Hurrah! A book for my birthday!
At least that's what this elegantly wrapped birthday gift appeared to me. Forgive my excitement over a book for I've been a repressed book lover due to its ever increasing cost. I made my best guess at the title underneath the signature wrap my girlfriend is starting to get famous for. Lemme see... I can only think of one right now. I thought it would please my girlfriend if I opened the gift with her around. You know... so she can see my reaction. So I set it down beside me and started driving.
Two blocks down the road and as I've failed that marshmallow test, I found myself unable to suppress the building suspense. With enough care to not tear the hand-made paper apart, I started unfolding from the edge. Wait, I recognize that color pattern! This IS the book! Hurriedly, I ripped the rest and behold...
The one book to rule them all... [evil laugh]
Finally, I've got my wanting hands on the book I've been wanting to dissect, law by law, and all 48 of them (i think an equally clinical book review is in the works)! The title alone intrigued me, better yet, mesmerized me, having first seen a copy at Powerbooks. I mean, come on. Who doesn't want to stand out, to gain respect, to bask in the spotlight, to be successfull, to relish in more victory, to play on people's fantasies, to wreck fear on the weak, to annihilate your enemies, to have ultimate power! [evil laugh again]
Sorry got carried away. Hehe...
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Power Tripping!
Sunday, May 6, 2007
Still Dreaming of SLR
Couldn't help but go through my dad's stuff last night...
It never crossed my mind how huge a fortune this hobby must have been then until I started scouring the net for more info and specs on these accessories. Lens kits, including Wide Angle and Telephoto lens plus all the filters, easily come in at least 4 figures per piece (not including the decimals mind you). I haven't even mentioned the cost of rolls (and more rolls) of films (thank God for digital!), renting a "dark room" (it's actually a red room) and all those plates and stop bath solutions needed for developing your negatives the old-fashioned and creepy way. I honestly thought these were inching their way closer towards the trash bin. Or maybe just another set of antiques highly awaited by the curator.
It seems I just might be scheduling a trip to my dad's old friend(s) in the studios, or worse-comes-to-worse, Hidalgo (Click on Hidalgo for a quick info on, well, Hidalgo, and the camera shops you could find there. You could also check out the map on the right). Might as well have these valuated first by the experts. The camera bodies (I hope at least one of them) might still be revived to its former operational glory. That old shimmer could still be brought out of the lenses. I could have a brand new, err, kinda new, plaything! I'm crossing my fingers though that I wouldn't need to shell out that much for all the repairs and restorations. Otherwise, hello DIGITAL!
Actual pics of the gear (Left-to-right, Top-to-bottom):
It seems I just might be scheduling a trip to my dad's old friend(s) in the studios, or worse-comes-to-worse, Hidalgo (Click on Hidalgo for a quick info on, well, Hidalgo, and the camera shops you could find there. You could also check out the map on the right). Might as well have these valuated first by the experts. The camera bodies (I hope at least one of them) might still be revived to its former operational glory. That old shimmer could still be brought out of the lenses. I could have a brand new, err, kinda new, plaything! I'm crossing my fingers though that I wouldn't need to shell out that much for all the repairs and restorations. Otherwise, hello DIGITAL!Actual pics of the gear (Left-to-right, Top-to-bottom):
- 1977 Nikon FM w/ Nikon 50mm Series E Lens Kit
- 1979 Yashica FX-3 w/ Yashica 55mm Lens Kit
- 1976 Yashica 35MF (Yashica 38mm Lens)
- 2X CX Teleplus MC Lens + Vivitar 49mm Wide Angle Lens Kit
- Weston Master II Universal Exposure Meter
- Cokin Chroma Filters
- (UV) Filters, Adapters, Lenses, Flash, exposure meter
- Camera bag (other stuff in the bag: dessicants, cleaners, remote trigger, Sunpak flash slave unit, etc.)
Friday, May 4, 2007
DSLR: Dreaming of SLR
For several months now, I've been fancying myself on owning a Digital Single-Lens Reflex or more commonly a DSLR camera. With the proliferation of megapixel camera-phones (have you seen the 5MP Nokia N95?) and dirt-cheap digital cameras coming in all shapes, colors and sizes at your suking tindahan, preserving that perfect Kodak moment is now as easy as "point-and-shoot". With the piles of pictures I've collected and the narrowing price gap of the latest point-and-shoot with entry-level DSLRs however, I've realized that I wanted to capture moments in more detail, more style, and more drama. More and more, I guess I've (re)discovered an "eye for photography". And this I could achieve with a DSLR - "ung mukhang Pro na camera"!
