Bangkok in Progress |
Jun 9th 2007 |
With this sequence of images I am not really sure what it is that I want to show. The pieces don't add up, yet. Maybe one day they will slot together to form a bigger picture. Meanwhile, here's an interim stack of images to overload your senses, along with a little blurb on life in an Asian 'Neon Tiger'.
Go to: Bangkok in Progress
Most photographs taken with Leica M8 and a variety of lenses.
Speaking of Neon Tigers, there's a nice book by Peter Bialobrzeski who documented a number of Asian cities using an antiquated large format plate camera. Inspiring work.
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| Camera: |
M8 Digital Camera (Leica Camera AG) |
| Lens: |
Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 ASPH. |
| Focal Length: |
50mm (67mm = 35mm film equiv.) |
| Exposure Time: |
1/1500sec. |
| Aperture: |
Auto aperture value transmission not possible |
| ISO: |
160 |
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| Camera: |
M8 Digital Camera (Leica Camera AG) |
| Lens: |
Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 ASPH. |
| Focal Length: |
50mm (67mm = 35mm film equiv.) |
| Exposure Time: |
1/2000sec. |
| Aperture: |
Auto aperture value transmission not possible |
| ISO: |
160 |
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| Camera: |
M8 Digital Camera (Leica Camera AG) |
| Lens: |
Tri-Elmar-M 16-18-21 mm f/4 ASPH. |
| Exposure Time: |
1/6sec. |
| Aperture: |
Auto aperture value transmission not possible |
| ISO: |
160 |
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| Hot topic: An exceptionally thin IR absorption filter at sensor level is reason for the M8 to overreact to infrared light reflecting off black fabrics and other synthetic materials, resulting in so-called IR contamination, or magenta offset (note the uniform). The problem has now been solved with external lens filters. I'm yet to try them out. See my alternative! |
| This is more or less what the picture would look like with the new IR filter attached. I achieved the natural gray of the police uniform using my Wacom 'travel' drawing tablet and the sponge tool. You can move the picture and compare it with the previous one. |
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Animals will be humans, or crackers |
Jun 5th 2007 |
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I get satisfaction looking at the cat photo; the rustic color to the left and the boxy composition at a subtle tilt, spiraling away and coming back at you with a primal roar - ok, primal yawn. I love the chipped tooth.
Pictures taken with D-Lux 2 compact camera. |
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Essentially Martial Arts |
Jun 2nd 2007 |
Imagine Formula 1 engines firing up before blast off. These were the sounds coming from a Thai boxing club next to a canal, tucked away below a bridge in a dark corner of the city. The kids had the ability to kick each others' faces in without ever seeming aggressive or out of control; in fact, always ready to show a tender side.
This begs a strange kind of question: what is violence?
I sat there watching them for about half an hour and am likely to go back to shoot some more. There may yet be a way to getting around paying the rip-off of an entry fee at the arena...
Pictures taken with Leica M8, wide angle Tri-Elmar (Wate), viewfinder attachment and tripod with camera set to f/4 and ISO 640. |
| Trainer with cigarette in hand. Note the beer bottles in the back. |
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| Camera: |
M8 Digital Camera (Leica Camera AG) |
| Lens: |
Tri-Elmar 16-18-21 mm f/4 ASPH. |
| Exposure Time: |
1/45sec. |
| Aperture: |
Auto aperture value transmission not possible |
| ISO: |
640 |
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| Camera: |
M8 Digital Camera (Leica Camera AG) |
| Lens: |
Tri-Elmar 16-18-21 mm f/4 ASPH. |
| Exposure Time: |
1/30sec. |
| Aperture: |
Auto aperture value transmission not possible |
| ISO: |
640 |
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| Camera: |
M8 Digital Camera (Leica Camera AG) |
| Lens: |
Tri-Elmar 16-18-21 mm f/4 ASPH. |
| Exposure Time: |
1/30sec. |
| Aperture: |
Auto aperture value transmission not possible |
| ISO: |
640 |
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| Easy sparring. Payaken in the blue, Nahantong in the red. |
| Payaken in the blue, Nahantong in the red. |
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| Payaken in the blue, Nahantong in the red. |
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Happy Buddha Day! |
May 31st 2007 |
| A big day in Bangkok. Tonight Mark, Nui and I climbed the 'Golden Mount' where we circled the pagoda three times to the chanting of tape-recorded monks. This lady is somewhere in the deep within... |
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'Vesak', or Buddha Day, is the holiest day in Buddhist tradition, honoring the birth, enlightenment and death of Gautama Buddha and celebrated in Singapore and Thailand on the (second) full-moon day of May, this year the 31st. So happy Buddha Day to all of you, may your lives be flooded with peace...
