1st Kill of the year 2013

Not really killing something or someone but buying something new.  Yes.  Another lens to the arsenal:P  Some might asked how many lenses I really need but its just that this one is something I have been waiting for quite some time.

It's the new Sony 35mm 1.8 OSS!  OSS stands for Optical Steady Shot which means like Canon's IS and Nikon's VR lenses.  Sony A mount bodies has built in body AS system but their NEX doesn't (which is a pain in the ass for me!)I'm getting old and I like to have some anti shake system for some low shutter handheld shots.

Previously, I was using the 24mm Zeiss  which at 1200 2nd hand price tag does not even have OSS and I don't actually really like the fov of a focal length of 35mm.  I am more into 40mm to 50mm for a street camera so it was pretty awkward shooting with it.   I do like it's sharpness and contrasty colours but I have a tendency to crop the photos later as I was not in the correct position.  Moreover, the lens is sticking too far out from the body and its just make it very difficult for me to take it out or put it back into my camera bag.  That's a minor thing but the fov and OSS is the deal breaker. It was an impulse purchase and my gut feelings is that I will sell it some time later and I did to get back my money to fund this lens hehe.

After selling my 24mm, I do have a 35mm CV L39 lens and was using it as my default lens most of the time.  But it register a magenta cast on the corners of the photos whenever I shoot wide.  However, while using the CV, it constantly makes me more convinced to get this lens as I enjoy the fov of the 35mm.  The new lens was bought via a Bro Jame of LBJQK which I met in facebook and I received it just last saturday when it was finally released in Malaysia.  Immediately after collecting the lens I went to Garden by the bay to test it out and the inital results were very positive.  You can view the 1st series here.

I went out today on a street test with my friend Callan for a 2nd round and yes, I totally enjoyed it and it will definitely be a keeper!  Great way to start a year! :)

Some people really needs to be shouted at.

Here's a little secret. I actually made a resolution last year in 2012 to post less negative things in my blog. Therefore, I actually wrote very little.. hahahaha.. So actually I guess I have a lot of negative posts in my blog. I think most of those negative things I wrote was about our Singapore ghament or some people I met or etc. I remember I read something about being negative constantly (talk or write) about bad things is pretty unhealthy for the mind and body so I tried my best to keep my cool and stop writing about bad things for a year. I did ranted on my facebook once in a while, if not I will go Ki Xiao (crazy in Hokkien). And to my shock, there isn't much good things to write last year. There are, of course, some very good magical moments with my wife and kids while I was back at home in Thailand but most of them are pretty personal and I prefer to keep it to myself. But it's not working well for me blog :P. So this year I throw away that silly thought and will start writing more complain letters and post.

First one is a recent incident on the plane back. We boarded the plane early and my mum was sitting in the middle of a 3 column seat while I was next to her at the aisle. Sometime later, some Chinaman (I'm sorry but it's true, I have lots of negative Chinaman stories) folks boarded the plane and started to shout here and there, looking for their bloody seats. One China woman was at our window seat but she was reluctant to sit at her designated spot. Apparently its because her dear hubby is 2 rows at the front and they wished to seat together. The husband was being pushy, standing up in his seat the front asking here and there and giving ideas on their little seating arrangement while the whole queue were blocked by these inconsiderate jokers. The stewardess tried to direct them to their seats but you know Thai people, they never shout or give assertion. So these jokers continued their little party while the poor stewardesses were hapless. My mum lost here cool and shouted at them to give way to the rest of the people. hehe. Old lady with all white hair dun play play. The Chinaman stopped and the lady finally moved into our seats after we stood up and let her in. The Q finally starts moving and just when I thought the worst is over when all the passengers had boarded. The idiotic husband stood up again and say the lady next to him (think is their relative) is ok to swap with his wife and screamed for the lady seating beside us to come over. I shouted back at the joker in perfect Chinese, saying no way you are going to let my 70 year old mum stand up again and let your wife go out. He was a bit shocked when I boomed. And I added that this is not your father's plane and please be considerate. My mum, at the same time, scolded the the woman next to us, asking her why they never sort these things out before they board the plane. The joker sat down and both kept mum afterwards.

After the little incident, I did noticed a little smile on the stewardess and I smiled back at her, shaking my head. She acknowledged back with a bigger grin and a slight nod.

