Another day another GAS!

This time its the Fuji X70!...
I used to have GAS for the X70 before but i never pulled the trigger..
But now the GAS is back...
I love my Sony A7S and the output i will get..
but somehow that camera just lacks the soul...
It didnt make me want to take a picture...
unless im shooting the night sky and maybe going for that crazy bokeh look..

The reason im GASing for the X70 is the size....
Because i have a trip to DC coming up...
so a smaller camera would come handy...
my iphone is small but id like the best IQ possible...
I would love to bring my Sony A7S but somehow thinking of bringing it already felt unliberating..
unliberating = not free = no freedom
Its kind of bulky although it is small, blame it on the protruding lens..
So if i have a X70, will it give me a peace of mind?
It is small for sure, and the Fuji quality is no question but will it be able to capture the milky way like the A7S did?

There are a few things that put me off from buying the X70.
First is money baahahah...
Will i go crazy and spend my life savings on a camera that i will use for a one week trip?
Will i fully utilise it then? or maybe it will stay in the bag?
Will i bring it everywhere? im sure i must!
I would love the X70 if someone can show me if it can take portraits with decent bokeh...
ive been looking online...its tough! i know i know....
it is wide angle and a bit slow lens at f2.8, not a popular choice for portraiture work but hey...as long it didnt distort way too much and at least decent bokeh, i dont mind...
i know Fuji is good at low light but im already used to the Sony A7S low light quality, will i be disappointed?
My heart says wait for the new iteration, X70S or X80 but my trip is this Saturday.
Have i told u that the X70 is a discontinued product? Not that it turned into a bad camera, its just i happen to like the latest and the greatest...
if i wait for the X80, it will have a new sensor and the ACROS mode but do i need them?
Do i need bokeh? I do love them but do i need them for all my photos?
Sure its good to have bokeh if it can but is it a deal breaker for me?
If i did buy the X70, why do i keep thinking that i will still bring the Sony A7S? whats the point then?
Hmmmm, decision is tough unless im super fucking rich.
And then theres the question whether to get silver or black...
Oh money why dont u grow on trees?

taken from/credits to photodoto

Smaller/shorter than an iPhone but cant fit pants they say...

Convincing myself to get a PEN F

At the moment, i am convincing myself to get an Olympus PEN F.
Been reading a lot of reviews on the net and youtube.
When there's a negative review i would just brush it aside and say "He's probably a noob"
I read what i want to read, i listen what i wanted to listen, i see what i wanted to see.
If you tell me otherwise i would shut it.
That is GAS my friends. I have uncontrollable GAS.
When it was launched i could not care less about it.
Saw it on the store shelf before, i just walked pass it.
But somehow now, as of today, i really want one.
Oh the PEN F. Why would i go back to smaller sensor?
I convinced myself that i needed a smaller camera and smaller lenses.
Olympus Image Quality is decent for what i do mostly.
I never printed large. I'd imagine i would do someday but that day never comes.
I did print once but it was only 3R and 8x10.
Shyeah, Olympus can manage that. Just as long as i dont shoot at ISO6400.
But for the price of the PEN F, i can also get a Fuji X100F,
which i drooled over last time but now not anymore.
Hmmm....
If only i have money coming out of the tap.
TO be honest, my A6000 is considered compact but NO, i still want Oly.
So what now?
Im thinking what else is there i need to sell to fund my Oly GAS.
Posted my Guitar on sale but nobody seems to be interested.
Cos they dont know about brands... all they do is low balling and buy stuffs from China.
F U, im selling a USA made Gibson SG.
Come on show me the money!
I want to buy the PEN F please.
If only Lensrental ships worldwide.
Or a rental store is available from where i come from.
Sigh....
You know the drill.
Once i got the Oly, then i want a Fuji and then i would want a Sony...
it keeps coming back, rolling over and over.
If only i do this for money.
that would be ok right?
wWhy cant i be happy with my own camera?
I used to be happy with a Fuji.
But there are other ways to like a different brand and find fault with what i have.
Anyway,
I probably own the PEN F when i updated this blog next time.
:D
Remember when i say i dont like the silver PEN F? Well thats the color i want now!

taken from youtube

GAH!!! Another Day Another GAS!

So here i am reading countless camera reviews...
And lately i am reading about Olympus.
I dunno why i m attracted with Micro Four Thirds format again.
Im sure the camera aesthetics played a very big part as i love retro camera designs.
I remember i told myself never again. Its not that it sucks. it just that id prefer Fuji images.
Well its physics. Small sensor vs bigger sensor.
I'm looking for a smaller package.
My Sony A7S is not really that large except for its lenses.
Its no larger than say a Fuji X-T2 or Oly EM1.
But maybe its not retro enough.
I dunno why im not looking into Fuji X100F anymore. Well thats GAS for you.
One second Fuji, the next Olympus.
I was really interested with the OMD EM10ii as i found cheaper deals on ebay.
I was a bit surprised that it has gotten so cheap, maybe it wasnt that new anymore.
Maybe July they'll announced a version 3 with the newer sensor.
Thats why the ver 2 is cheap nowadays.
I wasnt really interested with Olympus PEN F. Especially the silver, the silver is not nice in my eyes.
But last night i started to read reviews about the PEN F.
I convinced myself it will have better HIGH ISOs but i knew in my heart my Sony is better.
Why HIGH ISOs? Because i like to take pictures of my kids indoors where light is dimmer.
But just 2 days ago i read reviews of OMD EM1.
I need rehab. my GAS is uncontrollable.
I thought i can buy all cameras with my hard earned cash.
But lets be honest, i will be broke if i keep on going like this.
But what do you think of the Olympus PEN F?
......

photo by Olympus

Who here loves reading camera reviews? i do...

