Light it up!

Lately, I've been fixated on learning everything I can about lighting and how it affects the camera. There is so much you can do with available light that it's so confusing. This isn't an easy task because no one around me is able to teach me any of this. Everything that I have learned is from what I have read off the internet. I look at people's photos and try and dissect them and figure out how they created their images. I imagine myself in their shoes and pretend that it's me taking the picture. What settings would I use? Where should the light be reflected and how much of it should I use? Too much light will cause blown highlights. Too little will cause the photo to blur and look overly dark.

Anyways, here is my first basic attempt at available light. It's not that interesting, but gave me something to do on a quiet night in Tohoku.

Osaka Aquarium

"I found it! Here you go. You should be set with this," said Maureen.

I reached out my hand and accepted the brochure from Ken's mother like a field trip kid, "This is perfect! I think this is all I need, thanks."
The brochure was colorful and full of exciting images that were naturally many shades of blue. I thought about it for a minute and wondered when the last time I was at an aquarium. I recall that I once visited an aquarium in the 4th grade for a school field trip. Today, after almost 20 years, I was about to have my 2nd experience at the 2nd largest aquarium in Japan. It had been so long that the images in the brochure made no connection with my existing memories. I quickly folded the brochure in half, creased it and tucked it away in my back left pocket and followed Maureen outside.
I opened the door to Maureen's miniature green automobile and slid myself in. Bang! I shut the door and made the buckle go 'click' for safety.

As I was starring out the window looking at houses, I hear Maureen's voice asking me, "Are you sure you don't want me to go with you?"
I replied with, "It's okay, you don't have to go. I think I can find it by myself. Besides, if I get lost I will just ask someone."
Honestly, I just didn't want to trouble her. She told me earlier that she's been there a few times before showing relatives around so I just figured she really wouldn't be interested in going. Also, Maureen is such a nice woman she would never say no. I didn't want to put her in that position to have to feel like she had to say yes.
"Okay, if you say so. Have fun!"
I waved goodbye as she was driving off in the distance. Ironically the smaller her car got, the more I started to worry about getting lost. Japan's railway is nothing short of stunning and sometimes in all that 'stunningness', you get your ass be-humbled. In the back of my mind I was hoping this wouldn't be one of those, "Damn, where I am?" excursions.

Finally, as I ascended the stairway to the station my final mental flag was raised. I paused for just a moment and thought about what I was about to do. Was I really going to do this? Was I really about to spend the day at an aquarium in a city with a metropolitan population of nearly 20 million......alone..with just my camera? I quickly reached back and took the brochure out of my pocket and unfolded it searching for any kind of reassurance. By this time the paper was softer to the finger tips but that really wasn't going to cut it. Then I tried to read a few lines but for some reason the words felt like they were all just scrambled together. I wasn't reading well. I turned the brochure onto it's backside. Surprisingly, the images felt warm and fun. They had a certain appeal of enjoyment mixed with learning that was pulling at my interest. Upon climbing the last stair, my indecisiveness retreated and with the next step I was bound for an entirely new unforgettable experience.

I sat on the train daydreaming about what a wonderful chance this would be to test out my new lens. Suddenly, a foreign object was shoved against my side as a lady wiggled her way to comfort with her purse. My spell was broken and I sat there in amazement over the fact that I was getting all 'dorked' out about using my new lens. What was I becoming?

The aquarium was a refreshing experience that I haven't had in a long time. It's not often you get to see 'Creatures of the Deep' from inches away....well, unless you're an aquarium season pass holder, but c'mon... really. There were many tanks all strategically placed so the customers can have a pleasurable visual experience, but in its confined structural state, I felt like I was in a maze. Dark halls, blue rooms, strange people, all eluded to the feelings of being disoriented and out of place. It was like another world. I took out my trusty camera and I swore I heard whispers of envy, but maybe I really didn't. I took a few shots, but not really getting anything I was satisfied about. I just felt like something was missing. I took shots of fish, alligators, penguins, and even pictures of other people. I even took pictures of people taking pictures of other people. Still, there was something not right. After a while, it finally hit me. Like a shovel to a face, I realized that I was the only one there alone. I looked to my left and watched a family sharing 'ooooohs and aaaaahs'. In front of me was a slick man wearing flip-flops and a popped collar polo shirt holding the hand of a beautiful, soft skinned beauty queen. She posed as he took her picture next to the whale shark with his cellphone, "Kaa-chii". Loneliness surrounded me like a pack of wolves around evening's prey. I felt trapped and wanted to leave.

Soon, the onslaught of loneliness was hard to bare. I searched for somewhere to sit and when I sat down it was the loneliest I've ever felt in my entire life. Everything that surrounded me made me feel empty inside. I was without friends or family. I thought if I had suddenly disappeared, not a soul here would notice. No one knew anything about me let alone my name. And when the day would come to and end, not a soul would have known I was there.

