aperture like 1.4 is indeed creative because the colors that fade into bokeh in the background was really surreal and the foreground colors were really sharp and full of contrast. Of course this little baby weighs more than my previous lens because more elements of glass were used. The size is acceptable and the obnoxious “Red” ring around the tip of the lens screams to the rest of the world that this is a L lens. Occasionally there will be other Japanese folks who really know their camera stuffs commenting discreetly about this lens which of course ended up with me discussing photography topics with their half acceptable Engrish. Usually before departing, I find myself trailing these random camera pros that use 1Ds and 5Ds and trying their humble magic to concert me to a FF devotee. I really have nothing major to complain about this amazing lens or to doubt any of Canon’s L primes except that they are really dangerous because they hooked you like poison in your blood. Once you get your hands on one, there is no turning back or denying it simply because it is really that good. Now that I have joined the ranks of Canon L primes, it is only natural that I sing nothing but praises for it. Though there is a huge range of Canon L primes, personally for me, I really like the 35, 85 and 135 at least for 1.6x bodies. Next I am actually considering the new 50D and the 580EX 2. Although the 5D is really tempting with it’s HDMI video recording function, I am not really sure I am ready for a FF camera yet and price would of course be another issue. So far there are many limiting comments concerning the 50D and the lack of video recording which will most likely put me off and wait for hopefully the 60D which Canon might be kind enuff to include video recording features.
Then one might wonder why a true bred photographer would want to include the video recording function in a DSLR. While there will no doubt be many conflicting arguments, for me it’s just a nifty feature to spice up the whole photojournalism experience. All in all I am still pretty happy with my tiny and feather-light EOS Kiss Digital X and EF35L combi. Packing an extra huge 580EX 2 or an EF85L would look ridiculously tormenting on the tiny camera body. Until then I guess I am better off playing with this current set up until a better camera body shows up.
Picture on.
Monday, January 5, 2009
So this is New Year 2009
- Never Stop Dreaming -
So how was 2008 for the rest of you? So what do you have to say about 2008? So how did you welcome 2009? So what are your resolution for 2009? Yes there are many answers that I seek but...
Even before you serve me your answers on a mix platter of ups and downs, I would have already guessed that many of you would agree in unison that 2008 did start off pretty well but ended rather falling short of a lot of expectations. Especially with the economic crunch lucking dangerously towards the end of 2008 and into 2009. the gloomy forecast for years ahead and the not so prospective job markets are probably putting the festive moods away. I sure hope everyone had a great New Year Bash because for me, I embraced the New Year less the usual hardcore partying and getting wasted like the welcoming of 2008. Instead, I was busying getting acquainted with my new expensive toy, the ¥152,000 (SGD$2,420) Canon EF 35mm F1.4L USM lens. The price quoted by Canon was a whooping ¥205,000 but of course the street price was significantly lower. Because the points from Yodobashi Camera was pretty tempting given the price quoted was ¥183,000, I was still very much into purchasing this lens from them. Other reasons included of course was the sheer size of their shops (buildings actually) and the warranty issues. So once again harnessing the power of the internet, there were obvious loopholes to exploit so in the end I got a brand new piece at ¥152,000. The next closest was an excellent condition second hand piece at Map Camera (Shinjuku) going for ¥148,000 less any forms of warranty.
All that expensive toy aside (like real :p), quite literally I was roaming the streets of Kabukicho (Shinjuku) with a camera hung around my neck, quite ready to fire away. There I met some crazy Japanese and was overwhelmed by their kind gesture and warm hospitality. So moving on, I met Jenna and Henna from Germany and Todd from the U.S. Jenna was of course the perfect specimen for my newly acquired toy so a polite request for her to be my model was humbly accepted. Now witness the power of the lens...straight off the RAW files converted to JPEG using Light Room...Jenna.