I love reading camera reviews... whats not to like? There are mostly positives and that leads to GAS or at least helps building up GAS. I have GAS. I'm sick of my GAS problems. Because im not bloody rich, if i was id buy all the cameras i can think of.

At the moment i am GASing for Olympus. What gives? Why would i downgrade from a Full Frame sensor to a micro four thirds? Like i always said, i am more into aesthetic.... Olympus and Fuji looks like old skool camera, Sony meh... they look like boxes bahahaha but i love the IQ i get from Sony. And i was never happy with my Olympus EM10 before, so i dunno why i would like to get my hands on the Em10ii. It just look so good. like old Film Olympus camera. Maybe thats why. and somehow it is cheaper! than the predecessor. i bought my EM10 at about $1200SGD, now its only $600-700 Singapore dollars.

If only there is a rental for camera here, at least i can let off my GAS. If i want it id buy it but sadly here i have to buy it to test it.... GAS wins everytime....

Sorry for the random rant.

Ciao.

By Chris Gampat of phoblographer, he always takes beautiful photos of cameras... not helping my GAS though..

My Sony Cameras Gear Porn

My Sony A7S and my A6000 with a bunch of lenses. To be honest i dont need to have any other camera brands, my Sony is almost complete, i would like to add a 28mm f2 and maybe the 85mm 1.8. My Sony line is almost complete...why do i still GASing for Fuji??!!

Sony A7S vs A6000 Indoor low light test

*UPDATE*
"Apparently i had the Sony A6000 High ISO NR to OFF but the A7S is on LOW! Thats not a fair fight!! Instead of editing this post i'll just make a new post"

I am getting way ahead of myself.

Actually i wanted to do a quick first impression of my brand newly own Sony A7S... but to satisfy my pixel peeping OCDness, and to convince myself that the A7S is truly the king of low light as many netizens called it....i did a non scientific comparisons between Sony A7S and the Sony A6000..... fuck science. You wanna shoot charts n bricks go ahead....not gonna find it here.... bahahaha.

Anyway, long story short, after owning the A7S, there's a side of me keep telling me that Fuji can also take great pictures in low light, i mean of course they do duh, then whats the advantage of my Sony? why did i bought the A7S? Should have stayed the idea on buying Fuji. Reading reviews on countless blogs didnt help. Steve Huff compared it with Olympus EM1 mark ii and the results were kinda astounding for a micro four third sensor! Its almost on par. Then why the hell did i go with Sony?? Or is this just GAS talk? just because i already have the A7S, now i want the Fuji....fuck sakes GAS...

Anyway, enough crap talk, lets get to the comparison. Lets compare apples vs apples. No one apple is the same right? 😂 I did this comparison because,

1) i have pixel peeping OCD
2) To convince me that the A7S is truly great in low light
3) and because i happen to have two Sony bodies, namely the A7S and the A6000.

Lens fitted on A7S is 55mm 1.8 (I FRIKKIN LOVE THIS LENS) and on A6000 is 35mm 2.8 (I USED TO LOVE BUT AFTER 55mm NOT SO MUCH) , so FF equivalent is roughly the same focal length about 52mm. I set the aperture of both lens to f2.8 and shutter speed at 1/60. ISO varies depends on comparison. Everything OOC JPEGS. Noise Reduction LOW.

*UPDATE* (A7S HIGH ISO NR LOW vs A6000 OFF) Sorry this is what happen when i do a rush job!!

This is the level of darkness the eyes see. Not pitch black dark but still pretty dark for general photography.

 First the A6000, using ISO 25600 (Max ISO). Color noise is partying!

Here is the Sony A7S, same ISO 25600, Hmmm pretty darn impressive! There's noise of course but looks pretty clean (Useable). I think i satisfied my OCD. Yes A7S has that low light advantage.

But lets get real, normally people would stop at max ISO6400. For nowadays-camera this is the max usable highest ISO for a clean image.

Here's A6000, i brighten it in post by 2 stops to get the optimum exposure. Hmmmmm...

Here's Sony A7S. I brighten it 2 stops just like the A6000. Its definitely better than the A6000.

Here's for fun, Sony A7S ISO51200,

Thats still usable right? Yeah sure there's noise but look at the wordings on the lens, still look kinda sharp.

And a word about AF, i think both camera are pretty much the same speed. I didn't noticed who, what or which is slower or faster. They do hunt initially but once they locked focus, afterwards its just quick AF....(thats As Fuck) bahahahahahahah.... i meant Auto Focus....... or both. 😂

And that concludes my non scientific comparison.....

Ciao...

I caved in........

In the end i caved in. its just an offer i cant refuse. i bought the used Sony A7S facebook deal. At $1500USD thats a great deal. It includes the body and 2 lenses, 55m f1.8 and 24-70 f4. But there is one catch though. But obviously its not a deal breaker. cos i bought it?? 😂

Shots taken with iphone7plus. VSCOed to death!

Here is the catch.......

The rubber near the card slot peeled off. But everything else work perfectly.

In operation wise, the rubber didn't really get in the way, its just annoying looking at it because i like my cameras to be smart/neat, no dangling rubber. but for the price, its a fuckin great deal.

"So far so good" - Joshua Faraday

I am so happy with my purchase.

But honestly afterwards, i was reading the X100F review! bahahaha 😂

Talk about GAS!
GAS wins everytime.

GAS happens!

