- 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.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
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.
Friday, December 26, 2008
No White Christmas but...
- Never Stop Dreaming -
Well as expected there wasn't any white Christmas so my hopes were pretty much SMASHED! But better late than never, the clouds gathered, Heavens smiled and it snowed late in the night and early in the morning on Boxing Day. Once again everywhere is white and fluffy...pretty! A day late but still acceptable because it's really the snow that makes a difference. 2 times so far since winter started that Heaven had granted snow because the rest of the gloomy days were simply chilly rain which in my humble opinion, is not good for winter. Snow belongs to winter not the rain eventhough I used to be a sucker for rain (when I was in Singapore).
Day after day, the news flooded the Internet with Canada and America getting dumped but tons of snow so I was left wondering, "What The Hell", because WE here in Japan should be entitled to share some of that white powder as well. Yes...today I am super duper "Genki" and with cousin Denis and Lifern coming over today in the evening, things just couldn't get any worse.
While in the morning, I skipped my usual breakfast and opted for a cup of hot coffee instead. As I watch the white phenomenon smiling in front of me with nice hot coffee in my hands, I knew this was it. The moment that I have been waiting for all these while. Hoooorayyyy! When the time is almost right, I got in my little snow mobile, half blue (based color of my car) and half white and made my way to work. Too overjoyed and overwhelmed by the snow, the idea of driving safely was erazed completely from my head. One downhill tight corner and my car was sliding dangerously towards the gutter. For a moment I thought my car would hit the ditch but my instantaneous reaction combining hard braking and counter steering brought the car away from the gutter. It was inches from going into the gutter and boy that was totally unexpected. Not that I had actually planned an Initial D stunt but simply pure inert reaction. So I really ought to keep my mind clear when I am driving and not get too carried away by the snow. Of course I will try to practice drifting again soon so that I can have a better understanding and control of the car to prevent accidents in the most uncanny situations.
Fooling around the car in snow is fun because you get to feel the car sliding and losing traction. Then you take the necessary counter measures to bring the car back under control. With practice, this will become a useful skill for driving under harsh conditions because you will never know when the next accident will happen. But when it does happens, only drivers with such skill set will be able to sail away from any potential damage while the rest of the normal drivers will...sad to say damage the car.
Yes and yes...IT IS SNOWING! WHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
Well as expected there wasn't any white Christmas so my hopes were pretty much SMASHED! But better late than never, the clouds gathered, Heavens smiled and it snowed late in the night and early in the morning on Boxing Day. Once again everywhere is white and fluffy...pretty! A day late but still acceptable because it's really the snow that makes a difference. 2 times so far since winter started that Heaven had granted snow because the rest of the gloomy days were simply chilly rain which in my humble opinion, is not good for winter. Snow belongs to winter not the rain eventhough I used to be a sucker for rain (when I was in Singapore).
Day after day, the news flooded the Internet with Canada and America getting dumped but tons of snow so I was left wondering, "What The Hell", because WE here in Japan should be entitled to share some of that white powder as well. Yes...today I am super duper "Genki" and with cousin Denis and Lifern coming over today in the evening, things just couldn't get any worse.
While in the morning, I skipped my usual breakfast and opted for a cup of hot coffee instead. As I watch the white phenomenon smiling in front of me with nice hot coffee in my hands, I knew this was it. The moment that I have been waiting for all these while. Hoooorayyyy! When the time is almost right, I got in my little snow mobile, half blue (based color of my car) and half white and made my way to work. Too overjoyed and overwhelmed by the snow, the idea of driving safely was erazed completely from my head. One downhill tight corner and my car was sliding dangerously towards the gutter. For a moment I thought my car would hit the ditch but my instantaneous reaction combining hard braking and counter steering brought the car away from the gutter. It was inches from going into the gutter and boy that was totally unexpected. Not that I had actually planned an Initial D stunt but simply pure inert reaction. So I really ought to keep my mind clear when I am driving and not get too carried away by the snow. Of course I will try to practice drifting again soon so that I can have a better understanding and control of the car to prevent accidents in the most uncanny situations.
Fooling around the car in snow is fun because you get to feel the car sliding and losing traction. Then you take the necessary counter measures to bring the car back under control. With practice, this will become a useful skill for driving under harsh conditions because you will never know when the next accident will happen. But when it does happens, only drivers with such skill set will be able to sail away from any potential damage while the rest of the normal drivers will...sad to say damage the car.