Yes indeed street photography seems to be quite an exquisite taste but if you know the model personally, the rest is just the backdrop. So on 31st Dec, I met up with Mariko, my really good friend and Hitomi to crash at a rather gorgeous looking club hidden in the back alleys of Roppongi. The DJ spinning was Mariko's friend, Takafumi and the club was named Ultra Lounge. This time round I had my camera hidden inside the rather menacing looking aluminum case so that I could fool the usual club security but to my surprised I was actually told to take pictures. Hmmm...strings attached I would presumed and yep, the manager actually requested me to take a lot of pictures and send it to him personally. I would have asked for a fee...dang! While busying snapping away, everyone started to count down from 10 to bring in the New Year. Me...I was still shooting people and colors and too amazed at this tiny but expensive toy. And that was how I embraced the New Year, an official self-proclaimed photographer slaving for the sake of inspiration.
Well it's really not that I am not in the mood to party but I thought I was really better off capturing these essential memories and storing them at a decent place online and also sharing with many others than simply keeping them all to myself inside my head which I will probably forget after some heavy drinking. Besides I have really passed those wild partying years to an extent that self preservation and respect for the elements around me are really more crucial than mindless exploitation of youth. Alrite...pardon that fleeting rant so back to business. Quite literally the more I embark on this photojournalism hobby, I seem to find a uncanny sort of connection with my subjects. The camera may seems rather conspicous and poking into people's life but at the same time the pictures taken are usually considered an ice breaker to these strangers. Most of the time, they simply end up online somewhere when I don't even remember their names. At least for me it's rather interesting how a camera and photos can connect strangers in the strangest places. It is also a way for me to get comfortable with my subjects before advancing to capture more shots.
So here are some of my amateurish attempt to utilise my new TOY to embrace 2009!
"Hitomi sandwiched between Mariko to the left and Mariko's friend to the right. And yes I always thought Hitomi was gorgeous."
"Here I am trying to capture the rainbow array of lights against the sea of plain white bottles."
"This had to be one of my favorites because the contrasting background gradient really enhanced subject in focus finished with such soft light."
Of course I cannot forget the remarkable trip up to Nozawa Onsen on 27th Dec 2008 with Cousin Denis and Li Fern. Like all other Singaporeans, we are a huge sucker for the snow. No pics because my precious camera was not ready to be brought up the mountain to sustain possible fatal injuries. Meeting up with my D and L in Tokyo again, this time round I had the honor to test this new pair of specimens for this amazingly wicked lens in the streets of Harajuku.
"Somehow the contrast was exactly what I was looking for so I was glad that it did turned out right."
"Definitely fun framing the small digicam with Li Fern in it."
You see with such large aperture that only a prime lens can offer, the doors of creativity are never lurking too far. Like most comments on the net photography forums, I was really missing out on a lot of aspects in photography before I got this amazing lens. Ok ok I know I am really obsessed with this lens now but hey, this post ain't all about the lens.
Ok here in Japan when it comes to New Year, there are all sort of those goodie bags labeled as "福袋" and boxes labeled as "福箱" in most major stores. These are huge bags or boxes tagged at a fixed price with random goods inside. When I say random I mean the designs and colors because these are actually categorized into sizes and prices. So picking up one of these goodie bags from Adidas would probably contain anything from 1 t shirts, 1 socks, 1 cap, 1 sweater, 1 wrist band, 1 mug, etc. Apparently these goodie bags are really popular in Japan because most of the time the items inside actually exceeds the price you actually pay for it. In the past when the economy is good, there used to be such goodie bags offered by more expensive brands and may contain diamonds and other jewels but the current economic loom had render such goodie bag unrealistic because of the lower disposal consumer income. That aside, Li Fern did pick up a couple of fantastic deals like a pair of limited edt Timberland with velvet trimmings at a ridiculous price of ￥7,000 odd as compared to the usual ￥20,000 price tag for Timberlands. Last year my brother's wife Evelyn picked up a really sweet Timberland cheap too. Too bad the assortment of ladies' boots are so adorable as compared to the limited and unsightly men's boots...UNFAIR!