Well, im definitely on GAS.
One minute i was about to purchase the Sony A7ii, and then the next i was leaning towards Fuji X-T20.... and i forget all about the Sony, its Fuji all over. Sigh.... And then i saw my old Fuji X100T pictures, i really like the X100 series but i think its time to try a different X model but i still want the latest X100F.....and i like the 35mm FOV and they have converters too 28mm n 50mm. Nice. But maybe next time. And then i saw a great deal on Facebook, a used Sony A7S with 55mm 1.8 plus 24-70mm f4 at a jaw dropping price USD$1500!!! Da Fuq! At that price, anywhere in the world it is body only price but this guy, he sells it with 2 $1k lens each.... *gasp emoji here*

Im the type of guy who are unable to resist a good offer like Don Corleone said "Make him an offer he cant refuse" or in my case its "Dont refuse a good offer"... i am terrible with that kind of deals, i just cant control myself.... it messed up my mind... just like that, i forget Fuji, i'm back to Sony. I always wanted to try the Sony A7S, too bad we dont have camera rentals here, it would be a big help to my GAS problems....

Why i like A7S??
- high iso capabilities.
- low light performance.

actually those 2 points are the same. I tend to shoot a lot indoors, so it would be great to not have to worry about high ISOs. ISOLESS they say. Back in the days, but not so long ago, i would worry about blurry pictures when shooting indoors or at night, Ur up on your highest ISO but the shutter is still slow to get the right exposure or at least a decent exposure, most of the times i would just shoot underexpose so i can brighten it in post.....just like how i do it on my Leica M8...sigh...my favourite Leica, sold it though, and also how i did it on Fuji X100 series, shoot underexpose and brighten in post, so far so good, i got keepers........ now that i think about it, actually i dont need this A7S, but but included a $2k worth of lenses? Man, i cant resist.

Here are some pictures that i brighten in post.

Leica M8. One of the tricks is to convert it to black and white, so grains would look good...GAH! The shot is underexpose, i brighten up in post. 

Color works too!

All shots above are Leica M8 shots...it is a bit underexposed, but i liked it, it gave some atmosphere, feel, vibe, i dunno how to explain it....

Shit, now i'm GASing for Leica M8. 

Off now heading to Ebay. Bahahah

Ciao.

I am Leica-less

I finally sold my Leica M8...sob..sob..sob...
And the guy got it at a pretty good deal. Comes with handgrip and a free Jupiter 8 lens.
He said its for his wedding gift...awwww... that would be a pretty cool gift!
Leica is so sexy man....
But its just not for me...
Even how awesome it was to hold and take pictures with it.
I just struggle with manual focusing. Its fine actually but i just preferred auto focus.
Thats why i love my Fuji X100T.
Its no leica. its no rangefinder. but for the photos i took, it does make me smile.
To be honest because of my GAS issue, i want a black X100T too!! now call me crazy....
I also want a black Leica M8.2.
At this moment i just want a black rangefinder looking camera.
So sleek and sexy.
I sold my M8 so i can fund a new Fuji camera.
X70 not so much nowadays.
I am really into X-T1 vs X-T10. Both in silver.
For hundred dollars less, i should get the X-T10 but i just love how the graphite silver of the X-T1 look. Oooooohhhhh.
Decisions decisions

X-Pro2 GAS..... PEN-F not so much now.....

After reading the early rave reviews of the newly announced Fujifilm X-Pro2, i'm on GAS mode. Its a better X-pro1. Fast AF, one stop better HIGH ISO performance, weather sealing....what else? lets just say it now...a Leica killer?? Everybody drools that rangefinder look.... i used to have an X-pro1, i love that camera but i sold it to fund another camera....now it seems like the X-Pro2 is the ultimate still shooting camera...everything u need are there... maybe.... there's no touch screen and no tilting screen...i mean for a 2016 camera and the era of touch screen devices, it should have at least a touch screen, the new X70 got it...so why skipped on the X-pro2? should i wait another 4 years to get this feature on an X-Pro body? maybe not....while its not a deal breaker for me but it would be a great feature to have. Tilt screen??? same story. great feature to have but not a deal breaker. maybe fuji wants to be like Leica...minimalist....no tilt screen and no touch screen...heck why not just make a M9 all over again. Or just use film instead. Cmon its 2016. but its sokay...i would still love the camera if i owned it... just like the M8, just concentrate on taking pictures..no fancy mancy features to deal with....but in the end it just stay on the shelf for now...just because i love AF too much..i'm taking pictures of kids so yea i need fast AF. Screw manual focus. like i said..2016 = AUTO Focus.

Video mode on Fuji bodies is the same. They suck. Thats what at least those pro videographers said. For me personally...i dont know slash i dont care. it looks like video so it might as well play like video. so its no big deal for me. 4k or not i dont give  a shit. i just bought a NON 4K tv....who wants to watch those soap opera effect anyway.... well at least it had video recording feature..unlike the Nikon DF.

Lets just wait for the internet reviewers to fully review the X-Pro2, and do comparison and versus this versus that...cos i like those stuffs!

After looking at leak images of the PEN-F, i'm less excited..or maybe cebause X-pro2 is fresh hot from the oven...lets just wait for PEN-F announcement.

Its been a while and less GAS...so i'm not excited to blog but its 2016 and new cameras are coming!!!!! X-Pro2, X70, PEN-F!!!

Hello World....

Its been a while since i last updated my blog... i have less GAS on gears at the moment but i do peek around my two favourite rumors websites, fujirumors and 43rumors.... .. Yes i still love Fuji and although i did bashed Olympus before i do still love it since i dont really print my photos so large vs small sensor doesnt really matter. All i did was looking at those pictures on my 15inch Macbook Pro and both cameras produced great enough images. Even on my friend 27inch iMacs the Olympus was good enough. I'm not printing banners or posters and what not so yea... i do have GAS on the olympus em5 mark ii but not yet pull the trigger. My last GAS was on Fuji X-T10 because it is available in my country. Olympus not so much.

