Formula 1 is in town!

WZ4R9089E, originally uploaded by benny ng.

What a drag!

The traffic is messed up, the prices go up, the noise level goes up. For the man on the street, it's an inconvenience.

Why do we even borther with this... I wish they will take it somewhere else instead of holding it right in the middle of town. Perhaps somewhere like Changi or Sentosa will be ideal.

Cheers,

p.s. this is not taken with a rangefinder. Even though we are so close to the track rangefinders are not the best options for walkabout and grandstand seats.

Untitled

Untitled, originally uploaded by benny ng.

Horsing around at John's house and shot this with the Nikkor-P.C. 10.5cm f/2.5 LTM lens.

I like the meaningless simpilicity of this shot.

Cheers,

Month of the Hungry Ghost....

The seventh month of the Lunar calander is also the month of the hungry ghost. The temples are a riot of color and buzzing with activities to honor the departed.


Burning slowly, originally uploaded by benny ng.


Soul Food, originally uploaded by benny ng.


Looking up, originally uploaded by benny ng.

Went out with the boys to the 'Tua Pek Kong' temple in Loyang. It was so darn far away. And super crowded too. I think next time, I'll pick a smaller temple to explore.

Cheers,

Are you taking my picture?

Are you taking my picture?, originally uploaded by benny ng.

Tried some scale focusing shots without bring up the camera to the eye. Tough man!

Estimated the distance, set the camera on the table and fired away. Missed slightly and had to crop and level the horizon on this image. Oh well..

Composition is usually hit and miss if you don't look through the viewfinder. But, your subject won't realise that the camera is loaded and will think that you are just messing around with your gear. 25mm is about the longest you can do that effectively and still get something usable in the frame. Wider options like 21mm, 18mm, 15mm and 12mm will be even better given their huge depth of field, but your subjects might be too small or distorted if placed at the edge. Besides, on the really wide angles, vignetting can be an issue and careful composition needs to be considered, either to emphasize or hide it.

Cheers,

Fujifilm GA645Zi + GA645Wi

Fujifilm GA645Zi + GA645Wi, originally uploaded by benny ng.

Two recently acquired compact medium format rangefinder cameras. For a medium format camera, these are extremely small form factor options. They even come with Auto Focus and flash! From various user reports, the GA645 series seems to be a winner, but being obsolete electronic cameras, their service life may be severely limited.

The GA645Wi is a wide angle version of the GA645i. It has a 45mm f/4 lens unlike the GA645i, which has a 60mm f/4 lens. The earlier version of these two cameras are without the i designation at the end of the model number. Basically, the difference between the newer models are the introduction of Auto DX funtion on Fuji films and a second shutter release.

The GA645Zi on the other hand, is a totally different camera. It has a 4 step zoom from 55 to 90mm! Aperture rating at f/4.5-6.9. And it even has a 'lens cap on' warning feature! Cool!

Anyway, I was intending to take it along for the African trip, but in the end, thought it was better to leave unfamiliar gear back home. Still, took the GA645Zi along and came back with some blurred shots. Oh well...

Here's some interesting reads on these cameras.

Fuji GA645wi review on American Peyote

Dan Stella's review on Fuji GA645 series

Cheers,

The fascination with Leica Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4

Lots have been said about this lens from Leica. Many aspire to own one for the sharp image and creamy bokeh that it produces.


This image is shot with the earliest version, commonly known as Version 1. This is also available in screw mount, albeit in very limited numbers.


This image is shot with the third version, also commonly known as the "pre-ASPH" version.

Both images taken with Epson R-D1 digital rangefinder camera.

However, are there no lenses that matches up in performance? Actually, if you look around there are plenty of options available, and often at much cheaper price points too. Here are some common alternatives:

Modern
Zeiss Sonnar 50mm f/1.5
Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.5 LTM

Vintage
Canon 50mm f/1.4 LTM

To be honest, how many can differentiate the prints from any of these lenses or those from the various Summilux?

However, in terms of construction and handling, there is of course no doubt that Leica lenses are superbly finished and feels worthy of it's price when held in your hand. The rest don't even come close.

Cheers,