Thursday December 24
 
22:11
 
All I want for Christmas…

It is true that Santa is real. Unfortunately, his real name is “Visa” and you have to pay for him.

This Christmas I’m bringing my tiny Tokyo flat one step closer to a techno-home with two purchases.

First, the ultimate lazy man’s hoover:

Yip, a robot hoover. You can see it on You Tube here and read about it here. This is the ultimate “When in Japan” purchase, it has to be said. The thing is, it only cost the same price as a normal “do it yourself” hoover – and let’s face it, who would do it themselves if they could get someone else to do it for them?

Second, a lazy man’s coffee maker:

I have very little cost justification for this. My current espresso maker is well past its prime, but even then I could get a new one for 20,000 yen instead of 60,000 yen.

But this one grinds the beans for me. It’s not female with a short skirt but it’s the closest thing I’m going to get to a Starbucks girl in my flat every morning making me a fresh coffee.

Thursday December 17
 
19:29
 
Autofocus accuracy & shallow depth of field

After publishing my Tamron f2.8 VC samples, I’ve been asked a number of times directly about focus accuracy, with some people wondering whether they have focus problems because they get variation between shots.

Since this question keeps coming up, I’ve written a page on the issue: Autofocus accuracy & shallow depth of field. Hope it helps people understand camera sensor limitations with f2.8 lenses!

Thursday December 17
 
18:20
 
I’m a double flasher

One of the reasons I bought the D90 was to experiment with wireless flash. I already had an SB-600, but what you can do with one wireless flash is limited.

Yesterday I bought an SB-900 – the more powerful big brother of the SB-600. I’ve not had time to use it yet, but with two wireless flashes, it should be fun.

What’s the point of having multiple flashes? How does it improve image quality? Why is Nikon wireless flash good? Have a play with this demo from Nikon and you’ll see.

Monday December 14
 
11:07
 
Scaredy Cat

Not the best photos, but I do like the last one. Nikon D90 with Tamrom 17-50 F2.8 VC, early evening in the streets of Tokyo.

Really I should PP these to adjust for the different warmths of light – it’s caused by the first two including the lamp in the frame and the last two just pointing into the shadows.

Friday December 11
 
17:13
 
Nostalgia: Sony DSC-F707

The Sony F707 was the first consumer 5 megapixel camera. Not only that but it came with an F2-2.4 5x zoom lens, hologram laser focus assist, and IR NightShot. It was my main camera for years, and I loved it.

I still have it. Occasionally I pick it up and have a play, because with that fast lens, laser focus, IR NightShot, and a powerful flash with IR framing, it’s a good camera in low light. It’s even possible to get some nice bokeh:

I can’t help but seeing a matchstick figure and head in that leaf photo. What would a psychiatrist make of that?

Apart from wishing the camera was a bit less sluggish during image review and supported memorysticks greater than 128MB, the main thing that stops me using the camera more these days is the “halo effect”. At the time it was a resolution class leader, but now I find the sharpening just too aggressive. I guess I did at the time also, but then there was very little alternative.

It’s not too extreme in the leaf photo, but at times it can be overwhelming:

When I look back at photos, I do wish I could get rid of that. Sure, it doesn’t affect the photos too much at 4×6, but it can become noticeable and it prevents cropping.

Still, it was a camera that created many great memories for me. I’m sure that while it still has life in it, every year or so I’ll return to it and play with nostalgia.