So yeah, another year has passed and now its 2016!!!! Man...time flies like flies if that makes any sense. Gear wise i'm only left with my Leica M8 and Sony Rx100m3. I bought a new not so new lens for my M8, a cheap russian vintage Jupiter 8 lens. Its really cheap and it has focus shift.

I'm so not in love with my Leica M8. I'm just slow at focusing or maybe because my cheap lens has focus shift so another pain the in ass/eye focusing. I'm just spoiled by Olympus blazingly fast focus and the cleaner files of Fujis. With the Leica M8, i'll get false colors and due to camera fault, black cloth turns to purplish. Its a good black and white camera but i love colors too...so yeah....

So its 2016 and new rumored cameras are coming. First its the anticipated Fuji X-Pro2 and the leaks image looks like it has the same body as the old X-pro1.....i hope they come in silver! and it has new sensor! lets hope they get rid of those waxy skins problems at higher isos JPGs....sheeeshhh who wants to look like a mannequin?

. 

X-pro2 leak image taken from fujirumors.

i wish it looked more like a Leica but this is not so bad.

and then they have the new leaked image of rumored X70, a mini X100T, a fixed lens camera with new 28mm FOV lens but no viewfinder built-in. 

not really in love design wise.... it didnt look retro enough to me. More like a Ricoh GR wannabe.

lets wait for the real world image to come up

but still not retro enough me thinks

and then the one rumored camera that i am excited for.....

the Olympus PEN-F!

taken from 43rumors

If it looks anything like this, i'm SOLD

SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY!!!

Style over substance.

Looks like my one pic a day didnt work out...

My last posts was on June. Now its almost September. and as expected, i didnt update my blog that frequently as i would have liked. No one picture a day. I was really optimistic when i wrote that post. But as usual, i didnt managed to do it. I didnt even finished my 365 project. boohoo oh well. Enough!

Again, as usual, if i suddenly feeling the urge to update my blog that can only mean one thing. GAS!!!!!!!!!
Yes, fucking GAS!!!!!!!

I sold all of my Fuji cameras (in the hope of getting a new X100T or waiting for X200), and i'm left with a Leica M8 and a Sony RX100iii..... i hope i wont be selling that little gem, the RX100iii. cos its a great camera for its size.

Now i'm GASing for its big brother, the Sony A7!!!!!

With new models coming in, the A7 just got cheaper. Its cheaper than a brand new Fujifilm. and A7 is full frame. But seriously i need to get that Full Frame Vs Crop mentality out of my head because with new technologies so advanced nowadays, Crop sensor can actually challenge a Full Frame sensor, IQ wise.  Anyway back to Sony A7, I found a deal a used Sony A7 with the kit lens only cost a grand. But im kinda short on money so i'm thinking of swapping my Leica M8 for it, its nuts but yea im really on GAS. I didnt really use much of the Leica and i want to try the Sony A7 very much. Where i'm living there's no rent no nothing here so the only solution is to buy and try. it sucks but yea i am accustomed to my country way of living.

Sony A7 dont really have much choice of native lens but it can be used with old lenses with the use of adapter. its intriguing but i'd prefer auto focus lens but u see the versatility.

Anyway, Sony A7 For The Win!!!!

I knew it would come to this!

GAS works in mysterious ways. at least with me yes. It comes and goes. At one time i would go Fuji crazy then at one time i go Leica crazy. Now that i dont own a Leica M9 anymore, guess what? you're right, i got the Leica bug back again. Just days ago i was so into the Fuji X100T, i still am but i'm still justifying the purchase of yet another brand new spanking camera. Its just a hobby of mine, i dont get money from taking pictures so why get a new camera when the one with me still works right? Well i have GAS disorder. i need rehab i think. But the camera i have right now cant compete with Fuji's IQ. at least thats what GAS told me. and the nifty features i like from X100T are the :-

• ability to print directly to Instax Share printer, 
• the classic chrome emulation, 
• Wifi integrated, 
• bigger LCD, 
• faster EVF,
• Face detection
• Better faster autofocus

But all of these features i research via Google and various blogs reviewing the X100T, i have yet to test the camera myself. All those features i mentioned above are what makes me want to upgrade from X100S. Back during the S days, i have to transfer my pictures via a memory card reader which is kinda an ass. iPads being difficult, sometimes it just wont work straight out of the box with the memory card reader. basically it takes a lot of steps. Now with Wifi, it solved just that.

I have an Instax SHARE printer so i would love to have my camera print directly to it.

Classic Chrome not so much actually because i have VSCO but VSCO didnt have the KODACHROME film emulation which the classic chrome emulates. Bigger LCD is better to have because i have "the bigger the better" bug. i want the nexus 6!!!!

Now this one feature is i'm really curious, FACE DETECTION. Some reviewers said it works out of the box, some said it still needs improvement. but i really want this feature to work. so i can easily just put the camera to my hip and let the autofocus/face detect choose the faces and snap the photo for my candid street photography. that would be interesting. and with Face detection i dont need to do focus and recompose thingy.

I haven't updated you guys but i dont have any Fujifilm cameras no more. i just sold off my X-pro1 over the weekend. Thats why i'm hunting for an X camera now. at first i wanted the X-T10 but then i always like the X100 series. Still i haven't make the plunge. Maybe this week or next year or wait for the new X100F.