I didn't know what to do so I sat there for what seemed like just 5 minutes. When I looked at the time it had already been 40 minutes past. I felt somber, but relaxed only daydreaming about what it would be like to be at the aquarium with friends. The laughter, the smiles, the small talk you just naturally do amongst your friends ... ironically became my kryptonite. Slowly, this deserted feeling started killing my motivation to take pictures and if I wasn't there to take pictures and have a good time, why be here any longer. I made the decision to leave. I stood up and walked towards the exit and I felt a rush of joy knowing I was going to leave this solitary aquarium behind.

I put my hand on the exit door. The cold steel felt like ice to my fingertips and then from a short distance I heard the words, "Excuse me." I pulled my hand off the door and turned around to look at what had addressed me. A middle aged man was walking towards me holding out his hand. In his hand was a silver boxed camera.
"Would you please take a picture for me?"
I didn't hesitate, "Sure, no problem."
I composed the image against a bright blue wall of water with small swimming fishes in the background, "One, two...three" and snapped the shot.
"Thank you very much," bowing as he as he received his camera.
After this short encounter, I stayed for the rest of the day.

I often wonder about fate and destiny.....is it real? Is it something that we can change or do we create our own destiny with the choices we make? Before the day started, I already made the decision to go to the aquarium. Also, I chose to go home and abandon everything and then something simple like a man asking me to take him and his wife's picture changed my entire day. What is that? Fate? Coincidence? Luck? It boggles me that something so simple meant so much. It affirmed that even though I was feeling extremely lonely, I was there creating something that could potentially last a lifetime. The picture I took for the couple is now a memory they will share forever. Every time they look at that picture, it may bring them fond memories of a good time they once had. However, that was just ONE picture. The man reminded me that I wasn't just taking pictures for other people, but taking pictures for myself. After I realized this, I didn't want to give in. Photography was testing me and I was on the brink of failure. I had always just imagined that photography was so simple. All you have to do is just point the camera at something interesting and click the button. However, the more I learn about this art, the more I feel like I'm starting to challenging myself. There are trials within photography that I am still learning to overcome, but because I chose to stay at the aquarium I became stronger. I guess this is another reason why I like photography so much.

shopping: best friend's advice

When people go on vacation, they tend to do usually 1 of 2 things.... get lost or spend a lot of money. Sometimes, when you're luck pisses on you, you do both. Since this wasn't my first time around Nara/Osaka, I didn't get pissed on, but had troubles spending an insane amount of money on something that I really didn't need. I'm not sure what it is, but when you're on vacation you justify every purchase with, "Well, how often am I on vacation?" or "Can't go on vacation and come home empty handed, right?" Be warned, these are dangerous words to live by because this philosophy can empty every last yen in your pocket!

The only question left to be answered is naturally, what was it that I purchased? To answer this questions, let me do so by asking a question so you can get an idea of how ridiculous even I thought this was. So, when was the last time you spent $1,000.00 USD on a camera? For the majority, a $300.00 dollar 'point & shoot' will do the trick and perform superbly. Now, forget about the camera all together and allow me to rephrase my question. When was the last time you spent $1,000.00 USD on just a camera lens?!?!

Ken knew that I was into photography, but up until this point he's never seen any of my photos. He has no idea what kind of pictures I took or what kind of camera I used. I remember when we were about to leave the house and check out scenic Nara, I grabbed my camera and the moment the strap touched my shoulder, simultaneously I heard the words, "What are you a journalist?" I looked at Ken with a smirk and smiling eyes. Deep down I knew this was coming. "Hahaha, I know... I take my camera everywhere," I said in defense. Casey didn't hesitate, "Yo, this isn't Afghanistan." We all laughed and yes I felt a bit embarrassed. This was the first time for them to see me with a camera and they savored the moment. After that, every time I touched my camera I would hear the words, "reporter dong" or "Afghan."

