I TAKE IT BACK! Canon G7X II is a decent performer!

After bashing the Canon G7Xii on my previous post, i wanna make it clear that, that was my first impression coming from a full frame Sony A7S. Yes, its my fault, i'm to blame but its not like Canon is losing money because of that post.

My eyes are so used to looking at the Sony A7S files, when i looked at the Canon files, my eyes were expecting the same result? which is ridiculous because its comparing oranges and apples, 2 different cameras, 2 different sensors, but for what it is, the Canon is surprisingly good.

I had to take out my old hard drive just to check out my old Sony Rx100iii pics, my brain was telling me that the Sony RX100 took better pictures than the Canon G7Xii in the ONE INCH sensor department...and too my surprised, the image quality was actually quite similar....

So my eyes were wrong, to be fair, its been a while since i last pixel peep a ONE inch sensor JPGs quality.

I had a tendency to pixel peep... it just amuses me.

So for a 1 inch sensor camera, the Canon is just as good as the Sony and also cheaper. if you dont need 4k and need longer reach 100mm at the long end compare to Sony's 70mm, i'd say get the Canon.

But why did i say it's a decent performer?

Its a good camera but the output i'd get is inconsistent. Sometimes its sharp, sometimes the JPEG rendering is mushy. I guess it's the JPEG rendering. The lens is sharp but Sony is sharper. The AF is fast in good light and as usual its slows down a bit in low light. Sometimes the AF is not accurate or should i say the face detection isnt accurate, i lost a few photos just because the faces were blur. The lens is also noisy when its tracking focus....dut dut dut dut dut....i noticed this when i tracked AF using touch.

I havent fully explored this camera i only had it for a week. But after getting used to how a ONE INCH sensor files supposed to looked like, i'm actually quite happy with this Canon. I'm still getting used to the AF accuracy. I'm just not confident of it yet, since i lost lots of pics due to AF inaccuracy. You can say its user error but i try using it as a point n shoot which by right should give me good results just by pressing the shutter button.

Its just the way the camera works kinda baffled me, when i half pressed the shutter, the focus looks like kinda blur on the LCD screen but after i took my shot, the LCD will show me that its sharp, its hard to explain it but yea, just have to get used to it.

You can get decent out of focus background with the ONE INCH sensor.

What i  dont like about this fast lens and sensor, Sony included, is when you take a selfie with a bunch of people, and you're not lined up,  the aperture just stays wide open which makes my face in focus or not in focus....by right they should set the aperture at least f4 i guess or 5.6 so that all the subject are in focus....the camera should be intelligent enough since it detects all the faces in the frame, it should calculate distance and give the appropriate aperture value so that everyone is in focus.

There's not much photos to show yet, i'm just nowadays not keen to post pictures of my kids.... i'll bring it to my Bangkok trip which is next month!

But So far So Good Canon.....

My Rebound Camera.... The Canon G7X Mark eye eye (II)

Rebound camera?

YES!
After losing out on a great offer on a Sony RX1, I was dumbfounded. Frustrated to say the least.
A few days later, after reading numerous rave and positive reviews on the net, i took the plunge and bought myself a Canon G7X Mark ii, also on a great deal. Bought it on a whim!

Rebound Camera.... This is not gonna end well!

This camera is pre-owned but almost practically new, there's almost no sign of use on the body, of course there are smudges on the LCD screen but it was in good clean condition, it was at a great price too! Its about USD$365.

To be honest, i dont need a Sony RX1, but i wanted it due to my nature of GASing every camera in the world. I'm looking for a pocketable camera, ones that can fit in my back pocket jeans. So, the 1inch series cameras fit the profile. The RX100 series are too damn pricey and the Canon was at half price, so i bought the Canon.

After the emergence of Fujifilm, Sony and Olympus in the mirrorless market, i never liked the Canons and the Nikons, to be honest i'm quite despised with them failing to compete the Sonys, the Fujis..... like Nikon for example, they announced the DL series, a 1inch sensor camera to compete with Sony, after few months of no news, they scraped the whole project, wat dafuq are you on about Nikon??