Staying in my friend's apartment 5 minutes from Shinjuku station was really convenient because I could roam the streets till the wee hours and not worry about hitching a ride back home so I had to really convey a huge gratitude to Morris when he is back. While in Shinjuku, I found a really gorgeous drinking hole which is what I had been looking for all this while. Quiet, mysterious and really really classy. Too bad the music did not matched the setting because classical music doesn't really go well with granite settings. This place is not cheap but for the ambience, I would love to visit it one every couple of months.
My other plans was to visit Meiji Shrine in Harajuku but like every other city with such huge devotee count in major religion, I wasn't even 500 metres near the compound of the shrine. A stampede was the only factor putting me away because I wouldn't risk anything to subject my new to to such fatal possibilities. Well another time perhaps so the next stop had to be in Akihabara (yeah GEEK TOWN) with Denis and Li Fern. Being toy whores, Denis was quick to snap up all his favorite figures and the appeal of the Mario figures was also too astronomical for Li Fern. While for me, I have yet found the ones I am looking for so I ended up buying a plastic 1/6 scale chair. Besides I was also restricting my expenses after the hefty acquisition. In Akihabara, I guess other than the other foreigners, Denis, Li Fern and me, everyone else was pretty much your typical OTAKU stereotype. No I wasn't making fun of them on purpose but you can verify this fact with Denis and Li Fern. 99.9% of the OTAKUs that stormed Akihabara's inside-the-building toy stores wore glasses, geeky dressing, weird color combi, backpacks, off the fashion scale hair style and below average looks. Everyone of them is a male and because they are most likely to be rejected by living female counterparts, they tend to shun real females and prey on such fictional fantasies which of course subjects them to the usual satire.
But here in Japan it's pretty skewed because these OTAKUs are on the extreme edge of the scale the the society that they live in fuels their existence. The great thing about Akihabara is that I really love the collection of toys they offer, a place where I can check out the latest gear, cameras, techie stuffs and the lovely cosplayers and maids loitering around. No matter how many times I have been there, I never grew tired of it because I myself is a geek hidden beneath a up trend fashion conscious cast.
There is still so much of Japan that I am really eager to frame up but I guessed my itinery is pretty tight for this month. Saturday, 10 Jan, there will be a "成人式" which marks the coming of age for Japanese ladies where they turn 20, all dressed up in uber gorgeous looking kimonos with FUR. So this year I did managed to hook up with 1 particular 20 year old young lady to crash such a eye candy event. Hmmm with the new lens my confidence has reached a new level so once again donning my photographer facade, I shall capture the pictures (for my fellow readers of course). Then on 11 Jan, which is my birthday which of course I have no intention of remembering it because I really dread reminding myself that I am hitting 30 soon...DAMN! So God knows what sort of parties are in store for me. 24 Jan I will be heading down to Osaka with another fellow SGrean for a Singaporean Chinese New Year get-together (Thanks Wei Yuet for the invite). After that, laying low and storing up more yen for the Spring Break where I will most likely head down to Kyoto to catch the Cherry Blossoms and perhaps more camera equipment.
So how about everyone else, care to share your plans, thoughts, comments, etc?
P.S. A very Happy New Year to everyone whom I know, may have known or may not know. God bless.
So how was 2008 for the rest of you? So what do you have to say about 2008? So how did you welcome 2009? So what are your resolution for 2009? Yes there are many answers that I seek but...
Even before you serve me your answers on a mix platter of ups and downs, I would have already guessed that many of you would agree in unison that 2008 did start off pretty well but ended rather falling short of a lot of expectations. Especially with the economic crunch lucking dangerously towards the end of 2008 and into 2009. the gloomy forecast for years ahead and the not so prospective job markets are probably putting the festive moods away. I sure hope everyone had a great New Year Bash because for me, I embraced the New Year less the usual hardcore partying and getting wasted like the welcoming of 2008. Instead, I was busying getting acquainted with my new expensive toy, the ¥152,000 (SGD$2,420) Canon EF 35mm F1.4L USM lens. The price quoted by Canon was a whooping ¥205,000 but of course the street price was significantly lower. Because the points from Yodobashi Camera was pretty tempting given the price quoted was ¥183,000, I was still very much into purchasing this lens from them. Other reasons included of course was the sheer size of their shops (buildings actually) and the warranty issues. So once again harnessing the power of the internet, there were obvious loopholes to exploit so in the end I got a brand new piece at ¥152,000. The next closest was an excellent condition second hand piece at Map Camera (Shinjuku) going for ¥148,000 less any forms of warranty.