The next day we went shopping in Nara and this wasn't your typical shopping trip.
"So this store has a lot of used lenses?" I asked Ken.
"Yah, this is the biggest camera store in Nara," he replied. "Maybe it has what you're looking for."
I told him the price of the lens I was hoping to find and surprisingly, 10万円 (approx. $950 USD) for a lens carried no shock value. I thought he would think I was crazy for spending $1k on a camera lens but it was the exact opposite. He was actually somewhat supportive.
The camera store was quite busy, which allowed us to browse without being pestered. Quickly spotting the "中古" or "used" section, I set my coordinates and made my dash.
"Damn, they don't have it," I said with slight disappointment.
"What about new?" Ken suggested.
After having one final look-over, I sighed and casually made my way over to the new lens section while quietly pouting. Being in a camera store for me is much like taking a kid to the toy store. Eyes light up and you can hear the excitement in their voice and once they are there, they never want to leave. My eyes carefully inspected the glass shelves for the one lens I was hoping to find. Suddenly, I connected with a black, sleek, cylindrical shaped object that was unexpectedly identifiable from the other lenses behind the glass. I wasn't sure if it was my eyes that were playing tricks on me, but in an instant the lighting around this one lens changed and became more softly focused. It was like God was showing me the holy grail. I was in heaven. I swear it even had a halo around it but in red. My eyes grew bigger and I reached out with my pointer finger and exhaled these words while wrestling to maintain my coolness, "Yep, they got it."Ken had not more than a peep and said, "This?"
"This?" "This" echoed in my head as I was about to lose it. How could he just say, "This?" as if it were just a mere tool for mortal beings. I coerced myself into paying no attention to Ken because his innocent soul was still green to the camera world. I could only muster out a "Yah......" for a reply.

I normally don't carry $1k on me where ever I go, so we had to leave the store and hit up an ATM. This gave me a chance to talk to Ken and see what he had to say. As you can see, I was already 'dorked out' for the lens, but I was interested in hearing a different perspective from someone who didn't have much attachment to cameras and photography. Somehow, what Ken said made perfect sense to me. In this very moment, he showed me what our friendship has accumulated into with just a few words.

"Well, you know it's up to you, but I know you and I know you want this so you might as well get it."
I replied with, "Might as well get it? What do you mean?"
"You always want the best stuff, that's how you are dong."
"You think so?"
"Yah, look at snowboarding or anything else you're really into. You always do a lot of research and end up getting the best stuff."
A bit confused I uttered, "So is that bad?"
"No, you should get what makes you happy. Why spend life doing things that don't make you happy? This is your hobby right? You sound really into it and I just know you will be happy getting this."
It was like Ken stepped up to the plate and hit a home run and I was that wild fan that runs out on the field cheering his heart out only to get tackled by security. Deep down, it was exactly what I was wanting to hear but just afraid to hear it. He was right. Why go through life not being happy? If it's your passion, why not be passionate about it? Through his words I found encouragement and support. In Ken's own way, he was telling that there is nothing wrong with being passionate about photography. I don't mean to imply that money buys passion or money buys photography skills, but because he knows my character so well, he understands that if i commit in making this purchase, then I will devote myself in being the best photographer I can be. If I make it anywhere in the world of photography, it will be because of my friends, but also mainly because of Ken. His words on that day are words I will from now on carry with me. To me they translate into....be you.....be happy...believe in yourself.

With my newly found inspiration, we headed back to the camera store where the next task was to negotiate price. Since the lens was already on sale, 2万円 down from original price ($180), the salesman had the upper hand. After 20 minutes of battling, I saved 千円 ($9.00) and got a free UV protector. I grabbed the bag, bowed, and walked out the door.


The lens: My impressions

Anyways, let me introduce my new toy, which I must note, almost all the images on my blog are/will be taken with the new lens I purchased in Nara at Kitamura Camera, the legendary Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM. I apologize for the super "dorky" intro, but honestly I'm really excited about this lens. Canon 'L' series lenses are considered the best in the business and the professional standard. Not to take any credit away from Nikon or any other glass maker's pro series lenses as I'm sure they are great too. This was my first 'L' lens and maybe my last lens purchase for a while since I already had the Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM. This means I have lens coverage from 24mm to 300mm (in 1.6 crop factor 38-480mm!!).

My first impressions of the 24-105mm lens was the size and weight when I attached it to my camera, Canon Rebel XT/350D. The lens looked huge! It was massively round and seriously looked bigger than the camera body. Not only did it look awkward but it weighed more than the camera body! 485g vs 670g!! In terms of handling performance, I would imagine it feels much like a Chevy Corvair: dangerous at any speeds. The camera was extremely unbalanced because of the infamous tiny grip. My grip even started making creaking noises every time I tilted the camera. I would go as far as saying that this setup is the Antichrist of the Rebel XT and the 50mm 1.8 II, which felt harmonious in every way, size, build, weight, and IQ. Within a few seconds, I stopped caring about how it looked and felt. I flipped the on switch with my thumb and I pointed the camera and shot.

Beauty is only skin deep. The biggest cliche of cliches, but this is how I feel about this setup. Function over form, never judge a book by it's cover, yada yada yada, I could go on but I think you get my drift. It may look awkward, handle funky, but the picture quality is amazing. Whether or not spending $1k on 1 lens is justifiable, it really is up to the individual. If I find myself shooting more and enjoying photography more, then this will be the best $1,000 I will ever spend because photography is something I will enjoy for the rest of my life.