SO i was speaking about the Leica bug. At the moment, gratefully i am not crazy for a used M9 yet or the M240. Actually i'm loving my M8. Now i just wanted to add a collection of lens for the M8. i'm eyeing the voigtlander 35mm or the zeiss 28mm zm. I love the M8 but it being not full frame i have a hard time choosing lens as it is cropped sensor. 35mm becomes 46mm, etc etc etc. i'm not sure i wanna get wide or tele. and then there's the IR cut filter issue. it is bloody expensive. but i still put up the M8 for sale. Not sure if there's a crazy person will come up with cash like the M9 buyer did. LOL.

I'm still on a quest to own the Leica M9? Am i stupid?

So the seller of the Leica M9-P that i put a bid on has cancelled the bid and ended the listing altogether. His reasons? Because of the Leica statement made yesterday, the sensor corrosion issue! I respect and appreciate his generosity, a very responsible seller. He said that he needed to send it to Leica first for a repair or replacement and put it back on sale. See? he is nice. Some seller would just get rid their stuffs to the next buyer. i was so ready to win the bidding war but when he ended the sale abruptly, i kinda see it as a sign, not to get the M9. More money for a BMW! but GAS works in a mysterious way. One minute i'm thinking of the M9, the next im thinking of the BMW, the other i was thinking of customising my Sportster which is so due.... but instead this morning i just place a bid on a low use Leica M9. I was already in love with the all black M9-P and the black M8.2, so why not i just get the M9 and make the red dot black? thats what i set in my mind and thus placing the bid is the next best thing. Corrosion issue? what corrosion issue?
i'm still in my unbelievably idiot mode and bid a Leica M9, i still want the M9 even after Leica officially stated the corrosion sensor issues. because i'm just plain stupid, stupid, stupid! GAS is running circles over me. whatever that means.

Heres a few Leica M9 in stealth mode as they say, i'm in my Leica lust mode....

 Hello there sexy!

taken at www.ffffound.com

Just look at those Leicas, all lying around. I feel like looking at Top3 Maxim hotties.

same jaw dropping, mouth watering effect. 

taken at www.teknopunk.com

rangefinder with square hood is mouth watering drooling.

 taken at www.tokyo75.exblog.jp

Even the M8.2 looks handsome in black. very handsome indeed

taken at www.gopixpic.com

My problem is, when i'm in GAS mode, a certain GAS mode, i tend to buy more than one. Thats the problem. As if i have a million dollars in my bank account. trust me. i dont have that much money. i always think i have that much but it all credit cards maxed out in the end. I have an M8, I also want the M8.2 in all black. and i want the M9 too. crazy.

Once upon a time, when i had that certain GAS, i owned like more than 10 guitars, most of it collecting dust, i have more than 3 motorcycles, a lot of distortion and other effects pedals, more than 10 mics, i had 2 classic cars, i have 3 Fujifilms, i had an Olympus, i still have my Sony. but all of them are collecting dust, under utilise and i have yet to learn my lesson. Now i'm collecting Leicas....rest assured my bank account will be crying out for help. The only thing that can stop me is someone challenging my bid. I really want the Leica M9 but deep in my heart i want someone to outbid me too!

Feliz NaVidad.

Leica GAS?

Leica lust, leica whore, leica porn.
whatever.
Anything to do with Leica is so sexy and yummy.
I cant resist my GAS.
I just bought an M8 in chrome.
Well i preferred the chrome than the black
But just after i press buy it now on the chrome M8, now i want it in black.
talk about dangerous GAS.
Before, i never liked the all black Leica. i always want it with a red dot logo, thats what Leica is famous for. I dont understand whats with Leica owner gaffer tape their red dot logo. i mean what the fuck man? Show it off to the world that its a leica you're holding, the most expensive piece of "shit" camera. There are other better cameras but Leica is a Leica. i wont go into details which camera is better but Leica is a Leica. its like the Ferrari of cameras. You dont need a Ferrari but if you can afford it why not?
Its the same, its just a tool, it will take you to point A and B. Same thing. iPhone can also take pictures. so what if the IQ sucks. the moments mattered most. Anyway i'm off the grid. Actually i just wanna talked about my GAS problem. My Leica lust problem im having right now. BTW speaking of people gaffer taping their Leica is because they wanted to be stealthier. Thats why Leica came up with the M9-P.... which unbelievably i'm bidding right now. Lust...Lust..Lust... i'm the type who cant pass a great deal. i've already missed out on the $2900 Leica M9 in steel grey with less than 2k shutter actuations. thats a great deal. My credit cards beg to differ though. I need rehab. somehow it felt good to press buy it now or start bidding. But just right after i press it, the feeling regret somehow creeps in. in my head, i bought the Leicas for collection. I didnt care much if it take pictures. although there are times i'm imagining shooting a wedding with them Leicas. For travelling, i'm not sure but for showing off, hell yeah...
I'm much more into aesthetic than picture taking. yea, boo me whatever. but that is just me. The Leica is so sexy. its like flirting with Scarlett or Blake lively or whoever hotties in hollywood. ya know what i mean. sometimes i do feel like that with my cameras. its actually a one night stand thing. i wonder if i will still keep my Leicas in the future. i hope i do. its the ultimate cannot do everything camera. but for what i do in photography, is enough. i dont do sports and fast objects. which Leica probably not good at. i know someone can do it. but i dont.
I keep saying Leicas Leicas Leicas as if i have more than one Leica. In fact after owning the Chrome which have yet to arrive, i'm eyeing on the all black M8.2. and the all black M9-P. Like i said, before, i didnt give a shit about all black Leica. its all about the red dot logo. but now, things have change.
I'm a Leica porn.

Help me.

 Leica M8 chrome.

Taken at www.photo.net

 Leica M8.2 in all black

taken at www.curious-creature.org

Leica M9-P

Taken at www.thephoblographer.com

Looking at the cameras all i can say and feel is....