Some people really needs to be shouted at.

A bloody short week.

It's has been a week and now I'm on my way back to Land of Slavery to slave again. I was just getting used to the weather in Maesai. It's 25 during the day and about 19 degrees at night. Damn I will miss the weather.

The kids are great and they are happy I was back. I managed to teach my girl some string games I used to play with my sister when we were young and boy boy was getting better everyday in using the computer mouse... :P hunting down zombies in Plant vs Zombies. I also somehow managed to complete their own bedroom. Yup, finally bought a pair of beds and setup their little kingdom. I still need to fix the AC and maybe a table for them to study or draw but from the way the jump on their beds I know they loved it... :P One thing bad is that boy boy still sticky with mummy so my wife still accompanies them in their room while I slept alone in our own bedroom :(

I was also busy sorting out some slides I took last time and managed to copied them this time using my a900. It's actually about half a year of backlog negatives and transparencies I cleared while the kids were in school. I also managed to finish 2 rolls on my Fuji 690 and will be looking forward to develop it back in SG. I have found a new home based lab via Chiff and he did a fantastic job on my last roll. For those interested in shooting and developing slides in Singapore, do search for Lo Sheng of Analog Film Lab in facebook. Just mail in the rolls and he will work his magic. And its bloody affordable too!

Interesting way to start a year

I'm typing this on the plane. I'm on my way back to Chiang Rai for a short break. Just only a week prior to my break, I actually tendered my resignation letter over matters of a deduction in our department's OT pay. It was actually quite dramatic. We received our pay last month just after Chirstmas and my colleague spotted the err in payment. Initially I thought it was just an individual mistake in the Finance department but later I found out the deduction was across the board. Furious with the sudden changes without any notification. I wrote a very strong worded email to my immediate superior and manager. Their response was pitiful in the sense that they don't see anything wrong in the whole fiasco. So furious was I that I decided to quit.

My immediate boss (who is also a good friend of mine) managed to persuade me to hold my letter and requested to have an emergency team meeting with the ops manager. For a very long time, all our team members came to the meeting that day and the ops manager explained that there were no changes the OT formulae. However, there was a special component that he has been giving to us discreetly ever since we joined the company. And our dear ops manager was questioned recently why he gave the special component so he has to enforced the rule.

I smell bullshit. Anyway, I cut straight to the point that we don't see it that way. A cut is a cut and if you wish to enforce this rule, at least have the courtesy to inform us before hand. This is to allow us to judge if its rational for us to do the extra OT. Not like we had done it in December and then undercut us this way.

So after some haggling, they gave in and return us the special component for the time being. For how long this will last? I really don't know but at least they promised to inform us next time if they play such stunts.

So actually I was going to be free and jobless in Feb 2013 but I guess I will stick around for the moment. Since the ops manager did personally asked me to withdraw my resignation letter (actually money is still the factor ... :P) So just this once, my principle was set aside.

2012 - A boring year.

Technically we have not reached the end of 2012 but by the counts of my post this year.  It's actually quite a boring year for me.  The year never ended on 21-12-2012 as predicted and nothing really major happened (aside to the scandals in Singapore politics and the SMRT strikes).  Maybe only the first half of the year when I came back to Singapore to work and resumed my shift job.  Other than that, it's just work, sleep, buy stuff, fly back to Thailand to spend time with the kids and etc.  Nothing eventful in my personal life.

Which brings to one point, how long can I last in such a situation.  Again, I have managed to save up some money and gained some through our stock exchange in lovely Singapore.   So 2013 will be an interesting year for me again.  I have that option to leave my job in Singapore (for good this time) and return back to Thailand to work on something.   I also have some plans that involved in a room of stuff left by my late father that I promised my mother that I will sort them out eons ago.  Initially I planned to sort them out when I'm on my day offs but I just do not have the energy to do so when I came back from work.

And recently, I just feel "old". hahaha.  Being physically of course and I do have to admit, once you hit 35 and above, its going to be downhill all the way.....  

So Happy Holidays and see you all in 2013.

