Posts Tagged ‘Nikon’
Friday, February 14th, 2014
It’s Valentine’s Day today. This year, it coincides with Chap Goh Meh – the fifteenth and final day of the Chinese New Year – which many consider the Chinese Valentine’s Day. Here’s wishing all lovers a most romantic day/night!

Lots of lovey-dovey couples here, in the form of hugging salt and pepper bottles. I took this photo at the Hakaniemi Market Hall in Helsinki, Finland in summer. There were plenty of such charming craft stores for tourists and local Finns alike. Taken with a Nikon D600 with AF-S NIKKOR 24-120mm f/4G ED VR lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
In many places in the world that celebrate Valentine’s Day, boys buy flowers, chocolates and gifts for their girlfriends, wives, mistresses or lovers.
Actually, marketing practitioners should examine this so-called unique Japanese culture more closely.
Apparently, the practice has its roots in 1936 as part of the advertising campaign of chocolate makers in Kobe, but has captured the imagination of the Japanese populace such that it is widely practiced today.
Those chocolate makers must have been laughing to the bank, having created nation wide, recurring demand out of thin air.
Brilliant!
Sometimes the girl reciprocates.
In Japan, it is the girl who buys for the guys.
I know – because I received plenty on Valentine’s Day when I was in Japan.
The tradition in Japan is for girls to buy white chocolates (called giri-chocos – 義理チョコ) and give them to the guys.
This does not happen just between couples that are in a relationship.
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Tags:Finland, Finland 2013, Hakaniemi, Helsinki, holidays, Japan, NIKKOR, Nikon, photography, photos, potd, travel, vacation, Valentine's Day
Posted in Finland 2013, Holiday, NIKKOR, Nikon, Photography, Photos, POTD, POTD, travel | No Comments »
Tuesday, January 7th, 2014
The new entry-level DSLR from Nikon has 24.2 megapixels, 13 special effects modes, and a retractable kit lens. Price TBA. Available probably in February.

The Nikon D3300 will be available in three colors (Black, Red and Grey) with the AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-55mm F/3.5-5.6G VRII kit lens.
The Nikon DSLR is targeted at first time DSLR users, with its easy-to-use interface and Guide Mode, which provides tips and step-by-step guiding information along the way.

Top view of the new Nikon D3300 SLR.
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Tags:announce, availability, cameras, compact, DSLRs, DX, launch, lenses, Nikon, photography, price, Singapore
Posted in Announce, Cameras, cameras, DSLR, Events, events, Gadgets, Lens, newArrivals, NIKKOR, Nikon, Photography, Specifications | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 5th, 2013
The new Nikon Df is a light and compact full frame DSLR that packs the D4 sensor into the classic design look of the Nikon FM2. Available in black and silver, price and availability in Singapore will be announced later.
Update (29 November, 2013):
The Nikon Df and AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G (Special Edition) lens have started sales at all Authorised Nikon Dealers.
- Df Body only (Black & Silver) – S$3,699
- Df + AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G (Special) kit (Black & Silver) – S$3,999
- AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G – S$399

The new Nikon Df is available in Silver and Black.
The new Nikon Df has the D4’s full frame CMOS sensor, with 16.2 megapixels.
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Tags:announce, availability, cameras, compact, Df, DSLRs, full-frame, FX, launch, lens, Nikon, photography, price, Singapore
Posted in Accessories, Cameras, cameras, Compact camera, DSLR, Events, Gadgets, gadgets, Launch, Lens, NIKKOR, Nikon, Photography, Press Release | No Comments »
Sunday, October 20th, 2013
Photo of the Day: This is probably what a hunted mouse last sees before it realises that it is being hunted by this cat.

This adult brindle was the ugliest of the litter of cats that roamed the bushes near an HDB estate. But long after the cuteness of the other cats and kittens has worn off, I find myself coming back to look at this cat – it’s so full of personality! Photo taken with a Nikon D7100 with AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/4G ED VR lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
Crouched low and inching forward, I really wouldn’t want to be a mouse staring this feline in the eyes.
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Tags:animals, cats, D7100, kittens, NIKKOR, Nikon, photography, photos, potd, Singapore
Posted in Cameras, DSLR, Gadgets, Lens, NIKKOR, Nikon, Photography, Photos, POTD, POTD | No Comments »
Thursday, October 17th, 2013
The new D5300 is Nikon’s first DSLR with built-in Wi-Fi and GPS. The 24.2-megapixel camera sports the new EXPEED 4 image-processing engine and a DX-format CMOS sensor without an optical low-pass filter.
Price and availability to be announced.
Price and availability to be announced.
Update (20 November, 2013):
The Nikon D5300 and AF-S NIKKOR 58mm f/1.4G lens are now available in Singapore.
- D5300 Black Body Set – S$1,089
- D5300 + 18-55mm kit (Black, Red, Grey) – S$1,279
- D5300 Black 18-140 VR Set – S$1,499
- AF-S NIKKOR 58mm f/1.4G – S$2,499

The Nikon D5300 will come in black, red and a new colour grey.
With built-in Wi-Fi, users can easily and quickly share high-quality images captured with the D5300 via a smart device.

