Tuesday September 30
 
17:57
 
B&B&Bust

From the BBC:

Mr Cable said depositors should not panic because their money would be guaranteed by the government under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. The first £35,000 of savers’ money in each banking group is protected under the scheme.

I never thought of myself as a good saver, but I have a heck more than that in my high interest bank account (paid tax free since I don’t live in the UK). I never had much concern before that a bank could fail and take my money with it but having so much in the one place is now beginning to look a little scary. Should I spread it into 35,000 chunks with different banks?

Wednesday September 17
 
14:40
 
Canon EOS 5D Mark II or Nikon D700?

The Canon EOS 5D Mark II has just been announced. Slightly cheaper than the D700 but with 21MP and HD movies - and I’ve heard the D700 kit lens (24-120 F3.5-5.6) isn’t that hot. The Canon kit lens has a shorter zoom at 24-105 but is F4 all the way.

If this camera is as good as it looks on paper - and it uses an enhanced version of the EOS-1D MarkIII sensor so could well be - then it might be my next purchase. The only caution I have is banding at high ISO. The ISO 6400 image from the 50D shows banding at 6400, and I saw the same when I tested the old Kiss/Rebel. If the 5D Mark II has the same, I’ll be ruling it out.

Tuesday September 16
 
17:06
 
DLSR - 10 Months On

This weekend I moved closer to deciding to buy the new Nikon D700.

It’s been about 10 months since I bought my DSLR. I’ve learnt a lot about photography in the last 10 months. While this isn’t my first camera with manual controls, it is the first one where I have actively used them for more than just adjusting ISO and shutter speed to take photos in dark surroundings - and moving beyond manual controls, it’s the first camera where I’ve actively worked with an external flash unit. As time progresses I’m getting better at adjusting the individual elements individually to achieve the results I want - composure, depth of field, the correct shutter speed, lighting, etc.

I’m really starting to notice the limitations of the D40x, however. One of the main limitations I’m finding is the high ISO. These days I’m having to resort more and more to high ISO to achieve the photographs I want, and while the D40x has excellent high ISO, it’s not the crispness I want. I want to be able to take photos at ISO 3200 and have them look retain detail like hair, not fuzz it out. The only way to achieve that is to move to a full frame camera.

There are some other limitations of the D40x that I’m noticing also, all of which would be solved by having the D700: lens correction, DOF preview, virtual horizon, active D-lighting, direct access buttons for ISO etc (only one can be assigned on the D40x, and it isn’t conveniently placed).

There is one final limitation of my current setup that I’m finding - the lenses. My main lens is the 18-200 Nikon. It’s an astoundingly versatile lens, but sometimes I want something that is going to give me better sharpness and quality in exchange for the versatility. While I could solve this problem by getting another lens for my D40x, it would only be another lens which I couldn’t move to a full frame sensor. I know it would give me better sharpness but it wouldn’t take away the underlying ISO issue that I have.

There are just two problems with the D700. Firstly, it can’t use the D40x lenses without cropping. While I know that I need a new lens anyway, it would still be nice to be able to put on the 18-200 when I just want to go out and play around - the D700 can’t do that without dropping the resolution to 5MP. Secondly, there is not “custom settings” option, as on the top of the Canon 50D. This is something that I would love to have.

I have to admit also that I would like the video mode of the D90. It may seem like a gimmick - but take this weekend. I was on a Ferris wheel and the couple two cars behind me were screwing in their car. A photo through the semi-opaque glass shows nothing. A video would have shown her bouncing up and down :)

For the moment I’ve not bought. Since I need a new lens anyway for a full frame, I’m watching to see what Canon do with the 5D. It’s quite possible that their new camera might have the features I want from the D700 and more.

In the meantime, if anyone wants to buy a Sigma F1.4 30mm or Nikon 18-200mm VR lens, do get in-touch. It may sway my decision. It’s amazing to think that my D40x plus two lenses alone cost 200,000 Yen, which is half the price of the D700 with a good lens.

Thursday September 11
 
13:56
 
Don’t Go Far Off, Not Even For A Day

Don’t go far off, not even for a day, because —
because — I don’t know how to say it: a day is long
and I will be waiting for you, as in an empty station
when the trains are parked off somewhere else, asleep.

Don’t leave me, even for an hour, because
then the little drops of anguish will all run together,
the smoke that roams looking for a home will drift
into me, choking my lost heart.

Oh, may your silhouette never dissolve on the beach;
may your eyelids never flutter into the empty distance.
Don’t leave me for a second, my dearest,

because in that moment you’ll have gone so far
I’ll wander mazily over all the earth, asking,
Will you come back? Will you leave me here, dying?

Don’t Go Far Off, Not Even For A Day by Pablo Neruda

I ‘m quite enjoying this guy’s poetry; I dare not read more for fear that this blog will just fill up with his work. The titles intrigue me though: “Saddest Poem”, “Drunk As Drunk”, “Ode To a Large Tuna in the Market” (?!)

Thursday September 11
 
13:06
 
If You Forget Me

I want you to know
one thing.

You know how this is:
if I look
at the crystal moon, at the red branch
of the slow autumn at my window,
if I touch
near the fire
the impalpable ash
or the wrinkled body of the log,
everything carries me to you,
as if everything that exists,
aromas, light, metals,
were little boats
that sail
toward those isles of yours that wait for me.

Well, now,
if little by little you stop loving me
I shall stop loving you little by little.

If suddenly
you forget me
do not look for me,
for I shall already have forgotten you.

If you think it long and mad,
the wind of banners
that passes through my life,
and you decide
to leave me at the shore
of the heart where I have roots,
remember
that on that day,
at that hour,
I shall lift my arms
and my roots will set off
to seek another land.

But
if each day,
each hour,
you feel that you are destined for me
with implacable sweetness,
if each day a flower
climbs up to your lips to seek me,
ah my love, ah my own,
in me all that fire is repeated,
in me nothing is extinguished or forgotten,
my love feeds on your love, beloved,
and as long as you live it will be in your arms
without leaving mine

If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda

I adore this poem. It expresses something very simple:

I love you - but don’t take my love for granted. For if I see your love for me starts to disappear, then my love will go to.

I’m opening up my heart to you, letting you inside. But you need to reciprocate. You need to show me that your love is as strong. I wont settle for anything else.

Beautiful.