... or maybe just a moment of peace.
Real peace.
Empty, needless, perfect.
Open for the grace that is nameless.
Amen. |
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The Ultimate Water Test |
May 29th 2007 |
... I'm feeling like a hunter as I press through the crowds down the high street with a parade about to break loose. By now my face is smothered in war paint. I'm feeling the part. Adrenalin pumping, everyone's out for some serious crack. I'm out to capture it...
... Gearlust: the Elmarit-M 28 mm f/2.8 ASPH., the most compact M lens of all, is a universal 35 mm fixed focal length when combined with the Leica M8. It's a close-combat lens: get in there, get close, participate, don't hide, take it. On the one hand, it's ideal for photography with hyper-focal distances...
Go to: The Ultimate Water Test for complete story from Luang Prabang, Laos.
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| Camera: |
M8 Digital Camera (Leica Camera AG) |
| Lens: |
Tri-Elmar 16-18-21 mm f/4 ASPH. |
| Focal Length: |
18mm (24mm = 35mm film equiv.) |
| Exposure Time: |
1/350sec. |
| Aperture: |
Auto aperture value transmission not possible |
| ISO: |
160 |
|
| Camera: |
M8 Digital Camera (Leica Camera AG) |
| Lens: |
Tri-Elmar 16-18-21 mm f/4 ASPH. |
| Focal Length: |
18mm (24mm = 35mm film equiv.) |
| Exposure Time: |
1/750sec. |
| Aperture: |
Auto aperture value transmission not possible |
| ISO: |
160 |
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|
| Camera: |
M8 Digital Camera (Leica Camera AG) |
| Lens: |
Tri-Elmar 16-18-21 mm f/4 ASPH. |
| Focal Length: |
18mm (24mm = 35mm film equiv.) |
| Exposure Time: |
1/350sec. |
| Aperture: |
Auto aperture value transmission not possible |
| ISO: |
160 |
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| Camera: |
M8 Digital Camera (Leica Camera AG) |
| Lens: |
Elmarit-M 28 mm f/2.8 ASPH. |
| Focal Length: |
28mm (38mm = 35mm film equiv.) |
| Exposure Time: |
1/1000sec. |
| Aperture: |
Auto aperture value transmission not possible |
| ISO: |
160 |
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| Miss Laos 2007 and finalists |
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Light speed |
May 26th 2007 |
| Camera: |
M8 Digital Camera (Leica Camera AG) |
| Lens: |
Tri-Elmar 16-18-21 mm f/4 ASPH. |
| Focal Length: |
18mm (24mm = 35mm film equiv.) |
| Exposure Time: |
16sec. |
| Aperture: |
Auto aperture value transmission not possible |
| ISO: |
160 |
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| Camera: |
M8 Digital Camera (Leica Camera AG) |
| Lens: |
Tri-Elmar 16-18-21 mm f/4 ASPH. |
| Focal Length: |
18mm (24mm = 35mm film equiv.) |
| Exposure Time: |
12sec. |
| Aperture: |
Auto aperture value transmission not possible |
| ISO: |
160 |
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These pictures were taken in Luang Prabang, northern Laos, during the festivities of Thai New Year as celebrated from 13 to 15 April throughout most of Southeast Asia. One night I rocked up at the night fair with a Leica M8, a Tri-Elmar 16-18-21 mm wide angle lens with corresponding viewfinder attachment, and a tripod.
Exposure times varied from 5 to 15 seconds with the aperture set to f/11 and f/22. Pictures were then manipulated nominally bringing down the darks and increasing the saturation to compensate for subsequent conversion into the sRGB 'Internet standard' color space. sRGB pictures can look either richer or flatter after conversion from RGB. I wonder what it will be this time...
Here a few extracts from a work in progress. |
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Tractors, nothing but tractors |
May 25th 2007 |
On composition, black & white and resolution; on crop factors, oblique light rays and peripheral obscurity. Introducing my brother, Mark.
Frivolous flava with D-Lux 2. This photo was taken at the base of Minion Falls in eastern Australia. |
... great programmer of PHP and CSS.
