A whole new perspective 一个全新的视角 ...

Nikon 10-24mm
First shots ...

Got this on Monday evening ...
(Took a shot of this lens this morning using the Nikon 50mm)

First shots (SOC) using the Nikon wide-angle at 10mm open wide at F3.5

breakfast yesterday morning before my lecture ...

Second shots (SOC) using the wide angle lens in
the class room before the students come in ...

I have been contemplating between the
Tokina 11-16 vs the Nikon 10-24

The Tokina's fix F2.8 aperture vs Nikon's Longer Zoom Range
The Tokina's price 1/3 lower then the Nikon lens
The "more" solid build Tokina according to review
The "compatibility" of non-Nikon lens on Nikon cameras
The Tokina's without built-in motor compared to the Nikon with the motor
You bet I read so many reviews about them ...

After 6 months of all that ...
I hope I have made the right decision ...

The wide angle has and will open a whole new
perspective of looking at composition,

my interest for photographing architecture
when deciding on getting the DSLR 15 months ago
will extend further with this lens and
I am looking forward for architectural
photographing in a whole new different perspective ...

Fruity day of grapes 葡萄乐 ...

Cameron Cactus Valley 

金马仑高原仙人掌山谷

Create a Slide Show in a Blog Post ...

Thanks to a Blogger friend, Erika for sharing something free from the internet 

to create slide shows in your blog ...

http://erikafotoviaggiando.blogspot.com/

It is so user friendly, but being a teacher, I created the presentation
just to give you a feel of how easy is this tool ...

Smoking the Hookah 水烟 ...

You can find the Hookah always every corner in Kuala Lumpur ...
There are even a few cafe's near my house offer this ...

Hookah also called by the name Shisha (the smoking pipe) and
Mu‘assel is a syrupy tobacco mixture (usually honey or molasses)
smoked in a Hookah.

Mu‘assel is typically used in areas of its origin as a herbal medicine
used to soothe pain. Typical flavors of mu‘assel include
apple, grape, watermelon, lemon, chickpea and mint.

St George's Anglican Church 圣乔治教堂 ...

Georgetown, Penang 

乔治敦，槟城

The St George's Anglican Church along Farquhar Street is one of the 

loveliest heritage buildings in George Town, Penang ...

I believe at the time of photographing it, it seems to be fenced up for 

a major restoration work. 

The formation of the St George's Church was credited to Reverend Robert Sparke Hutchings, 

the same person who founded the Penang Free School, which is the oldest English school

 in Southeast Asia, and who gave his name to Hutchings School nearby. 

An Iranian Lunch with my students 与学生品赏伊朗的午餐 ...

Iran cuisine ...

伊朗美食...

Chicken Koobideh (Chelow) Kebab
 is the national dish of Iran ...

Khubz or Hot Bread 

an Arabic word for bread, but usually used by non-Arabic speakers
to refer to a flatbread that forms the staple of the local diet in many countries
in the middle east ...

Hummus
is a Levantine Arab dip or spread made from cooked, mashed chickpeas,
blended with tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and garlic.
It is a popular food throughout the Middle East and elsewhere ...

Saffroned rice 

The meal is simple, consisting of steamed, saffroned basmati or Persian rice ...

A lunch treat by students in my class last week ...
Thanks to Mr. Hussein and Mr. Rao ...

Last week, a series of my lectures for 3 weeks completed 

with a farewell lunch with my students from the middle east 

in an Iranian Restaurant in KL ...

One of the reasons I really enjoy my teaching assignments 

are the students from different parts of the world ...

Sweet and Lovely 甜美可爱 ...

Cactus Valley, Cameron Highlands ...

仙人掌谷，金马仑高原...

Overcast weather 阴雨天气 ...

Lake Garden, Kuala Lumpur
after the afternoon shower ...

I have been weary of carrying my camera anywhere these days as it absolutely 

almost rains everyday. I took my chances after my lectures in the afternoon 

last Friday. And surely the rain came and gone, what remain in the park was 

scattered dry leaves and little bit of remaining lights in the overcast weather

of perhaps more rain later in the evening ...

Overcast weather makes me feel bad, I need the sun to feel better ...

But the weather conditions will not change sooner, and I need 

to find creativity to shoot under these overcast weather conditions ...

SB600 to keep or sell 闪光灯卖还是不卖 ...

D90, ISO 400, 105mm with 1.5 diopter, F7.1,  -1, SB600

D90, ISO400, 85mm, F7.1, -1, SB600

Just before Nikon replaces the SB600 with the SB700 (I think), 

I bought the SB600 (to be honest, I was not sure why) ... 

That was about 6 months ago, but I have since only used it 

once and I felt quite un-comfortable with the extra piece dangling on top

of the camera. There is also the extra efforts needed ...

I have decided to give it a try at home one more time before I sell it off ...

After spending an hour with it yesterday, I have decide to keep it ...

and perhaps put some more effort on the SB600 ...

Guess it's time to hit the books again and internet research on
Flash tutorials ...

Race day 赛日 ...

A little bit of practice before Formula 1 coming to Sepang 

April 08-11 next month ...

Maybe these are not mean machines but the occasion, props and people 

makes it fun for sports event photography practice ...

I was told this is called the "Drag Bike Challenge",
where it seems that 2 bikes will challenge each other in a
straight line duel for speed ...

Turkish Coffee 土耳其咖啡 ...

KL Naab Iran Restaurant
伊朗餐厅

Turkish coffee is an intriguing and special method of making coffee 

that goes back to the 16th century (according to Wikipedia), 

predating almost every other currently-used method of brewing a cup of Java.

It should be sipped slowly and gently, taking care to inhale the

fragrance and the flavor. 

Make sure you don’t drink the grounds at the bottom.

It is one of the strongest coffee I have ever tasted ...

White Balance or Not 白平衡或不 ...

 Lake Garden KL

吉隆坡湖滨公园

F/7 @ 1/80 -1.3 Auto White Balance

F/7 @ 1/80 -1.3 Incandescent White Balance

I see a touch of spring in a tropical setting ..

I thought of doing something different,
switch the White Balance setting of the D90 to Tungsten
to see the color effect ...

Which one do you like ?

Marriage 姻缘 ...

The bonds of matrimony are like any other bonds 

- they mature slowly.

~Peter De Vries