Yes and yes...IT IS SNOWING! WHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
Thursday, December 25, 2008
A Sniper's Prayer
- Never Stop Dreaming -
It seems funny that my thoughts are so random when I spend precious hours inside a small cubicle recycling food for Mother Nature. Cars, news, snow, parties, etc. and the current fleeting thought, A Sniper's Prayer.
"Dear God,
with this instrument of precision engineering granted to me, let me cast fear upon my enemies and let me not be consumed by fear. Let me strike down my enemies before they strike me down. With God in my mind and enemies in my eyes, grant me Holy strength. A roar of thunder I shall send them all to your Heavenaly Sanctuary. Amen."
Though a bit cheesy and probably ripped from the quotes from Saving Pte Ryan, I kinda forgot the exact words so I simply filled in my own. With moments of solitary confinement lashed out by my own will, I was never far from creativity. Probably too much Supernatural and the Winchester Boys, I find myself so often playing the words revolving around Devil, God, Angels and Demons. Of course there is the murders, blood and gore to ice the final decorations of the cake.
It seems funny that my thoughts are so random when I spend precious hours inside a small cubicle recycling food for Mother Nature. Cars, news, snow, parties, etc. and the current fleeting thought, A Sniper's Prayer.
"Dear God,
with this instrument of precision engineering granted to me, let me cast fear upon my enemies and let me not be consumed by fear. Let me strike down my enemies before they strike me down. With God in my mind and enemies in my eyes, grant me Holy strength. A roar of thunder I shall send them all to your Heavenaly Sanctuary. Amen."
Though a bit cheesy and probably ripped from the quotes from Saving Pte Ryan, I kinda forgot the exact words so I simply filled in my own. With moments of solitary confinement lashed out by my own will, I was never far from creativity. Probably too much Supernatural and the Winchester Boys, I find myself so often playing the words revolving around Devil, God, Angels and Demons. Of course there is the murders, blood and gore to ice the final decorations of the cake.
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Around People
- Never Stop Dreaming -
In my yet another intuitive approach to attempt to stop time by freezing a moment of it in frames, something that cannot be done by any living mortal. This time round I have moved on from rooms, shadows and sunlight. Instead I chose to shoot people related subjects in color and have the magic flow from Photoshop to convert them to monochrome. The following 4 pictures, each have a different perspective to portray because I had wanted to isolate a section of the photos, usually away from the main attention grabber. So after messing with Photoshop for weeks, these are my first monochromic exhibition of people.
"Overwhelmed"
"Winter Wear"
"Attentive"
"Commitment"
In my yet another intuitive approach to attempt to stop time by freezing a moment of it in frames, something that cannot be done by any living mortal. This time round I have moved on from rooms, shadows and sunlight. Instead I chose to shoot people related subjects in color and have the magic flow from Photoshop to convert them to monochrome. The following 4 pictures, each have a different perspective to portray because I had wanted to isolate a section of the photos, usually away from the main attention grabber. So after messing with Photoshop for weeks, these are my first monochromic exhibition of people.
"Overwhelmed"
"Winter Wear"
"Attentive"
"Commitment"
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Drifting Redefine.
- Never Stop Dreaming -
While searching for some info on the net, I came across this really interesting vid off a Japanese website about drifting. You think only cars can drift, think again...
While searching for some info on the net, I came across this really interesting vid off a Japanese website about drifting. You think only cars can drift, think again...
Friday, December 19, 2008
Professional Fatuous "Advisors"
- Never Stop Dreaming -
This morning, I was greeted by the sweetest message from one of the loveliest girl who had implanted permanant footprints in my life and gained herself a eternal place in my heart. Quite to the contary, last night I was chatting with another lovely girl who had also gained a significant impact in my life...Yes I know I am in self denial of these blessings that God have granted, I am blind, I am dumb or watever. That aside, I received an email from an net friend whom I had never met. Now there was absolutely nothing wrong with the email so don't get me wrong. The email was about an unknown Caucasian little girl who seemed to be tracing her name, her roots and possibly her parents after being a victim of the 2004 Phuket Tsunami.
As we all know, the tragedy happened like about 4 years ago and this email circulating phenomenon is somewhat shady, and possibly unreliable. As much as I appreciate the efforts of everyone harnessing the power of the internet to bring the world closer, but being a good samaritian by forwarding emails blindly outta compassion is not gonna beg you a Noble price or a place in Wikipedia. I may seem to be going down harsh on this issue and yes indeed I am. Simply because in this advance civilization of techonology that we live in, the mere click of the mouse might prove a little too fatal at times. The repercussions are exponential and often inredeemable. So I chose an unfortunate few among the whole list of "forwarded" recepients to lash my disgust at.
