Archive for the ‘MIL’ Category
Tuesday, August 4th, 2015
The National Day Parade usually sees a spectacular display of fireworks at the end of the display. Canon Imaging Academy shares three tips to capturing great photos of fireworks.

Shooting great snapshots of fireworks is not difficult, as long as you spend a little time preparing ahead. Today’s tip is on what to prepare and how to go about it. Photo credit: Canon Imaging Academy.
This year being Singapore’s 50th anniversary for independence, the fireworks will be unprecedented, with daily fireworks displays throughout the Jubilee Weekend.
If you’re planning to shoot the fireworks next Sunday on 9 August, check out three quick tips that the Canon Imaging Academy has shared.
The details for these tips will be posted as a three-part series over three days, with the first tip covered today.
So read on…
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Tags:cameras, Canon, Canon Imaging Academy, EOS, Fireworks, howto, IXUS, jubilee, National Day Parade, NDP, photography, SG50, tips
Posted in Cameras, cameras, Canon, Compact camera, DSLR, EOS, Gadgets, gadgets, Howtos, IXUS, MIL, Opinion, Photography, Photos, Reference, Tips | No Comments »
Saturday, August 1st, 2015
Photo of the Day: The rooftop tower is directly above the cupola above the prayer hall of the mosque.
* Information from Wikipedia article on Masjid Abdul Gaffoor.

The tower has eight sides and has three levels demarcated with Doric pilasters. Photo taken using a Canon EOS M3 and 18-55mm kit lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
On the lowest of three levels of the tower are eight cinquefoil windows with coloured glass panes which let light through to the interior.
The middle level has pilasters and capitals below a balustrade with bottleneck balusters.
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Tags:5Ds, architecture, buildings, Canon, Canon EOS, Canon EOS 5Ds, Canon EOS m3, CanonSG, EOS, EOS 5DS, EOS M3, festival, Hari Raya, heritage, Islam, Kampung Kapor, M3, Muslim, National Heritage Board, NHB, photography, photos, potd, Puasa, Ramadan, religious, SG50, Singapore
Posted in Cameras, cameras, Canon, DSLR, EOS, Events, events, Gadgets, gadgets, MIL, Photography, Photos, POTD, POTD, Singapore, Travel, travel, Visits, Wiki | No Comments »
Wednesday, July 29th, 2015
Sony has launched worldwide its flagship camera – the α7R II full-frame mirrorless interchangeable-lens camera, with 42.4-megapixel back-illuminated CMOS sensor, in-camera 5-axis image stabilisation, internal 4K video recording, silent shooting and fast hybrid AF.
Available in Singapore from August onwards at S$4,099 (body only).

Sony boasts that the newly-developed 42.4-megapixel back-illuminated CMOS sensor is the most advanced, versatile and highest-resolution full-frame image sensor that Sony has ever created, allowing the α7R II to reach new levels of quality, sensitivity and response speed.
Sony, a worldwide leader in digital imaging and the world’s largest image sensor manufacturer, has today introduced the new flagship full-frame mirrorless camera, the α7R II.

The impressive video credentials of Sony’s new α7R II camera include the ability to record movies in 4K quality (QFHD 3840×2160) in either Super 35mm crop mode or full-frame mode.
The new α7R II features the world’s first back-illuminated full-frame Exmor R™ CMOS sensor, which realises high-resolution (approximately 42.4 effective megapixels), high-sensitivity (expandable up to ISO 102400) and high-speed AF response up to 40 per cent faster than the original α7R, thanks to 399 focal plane phase-detection AF points.
The camera also includes a 5-axis image stabilisation system borrowed from the α7 II model, and has the ability to shoot and record 4K videos in multiple formats including Super 35mm (without pixel binning) and full-frame format, a world’s first for digital cameras.
Additionally, it has a newly refined XGA OLED Tru-Finder™ with the world’s highest (0.78x) viewfinder magnification.
More details from the press release below.
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Tags:Alpha, cameras, flagship, fullframe, launch, MIL, mirrorless, photography, prices, Singapore, Sony
Posted in A7, Cameras, cameras, Events, events, Gadgets, gadgets, Launch, MIL, newArrivals, Prices, Sony, Specifications | No Comments »
Saturday, July 25th, 2015
The Abdul Gafoor Mosque is on Dunlop Street in the Kampung Kapor area of Singapore.