Having a DSLR would be a rekindling of sorts into this vivid world I plunged into as an innocent little boy of 6 (or 7, can't remember exactly) with my dad. My dad, who taught me the basics of which I've lost though time without practice, was a part-time photographer for then Kameraworld (now Picture City after the original co-owners have split up) and owned several mechanical SLRs. Among his stuff which I have recently unearthed were ...
a 1976 Yashica MF35, ...
a 1977 Nikon FM, ...
and a 1979 Yashica FX-3 ...
... with a bevy of accessories ranging from detachable lens kits and filters to remote triggers and tripods, not to mention your run-off-the-mill photographer's bag. If time permits, having a trip down memory lane with these 3 snappers would be a great way to immerse myself (again) in photography from a historical perspective. That's also 3 new posts for this month. Haha!
My interest has reawakened so to speak ever since I've started snapping away with my trusty old Sony Ericsson W800i. With its decent 2MP-Auto Focus camera, I've been taking pretty neat snapshots of varying subjects (check it out) that I decided it was time I needed a "true" camera that could do more.
It's been almost a year since my so called reawakening. My friend Ronnie (you can check out his blog by clicking on his name) has just recently grabbed his own Canon EOS 400D and is now finding time to tinker with it. As for me, I'm still without one. I mean hey, these things don't come cheap. The neophyte-friendly Nikon D40 is a hefty P26k in Quiapo. And that's already in photographer-haven Hidalgo where cameras are often at least 6-7k cheaper than malls. That's why they're called investments. And like all investments, these things need planning. To kill time, or should I say "While planning...", I plan (again that word) to brush up on the technical stuff like lighting, apertures, metering and the like. I've also been working my butt off (I wish there was OT) and saving up on unnecessary expenses. And so I've been planning since. Sheesh...
Somebody wake me up please... or better yet hand me a DSLR!
Hmmm... I think I just found the perfect birthday gift for me this May!
[keeps dreaming...]
Having a DSLR would be a rekindling of sorts into this vivid world I plunged into as an innocent little boy of 6 (or 7, can't remember exactly) with my dad. My dad, who taught me the basics of which I've lost though time without practice, was a part-time photographer for then Kameraworld (now Picture City after the original co-owners have split up) and owned several mechanical SLRs. Among his stuff which I have recently unearthed were ...
a 1976 Yashica MF35, ...
a 1977 Nikon FM, ...and a 1979 Yashica FX-3 ...... with a bevy of accessories ranging from detachable lens kits and filters to remote triggers and tripods, not to mention your run-off-the-mill photographer's bag. If time permits, having a trip down memory lane with these 3 snappers would be a great way to immerse myself (again) in photography from a historical perspective. That's also 3 new posts for this month. Haha!My interest has reawakened so to speak ever since I've started snapping away with my trusty old Sony Ericsson W800i. With its decent 2MP-Auto Focus camera, I've been taking pretty neat snapshots of varying subjects (check it out) that I decided it was time I needed a "true" camera that could do more.
It's been almost a year since my so called reawakening. My friend Ronnie (you can check out his blog by clicking on his name) has just recently grabbed his own Canon EOS 400D and is now finding time to tinker with it. As for me, I'm still without one. I mean hey, these things don't come cheap. The neophyte-friendly Nikon D40 is a hefty P26k in Quiapo. And that's already in photographer-haven Hidalgo where cameras are often at least 6-7k cheaper than malls. That's why they're called investments. And like all investments, these things need planning. To kill time, or should I say "While planning...", I plan (again that word) to brush up on the technical stuff like lighting, apertures, metering and the like. I've also been working my butt off (I wish there was OT) and saving up on unnecessary expenses. And so I've been planning since. Sheesh...
Somebody wake me up please... or better yet hand me a DSLR!
Hmmm... I think I just found the perfect birthday gift for me this May!
[keeps dreaming...]
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