Bring on the Theta

The Theta S is a unique camera. It brought to the masses - at least to me - the ability to capture a scene in its entirety, a global snapshot of what was going on around you at that particular moment in time. This ability was possible before through combination of multiple cameras after which the snaps would be stitched using a special software and then presented again using special monitors to whoever interested.

With Facebook embracing the 360 degree media for its user, the photos can just be uploaded to Facebook which would recognise the photo in its app and would display the photo appropriately. The user would then turn their mobile device around and the scene would be displayed as if they were at the focal point. All that was left was the ability to snap the initial picture readily and with minimal tweaking was ready to be presented to the timeline.

This was where the Theta S excelled. A quick push of the button on this camera with the twin 180 degree fish-eye lens, I just needed to link it via wifi to my phone and press upload to Facebook. Walla! It was that simple.

Considering the compact size of the camera and the size of the lens and sensor, the snap was remarkably sharp. Each sensor captured an 8MP image, and stitching them together would generate a16 MP file. This could then be transferred to the computer for a bit of Photoshop magic if needed, but for me, just a quick tweak on the phone with Snapseed was what was needed most of the time.

If you were feeling adventurous, there was the ability to capture a VR type video which could be uploaded into YouTube using the same concept. The resolution however was relatively poor as the upload was in 1080 HD resolution, which was expanded further to cover 360 degree. But as a prove of concept it was good enough, and I was sure in the next iteration of the device a 4K file could be coming out from the camera.

I have been using the camera for almost a month now and in the first few uploads everybody was fascinated by what was on offer. In fact some were disappointed if some of my uploads were in normal 2D format! They tried to turn their phones without success.

For practical purposes, I was really surprised why shop owners, interior decorators and estate agents had not been using these cameras. They could easily sell their products to show them to their clients just as easily in real life or on their website or social media. I know I would have ....

The camera did cost quite a bit - although less than the current crop of flagship mobile phones. You would also have to get used to its limitations, but on the whole I could see myself using more and more of this device in the future and am interested in seeing what the next generation of them brings .....

Across to Fahrenheit

Fahrenheit's decorations were always understated but creative. This time, the theme was kampung life and the unique thing about this was the plenty of coconut trees made from woven ketupat leaves. Very festive.

The place was overshadowed with the opening of Shoopen however as a lot of commotion coming that way. To be honest, the decoration here was actually more creative than the one in Pavilion.

Queue into Shoopen

There was a new outlet in Bukit Bintang which caused quite a stir on its opening weekend. It had been advertised for the last couple of months and it certainly worked. There was a long line of people waiting to be let in for the opening weekend sales.

The shop was located at one end of Pavilion, where there used to be an exit. That end had been closed for a while while undergoing renovations.

They sell only shoes, but the crowd was too rowdy for my liking. The price better be good looking at the amount of buzz it was creating. Anita was not that taken aback when I told her about. Maybe she was just into shoes ....

Pavilion Decorations

Nothing special seemed to be the operative word. The decorations were functional and not spectacular. There was no coherent theme although the phrase #SyukurSelalu seemed to be cropping up everywhere.

Guess that must have been the theme word. The economy was rather slow lately which explained the lack of exuberance at the place. There was also a recent court case when a lady dropped a yellow balloon - with a message of peace - at an event attended by PM Najib which was dismissed by the Courts. That took place last year at Pavilion.

I uploaded the spherical video and photo here.

Malam Raya

There won't be real Raya without family and of course some fireworks.

We had our fix at my parents place at Bukit Antarabangsa, with both Idlan and Irfan joining Julia's children. They were timid at the beginning with all the fire, but towards the end, they were really into it. It was quite a job prising them away.

We had to return the next evening for more fireworks in the end .....