All that expensive toy aside (like real :p), quite literally I was roaming the streets of Kabukicho (Shinjuku) with a camera hung around my neck, quite ready to fire away. There I met some crazy Japanese and was overwhelmed by their kind gesture and warm hospitality. So moving on, I met Jenna and Henna from Germany and Todd from the U.S. Jenna was of course the perfect specimen for my newly acquired toy so a polite request for her to be my model was humbly accepted. Now witness the power of the lens...straight off the RAW files converted to JPEG using Light Room...Jenna.
Yes indeed street photography seems to be quite an exquisite taste but if you know the model personally, the rest is just the backdrop. So on 31st Dec, I met up with Mariko, my really good friend and Hitomi to crash at a rather gorgeous looking club hidden in the back alleys of Roppongi. The DJ spinning was Mariko's friend, Takafumi and the club was named Ultra Lounge. This time round I had my camera hidden inside the rather menacing looking aluminum case so that I could fool the usual club security but to my surprised I was actually told to take pictures. Hmmm...strings attached I would presumed and yep, the manager actually requested me to take a lot of pictures and send it to him personally. I would have asked for a fee...dang! While busying snapping away, everyone started to count down from 10 to bring in the New Year. Me...I was still shooting people and colors and too amazed at this tiny but expensive toy. And that was how I embraced the New Year, an official self-proclaimed photographer slaving for the sake of inspiration.
Well it's really not that I am not in the mood to party but I thought I was really better off capturing these essential memories and storing them at a decent place online and also sharing with many others than simply keeping them all to myself inside my head which I will probably forget after some heavy drinking. Besides I have really passed those wild partying years to an extent that self preservation and respect for the elements around me are really more crucial than mindless exploitation of youth. Alrite...pardon that fleeting rant so back to business. Quite literally the more I embark on this photojournalism hobby, I seem to find a uncanny sort of connection with my subjects. The camera may seems rather conspicous and poking into people's life but at the same time the pictures taken are usually considered an ice breaker to these strangers. Most of the time, they simply end up online somewhere when I don't even remember their names. At least for me it's rather interesting how a camera and photos can connect strangers in the strangest places. It is also a way for me to get comfortable with my subjects before advancing to capture more shots.
So here are some of my amateurish attempt to utilise my new TOY to embrace 2009!
"Hitomi sandwiched between Mariko to the left and Mariko's friend to the right. And yes I always thought Hitomi was gorgeous."
"Here I am trying to capture the rainbow array of lights against the sea of plain white bottles."
"This had to be one of my favorites because the contrasting background gradient really enhanced subject in focus finished with such soft light."
Of course I cannot forget the remarkable trip up to Nozawa Onsen on 27th Dec 2008 with Cousin Denis and Li Fern. Like all other Singaporeans, we are a huge sucker for the snow. No pics because my precious camera was not ready to be brought up the mountain to sustain possible fatal injuries. Meeting up with my D and L in Tokyo again, this time round I had the honor to test this new pair of specimens for this amazingly wicked lens in the streets of Harajuku.
"Somehow the contrast was exactly what I was looking for so I was glad that it did turned out right."
"Definitely fun framing the small digicam with Li Fern in it."
You see with such large aperture that only a prime lens can offer, the doors of creativity are never lurking too far. Like most comments on the net photography forums, I was really missing out on a lot of aspects in photography before I got this amazing lens. Ok ok I know I am really obsessed with this lens now but hey, this post ain't all about the lens.