AWESOME!

Please help me...

Leica M9??

i just missed out on a very good deal Leica M9 on fleabay. the winning bid was $2900. $2900 for a Leica M9... that is out of this world. well, not really, the price is trending at $3500 but still at $2900 its a steal! Now, i dunno if i should sit at a dark corner and regret for not entering the bidding war but wait! Am i nuts? My M8 have yet to arrive and i'm already eyeing the M9? Man, talk about GAS and a shit load of money to burn. But i'm not rich. Just crazy savings gone like the wind.... if i did bought the M9. I'm just a slave to my desire. Good God. I need to stop seeing Ebay.. or should i say i enter rehab?

But still, an M9 is an M9.

Leica in love forever.

Love, Lust and Leica.

There goes my X100S.....

I just sold my fav camera the X100S!! I am really sad to let it go but i have to sell it to fund my Leica lust. Awww maaaannn...... I just wish that i could at least sold the X-pro1 first and then sell the X100S. Now i am left with my X-pro1 which no one seem to have taken interest with. Its not that i dont like the X-Pro1 but i just prefer my X100S over it. This is all Leica's fault. A really good deal on a used Leica M8 in chrome!! i just cant let it go. it had to be done. And a quite good deal on a Voigtlander 40mm 1.4 lens too! and now im wanting the 15mm and be done with it. i hope so. i know i wanted the 28mm f2 ultron because i just missed my X100S. lol. I know i was a clean high iso freak, i was spoilt by X100S. now i need to accept that the M8 is a no challenge in the high ISO contest with the X100S. i hope i can adapt and accept it. because thats also the main reason i sold my Oly EM10 back then. the high ISO is not clean enough!. but as time pass by, i slowly accept, the non Fuji IQ i can get with my latest camera the Sony RX100M3. I find it good enough. i need to get back to basics. grain is good. i started to put sense in my brain, i never really gonna print that large every day or at least every month. the pictures will always stay in the hard drive. if i can recall, i made a resolution slash revolution last year that i want to print as much as i could but i cant believe that its already been a year and i have yet to print anything. I cant believe i had the X100S for a year now,  i thought i just had it like 5 months back. woahhh, the time passed very quickly. scary. so thats that. i did miss my X100S but theres always the new one, the T. I guess if i got fed up with my Leica in the future, i might as well get back to Fujifilm and get the X100T.

Oh well.

Sony RX100iii, my nonsense review

I owned the RX100iii for almost 2 weeks now,
being the lazy bum i am, i did not really explore the camera features wholeheartedly. I just set my new camera on intelligent mode and begin snapping away.

I bought it at Sony store Bugis in Singapore, and i didn't even had time to come back to get my warranty card! Yes, they were out of warranty card, unbelievable. They asked me to come the next day or before i leave the country but i had too many places to go and in the end i left Singapore without the warranty card. and you know what the suckiest part of this story, i have a DEAD PIXEL on my Sony RX100iii, out of the box!! and the saddest part of it i didnt have time to exchange it, if they ever exchange one to one which i doubt it. maybe i'm wrong. oh to hell with it, now i just have to live with it, no warranty card and a dead pixel. which isn't really that annoying in broad daylight, but indoors....baarghh , sometimes it looked like a speck of dust that needs blowing but when i blow it of course it is still there. its a dead pixel. oh well....

Now with my rant aside, its actually a fun camera! Small and pocketable, although with my kind of skinny jeans, its bulging in pocket. and the horror of dust spots in Ricoh GR, i try to avoid putting it in my pocket which to be honest defeats the purpose of being pocketable. Yea, im too paranoid. But lucky me when i bought it i got a free belt strap bag, an extra battery and an SD card. So i use the belt strap bag most of the times although it gets kinda annoying when you loosen your belt, its kinda heavy to put the belt on, if you know what i mean.

To be honest i was kinda debating whether to purchase the Sony or the new iPhone 6plus. i was leaning towards the iPhone but lucky me, it was out of stock everywhere in Singapore, you know why i was lucky? because the iPhone6 BENDS when you put it in your pocket, which again defeats the purpose. Thats my purpose, to find a pocketable camera! small and take great pictures. i still believe an iPhone is better since it goes everywhere with me, hopefully one day Apple will make a 1inch sensor iPhone.

I have to say i am very happy with my purchase, the Sony RX100iii, even though it has a dead pixel on it... i am cursing myself for not testing the camera in store when i bought it!!! i was in a rush, people are waiting for me, i just could not stand the pressure i put myself to take a lil bit of time to test the camera so i just brought it home back to the hotel thinking everythings gonna be okay which is not. okay sorry for the random rant..

where am i? ok, Sony RX100iii. yes, i am very happy with it. its fun. it has a selfie mode. it got wifi. too bad it did not have touch screen. why oh why? in these days and age, every camera nowadays should be automatically built with touch screen features. and i just realised that 70mm is not really much of a zoom. its a "meh" zoom. i find myself needing a lil bit of reach. i guess 100mm should be fine. Well i guess a zoom is better than no zoom at all, unless you want prime lens but thats a different story. and as others on the net has reviewed, its actually a f2.8 aperture most of the time. the only time its f1.8 is at the very wide end at 24mm. Once you start to zoom a bit the aperture kind of instantly change to f2.8. i think these are my only gripe with this Sony RX100iii. Maybe the mark4 will fix these and if im crazy enough i'll buy it.

oh theres another, the selfie mode, most of the time with the intelligent mode, it tends to shoot at f1.8, yes, bokeh, i like that, but not in selfie mode, i want everything to be in focus, because when i want to take a quick group selfies or some BS new word ussies, i tend to be in front of the group as i'm the one holding the camera and because i want to get everyone in the pic and get the background as well, 24mm, its not as wide as the GoPro (the best selfie camera) and being f1.8 i'm the one in focus, the guys at the back is kinda blurry if you look at a bigger screen, it's fine if you look at tiny screens where everyone seems to be in focus but not really........ its not really a big deal, thats my problem i guess. i just need to quickly change the aperture to f4 or more and get everyone in focus. i guess thats where custom settings is handy, which i have yet to explore with.

