Put a little motion in your photos – prefocus and slow speed.

Slow shutter speed guarantees visible motion in street photos.

In the digital age, it’s much easier to experiment and develop your own style.  You take the shot and then you instantly review the results.  Nothing could be easier than that, right?  With super accurate autofocus and precise metering DSLRs, one is in a position to take that perfect shot.  And stopping motion.  Try your hand at something just a bit different.  Try taking a shot where motion is an element of the picture.  In other words, you want to see motion.  It seems unnatural in some ways but you may find yourself taking flawed but still interesting photographs.  And motion-oriented photos do convey a feeling.

These photos were taken a couple of months ago with a Leica M8 and Carl Zeiss Biogon 21mm f/2.8 lens.  I prefocused the camera and set the aperture speed at 1/45 and 1/60 sec.  I shot from the hip, through the viewfinder and then over head.  I can’t guarantee your results but you may find yourself taking photos that will be out of the ordinary.

The "hand-twirled" ice cream maker in motion.

Camera high overhead and prefocused.

Food on face.

Old school look.

Ta Prohm Temple, the “jungle temple”, near Angkor Wat

Ta Prohm was built sometime in the late 12th or early 13th century.  It is also known as the “jungle temple” because it has been allowed to maintained its original “discovered” state from the early 20th century.  Although the undergrowth has been cleared from the temple, the large trees with their roots have been allowed to remain in place.  This has led to the temple and accompanying trees to have an eerie almost supernatural feel.

It’s a good bet for a decent photograph or two.  Between light and shadow and the vegetation, there is plenty of opportunities to be pleased with your results.    More so than at other locations that are predominately rock with very little contrast and flat lighting.

Some of the scenes in the Angelina Jolie movie “Tomb Raider” were filmed at this temple.

It is located in the central Angkor area and is easy to access.  There can be crowds there.  I recommend that you visit Ta Prohm either early in the morning or before closing at 6:00pm.

Photos taken with a Leica M8 and Summicron 35mm f/2 or Carl Zeiss Biogon 21mm f/2.8 lens.

Dining at the Ambassador Hotel, Tokyo Disneyland

I’ve stayed at several of the Tokyo Disneyland/DisneySea hotels, including the Ambassador, the MiraCosta and the Hilton.  Of the three, I prefer the Ambassador.  Although it’s the oldest, you never get the impression that its anything but top drawer.  The public areas, including the restaurants and the lobby, and the rooms are first-rate.  I have no complaints at all.

Although the MiraCosta is impressive with its faux-Italian decor and its direct private access to DisneySea, the Ambassador has a more impressive array of eating establishments.  Not only are there several on-premises restaurants, you’re just a 5 minute walk away from the Ikspiari Complex, what with its numerous restaurants including a fast food court.  Oh yeah, there’s also a supermarket.

From the MiraCosta and the Hilton, the Ikspiari is a train ride away.  Not all that inconvenient but nevertheless slightly more work.

FYI, you can also make your reservation at the Disneyland Resort Hotels online.

Photos taken with a Leica M8 and Carl Zeiss Biogon 21mm f/2.8 lens.

Sunrise at Fisherman’s Wharf and Pier 39

On a recent trip to San Francisco, I woke up early every morning to catch the sunrise over the Oakland Hills.  The sun rising high enough to illuminate the tops of the buildings.   And as I was in the Fisherman’s Wharf area, I walked towards Pier 39 and then back to the hotel.  Other than the typical jogger, there were very few people in the vicinity.  This makes for a very peaceful and introspective walk.  Nothing to distract you except for the beauty of the bay.  Lost in thought about composition, lighting and camera settings. And hot dogs.

Photos taken with a Leica M8 and Carl Zeiss Biogon 21mm f/2.8 lens and Summilux 75mm f/1.4 lenses.

Tokyo Disneyland walkabout

Tokyo Disneyland, with its parklike setting and large “public” areas, makes a visit very leisurely and relaxed.  Compared to some amusement parks that cram attractions in every square inch of land with the predictable congestion and confusion, Tokyo Disneyland is wide open, resulting in an quick and efficient transition from one theme to another.    You can orient yourself to the castle and always shortcut across the park to another area.  Although sometimes it can be congested, the spacious central “mall” area gives one the impression of more space than there really is.

Photos taken with a Leica M8 and Carl Zeiss Biogon 21mm f/2.8 lens.

