Question of What and How

(Camera: Ricoh GX200 with DW-6)

Last week the author spoke with a local graphic designer who is famous in Hong Kong and China. Actually, he is a recognised master and sought-after speaker in the industry. Another lesser known talent he has is drawing cartoon characters.

So the brief conversation also touched on creativity. Some parents, admirably in his eye, gave the freedom for their children to draw on one theme for years. We agreed that such a single-focus approach is a fruitful way to train up one's ability to see things in multiple perspectives. The gist of creativity lies exactly in that ability, said he.

The same can be said of photography. To excel in photography, the aspirant photographers may try to work on various subject matters. Fact is, it pays to nail down to just one or two themes. Instead of devoting a good deal of time to setting different themes now and again, the photographer should focus on what to express on a particular theme and how. Then keep working on it. Over time the person will be adept at and bolder in trying novel attempts in the forms and styles of expressions.

If you come across a scene fit for a photographic theme on a daily basis, why not start with it to sharpen your creativity? As for the author, the working persons in the street make a handy constant theme to work on.

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New Low Prices

The window shopping some hours ago has almost provoked my AgIDS illness. Just in case you’re in Hong Kong or are coming here, and have the money to burn (All in HK$/ body only): GX200 = $3,280 GRD2 = $3,380 LX3 = $3,180 G10 = $3,280 Prices are available form a gear shop on the 1st floor of the Mongkok Computer Centre. Besides these new low prices, I found that Wing Shing Photo (55-57Sai Yeung Choi St., MK Tel: 2396 6886/ 91-95 Fa Yuen St., MK Tel: 2396 6885) is offering a Sony A700 + Carl Zeiss Lens package for HK$9,980 (hopefully, a bargain will make it some hundreds cheaper).

Final Verdicts: GF2 in Action

(The rest of the GF2 review posts can be found here ) It is widely believed that the GF2 is a paradoxical downward-upgrade version of the GF1. So, after all the discussions of its bells and whistles, how does it perform in reality? First things first. Which or what kind of cameras should we measure the GF2 against for that matter? We believe that potential buyers of the GF2, maybe except for serial fad chasers and the diehard loyalists, are attracted by its smallness in size with a larger sensor to achieve better image quality, especially at ISO 800 or above. However, given the less satisfactory handling with for example just one dial, the GF2 cannot assume the place of a primary camera. Put together, these assumptions suggest that the GF2 is more suited to be used as a backup camera for social and street shots. Let's grill the GF2 on this basis. In the Hand An obvious merit of the GF2 is size. It feels much less bulky in the hand than the GF1 or the NX100, and just lik...

Dressing Up

(Camera: Ricoh GX200) On the street, a group of Chinese tourists are waiting for probably pick-up. With oblivion to the surrounding, this man changes his vest for an unknown reason to the author taking the opportunity to do a snap shot of the scene of an indecent taste. The increasingly common sights, or eyesores considered by some, of people squatting in front of shops or in the thoroughfares, together with more billboards written in simplified Chinese, seem to push this international city towards the Chinese characteristics of the Mainland cities. The other day when the author visited the the aquarium and panda's home in the Ocean Park, there were, among the swamps of tourists, conspicuous signs saying, "Keep Quiet" and "Don't Use Flash". The management of the Park has obviously deployed a much bigger troop of attendants to carry the signs around. On one occasion, one of those attendants was so annoyed that she went up to a tourist and made a big long...

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