Giggiddy, giggiddy...
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Leaves, water lilies & P(a)i |
May 23rd 2007 |
| Krabi, southern Thailand. |
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| Near a monastery in the Pai region of northern Thailand. |
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| Near a monastery in the Pai region of northern Thailand. |
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| Sydney, Australia. |
| Showing off the resolution of the Leica D-Lux 2 compact camera at macro setting. |
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| Showing off the resolution of the Leica D-Lux 2 compact camera at macro setting. |
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Radiant colour and beautiful structure. Close-ups from Thailand and Australia. Taken with D-Lux 2 compact camera.
Camera talk: Leica's D-Lux digital compact camera series is now available in its third edition. The D-Lux 3 boasts a 10-megapixel 16:9 sensor, an image stabilizer for shake-free camera exposures and, possibly its most significant step up from the D-Lux 2, a 2.8" wide-angle screen designed to display the pictures to the full panorama format.
The main distinction between the D-Lux 3 and other cameras in the compact segment is unquestionably its 16:9 sensor. 16:9 means more breadth, more take-in, more openness - ideal for vast landscapes and wide street perspectives. |
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Peace in Motion |
May 23rd 2007 |
Our return flight from Australia to Thailand included a stay-over in Ho Chi Minh City, a.k.a. Saigon, Vietnam. I assumed the flight company would be putting us up in a hotel within the airport perimeter; next to the runway or behind the terminal, in any case close by. So it came to us by surprise when we were taxied to a guesthouse in the heart of the city, 20 kilometers away.
Saigon is said to have few traffic lights, turning something as trivial as crossing the road into a spiritual experience. Here's how you do it: relax, empty your mind, be the rock that parts the river. The mighty river of scooters. Fear not. Advance slowly. Allow it all to rush by you. Feel the peace...
Pictures taken with Leica M8. |
| "May I take a picture?" The art of street photography is about feeling out a situation and, more often than not, acting upon intuition. Sometimes you ask, sometimes you don't. Personally, I try to be respectful for I cannot enjoy a photo when the 'subject' was unhappy about my taking it. It makes me feel bad about what I do. But this man was happy. |
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Glowy orbs sold by the side of the street.
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| Camera: |
M8 Digital Camera (Leica Camera AG) |
| Lens: |
Elmarit-M 28 mm f/2.8 ASPH. |
| Exposure Time: |
1/180sec. |
| Aperture: |
Auto aperture value transmission not possible |
| ISO: |
320 |
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| Camera: |
M8 Digital Camera (Leica Camera AG) |
| Lens: |
Elmarit-M 28 mm f/2.8 ASPH. |
| Exposure Time: |
1/125sec. |
| Aperture: |
Auto aperture value transmission not possible |
| ISO: |
320 |
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The Windsor Plaza, according to a Chinese-American lawyer and friend of the owner, is the first privately owned 5-star hotel in the country.
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| The left took-took driver jumped up immediately when he saw me, a potential customer, about to take a snap. The right didn't react at all. Thanks for that. |
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Eastern Australia, 200 km inland |
May 21st 2007 |
| All you can eat in Stanthorpe. This reptile was pregnant with about five babies, as we were to discover later on that day when a car tired the mother squishing out the young. Sorry to be so graphic. Click thumbnail for crop section of D-Lux 2 macro power. |
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Thunder and lightning for about a week. Camera resting on concrete pillar with lens pushed up slightly using camera sling.
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Stanthorpe is a quiet place with few tourist attractions. People come to work. And yet, there are some great walks in the area.
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Photo taken by Rhyanna Haitzmann. The two of us would come here every other day, only 10 minutes' walk from our cabin.
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... about 250 km from Stanthorpe.
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| Kangaroos at dusk hold eye contact, staring intensely. |
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"Not much goin' on in Stanthorpe apart from apples," they say. Backpackers from around the globe flock there during the summer to work on the farms and make a little extra cash for the road ahead - check out 'Working Holiday Makers Visa' for 18 to 30 year-olds at Australian Immigration Office. Looks like a good deal, unless you're Austrian - strangely, the only European people not included in the program.
I discovered there to be a lot going on in and, especially, around Stanthorpe: the Australian outback. Beautiful, beckoning and powerful. Our paper-wooden houses sit but superficially on the back of this slumbering giant. One day it might rise and shake us all off like fleas.
Pictures taken with D-Lux 2 compact camera. |
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