Years after years, Sony and Fuji coming out with brave new technology and the Canons just keep on updating their enthusiast n mid range DSLR...yawn.... After using Fujis, Olympus and Sonys, i never liked Canons JPEG rendering, its worst at best., best at its worst, i dunno if thats the right phrase but yeah...i mean BAD.

But like i said, after reading great reviews, getting a great deal, and also being a rebound, i made the leap!

Most bloggers reviewed it on a positive note, raving to be exact, saw Chris Nichols from The Camera Store youtube video and he gave it a positive experience as well. So must be good right?

After looking at the files in my Lightroom, i'm disappointed. It wasn't what my eyes are expecting, its not sharp, it smearing much, the JPEG rendering is mush. Colors a little on the red side. Just way too mushy, smeared, aggresive noise reduction. But this is JPEGs, RAW could be better. But if i want RAW i might just shoot with my Full Frame Sony A7S which is awesome but could not fit my back pocket, unless im a Giant wearing a loose jeans.

Its funny how people rave so much about it, the lens is crazy soft on the wide edges, almost toy like quality, but somehow it looks like part of the bokeh?? If there is a bokeh.
Sure this camera can do bokeh, but that JPEG rendering is killing me. Its just my eyes is not used to seeing this inferiority.

But Maybe i'm expecting too much out of a 1inch sensor.

Or my eyes are too fixed on Sony's Full Frame Image Quality or what my Olympus Micro Four Thirds can output.

I'm sure my Sony RX100 Mark III took better pictures.

So i took out my hard drive and looked for my RX100 images and blew it up in Lightroom.... To my surprised they were similar!! The Sony JPEG rendering is much better though or maybe i liked the Sony colors better but the JPEG rendering and the smearing and the Noise reduction, the softness are similar... Just a note, with these type of cameras i'd prefer to shoot just JPGs,

Well i guess my eyes are expecting a full frame quality or at least a Micro Four Thirds IQ.

Guess my acceptable smallest sensor shud be a Micro Four Third then. I just cant look into the 1 inch sensor IQ no more!

Right now i'm looking at the Lumix GM1. 😅😂😁

As always, another day another camera...... (to lust for)

But i'm gonna give my Canon another chance to shine...

GAS-ing for a new camera!

Wow, its almost one year after my last post.
As usual i get GAS every now and then, lusting for a new camera.... ive never GAS for a new lens...its always a new camera, doesnt matter if its a 10 year old camera as long as i have never owned it.... problem with my country we dont have camera rentals....if we do, it will save me a lot of money....

So which camera u asked?
I dunno the list goes on but i have so little money....but huge LUST...not need Just WANT..... sigh....its a problem i have, if only im Effing richhh 

Im looking for a small compact camera suitable for travel, in the lines of Ricoh GR, Fujifilm X70 or the newer XF10 but also got a great offer on a USED SONY RX1 which i have been lusting all these years but havent pulled the trigger.... but the RX1 is not pocketable like the Ricoh or Fuji, but they're are not quite pocketable (GR and X70) at least they're slimmer. But what about my Sony A7S plus 35mm 2.8 combo?? its similar in size to the RX1.... its good enough but like i said, i WANT something new!!
If i wanted to save money, i'll just stick with my A7S + 35mm, i brought that combo to New York and no complaints! Of course trying to take a picture of the Liberty from the pier is SAD AS FUCK. Need ZOOM. but for what it is, street photography and travel, the 35mm is great!
I'm also looking at the Sony 28mm f2, because i love bokeh so much...albeit the size will become bigger....

Why do i want a small camera you say? is because i want it for my Travels...i have Japan trip coming up so i need a camera i can bring everywhere...i want it compact as  fuck because im sure i'll be the one handling all the luggages and the baby stroller, i only have two hands, so bringing a bigger camera usually ends up in the bag, too hassle to take it out....i also need to be aware of my kid who likes to run once his feet hits the ground!

So yeah, problem im having,
Ricoh isnt easily available
Fujifilm X70 is probably still available but with its price i can buy the Sony RX1
Sony Rx1 is waiting for me
Sony 28mm f2 is also waiting for me...

So which one should i spent my money on???

I want to love the Ricoh but the dust problems ive been hearing and reading is putting me off.
I would want the Fuji X70 but since i can buy the RX1 for the price, its giving me headache.
The RX1 can produce great IQ but im hearing AF issues and low light performance not quite great.
If i want to invest i should get the 28mm lens because i know my A7S has great IQ and i can shoot wide open for bokeh which i really fond of....