The visit to the Masjid Abdul Gafoor was part of an SG50 heritage photowalk organised by Canon Singapore, that also included visits to the Saint Joseph’s Church and Yueh Hai Ching Temple. I had the chance to try out the new EOS 5Ds and EOS M3 cameras. This photo was taken using a Canon EOS 5Ds and EF 50mm F1.4 USM prime lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
Originally built in 1907, the mosque was restored in 2003.
Tags:5Ds, Canon, Canon EOS, Canon EOS 5Ds, CanonSG, EOS, EOS 5DS, festival, Hari Raya, heritage, Islam, Kampung Kapor, Muslims, photography, photos, potd, Puasa, Ramadan, SG50, Singapore
Posted in cameras, Canon, DSLR, EOS, Events, events, Gadgets, gadgets, MIL, Photography, Photos, POTD, POTD, Singapore, Travel, travel, Visits | No Comments »
Friday, July 17th, 2015
Here’s wishing all Muslim friends: “Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri”!

Hari Raya ornaments for the home, on sale at the night bazaar prior to the actual day. Photo taken with a Canon EOS 7D Mark II with EF-S 18-135mm f3.5-5.6 IS STM kit lens. It was so crowded you’ve got to keep moving. The fast 65-point autofocus of the 7D Mark II enabled many shots to be taken sharp despite the hurry. Photo credit: John Tan.
It’s Hari Raya Puasa today.
After a whole month of fasting during Ramadan, today is the day that our Muslim friends have been looking forward to.

A traditional henna tattoo being done on the hands of a gracious lady who accented to letting me capture the beautiful design on her hand. Photo taken with an Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark II with M.Zuiko ED 12-40mm f2.8 PRO lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
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Tags:7D Mark II, bazaar, Canon, E-M5, EOS, festival, Geylang Serai, Hari Raya, holiday, Islam, lens, lights, markets, Muslims, night, Olympus, OM-D, OM-D E-M5, photography, photos, potd, Puasa, Ramadan, Singapore
Posted in Cameras, cameras, Canon, DSLR, EOS, Food, Gadgets, gadgets, Holiday, Lens, MIL, Olympus, OM-D, Photography, Photos, POTD, POTD, Shopping, Zuiko | No Comments »
Sunday, June 14th, 2015
After having twice turned back from visiting Chateau Chambord when I’d already reached its gates, I decided to make my third and final attempt at visiting this biggest and most majestic of the numerous fabulous chateaus in the beautiful Loire Valley.

The frontal facade of the Chambord Chateau, with the moat in the foreground. The architecture is what one expects of a typical castle – an inner keep surrounded by corner towers and a moat. Taken with a Canon EOS 7D Mark II with EF-S 18-135mm f3.5-5.6 IS STM kit lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
Why two unsuccessful attempts?
Well, my first attempt at visiting Château de Chambord was during the summer holidays back in school when I cycled 16km from Blois only to suffer an accident right in front of the castle.

One of many beautiful chandeliers in Chambord Chateau. Taken with a Canon EOS 7D Mark II with EF-S 18-135mm f3.5-5.6 IS STM kit lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
I had to satisfy myself with some quick snapshots of the front of the Chateau before bidding goodbye to the chateau.
Decades later, I brought my family with two kids on a self-drive vacation to the chateaus in the Loire Valley.
By the end of the week and more than half a dozen chateaus later, we arrived again at the gates of the Chambord Chateau in the mid afternoon.
By then, the kids were so tired out from our earlier exertions of that day that they were so totally knackered we couldn’t bear to wake them from their sleep in the car.
And to be honest, my wife and I were up to our ears in chateaus by that time.
So my wife and I snapped the obligatory snapshots of each other posing with the (equally majestic) rear facade of the chateau within a stone’s throw of where our car was parked.

