Just another photo taken with a 50mm prime lens

The 50mm lens is what people usually consider a normal prime lens because it has a normal perspective similar to the human eye. Do not try to shoot too close to your subjects as the barrel distortion would be more obvious, unless that is the intention. I shot this picture with a very barebones setting, just window light, white bedsheet as reflector and my trusty old Nikon 50mm F1.4 AFD. Just add exposure compensation to blow out the highlights and you get a somewhat high key effect! Cheers!

Different Perspectives of the Nikon 50mm and the 180mm

A lot of times I hear people saying that you can simply get the effect of the different focal lengths simply by going closer or further to the subject. Not only do you get different perspective of the subject, but for outdoors, the background perspective changes with different focal lengths. Attached here is just a casual sample of the difference between a Nikon 50mm F1.4 shot at F2.5 and a Nikon 180mm F2.8 shot at max aperture(f2.8). Even though the subject fills about the same area in the frame, notice not only the difference in subject perspective but also the background, where in the 180mm, the background appears more isolated, closer and also with less Depth of Field. That is the usual consideration I have when I think of focal lengths. Cheers!

Snapshots at the Hort Park

Yet again, some random shots with the Olympus E-450 and Jupiter 37A 135mm F3.5 lens for your viewing pleasure... I was looking to take some flora pictures but took some fauna there that I saw for a change. If I am not wrong, they are the Common Gliding Lizard and the Malayan Whip Snake. These pictures were cropped as the creatures were quite tiny and I could not get close enough for a better shot. My manual focus skills is not very quick nor accurate but I make do with these pictures anyway. Cheers!

I had a little holiday in (Malacca) Melaka in Malaysia.

Its been quite a long while since I last went on a holiday and since its close to the end of the year, I think I deserve a little break from work! Thanks to a friend who invited me to join his company's organised trip, we went for a little short trip to visit Malacca in Malaysia over last weekend. The journey was about 5hrs plus by coach, with a little stop over in between at Yong Ping in Johor Bahru. Everyone needs a little holiday away from home to destress and recharge from our usual work routine. We visited A'Famosa and Jonker Street during that short 2 days 1 night stay in Malacca. It was fun and very economical due to the currency exchange rates from (Singapore Dollars)SGD to (Malaysia Ringgit)RM. We tried some of their local delights, and their Durian Chendol is a must try! I brought along my Olympus E-450 as I just wanted some holiday shots and did not want to lug my heavy Nikon D700 which can be quite a drag due to its weight and bulk overseas, not to mention the fear of losing it, haha! I will post some of the usual holiday pictures, so if you are interested, good, but if you find holiday pictures a bore, don't say I did not warn you! Till the next post, have a great week!

More Jupiter 37A lens shots

I like plants as they give me a sense of peace and serenity. I often go to a plant nursery(Thong Hup Gardens) around my area to destress from the hustle and bustle of work and for some gardening therapy. I went there after a casual meeting to have lunch with some colleagues and hence for not so critical photography, I would bring my Olympus E-450 out for snap shots. But what I realise and those who may not realise, it is the camera that you bring along for unplanned shots that often bring out some unforgetable pictures, just because you had the camera with you, rather than at home because you thought the camera is too heavy and bulky as is often the case with my Nikon D700 and its gears. I so happen to have brought along my Jupiter 37A lens since it itself is quite a light and compact lens to carry and took some casual close ups of the flowers at the plant nursery yesterday during the dying rays of the evening sun...

Random Jupiter 37A Bokeh Test

Do you still remember the time when you bought your first camera? I remember when I was still a student and I saved up to purchase a Russian mechanical camera that was a Zenit in the M42 mount. It provided affordable bokeh that I loved and could not achieve with the compact cameras that were more widely used then. I decided to use the M42 lens that I still keep on the Olympus E-450 because unfortunately Nikon cameras cannot accept M42 mount unless I use an adapter with a correction lens to allow the camera to focus to infinity. The lens I used today for this casual walk about is the Jupiter 37A, a russian 135mm F3.5 lens that brings back fond memories of my early years in photography. I remember the time of film where I had to wind the shuttle release after every shot, metering the exposure manually and setting focus, aperture and shuttle speed myself. Then there is the anticipation of waiting to see the prints after the film is being developed. Things that most people cannot wait to do these day when everyone tends to look for instant gratification. But I feel one certainly feels more involved in the picture taking process when you do all the things yourself, more pride of ownership, I guess. Holding that compact piece of solid metal lens barrel in my hands, and manually focussing seems to transfer me back to memory lane. I took a stroll along Clark Quay during the Mid Autumn Festival, taking some pictures of the colourful lanterns along the way. Holding a 135mm lens which becomes a 270mm on the Olympus 4/3 system, and taking night shot picture handheld in a very crowded environment, what was I thinking?! I must have been crazy, haha! Here are some random pictures anyway! First impressions are great, nice colours and sharpness wide open, with nice circular bokeh.

Random Picture

Recently I had a stye on my eyelid and its preventing me from trying to take pictures. Oh well... In the meantime, just to share one of my random picture from some time ago. A backlit shot with the Nikon 50mm prime again. This was actually a candid! Cheers!