But .... i want a brand new camera!

ciao

So i got myself an Olympus PEN F Yeaahh....

So i won the bid and then i realised that the Global Shipping Program is charging me for import charges which i found out is quite pricey. I thought at first that was just an estimation should it arrived here but then i was charged during payment checkout....i'm like WTF.... should i retract my bid or just go on with it close one eye? As you probably know i carry on and paid the thing. It actually became much expensive than the winning bid was....in fact i should have bought new rather than buying this pre-owned item. Well, i guess lesson learnt.

So after 2 weeks of waiting, it finally came via DHL Express.
There's no original box, so its just DHL packaging.. and again i told myself i should have bought new.
Upon unboxing the package, i picked up the camera and suddenly the battery pops out of the camera...well nothing fishy about it, not until i want to put the battery back in i realised there's a dent at the bottom corner of the camera near the battery door.

its kinda hard to see but you can see the dent.

I gasps! Was it due to shipping? Or was it dropped? It was fucked. The dent was so strong., the battery door could not be close properly. Fuck this seller selling me a dropped camera without mentioning it in the description. Well i was raised to be a nice guy, i didnt really make a fuss of it. Also i dont want to return it because i will lose money due to shipping charges. I lived on the other side of the world from USA, so yeah...shipping charges will be shitting me. Anyway I was too excited to play with the camera too. Its just a ding. just a dent. fuck it. Lets just force jam this battery door and closed it. Let me tell you, its a lot of effort to close the battery door. i slide the door pin and it closes but there was a gap. Its not pretty.

I'm telling myself it's just a gap. No big deal.......NOT.

I quickly checked the sensor, see if there's any visible crack or hairline crack, so far so good. Took a few pictures and the picture looks ok. nothing weird there. But i must confess, the focusing speed using with my 20mm 1.7 Panny lens is a lot slower than my Pen E-PL7. I mean what gives? I was expecting a faster performance but it was the other way round. it was noticeable. Maybe i was focusing in a dim room but still...i can feel the sluggishness. Just like how i am when i woke up. 

The feel of the camera is very good. the knobs, the handling. The front dial isnt actually in the way as some reviewers said. i love the front dial. that MONO 2 people been talking about. its so good. it made me want to shoot in black and white all the time and the best thing about Olympus is their flexibility. I can shoot in black and white and also saves it with the color profile 2 or your own custom color profile, just by using the bracket mode. This only works with JPGs. Well you can save RAW+Jpegs as well. 

All Black and White pictures are Monochrome Mode 2 with the grain effect at LOW. The colour shots are a custom color profile that i found on the internet, simulating Fuji's classic chrome or kodachrome. Now i dont have to edit much in lightroom. Everything OOC!

I also love the feeling of the shutter. Its so quiet and spongy. 

I also like that the LCD screen can be flip backwards so that it doesnt show the screen. Its like a wannabe film camera! And i just realised that i chimped a lot!! it felt weird when not chimping. 

But i do prefer the E-PL7 tilt screen style. Just tilts up and down, i find it unnatural using this vari-angle flip screen. its just so weird for me. Its like i have to look a bit to the left while the camera pointing straight, if you get what i mean. 

It is a fun camera, i almost dont mind the battery door issues any more until.....

The camera decides to randomly shuts down while taking photos.

At first, i thought its because i was using a slow speed SD card. 

So i swapped cards and shit still happen.

Read in a forum it could be battery.

But its not.

Because after a lot of research, i found out that this could be a shutter mechanism faulty. its hardware. its not something that i can fix. There was a remedy but it did not work for me.

The symptom was, its so random sometime after 30 photos, sometime after 5 shots, it turns to black screen and shuts down. It did not record your last picture taking. Turning On and Off brings it back to life. The remedy was to shoot in high/low sequential mode. At first it will shuts down but after a few shots you will be able to take high speed burst. Return to normal shoot mode and there will be no more problems afterwards. thats the remedy i got from the forums. But it doesnt work on my camera.