A day in Boston last month

We spent several days in Boston a few weeks ago and found it to be one of the most picturesque cities I’ve visited.  Although it doesn’t have the New York skyline or San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge,  the beauty of its downtown area  from the harbor to the Boston Commons and beyond is without peer.  I only wish the weather was better when we were there.  Although it was early April, winter weather hadn’t broken yet.  A bit on the chilly side.

It was the first day of the baseball season but due to the rainy weather, the opening game between the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay was cancelled.  Bad luck for me.

Photos taken with Leica M8 and Summilux 75mm f/1.4 or Voightlander Ulton 28mm f/2 or Carl Zeiss Biogon 21mm f/2.8 lens.

Flowers and landscaping at Tokyo Disneyland with Leica M8

Tokyo Disneyland is a “theme park” known for its wide array of attractions.  The park is divided into seven themes (and areas) with rides and activities designed for each theme.  An important but sometimes overlooked feature of Disneyland is its floral and landscaping design.  Although the landscaping is traditional in its appearrance, the design integrates well with the overall traditional feel of the park.  Visitors tend to focus on the physical structures and not notice the landscaping.  I believe the “flow” of the design transitions visitors from theme to theme, making the park more intimate although it is a huge park.

Photos were taken with a Leica M8.  The first and the last with the Carl Zeiss Biogon 21mm f/2.8 lens, the rest with the Summicron 35mm f/2 lens.

Glimpse of resolution – Leica M8 and Carl Zeiss 21mm f/2.8 lens

There’s always so much chatter about sensor size with everything between the standard point & shoot cameras to state of the art DSLR advertising sensors ranging from 12+megapixels to 24.4 megapixels.  And of course there are sensors of all sizes that differentiates the p&s’s from the DSLRs.  And more megapixels, as least in theory, make for higher resolution.

Well, the Leica M8 uses a 10.3 megapixel sensor and on paper you make think that its been left behind by the DSLRs.  In some ways, its has, from it’s lackluster performance at high ISO to its spotty firmware.  But is it still capable of great images and when paired with a well-performing lens,  can hold its own against the state of the art DSLR’s that it competes with in terms of pricing.

I believe that the available lenses play a big part for the M8’s performance.  In this posting, the photos are all taken with a Carl Zeiss Biogon 21mm f/2.8 lens.  This lens sells for 1/4 the price of the Leica Elmarit 21mm f/2.8.  And although it doesn’t bear the Leica brand and isn’t made in Germany, its resolution is exceptional.

For example the above photo is cropped from the photo below. Take a look at the three other photos and their cropped versions.  Not bad huh?  Take a look at the entire photo and see if you can find the cropped example.

All photos taken handheld with Leica M8 and a Carl Zeiss 21mm f/2.8 lens.  Photos as downloaded from the M8.  Minimal  post-processing. Noise reduction turned off, slight sharpening.  No change in saturation, contrast or other variables.

More scenes from the Powell Hyde cable car line in San Francisco

Many  visitors to San Francisco (and Fisherman’s Wharf) place a cable car ride on the  “must-d0″ list.  And of course it’s a lot of fun to catch the Powell – Hyde cable car at the Beach – Hyde turnaround near Fisherman’s Wharf and then cross Russian Hill and Nob Hill to end up at the other turnaround at Powell and Market.

In addition to photos of San Francisco Bay, the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz, one can also focus on glimpses of people as well as the neighborhoods that the cablecar passes through.

Except for the photo above, which was captured at the Beach-Hyde turnaround, the photos were taken while riding a cable car.

Photos taken with a Leica M8 and a Carl Zeiss Biogon 21mm f/2.8 lens.

San Francisco’s Aquarium Of The Bay

One of the highlights of San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf is a visit to the Aquarium Of The Bay located at Pier 39.  Although its not a large aquarium, visitors do have an opportunity to walk on the sea floor and observe native San Francisco sea life in its natural environment.  There are also a number of other exhibits that make the visit worthwhile.  In particular I was fascinated by the jellyfish tank.   The jellyfish floated in the water, as if in suspended animation, with   their tentacles draped below and moving with the currents in the tank.  The jellyfish had a natural luminescence that gave them an eerie, almost supernatural, appearance.

Photos taken with Leica M8 with Carl Zeiss Biogon 21mm f/2.8 lens.