Walkabout Time

It has been a while since I managed to chill out with a camera in the company of a fellow photographer. An impromptu meet with Ripi this afternoon sorted that. In the last month, I had missed the Scott Kelby Photowalk, as well as other events for one reason or another. Rate opportunity indeed.

We met up at Pavilion, had lunch, and off exploring the area towards Bukit Bintang. I also took the time to do my survey for the Society laptop I was meant to do a couple I weeks back. Now, it was done ....

It was a really nice day weather wise. Too warm at times, especially in open spaces. We therefore spent most of the time indoors. If given more time, we would have ventured towards Jalan Nagasari. There would be plenty of photo op around there.

Anyhow, by the time w doubled back to Pavilion, it was getting dark again. Looked like KL would be hit by afternoon rain as it had been lately. A few more snaps, then a quick drink at Starbucks before I had to call it a day. I had to take Anita out for groceries.

I shall post the photos from the wall later after some post-processing of course.

A Different Update

The iOS 6 update was not the only update I ventured into recently. The new firmware for the X-pro1 was also released in the last few days and it certainly made some difference to the handling of the camera. Yes, the camera - including the older sibling the X100 - suffered from terrible focussing system. The new update did not answer all the prayers, but at least offered some antidote.

But if you understood the quirk of the camera, you would be richly rewarded. Some people asked me, how I cope with the obviously problematic focussing issue. I actually switch the camera to manual focussing mode, and programmed the AF-Lock button - located by my right thumb - to lock focus.

The focussing would then be a lot snappier, and I would then half-press the shutter button to compose the frame once I was happy with the locked focus. The metering also tended to be better by this method. Tedious, but after a while, I got used to it.

And I managed to capture the frame above while in complete darkness. The focus was aided by the focus assist beam and whatever light coming from the television across the room. Amazing!

I have yet to take the camera out for a spin since the update with Irfan having had his operation. I expect better things from this amazing piece of kit from now on .....

I Need Speed

When I bought the X-pro1, it came with a Sandisk 8Gb card. But it was of a rather sluggish variety. It took time for the camera to write if I was taking RAW snaps. Annoying.

Time to get a proper card. So, I plumped some good money for a better 16Gb number. It worked really well on the test so far. Let's see how it hold up the next time I go about town taking snaps.

X-Pro1 First Impressions

I wished that I had a few more outings with the new camera, but unfortunately, the weather wasn't very kind and it rained this afternoon. I also had to run errands as well as get some rest, not to mention having a peek at the BMW Shorties on the Sunday, as well as taking the boys for a run around.

So far, the jpg coming out of the camera had been amazing. The lens was sharp as advertised. I was still getting used to the focusing system. But the white balance, the tone and the overall feel of the image was astounding. Mind you, I have yet to push the camera to the limit. Maybe I would do so on the coming trip up Fraser's Hill in mid July.

The New Camera

Guilty. I couldn't resist it. A camera with better lens and sensor than the lovely X100. I would go insane to say no. So, last Friday, after work, I went out to ask around and at Boeing in Sungai Wang, I got the best offer.

I bought the body with the 35mm f1.4, a delicious lens and had been trying it out ever since. I also got the dedicated case for it, but the annoying thing about that case was the battery and the memory card, bring located at the base of the body, necessitate me to remove the casing every time I needed to charge or download photos. A bit of a pain.

Another gripe was, I have yet to update to OSX Lion on the iMac since the software for my wiggy Internet dock is not compatible with it. The latest version of Aperture requires upgrade to OSX Lion, and that version could process the x-Pro1's RAW files. Since I was not able to upgrade, I was stuck with the jpeg. But when the jpeg appeared this good, I couldn't really complaint. Yet.

With Idlan having his exams next week, and Puan Anita occupied, I would have time to have a walk about town. The camera sounded perfect for street photography, although like the X100, the focusing can be rather quirky.