I tried it, and i never got to shoot in high sequential mode. Based on forum, this is a shutter mechanism problem. My guess is the drop fucks the shutter.

After toying around with the camera, i realised that the normal shooting mode, did not work. it will shut down.

All these times i was using a 0 sec anti shock mode. This works ok but randomly it will shut down.

Low sequential mode with anti shock works too.

Since this is a shutter mechanism my guess the electronic shutter will work just fine.

And then the deal breaker was all those Live Bulb, Live Time and Live Composites did not work. it will shut down after shutter is pressed. Thats so fucked up. Im not sure who to blame, whether Olympus for making such a pussy camera or the seller but i guess the seller got lied too when they got the camera. Why? Because this seller i deal with seems like a pawn shop. they are just the middle man i guess but still...they did not mentioned the drop in the description so they kinda lie too. motherfuckers. 

I got a crippled Olympus PEN F.

Return in progress.

YASHICA... the unexpected!!!

Expect the unexpected Yashica said and they nailed it!!
That was really unexpected.
Unexpected the expected.
And here i am expecting a Retro-ish Digital Camera that can rival the Fujis, Sonys and Olympuses.
My wishlist was, a full frame 35mm f2, retro Yashica body, with EVF....well Full Frame was wishful thinking but at least big sensor like APSC or M43.
But instead we get a toy.....sort of....
Yashica called it DigiFilm....
it's a pretend film that you load inside the camera. and theres also a winder! sort of "film advance" or shutter cock
The digifilm is like your Instagram filter but physical. Thus digifilm. different digifilm just gives different effect to each shots taken.
This does appeal to those Lomo/Diana camera fans...and of course hipsters....
I actually think its a clever idea....genius...if only it has a big sensor....but what we got here is what most smartphone camera sensor has.
1/3.2 inch CMOS sensor.
And then there's a confusion whether it was 1.4Mp or 14Mp....there was a possibility of a typo... 1.4Mp in 2017??? Cmon....
I've just checked the updated kickstarter page...it says 14Mp.... well thats reasonable... but still a small sensor??!
1 inch would be great!! but full frame is better!
Definitely a different, possible fun experience.
No LCD to chimp on.
Not sure whether you will get the right exposure.
Just like those film days...without the hassle to develop prints.
To be honest, now that it sinks in, it kinda grows on me. i actually want one. But still a disappointment.
Here i am wishing a rival to X100's or Sony Rx1 or Pen F.
The sample pictures does look a lot like film which is intriguing.
But all these (no LCD chimping, selected ISO, right exposure) can also be done with my PEN F. Just slap back the LCD and dont chimp. and bigger sensor than the Yashica.
Oh...didnt i tell you? I just bought a PEN F!
But still i want the Yashica.

This kickstarter project has reached its target
But still....
Backed this project!

My supposedly-announced-NEW-PEN-from-previous-blogpost... Its the Olympus PEN E-PL7

Yea,

I was supposed to announced my newly acquired PEN as i have said in my previous blogpost, that was weeks ago, but life happen so i got busy and did not update this blog as much as i could have... but nobody cares or read anyway...except for one guy 😉

So yea, i got meself a new PEN, the Olympus PEN E-PL7!

I got it when i was in Bangkok....
And it was quite an adventure you see...

While i was in Bangkok, i looked for a used olympus buy and sell group page on Facebook, of course ones located in Thailand, and most of the stuffs they sell is quite cheap compare to ebay.... so while im there, why not buy used?! I just got an E-P2 but it wasnt as expected...i am never satisfied with that camera, the IQ is good but the low resolution of the LCD screen is a deal breaker for me...and combine with the slow lumix 20mm 1.7 lens, the performance is left to be desired... so i look for a new used PEN!

At first i was looking at E-PL5, i want a small camera, so i was looking at the lite and the mini series, in the end i found E-PL7s sells for cheap... of course everything is in squiggly thai fonts...i have to rely on google translate for most of the description....and i thought everyone in Thailand can read or speak english...i was such a fool.... i was txting them in english and boy do i got a reply? nobody answered me....even a direct message to the seller left me hanging..... fucked! But I must get one of the deals here, its a good bargain!

This is just one of the seller's post and i had to endure with google translation.

