New Gears in the House XXVIII

I dropped my camera in New Zealand back in July. It was disastrous as my initial planning was to stay there until mid-Oct. A dropped camera means a broken lens & lens filter. I had no choice to repurchase another lens in New Zealand. It is actually cheaper to buy camera equipments in Malaysia.

I ordered the same Tokina 11-16mm lens the next day and it only took them another day to ship it to me. I received the lens on the third day. Awesome service and speed.

I decided not to buy a lens filter in New Zealand as it is too expensive. I only repurchased it after I've reached Malaysia (from Yannick, my trusted camera gear supplier). Plus, I've bought another remote cable from Shashinki.com to replace the damaged one. It took RM 362 to repair the damaged report port on my camera as well.

Price: NZD$ 838 (RM 2,134.39) + RM 250.00 + RM 26.00 + RM 362.00
Discount: -
Net: RM 2,410.39

Total spending to date: RM 21,485.42

New Gears in the House XXVII

I am so sorry that I've gone missing for a year! My life changed quite a lot in the past 1 year. But, I'm back!

This time, I am adding an additional lens to my collection. The Tokina AT-X 116 PRO DX. This is an ultra-wide angle lens with fix f/2.8 large aperture. After joining several astrophotography trips previously, I've found that my Sigma 8-16mm falls short on the widest aperture (and I'm struggling to capture a nice pic of the Milky Way) and I need one large aperture lens for my astrophotography needs. I am considering letting go my Sigma 8-16mm. Nevertheless, 8-16mm is a perfectly fine lens for landscape and I really loved it.

Price: RM 1950.00 + RM 250.00
Discount: RM50
Net: RM 2150.00

Total spending to date: RM 18,713.03

New Gears in the House XXVI

Sometimes I really like to buy from Shashinki.com. Its fast and convenient.

Back to the topic, my 1st tripod was severely damaged in my Sabah trip, hence I have to find a replacement unit.

I bought this tripod while I'm in Kundasang, Sabah, using my friend's iPhone 4. And when I reach home, the tripod was delivered to my door step next day.

(The tripod at its highest)

(At its lowest)

(Closer look at the Jusino AX-254C)


(One of the leg can be removed and used as a monopod)


(Carbon Fibre!!)


(The tripod legs can be reversed for easy storage)

Although this is not a popular brand like Manfrotto, but it is a Carbon Fibre tripod, which is what I dream for. Its light and yet durable.

I have not really try it out yet, but certainly it is better than my old tripod. I can now shoot low angle pictures!

Price: RM 728.00
Discount: -
Net: RM 728.00

Total spending to date: RM 16,563.03

New Gears in the House XXV

My rechargeable batteries finally failed me. The batteries was fully charged but it can't be used when I inserted it into my flashgun.

I will never trust Uniross anymore.

Anyway, It happened than Sanyo launched a new range of its famous Eneloop batteries last year, called Eneloop XX. With higher capacity (2500mAh vs 2000 mAh) compared to the old one, however, the rechargeable cycles has reduced to 500 times only (1500 times for the older ones).

However, if you calculate it, it dosen't bother me at all. Lets say you recharge your batteries once every week, 500 cycles can lasts you about 9.6 years. For the money I pay (RM65), it is worthwhile.




I bought the Sanyo Eneloop Quick Charger as well (NC-MQR03R) - RM95 and few accessories like lens rear cap.



Price: RM 175.00
Discount: -
Net: RM 175.00

Total spending to date: RM 15,835.03

New Gears in the House XXIV

1st post in 2010! And I had 0 post counts in Jan & Feb! Reason? Was too busy with my work and dosen't feel like going out on the weekends.

Finally I can take a break. I'm going to Bali this Friday ^^

And thus, a new memory card is needed.





It is only SanDisk Ultra as I am on a tight budget, guess I'm using this card for storage rather than utilizing it for speed-shooting or Full HD Video recording.


Price: RM 210.00
Discount: -
Net: RM 210.00

Total spending to date: RM 15,660.03

New Gears in the House XXIII

My 1st Sigma Lens!

(Spherical front element and built in hood, make it unable to use filters)

Built quality is superb, feels very solid. I love the crinkle finishing on the lens body but I heard it will peel off/fade over time.