So to summarise,

the PROS,

- Small, lightweight, pocketable
- Tilting Screen
- EVF
- Wifi
- Remote Control Wifi
- Selfie Mode
- Fast Lens

the GRIPE,

- No touch screen (which means no touch to focus, touch to shoot, bla bla bla)
- "Meh" zoom (sometimes i feel like needing a bit of reach)
- f1.8 only at 24mm
- Selfie mode on intelligent mode tends to defocus the background (ok for ownself, sucks for group)
- what else is there? i'll update if i found more 
- Oh yea, the stabilizer isnt that great like those on Olympus. or maybe im just too shakey.

During photokina, Canon comes up with a 1inch sensor model of their own, the G7X, which remedies most of my gripes, it has a better perform lens on paper, more reach up to 100mm, it retains its f1.8 a bit longer when zooming and touch screen! but the video features kinda sucks thats why i stick to buying the Sony!

Did i mention that the Sony RX100iii is a pocketable cinema camera? Just search on google or youtube for Sony RX100iii videos, and most of them are impressive coming from this little powerhorse! and since i am into videography now, i chose Sony rather than waiting for Canon G7x.

I did not say a lot about the EVF, i used it sometimes, its okay i guess, its tiny though.

Handling wise i must say is a lil bit slippery, since the body design where the hand holds the camera has no grip. There's a thumb rest which is nice but there are no "fingers rest" on the front, ya know, the grip..... i saw online theres a grip called Franiac i think, which seems to add grip for the Sony.

Wifi is a great feature nowadays, it is easier now to share pictures among friends and families, you can either download the original file or resize to 2Mb which is great for phones and saves a lot of storage. Remote control via wifi is a blast, now i can take selfie with a monopod, although the Sony can be a bit heavy when hand holding it with the monopod. I haven't test it yet but i think i cant touch to focus on my iphone via remote control, so just hope for the face detection and its wide focus points to choose focus. correct me if im wrong.

I've tried recording videos, and my only gripe is the stabilizer isnt as great as those on Olympus. When i used my Olympus before i can see the stabilizer working (some sort of smooth glide kinda motion, not so much on the Sony), its there but not really noticeable. but at least there is a stabilizer. On stills i think its great, i shot in low light at 1/10s and the picture came out sharp.

Built in flash is meh, the best built in flash camera i have ever experience is the Fuji X100S series. The flash on the Sony is just like those compact cameras flash, hard-direct-dump-on-all-of-your-face flash.

Live everyone else on the net said, the EVF is kinda annoying when it automatically shut down the camera when you decide not to use it and push it back in the camera. There should be a fix where i can just pull it up or push it down without it powering off. Powering on is fine but not powering off.

I saw a book on Google, i havent bought it, something called "A photographer's guide to Sony RX100iii" by Alexander White, seems a useful book to have for us Sony RX100iii owners. looks better than the manual. it explains better i guess.

IQ wise it is great enough for a small camera. Better than the iPhone4. like i said, its not Fujifilm territory but its great. Great in low light too. i dont mind shooting at iso6400 but i pretty much limit my auto iso to iso3200. its not the grain that i'm worried, its the smearing of details. maybe i post on another blog post comparing isos and what not.

Oh well, enough words, lets see some pictures.

Lets stack it up with the Fujis. Sizes wise.

 With the Fuji X100S. Look how small the Sony is.

Looking at the bulging lens of the X-M1, you know that aint pocketable.

Lets look at some sample images from my Sony RX100iii.

i went to the Singapore Zoo and waterpark, a great place to take a lot of pictures and test the camera.

Most of the time i'm on intelligent mode. Auto ISO. 

Just snapping away.

No editing done. Just resizing for web.

 Here's the zoom at 70mm

Here's the wide angle at 24mm

Here's another one,

 70mm

24mm

The rest of the sample images.

 This camera is great for food pornography

This little squirrel doesn't mind me shooting up close and personal, ......too busy munching this peanut, too busy. 

 Zebras are horses that escaped from prison

 Hello donkey, whats with the long face? ... they called you pony is it?

iso800 and 1/10 sec. i guess the stabilizer does good here. 

 Smell gasoline everywhere, those guys must have bad breath literally

On a moving tram at night safari, i didn't take a lot of pictures because the conductor was pissed someone used flash photography and her speaker got blown off everytime she gave the warning. 

 One more for the road, food pornography

My favourite look recently.... why not..

Go home

Torn between X100S or X-Pro1

I am heading to London later in the evening, and surely this long haul flight is gonna suck *$$. I love travelling but i hate the flying part. One, there's the long flight, crammed in a confined space, cant straighten your legs, and the elbow resting invasion. its either you or him, that get to rest their elbow on the elbow rest. i love the aisle but this time i got checked in the middle like sandwiches, sitting next to a stranger. I'm socially retard and i'm not good at making small talks. breaking the ice is worst. Two, there's that thing called turbulence. Man, i hate it when the plane trembles, shaking like you're in a cocktail shaker. Thats when you'll remember god. Oh please god, save me. Third, take offs and landings, especially take offs, my mind goes wild when the plane starts rising at 45 degree angle, the plane at full throttle against the wind, i hate my life for seeing that youtube video where the plane take offs and rise to an angle of 90 degree upwards (thats a straight line upwards) and goes round all the way till 180 and boom. i'm not sure if i was looking at a real plane or a big scale model that looked like the real thing. but still that thing look real as sh!t. and me being a worrier, i have a lot of negative things in my mind when flying.