Olympus E450 DSLR first impressions

Olympus? I know, most of you would be surprised to find me using an Olympus 4/3 system DSLR. But let me explain. I was looking for a compact camera for casual and holiday use when I came across an offer for a very compact DSLR, the Olympus E-450, going for the amazing price of SGD$480! That is roughly only about the price of a higher priced compact cameras! It was a no brainer and I got that camera to use for snap shot duties. But it turns out the 14-42mm F3.5-5.6 kit lens is no slouch! It is one marvellous kit lens that I am quite impressed with. The whole package gave me a very compact package with most of the dslr flexibility and performance. The only downside currenly I feel is that of the 4/3 system, due to the smaller sensor, has noisier pictures in settings higher than iso400. Its depth of field for the 4/3 format is also deeper than most APS and full-frame sensors of course, which can be a plus or minus depending on the type of picture you want. Its shallower than compact or prosumer cameras but not as shallow as APS or Full frame sensors. Another thing I gained through this system is my ability to reuse my Old M42 lens collection! I know Nikon systems can also use an adapter too but the problem lies with focussing at infinity. Nikon lens adapter require an additional lens correction element to allow M42 mounted lens to focus to inifinity, which somehow I feel would degrade the image quality. Did I also mention its weight? It is almost non-existant! What a joy it is to bring it along the whole day without suffering shoulder and backaches like when I carry my D700 gears! For sure the D700 is a vastly superior camera, but for its price and purpose, the Olympus has nothing to be embarrased and will definitely have a place in my camera bag, haha! Here are some of my first casual snapshots with the Olympus E-450. All the pictures were taken with the Kit lens except for the last 2 pictures which were taken with the Meyer Optik Gorlitz 50mm F2.8 M42 lens with M42 to Olympus 4/3 system adapter. Its good to revive back some of my cheaply gotten M42 lens, especially the Old European lenses which somehow have this creamy pastel and paintily effect that is often missing in modern optics.

It's Prime Time!

I remember a friend of mine asking me why would anyone have the need for such high shutter speed in my camera, other than to freeze high speed subject, which I rarely do. Using me trusty Nikon 85mm F1.8 AFD lens this morning for a spin once again, this is another chance to show him why! If I want to shoot outdoors in very bright light conditions, and yet achieve a shallow Depth of Field by using a bigger aperture without the use of clumbersome Neutral Density filters, high speed shutter speed is my only option!

Anyway, another friend and I decided to scout for any new interesting locations for photoshoots. We arrived at the this new location a little later then we would like to and the weather was starting to be quite unbearably hot! This area, called the Helix Bridge, should look quite spectacular in the evening light. Here is just a sneak preview, more to come in the future...

Fancy a Fancy Cake?

I went out with a friend to Ang Siang Hill where we tried out some cakes at Kki. She learnt about the cake cafe through blogs, where it seems to be growing in popularity. The cakes are rather pricey at $8.50 but you get what you pay for because you can see that these pieces of edible art are not just a piece of cake! They are baked with a lot of passion and tastes wonderful too, at least for the ones that I tried. "Little Red Riding Hood" is Sinfully coated in Thick Dark Chocolate and filled with Tangy Raspberry Jam and a Juicy Red Plump Raspberry on Top. The other great tasting cake that is also worth recommending is the delightfully sculptured, water chestnut flavoured Mont Blanc. Whatever it is, I can say you have to give them all a try, and perhaps, like me, you would want to go visit them again! In the meantime, there are many interesting shops around the perimeter selling Old Skool memorabilia, that is sure to invoke rose-tinted nolstagia of yesteryears in Singapore.

New Bloom!

One of my succulents, a Huernia species, has bloomed this morning! I took a hurried snapshot with my Sigma 70-300mm before rushing to work! It's the first time that any of my Succulent plants that I currently have has bloomed. Time to buy the lottery perhaps? Haha! I am unable to identify this so is anyone able to identify this species of Succulent?

Subsequently, more blooms followed, but I was rather busy with work, so I only have this other snapshot to show.

Adenium Socotranum x Adenium Arabicum Dwarf Hybrid

Guess what? I have rekindled another hobby and believe it or not, its indoor gardening and I am back with a vengence! Haha! In fact I have always liked flora and fauna but I was afraid I did not have the time to care for them. Luckily I realised that some plants require little attention and are very rewarding indeed. Here are a few casual shots with my Sigma 70-300mm F4.5-5.6 APO taken indoors at home. I got this little cute stubby fellow, an Adenium Socotranum and Adenium Arabicum Hybrid and other than bright sunny disposition, it should be quite a low maintainance and hardy plant. Sunny (and sometimes Scorching) tropical weater here should see it thrive indeed! What with all the Global warming, Political and Financial crisis, we all need a little Green Therapy indeed! Thumbs up for Indoor Garden Therapy! Anyway the last 2 pictures were taken while having a stroll in the Chinese Garden Bonsai Garden. I saw a couple of Adenium Species grown Bonsai Style. They look simply gorgeous with their ancient beauty and oriental porcelain pots!

Down with the Flu

Hi people, it's been quite awhile and I haven't been posting, due to a persistant flu that I caught last week! I am still recovering but thank goodness I am better now. As a result I haven't been doing much photography recently but I will do so when I can asap! Guess you will would be surprised at how I got the flu in the first place. It's all thanks to my mini excursions to some plant nurseries/farms under the blazing mid-day sun, and then retreating to an air-conditioned shopping mall, twice! Till the next time, keep taking great pictures!

Recent Nikon 50mm F1.4 AFD shots...

I cannot imagine not having my bread and butter lens, the Nikon 50mm F1.4 AFD. It was my first lens I used when I started out in photography, and I am loving it, especially with my full frame revivial from 35mm film format to FX DSLR! Cheers!

"It's a Crime to Ignore!"
A candid shot just for the fun of it!


"Dangerous Curves Ahead"


"Under The Bridge"


"High Key Leopard Print"