Pavilion Decorations

It looks like it was raining rose petals. It wasn't just me, but many others felt the same. Chinese New Year was around the corner and as usual, Pavilion KL had always put in their shift in making sure that their decorations stayed classy. I must say that they did it again.

Since it would be the year of the dogs, there were not many statues around. There was one outside Starhill Gallery which I saw. But to make sure the Moslems don't get upset, they put up statues of the deities instead. Understandable.

The Centre stage had the usual elevations for shows and what not. The decorations started in earnest from the fountain by the Bukit Bintang entrance. There flowers aplenty leading into the mall, with plenty of Instagram opportunities.

I didn't see any events when I was there since it was actually a weekday. Might as well as it wasn't too crowded when I visited.

With the expanse, I had the chance to test out the wide angle lens on the GoPro. The photos turned out really well. The videos were nice as well. The next couple of weekends would be peak shopping before the New Year. Expect the place to be packed from now on.

Xmas is Near

For the last few years, the Xmas decorations at Pavilion had been the benchmark for all the other shopping malls in KL. So, when I was there a couple of weekends ago, it wasn't a surprise that the main foyer had been cleared away for the Xmas treats to be reacted.

The area was still restricted when I was there. Maybe by this week, we could go in. Let's see what is in store this year ...

It Has Closed

So, the Patchi outlet at Pavilion has closed. I found that out yesterday when I was strolling around the mall. Wanted to restock but was surprised to see that the entrance had been closed off. Looks like a mattress retail shop would be here instead in the future.

After the 30% price hike at the turn of the year, I could see the place losing customers. After all, it was just chocolate. Although a gorgeous one at that. So, we were back to the outlet at BSC. Hopefully that one would still be opened.

A New Tune

I had been contemplating going up onto medium format for quite some time. There were plenty of contenders, and the couple main ones at the moment were the Pentax 645Z and the Hasselblad X1D. They were not cheap certainly. But the one I was anticipating would be the Fuji GFX 50S. All 3 uses almost similar sensors, about 1.7 times bigger than my current full-frame gears.

But they were going to be big and heavy. And I mainly like street work. And I have fast glasses to cover 28, 35, 50 and 85mm, not to mention standard and wide-angle zooms.

In the last few months, I had been mainly doing wide-angle walks. I decided to use a 85mm 1.4 rig yesterday. The overcast weather made the decision easy. And I was able to snap both indoors and evening outdoors without much hassle.

After looking at the results, it made me think about whether it would be worth the effort, cost and hassle of upgrading and abandoning the system I built over the years to accommodate this new endeavour. Bearing in mind, I was not planning of getting any monetary return from all this.

So, as it stood at the moment I might venture into medium format in the future. The question was not if, but onto which system. Apart from the Hasselblad, I don’t think the other medium format setup had the upper hand to my current kit. When I do go medium format, I would expect the results to blow me away, similar to when I was first able to use a Leica properly and appreciate what a sharp lens really meant.

I remember the advise from one of my mentor, that when you go into the field I am in - a Haemato-Oncologist, you would need an escape. For me it had always been photography since my student years. Guess, I would need to up my game now ….

A Sunday Outing

I had to take out my camera today. I used a different one during the the photowalk last weekend but that can’t compete with my favourite mechanical gear. I had the crave.

Just you and me ...For a good causeGotta catch them all ...They need some good coachingThe selfie generationAcross the roadLooking down ....Of construct ....Indoor lighting ....Blowing bubblesTurning backSince Anita needed some air, I decided to have dinner at Bukit Bintang and since I was early, I had enough town to walk around before we settled down to eat. The weather was rather overcast, threatening to rain, but the Pavilion area was buzzing with plenty of activities.

Considering it was a dull day, I did have a few shots. At least I could go back home happy …. for another week …..