(The effect is exaggerating at 8mm as it will distort anything near to the lens and anything at the edge of the lens as well)

The only con I found in this lens is not being able to use any filter. But I have yet to try to hand-held a piece of square filter in front of it. It might just work.

Price: RM 2,200.00
Discount: -
Net: RM 2,200.00

Total spending to date: RM 15,450.03

Canon EOS 1000D + 18-55mm Sold

Finally, I sold my first ever DSLR that I owned in my life. It was a decent camera but the performance could not cope with my requirements anymore. So, time to let go.


Price: RM 1,100
Discount: -
Net: RM 1,100

Total spending to date: RM 14,350.03 - RM1,100
..........................= RM 13,250.03

New Gears in the House XXII

After a week of so of waiting, I finally got the colour that I wanted. Alpine Green + Black! Remember when I bought the Lowepro Bottle Bag and B+W filter from yannick? I was planned to purchase a Lowepro Flipside 400 AW that time, but too bad he only has Black at that moment.

IMO, I feel my Green+Black looks nicer than my friend's pure Black Flipside 400.

(with tripod attached)

(Tripod holder is concealed under a zipper)

(The tripod holder)

(The outer compartment)

(SD/CF Compartments)

(Lowepro's patented All-Weather Cover)

(I love the amount of padding on the waist strap)

(Inside the Lowepro Flipside 400 AW)

Price: RM 450.00
Discount: -
Net: RM 450.00

Total spending to date: RM 14,350.03

Lowepro Flipside 300 Sold

Sold my Lowepro Flipside 300 today to a nice gentleman from PhotoMalaysia. Reason is because my gears has outgrown the capacity of the bag. I am planning to purchase a Lowepro Flipside 400 AW though for my future short trip. My Lowepro Vertex 200 AW will be used for long trips instead.


Price: RM 350
Discount: RM50
Net: RM 300

Total spending to date: RM 14,200.03 - RM300
..........................= RM 13,900.03

New Gears in the House XXI

2 items from yannick this time.

1) Lowepro Bottle Bag
2) B+W 67mm UV Filter

(The SlipLock system)

(It can hold a 1600ml bottle)

(The coating appears to be green)

Price: RM 30 + RM160
Discount: not sure, but price above is discounted
Net: RM 190

Total spending to date: RM 14,200.03

Edit: After a test of this UV filter in my Kuantan Trip, I found this filter is currently the best filter I had. I experienced very minimum CA and slight vignetting only (well, both the CA & vignetting could be caused by my lens). The best part is, any water droplets on the glass can be blown away using a rocket blower and does not leave any stain like cheap filters. Highly recommended.

New Gears in the House XX

I still can't live without a remote shutter. It is quite inconvenient for me to use the 2 second timer and most importantly, I can't do bulb exposure!

I bough a Phottix Cleon II 2-in-1 Wired/Wireless Remote Control from Shashinki.com and received it today. As usual, their service is fast and efficient. This gadget can be used either wired or wireless. In wired mode, everything will be same as the conventional wired remote shutter, single shoot, half-press focus & bulb mode and no battery is required.

In wireless mode, a transmitter is needed. The unique part of this Phottix Cleon II is, I can even trigger bulb mode in wireless mode! It also enables me to switch to 2 second delay from single shot using just my transmitter and I do not need to change the setting on my camera. Furthermore, I can even trigger few cameras of different brand at the same time using a single transmitter. Off course, I will need additional receivers.



For anyone who is in need a wireless trigger with bulb mode, I highly recommend Phottix Cleon II. I also bought 2 battery cases for 4AA batteries.

(holds firmly 4 AA batteries)

(even for AAA batteries, the case will hold the batteries nicely in place and it will not move)

Price: RM 115.00 + RM8.00
Discount: RM2.52
Net: RM 120.48

Total spending to date: RM 14,010.03

Phottix Battery Grip BP450 & Phottix Wired Remote Control C6 Sold

.
Since I updated to 7D, these items has been sleeping in my Dry Box. I finally found a new owner for them.



Price: RM 200 + RM25
Discount: -
Net: RM 225

Total spending to date: RM 14,114 .55 - RM225
..........................= RM 13,889.55

New Gears in the House XIX

I have been using my 1000D since 532 days ago. I have gained a lot of knowledge through that camera, and it is time for me to move on.