Travelling to London plus Italy, is a photography opportunity, be it street, buildings, landscape and snapshot photography. and dont forget food photography! So which camera is the best? I have the x100s and the X-pro1 but bringing both is not an option. i dont want to lug 2 cameras for travelling. Just not my style. i love photography but i'm not really that 'serious' into it, what it really means is that i'm not about to bring a tripod, 2 cameras, few lenses, and do long exposure shots. Mostly i just get away with snapshots. I want to enjoy more on the travelling, exploring the city and the camera is just for recording the memories. I dont want it to be a burden. and i'm not about to sell a poster of the tower bridge or the tower of pisa. I just need one camera. The ultimate camera.

Both have their pros and cons. I've already decided to bring the X100S but i'm having second thoughts.  I prefer the JPEG images that i got out of it compare to the X-pro1. I found that there's more headroom for editing the X100S Jpegs. and its more punchy and contrasty compare to the X-pro1 but to be honest they're similar but x100s is better/cleaner. Speaking of cleaner thats also the cons of the X100S, the noise reduction is too aggressive at high ISOs. Skins would turn to plastic or wax. I love shooting low light and indoors, thats the worst light for taking pictures of humans with the X100s, ISO bumped up to 3200 - 6400 and humans turns to mannequins. I used to love Fuji skin rendering and when my eyes were 'open', it was actually the effect of aggressive noise reduction. i wish i could turn off the NR or turn off my NR 'eyes'. Maybe future firmwares but i doubt it, it seems that the NR is built into the sensor. Oh wait, they said RAW did not have this wax skin problem. I havent try it though.

The X-pro1 is much more versatile as the lens can zoom. i have the 18-55 kit lens. and its also one of the reason that i didnt want to bring it with me. its just too long. Not DSLR long, but its no compact too. I want a smaller camera, thats where the X100S shines. Its size being smaller than the X-pro1 makes it much easier to bring it anywhere. But since i acquire the Wide Converter Lens, it's always on the camera. and it adds a considerable amount of length. I love 28mm. Just nice wide angle. Really good for taking pictures of the city. More objects/subjects to fit in. But the size of the X100S is now similar to the X-pro1. Arghh. Choices, Choices.

If i remember correctly, the reason i bought the X-pro1 is for this planned trip and GAS. I have a love and hate relationship with this camera. I love it and then i hate it. I just recently used this camera for my evening coffee with friends. and i'm in love with it again. its like an old fling. Sometimes the feelings just comes back. LOL. I love how it feels good in my hands. But i also bought the WCL for my X100S for this trip. WCL is a much more recent purchase. and i love the versatility. 28mm? no problem. 35mm? perfect! But i have 3 batteries for the X-pro1, surely thats enough. I only have 2 for the x100s which i still doubt if its enough for a day. The battery life on the X100s sucks.

Looking at both cameras, i love how handsome the X-pro1 look and i kinda have a change of heart.
Sorry X100s.

You're still coming with me.

Below are photos taken from iphone4 OOC.

Almost similar in size but the X-pro1 is bigger. Sorry for that messy desk.

 X-pro1 is definitely longer and bigger

The WCL fitted to the X100S makes it similar in size to the X-pro1.
Choices, choices

I'm stopping by Dubai on the way to London, i might get myself a Ricoh GR.

Oooops.

Sample photos of Ricoh GR with dust problem

Here's a collection of images i got from googling "Ricoh GR dust problem". I dont own a GR but i wanted to but after seeing this problem, hmmm, maybe yes, maybe not! lol, some GR owners are fortunately dust free, which makes me think its either a bunch of GRs are badly sealed from factory or dust will still be able to get into the sensor via the "space" on the retractable lens. i dunno. but surely GR is a great camera to own haha. Now that is GAS talking.

Some got dust on their sensor after 2 or 3 days of owning the GR, some got it after 3 months, some after 5000+ shots, some took a year, oh well.... looks like a jeans's pocket is the worst place to put the camera into, which defeats the purpose of my supposedly pocketable camera!

I know dust on sensor is all brand cameras problem but Ricoh being a single fix lens, being a non interchangeable lens, being $700, should have better seal to avoid dust getting into the sensor, the sensor is not even exposed.

Anyway lets see some pictures,

This guy got the worse case scenario of a dust sensor problem, pictures below. I mean look at that dust, it sure look like a worm! taken from http://everydayaperture.com/2014/03/24/the-ricoh-gr-and-the-dust-bunny/

Poor guy, i hope he got it sorted out!

This is the worst dust problem, it looked like a worm or germ. haha

The others have normal dust spots, more below

Here's one from pentax forum,

a much more easy-able post processing fix but still nevertheless annoying

Here's another from Ricoh Forum

spot the dust..... dust spot.... no pun intended

picture taken from http://spode.zenfolio.com/blog/2013/5/first-impressions-ricoh-gr

check out this blog, as you can see, he has dust on his GR too.

I'm not here to bash Ricoh, just sharing some information you need to know about the Ricoh GR. 

But lets not forget the wonderful photos this camera is capable of..... here's one:-

taken from http://www.theinspiredeye.net/ricoh-gr-a-pocket-journal-by-chris-leskovsek/

check out the link above, really nice write up on Ricoh GR.

I know camera is just a tool but looking at the picture above, makes me want the GR badly.