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!

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.