Piano Ensmeble of NTU

I was asked to help my friend to take a few shots for Piano Ensemble in NTU. We decided to take photos in Nanyang Auditorium. I chose to use 10-20, 30 and 85 with a 420 flash. 
I took the photos in about 1 hour, then processed them briefly. There were a few things I feel quite challenging; I found it difficult to include both the player and piano in the frame, while at the same time show the face of the player. I guess it's easiest to show the side face of a player, but it's certainly not ideal if everyone shows only side face...
Another problem is how to pose 30 people, one by one, with different gestures; and you have to make the balance so that there is a spontaneous feel and the gestures don't look too rigid. Well, sometimes you have to capture the movements of players, and I really hoped I have a camera with better high ISO performance.
In the end, I found I used 10-20 most often, 30 sometimes to shoot half body, and 85 only a few times to take head shoulder shots. I used RAW for the white balance is much easier to adjust. Here are a few shots from the shooting

G10 CCD defects?

I have just been told that there are some G10s capturing image with a horizontal line near the upper left corner of every picture. The detailed symptom is described here

http://dans-imaging.blogspot.com/2008/11/canon-g10-excellent-camera-but-make.html

http://www.photomalaysia.com/forums/showthread.php?t=67895

http://www.mobile01.com/topicdetail.php?f=244&t=927919&p=1

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/readflat.asp?forum=1010&thread=31708609&page=2

It's said if the 5th number of the serial no. is 0 or 5, the camera could be affected.

I checked my camera with serial no. of 6928003529, and the problem is there. Potential buyers please be careful...

A few photos from Singapore Zoo

I had a great time in the zoo, though I din't take many photos. Sometimes you have to enjoy yourself and forget about shooting ^_^

G10 Set 3 (expanding)

The aged people in Singapore, I was quite shocked to see old people working as cleaner, taxi driver and even guards when I first land in Singapore.










The loaded rider stopped at a crowded crossing, uncertain about where to go. He stood there for quite a few minutes without a move...




In timse of crisis, I guess we all need some courage...



I think I'm going to add a a bit of color...

some shots from my hometown

These photos were taken a while back (summer 2008) when I was back home. I didn't take many photos during my holiday, as I got ill due to very different weather between Singapore and back at home. Anyway, I managed to grab a few shots on several occasions.
The first five shots are lotus taken near my neighborhood, I ride a bicycle to a university nearby, where there was a large lake full of these lovely flowers, in the school. There was even a farmer fishing by the lake. All shots taken with 70-300 IS, which I feel is one of the most practical long lens in canon lineup.
















This is a shot taken from the bank of Luo river, which gives the name of my hometown as Luoyang (literally means "to the north of Luo river"). The river is of great historical significance, as it is not only the major source of fresh water for agriculture and transportation, but also related to a series of historical figures (quite well known) and their romance. Now the river is losing water due to excessive drain in upstream, it becomes much narrower in recent years.

The river is also a separation between past, now and future. On my side, you can find a populated city lying on layers of remains of civilizations dated back to 2000 years ago, on the other side, a giant, new but empty city is being built up. As like countless cities in China, Luoyang is expanding at rocket speed, however, this is done at a cost that cannot be overlooked.

The image was taken with Sigma 10-20, a very capable WA lens and true alternative to canon's offering. It was a hot day with heavy fog.




The image below was taken with 70-300 IS of the wild flowers growing freely beside my doorway. I like the afternoon sunshine on those flowers.




Entertainment of locals...
people enjoying yuju at night. All performance were from fans in local community. Image taken with Sigma 30/1.4




A view from my window, where a new city is booming




Below are two photos taken in a valley near Luoyang. A peaceful place for refreshing on weekends. I have to admit I didn't know about the place until I left Luoyang for many years.






This is an image taken in White Horse Temple, a temple built from A.D 64. A worshipper prays before a thurible. The temple still gathers large number of visitors each day, though many of them come to pray for wealth, offsprings and careers etc, instead of paying respect for their religious belief.
I found the overwhelming number of tourist a bit annoying...




My dinning table...

G10 shots (set 2)