More Camera Porn - Rollei 35 SE

I was looking around on (E)vil bay for my "Texas" Leica 690 when I bumped into someone selling a used Rollei 35 SE.  I have been dreaming of getting one just for collection sake.  Yes.. you heard me right.  First time I say I buy a camera just for "collection" but I just want to get one because I already know about its quirky designs.  I wanted it because it kinds of reminds me the old Singapore, when Singapore is part of the camera manufacturing business in the 70s and 80s.   Rollei 35 was an engineering feat as it's the smallest compact fully mechanical camera ever build.  So I want to get it for its historical value.  

I started bidding for it and set aside a target.  Nothing over 300 SGD including shipping.  Shipping was $10 USD so I set $250USD as my MAX bid.  It still has 9 days to go and I expected to loose the bid as this little piece of gem could still command a pretty high price in pristine conditions.  Come end of Nov.  I received an email from (e)vil-bay saying I won it and need to pay it asap... HOLY Shit!  I WON.  And the price is just ............

Anyway, happily paid for it and received it today!  I was on MC these 2 days and it was the best gift I could have.  Early Christmas pressie from Santa?? :P heheheh    Here are the rest of the photos of this little camera.

The beautiful Sonnar 40mm 2.8 with Rollei HFT coating

MADE IN SINGAPORE!!

Size Comparison

The Texas Leica - Fuji GW690II

Ok.  Another camera :P.  This is actually another impulse purchase over e(vil)-bay.  I  was actually planning to use the money for an Ipad-mini to replace my Ipad (1st generation) that was hijacked by my kids in Thailand.   The reason I was not getting the mini was because it does not have retina display and sincerely, the price it charges without retina is a bit "high" and dissapointing.

It all started when I started to see some photos posted by none other of ndroo of fuzzyeyeball.com  showcasing his shots using the Fuji GF670, basically the rebadged version of the Voigtlander Bessa III.  It's a compact and foladable medium format camera and that camera really appeals me because I am not shooting 120 as often as I want to in Singapore because the Mamiya Press was just so damn heavy and daunting to use.  His latest post re-ignited my quest to find something lighter and more portable to use.

Initially I thought of getting the GF670 but it's just too expensive for my budget.  I don't want to spend too much money and yet I wanted something smaller.  I started looking for some Mamiya 645 but the smaller format does not really appeal me.  Hassy is out as it's as boxy as my press.  The Fuji GW series immediately came into my mind.

1st, It's cheaper and more affordable.  There is the 6x9 format for me and lastly, the EBC coated Fujinon lens.  I chose the GW690II 2nd version because there isn't much difference between the III and II besides the RF mechanism.  I have handled a GW670II before and I quite like it.  It's huge but actually quite light for its size.  Mainly because of the more "plastic" construction.

I found a reputable seller in ebay and I got it within a week.  The seller is one of the rare ebay sellers that are very honest in his service and price.  He actually refunded some money to my paypal when he found out that shipping was not as expensive as he expected! Do check his store out for any LF or MF gears.

The camera is in great condition and it was actually on my target list when I was hunting for a 6x9 camera during my last search.  I settled for the Mamiya Universal "Beast" that time as I wanted something more flexible and modular.  This time, my aim is portability.  It's definitely not as portable as the foldable GF670 but at least it's much better than the "beast".

The RF and VF is quite bright but defintely not comparable to the VC or Leica.  They actually nicknamed this camera as the Texas Leica because of its size.  Come to think of it, actually the size ratio is exagerated.  Althought the camera's physical size is about twice the size of a 35mm Leica but the negatives you yield will be about 6 times of a 35mm film.  So actually if you think of it, the camera is quite small.

I have tested a roll and the initial assessment and feel is quite postive except for 2 things.

1st, this bloody leaf shutter RF camera give a very thunderous loud "clack" when triggered.  Bloody almost as loud as a Hassy.  Leaf shutter supposes to be quiet but Fuji has to make it this loud... WTH.  And from what I know, the loud clack is actually caused by triggering the shutter counter... not the real actual sound of the shutter closing.

2nd, the bloody front hood!  It's great to have a built in hood but if you collaspe it, you can't change shutter speed and aperture!  So imagine if want to mount a filter in front of you lens.... !@#!@$@#$  Stupid design.  I actually tried to remove it but it seems I need to disassemble the entire lens unit, just to get the bloody hood off!! So for the moment, I'll just leave it on.

I have loaded a roll and plan to shoot when I'm off from my work.  Will post more later.