Nikon D5300, successor to the D5200.
The built-in GPS allowS users to look back on routes taken on vacation or with outdoor activities using a log feature.
The D5300 is designed with a structure made of a new material to bring about a smaller and lighter body while maintaining the necessary strength and durability.
The camera comes with a 3.2-inch, 1037k-dot vari-angle monitor with a wide viewing angle for shooting from a variety of angles.
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Tags:announce, cameras, D5300, DSLRs, DX, GPS, Nikon, photography, Wi-Fi
Posted in Announce, Cameras, DSLR, Gadgets, gadgets, GPS, newArrivals, Nikon, Photography, Prices, Specifications, Wi-Fi | No Comments »
Tuesday, October 8th, 2013
Slightly more than a year after the launch of the D600 last September, Nikon has unveiled its successor – the D610. Nikon boasts its the smallest and lightest full-frame format DSLR in the world.
Price and availability to be announced.
Update (14 November, 2013):
The Nikon D610 is now available in Singapore. RRP: S$2,999 (body only).

Nikon D610 full-frame DSLR.
Catered for users who are new to the FX-format, the D610 sports a 24.3-megapixel FX-format CMOS sensor and the EXPEED 3 image processing engine, with an ISO range of 100 to 6400 (expandable from 50 to 25,600).
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Tags:announce, cameras, D600, D610, DSLRs, full-frame, Nikon, photography, Singapore
Posted in Announce, Brochures, Cameras, DSLR, Gadgets, gadgets, newArrivals, Nikon, Photography, Specifications | No Comments »
Thursday, October 3rd, 2013
Photo of the Day: Discovered this brood of four kittens over the weekend, kept by this group of retirees in an HDB void deck. I’ll be sharing snapshots I took over the next few POTD postings.

Not quite as cute as the Puss in Boots in Shrek, but what beady eyes. Just enjoying the sharpness and shallow depth of field of the lens. Photo taken with a Nikon D7100 with AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/4G ED VR lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
Apart from the four kittens, the place was also a haunt for grown-up cats in the neighbourhood.
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Tags:animals, cats, NIKKOR, Nikon, photography, photos, potd, Singapore
Posted in Daily life, DSLR, NIKKOR, Nikon, Photos, POTD, POTD | 1 Comment »
Friday, September 20th, 2013
More than 2,500 F1 fans joined S. Iswaran, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and Second Minister for Trade and Industry in the Pit Lane Walk at the Marina Bay Street Circuit.

Some 2,500 F1 fans thronged the pit lanes at the Marina Bay Street Circuit. Every which way I looked, there was somebody taking a selfie. Photo taken with a Samsung NX2000 mirrorless interchangeable lens camera with a 20-50mm lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
For the first time in the six short years of Singapore Grand Prix history, members of the public were invited onto the Marina Bay Street Circuit a day before the Circuit Park’s official opening.

Race officials/volunteers taking stock of the pit lane walk. Photo taken with a Nikon D7100 with AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/4G ED VR lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
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Tags:F1, Formula 1, NIKKOR, Nikon, NX2000, photography, photos, potd, racing, Samsung, selfie, Singapore, sports
Posted in DSLR, MIL, NIKKOR, Nikon, Photography, Photos, POTD, POTD, Samsung, Visits | No Comments »
Saturday, September 14th, 2013
I was just trying out the Nikon D7100 for the first time when Cliff dashed out the open garden door thinking it was time for his before-bedtime walk. So I snapped a few shots of him as the test subject.

That’s Cliff just outside the garden door, waiting for his walk. It was already pretty dim since the garden lights weren’t switched on. Both photos taken with a Nikon D7100 with AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/4G ED VR lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
At first, he was all eager and sitting upright.
After a while, when he realised that the walk was not going to be due for another 10 minutes, he resigned himself to a more relaxing posture.
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Tags:NIKKOR, Nikon, pets, photography, photos, potd, Singapore
Posted in Cameras, Daily life, NIKKOR, Nikon, Photography, Photos, POTD, POTD | No Comments »
Friday, September 13th, 2013
Snapped this photo of the Sports Hub and a lone runner just before the skies opened up and inundated the pitch.

Work-in-progress for the Sports Hub. But more poignantly, it’s also work-in-progress for the runner. In fact, any sports pursuit is in a state of work-in-progress all the time – at any point in time, the sportsman/sportswoman is constantly striving to improve and better the previous achievement, instead of resting on his/her laurels. Photo taken with a Nikon D5200 with NIKKOR 18-55mm kit lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
The Sports Hub is currently being built on the 35 hectare site of the former National Stadium.
It is slated for completion in April 2014 – that’s roughly eight months from now.
(more…)
Tags:architecture, NIKKOR, Nikon, photography, photos, potd, Singapore, sports
Posted in Daily life, Labels, NIKKOR, Nikon, Photography, Photos, POTD, POTD, Sports | No Comments »