I finally decided to purchase my EOS 7D today after much considerations of my current shooting style and needs. Another option was EOS 5D Mark II. However, due to several reasons, I picked EOS 7D instead.






The body costs me RM5,150 and the 8GB SanDisk Extreme CF Card costs me RM200. I wanted to buy the Phottix Cable Shutter Release but it was out of stock.

Price: RM 5,150.00 + RM200.00
Discount: -
Net: RM 5,350.00

Total spending to date: RM 14,114 .55

For my own record:
Last shutter count as at 17/07/10 = 14,972
Days of using 1000D: 532 days

New Gears in the House XVIII

This EF-S 18-135mm lens is for my upcoming body - Canon EOS 7D

I am planning to sell my 1000D and the 18-55mm kit lens, together with all the related accessories (battery grip, cable shutter release...etc)

I bought this 1 month old lens from someone at Photomalaysia Forums.






Price: RM 1,100.00
Discount: RM 200.00
Net: RM 900.00

Total spending to date: RM 8,794 .55

New Gears in the House XVII

Although this is not 100% a camera gear, but I only use this solely for Photography purpose (backup & storage), so it should be counted as a part of my photography spending.

The capacity of this 3.5" external HDD is 1TB. This capacity is still quite a bit of "dream" and difficult to obtained by home users few years back when we are all still using HDDs lesser than 100GB. This shows that the advancement of technology.

(Internet Image)

In my opinion, RM308 isn't expensive for this capacity and it comes with 3 years warranty. Sweet.

Price: RM 308.00
Discount: -
Net: RM 308.00

Total spending to date: RM 7,894 .55

New Gears in the House XVI

DCIM 2010 was a big disappointment. Last year's is better if you asked me. The booths are not interesting & the stage is too small.

Anyway, I went DCIM 2010 is to buy a tripod for my friend. I'm helping my friend's girlfriend to choose a decent tripod as his early birthday present.

On the midst of looking around the booths, I spotted this "might-be-neoprene-material" camera strap, MIC off course and it costs only RM15. So I will give it a try since it is not too expensive and I am looking for a more comfortable strap. I just hate the original Canon strap where it causes neck pain after long hour of using.





Test Result (27/05/10): Not really good if compared to straps like Op/Tech USA, the strap is slightly narrow. A wider one will feel better.

Price: RM 15.00
Discount: -
Net: RM 15.00

Total spending to date: RM 7,586 .55

New Gears in the House XV

I am so excited because I finally got my dream bag - Lowepro Vertex 200 AW! Although it cause a big hole on my wallet, but I feel it is worthy.

The bag was purchased from yannick - a trust worthy merchant of camera accessories & bags, well known for his good service (and price off course) & genuine goods.

(I only found of recently that the buckle has a built in whistle for emergency purpose. Nice one)

The bag is only available in this colour. The water resistant YKK zippers is my favourite part of the bag. It has a laptop compartment that can fit most 15.4" screen laptop. I have just tested the bag by filling up my full gears + tripod + 15.4" laptop, it weighs an astonishing 10kg (22lbs). This is certainly beyond most of the airline carry-on weight limit. However, I should feel quite comfortable walking around with 10kgs load with me due to the superb harness design (I have yet to prove this).

Nevertheless, this bag looks quite promising. This is the reason why I love Lowepro bags.

PS: I'm well prepared for my upcoming Pulau Langkawi, Sungai Lembing & Terengganu Trips!

Pros:
- Very large compartments for camera, lenses & accessories
- Superb built quality, topnotch material used.
- Extraordinary adjustable harness. Very well disigned.
- Excellent weight distribution, compared to my Lowepro Flipside 300.

Cons:
- Relatively heavy (3.32kg)
- Bad design on internal accessories pouch (translucent pockets). They are too small. Should be combined together and form a bigger compartment.
- No water bottle pocket
- Only one colour available (though not a problem for me)
- Expensive

In conclusion, this bag is a beauty, I'll rate:

9.8/10 for the Craftsmanship (material used)
9.0/10 for the Outlook (the design)
8.5/10 for the Performance (the capacity etc)
7.5/10 for the Value for money
Overall: 8.7/10

Price: RM 950.00
Discount: RM 200.00
Net: RM 750.00

Total spending to date: RM 7,571 .55