Ok here in Japan when it comes to New Year, there are all sort of those goodie bags labeled as "福袋" and boxes labeled as "福箱" in most major stores. These are huge bags or boxes tagged at a fixed price with random goods inside. When I say random I mean the designs and colors because these are actually categorized into sizes and prices. So picking up one of these goodie bags from Adidas would probably contain anything from 1 t shirts, 1 socks, 1 cap, 1 sweater, 1 wrist band, 1 mug, etc. Apparently these goodie bags are really popular in Japan because most of the time the items inside actually exceeds the price you actually pay for it. In the past when the economy is good, there used to be such goodie bags offered by more expensive brands and may contain diamonds and other jewels but the current economic loom had render such goodie bag unrealistic because of the lower disposal consumer income. That aside, Li Fern did pick up a couple of fantastic deals like a pair of limited edt Timberland with velvet trimmings at a ridiculous price of ￥7,000 odd as compared to the usual ￥20,000 price tag for Timberlands. Last year my brother's wife Evelyn picked up a really sweet Timberland cheap too. Too bad the assortment of ladies' boots are so adorable as compared to the limited and unsightly men's boots...UNFAIR!
Staying in my friend's apartment 5 minutes from Shinjuku station was really convenient because I could roam the streets till the wee hours and not worry about hitching a ride back home so I had to really convey a huge gratitude to Morris when he is back. While in Shinjuku, I found a really gorgeous drinking hole which is what I had been looking for all this while. Quiet, mysterious and really really classy. Too bad the music did not matched the setting because classical music doesn't really go well with granite settings. This place is not cheap but for the ambience, I would love to visit it one every couple of months.
My other plans was to visit Meiji Shrine in Harajuku but like every other city with such huge devotee count in major religion, I wasn't even 500 metres near the compound of the shrine. A stampede was the only factor putting me away because I wouldn't risk anything to subject my new to to such fatal possibilities. Well another time perhaps so the next stop had to be in Akihabara (yeah GEEK TOWN) with Denis and Li Fern. Being toy whores, Denis was quick to snap up all his favorite figures and the appeal of the Mario figures was also too astronomical for Li Fern. While for me, I have yet found the ones I am looking for so I ended up buying a plastic 1/6 scale chair. Besides I was also restricting my expenses after the hefty acquisition. In Akihabara, I guess other than the other foreigners, Denis, Li Fern and me, everyone else was pretty much your typical OTAKU stereotype. No I wasn't making fun of them on purpose but you can verify this fact with Denis and Li Fern. 99.9% of the OTAKUs that stormed Akihabara's inside-the-building toy stores wore glasses, geeky dressing, weird color combi, backpacks, off the fashion scale hair style and below average looks. Everyone of them is a male and because they are most likely to be rejected by living female counterparts, they tend to shun real females and prey on such fictional fantasies which of course subjects them to the usual satire.
But here in Japan it's pretty skewed because these OTAKUs are on the extreme edge of the scale the the society that they live in fuels their existence. The great thing about Akihabara is that I really love the collection of toys they offer, a place where I can check out the latest gear, cameras, techie stuffs and the lovely cosplayers and maids loitering around. No matter how many times I have been there, I never grew tired of it because I myself is a geek hidden beneath a up trend fashion conscious cast.
There is still so much of Japan that I am really eager to frame up but I guessed my itinery is pretty tight for this month. Saturday, 10 Jan, there will be a "成人式" which marks the coming of age for Japanese ladies where they turn 20, all dressed up in uber gorgeous looking kimonos with FUR. So this year I did managed to hook up with 1 particular 20 year old young lady to crash such a eye candy event. Hmmm with the new lens my confidence has reached a new level so once again donning my photographer facade, I shall capture the pictures (for my fellow readers of course). Then on 11 Jan, which is my birthday which of course I have no intention of remembering it because I really dread reminding myself that I am hitting 30 soon...DAMN! So God knows what sort of parties are in store for me. 24 Jan I will be heading down to Osaka with another fellow SGrean for a Singaporean Chinese New Year get-together (Thanks Wei Yuet for the invite). After that, laying low and storing up more yen for the Spring Break where I will most likely head down to Kyoto to catch the Cherry Blossoms and perhaps more camera equipment.
So how about everyone else, care to share your plans, thoughts, comments, etc?
P.S. A very Happy New Year to everyone whom I know, may have known or may not know. God bless.
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