I dunno...this PEN E-PL7 comes with prostitute??

lets make an appointment with the wind???...

and then you CONTACT THE BANANA???

She never replied my text though...

This is what i had to endure for every post...but thanks for trying google..

So i scroll again looking for sellers who sells the EPL7 for cheap and i found one seller who happens to have a shop at Bangkapi Mall or so i thought......

Oh they got a shop at Mall Bangkapi...thats pretty easy right?

Just go there and look for the shop and just buy....

The Mall is actually pretty far but i believe it will be worth it...

I'm around MBK center, and its around 40-50mins plus traffic to reach Mall BAngkapi....all this for the PEN E-PL7.

And when i reached the Mall Bangkapi, i somehow got a feeling that the shop is not in the mall...so i asked the concierge she also said its not in the mall, its somewhere the street outside.... so i check their FB page and THANKS TO YOU FACEBOOK DIRECTION it leads me to Soi Lat Phrao 146 as shown above.... hmm ok... it probably only 10mins walk, so i walk from Mall Bangkapi and went to Soi Lat Phrao, hoping to find the camera shop there, so i walked through the alley, theres some guy at the entrance, he kinda blocked the entrance, speaking in thai, just broadcasting to everyone passing by but i just enter follow the girl infront of me, and just walk in, looking for the shop,.... theres some kind of funeral going on, and all these thai ppl speak loudly, i dunno if there are arguing or just having a good story, its actually a good photo opportunity but i didnt have the balls to take it because it look kinda private and i might get in trouble.... This Bangkapi area is different from the city center, theres no tourist here, nobody speaks english here, lucky i look like thai myself, they probably dont give a fuck, i m probably in trouble if im a farang..... i even enter a supposedly locked gate, it was wide open, i enter n then all these thais kids and some older thais as well give me a look, i realised im not suppose to enter there and its some kind of a restricted area, so i turn back and make my way out of the alley, it was kinda nerve wrecking, i dont speak thai, no one speak english here, no tourist.... and no camera shop to be seen.....might get in trouble....but luckily nothing happen.....and all these for Olympus PEN E-PL7.... so FACEBOOK just gave me BAD direction as Jackie Chan said, NO, they gave me WRONG Direction.... in the expense of my life ....

So i checked the facebook page again, depending everything on Google translate, it still gives me the same direction as before....i kept walking forward just in case the shop is nearby but none....... after much looking and searching in FB, i found some kind of address, 624 Condolette Lad Phrao, i googled it, its not even a shop its only some sort of CONDO.... Oh man, i guess im lost, i couldnt find the shop....FB/Google probably gave me wrong information here..... but since im here might as well check out the CONDO for the last time before i raise the white flag of surrender.....

its another 5 -8 mins walk since im already halfway, so i make my way to the condo....

These area is pretty quiet for Bangkok, check that out, less cars!! OMG...even more nerve wrecking....

 Finally here, when i saw it, there's only some kind of Sushi shop at the ground floor, theres a security guard at the entrance, just walk pass them, and no one stop me or anything...

The only obvious shop is the Sushi shop, i didnt even see the camera shop next to it!! I FINALLY FOUND THE SHOP!!!!!!!

Nice people!!!
The girl at the counter is HOT!
They speak little english, and they were kind of surprise to see me there, a non thai....
The guy was funny, he didnt speak english at all but he spoke to me in Thai as if i can understand him...the girls were giggling looking at us, like duck and chicken talking!

All these for my new Olympus PEN E-PL7.
It was a good adventure.

F*CK ME!!

Damn....
I'm fucked!
I wasnt expecting import charges...
But it was included!!!
...during checkout!!!
Damn....
What supposed to be cheap...
Went a $112 MORE!!!
Thats not a deal...
Thats murder!!!!!
But it was still an oversight from my own....
I guess i learnt my lesson???
I shudve RTFM??
Fucking import charges...
Sigh...
Now i have kidneys to sell...
No wonder i won the bid easily...
Theres a fucking additional charge!
Global Shipping Program my ASS...
I'm not surprised if i get double charged when it arrives here..
I was careless...
I can still cancel the bid and get a negative feedback or whatever...
but my ego is above me...
never retract a bid...
Dont pussy out...
Just pay the goddamn thing!!
Urghh!!!!