While browsing thru the list, a unglamourously "spectacular" one did caught my eye. It seems that she have an allegiance of affidavits that goes by a much abused moniker, 'Advisors Clique'. Ha...Advisors my ass! Not to mention that the name of the huge Corporation that she is working for, contact no. and other info pasted in bold. Really makes one wonder what these fatuous "Advisors" do in the office. And then it really comes to a point when I question their acadamic and technological capabilities. Google and Yahoo are not just there to take up space...they have useful properties. A quick search on either of these and other less known search engines would have generated that this "Lost Phuket Girl" issue is already closed in 2004. Her identity and nationality verified, and returned to the arms of her parents in the comfort of her home. Then why are these emails still circulating?
Your guess is as good as mine...Brainless 'Advisors' forwarding it blindly, losers boasting 3000 friends on their contact lists and all other Samaritians wannabe clicking away the "Mass Destruction" forward buttons. Like how I have blasted some emails claiming how great God is in the usually overly exaggerated context, I really do not care how great one's God is or how some kid needs a new kidney, if the emails are genuinely free from deception and exaggeration, I will humbly do my part and forward them to my friends because I believe that everyone should do their part to protect the people who they regard as real friends and not send every junk out to "infect" their friends.
For God's sake or for your friends' sake, seperate the truth from the lies and filter the hoaxes and spams from the truth before you hit the forward button.
Use Google because it's free and efficient.
Be a little wiser so that there will be less stupid generations ahead.
Protect your friends, love ones and "eliminate" everything else.
This morning, I was greeted by the sweetest message from one of the loveliest girl who had implanted permanant footprints in my life and gained herself a eternal place in my heart. Quite to the contary, last night I was chatting with another lovely girl who had also gained a significant impact in my life...Yes I know I am in self denial of these blessings that God have granted, I am blind, I am dumb or watever. That aside, I received an email from an net friend whom I had never met. Now there was absolutely nothing wrong with the email so don't get me wrong. The email was about an unknown Caucasian little girl who seemed to be tracing her name, her roots and possibly her parents after being a victim of the 2004 Phuket Tsunami.
As we all know, the tragedy happened like about 4 years ago and this email circulating phenomenon is somewhat shady, and possibly unreliable. As much as I appreciate the efforts of everyone harnessing the power of the internet to bring the world closer, but being a good samaritian by forwarding emails blindly outta compassion is not gonna beg you a Noble price or a place in Wikipedia. I may seem to be going down harsh on this issue and yes indeed I am. Simply because in this advance civilization of techonology that we live in, the mere click of the mouse might prove a little too fatal at times. The repercussions are exponential and often inredeemable. So I chose an unfortunate few among the whole list of "forwarded" recepients to lash my disgust at.
While browsing thru the list, a unglamourously "spectacular" one did caught my eye. It seems that she have an allegiance of affidavits that goes by a much abused moniker, 'Advisors Clique'. Ha...Advisors my ass! Not to mention that the name of the huge Corporation that she is working for, contact no. and other info pasted in bold. Really makes one wonder what these fatuous "Advisors" do in the office. And then it really comes to a point when I question their acadamic and technological capabilities. Google and Yahoo are not just there to take up space...they have useful properties. A quick search on either of these and other less known search engines would have generated that this "Lost Phuket Girl" issue is already closed in 2004. Her identity and nationality verified, and returned to the arms of her parents in the comfort of her home. Then why are these emails still circulating?
Your guess is as good as mine...Brainless 'Advisors' forwarding it blindly, losers boasting 3000 friends on their contact lists and all other Samaritians wannabe clicking away the "Mass Destruction" forward buttons. Like how I have blasted some emails claiming how great God is in the usually overly exaggerated context, I really do not care how great one's God is or how some kid needs a new kidney, if the emails are genuinely free from deception and exaggeration, I will humbly do my part and forward them to my friends because I believe that everyone should do their part to protect the people who they regard as real friends and not send every junk out to "infect" their friends.
For God's sake or for your friends' sake, seperate the truth from the lies and filter the hoaxes and spams from the truth before you hit the forward button.
Use Google because it's free and efficient.
Be a little wiser so that there will be less stupid generations ahead.
Protect your friends, love ones and "eliminate" everything else.
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