Enjoy a horse carriage ride on the extensive grounds of the Chambord Chateau. Horse lovers can also watch twice daily equestrian shows at the chateau. Taken with an Olympus OMD-EM5 Mark II with M.Zuiko ED 12-40mm f2.8 PRO lens. Photo credit: KoolKat.
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Tags:7D Mark II, Canon, Chambord, chateau, EM5 Mark II, EOS, France, France 2015, holiday, Loire, Olympus, OMD, photography, photos, potd, travel, travel tech, vacation
Posted in Cameras, cameras, Canon, DSLR, EOS, Events, France 2015, Gadgets, gadgets, Holiday, Lens, MIL, Olympus, OM-D, Photography, Photos, POTD, Travel, travel, Wiki, Zuiko | No Comments »
Saturday, April 18th, 2015
Photo of the Day: Remember the horses in love in front of the train station in Hua Hin, Thailand? Here’s the close-up portrait shot of those happy horses.
* This is a different snapshot from the previous one.

The sharp details and shallow field of view of the camera and lens really impressed me in this snapshot of the happy horses just outside the Hua Hin Railway Station in Thailand. Photo taken with the Olympus OM-D E-M1 mirrorless interchangeable lens camera with Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-40mm f2.8 PRO lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
Looking at them really cheered up my day!
Tags:EM1, happy, holiday, horses, Hua Hin, love, Olympus, OMD, photography, photos, potd, smiling, statues, statuettes, Thailand, Thailand 2014
Posted in Cameras, Holiday, MIL, Olympus, OM-D, Photography, Photos, POTD, POTD, Thailand 2014, travel, Zuiko | 1 Comment »
Sunday, April 12th, 2015
Photo of the Day: Right at the entrance of the railway station in Hua Hin is a landscape garden decorated with plenty of interesting statues. One of these statuettes were of a pair of toothy horses laughing happily away.

Why do these horse look so happy? Could it be that they’re in lurvvv? Just outside the Hua Hin Railway Station in Thailand. Photo taken with the Olympus OM-D E-M1 mirrorless interchangeable lens camera with Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-40mm f2.8 PRO lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
These horses just looked so happy!
Tags:EM1, happy, holiday, horses, Hua Hin, love, Olympus, OMD, photography, photos, potd, smiling, statues, statuettes, Thailand, Thailand 2014
Posted in Cameras, Holiday, MIL, Olympus, OM-D, Photography, Photos, POTD, POTD, Thailand 2014, travel, Zuiko | 1 Comment »
Saturday, April 11th, 2015
Photo of the Day: After all his passengers had safely alighted from his train, this weary but smart-looking driver alighted and walked down the length of the platform, proudly inspecting his train as he walked.

This smart looking train driver – is he just visiting from Bangkok, or is he homeward bound to his home in Hua Hin? What kind of life story does he have to tell? Photo taken with the Olympus OM-D E-M1 mirrorless interchangeable lens camera with Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-40mm f2.8 PRO lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
We were visiting the historic and beautiful train station in Hua Hin when the train from Bangkok arrived.
The passengers promptly unloaded and dissipated quickly from the platform.
I was lingering on the platform, snapping photos when the train driver emerged from his driver’s cabin and began walking down the platform.
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Tags:conductor, driver, EM1, emo, holiday, Hua Hin, Olympus, OMD, photography, photos, platform, potd, Thailand, Thailand 2014, train
Posted in Cameras, Holiday, Lens, MIL, Olympus, OM-D, Photography, Photos, POTD, POTD, Thailand 2014, Travel, travel, Zuiko | 1 Comment »
Sunday, April 5th, 2015
Easter is a special day for Christians to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead – three days after his crucifixion and death at Calvary on Good Friday, as depicted in the New Testament of the Bible.

Relief on the metal door of the Salzburger Dom (Salzburg Cathedral). Assuming the inscriptions are in Latin, Google Translate says that “IN TE SPERAMUS” means “wait for you” or “we trust in you”. Photo taken with a Sony A7 with Vario-Tessar T* FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS full-frame E-mount zoom lens. Photo credit: John Tan.
The above photo was taken of the door of the Salzburg Cathedral when I visited Austria last summer in 2014.
I hope my Christian friends had a spiritual and reflective Easter today.
Tags:A7, Austria, Austria 2014, Carl Zeiss, Europe, full-frame, photography, photos, potd, Salzburg, Salzburg Cathedral, Salzburger Dom, Sony, travel
Posted in A7, Austria 2014, Cameras, cameras, Holiday, MIL, Photography, POTD, POTD, Sony, Travel, travel | No Comments »