If you ever visit this place ...
Avenue of the Stars, Hong Kong, F3.0, 1/8s, ISO100.
... and you don't have much time for gear shopping, then you must visit this place ...
Sim City, Hong Kong, F3.2, 1/30s, ISO125
... it's called Sim City and it has one of the densest camera shop concentration in Hong Kong. Located within short walking distance from MongKok MTR (you should be looking for Sai Yeung Choi Street South), Tin Cheung, Wing Shing, DC Fever and many other shops are all here.
Shop in peace as these shops are not likely to rip you off compared to those on Nathan Road. Because of the financial crisis a few years back, the shopping experience is extremely pleasant with very friendly sales personnel throughout. Although the shops are a bit small compared to elsewhere, but that's to be expected in a place where land is scarce and population density is extremely high. Nonetheless, they are extremely well stocked, and do remember to ask if there is a discount.
I went there to get a light travel tripod, and had wanted to buy a Triopo MT-128C. I emailed Grace from Triopo, and the reply came back quick with a contact to the distributor in Hong Kong. I called and asked for availability and pricing, also where to buy them, and they refered me to DC Power in Sim City. I called up DC Power in Sim City to confirm availability and pricing, but when I reached there, the tripod I wanted was nowhere to be found. They had 1 or 2 other Triopo models which is neither light nor fit for travel. Obviously, they had distribution problems and I ended up with a SLIK, which I'm termendously happy with. More about that later.
Hello Tom,
ReplyDeleteI suppose you took the above pictures with your Lumix FZ28? Can you tell me what settings you used? I'm about to photograph a nigtscenery with skyline and highway. What setting do you suggest?
Greetings from Groningen, Holland
Ronald Schipper
Hey Ronald,
ReplyDeleteYes, it's the FZ28 as I haven't even applied for an SLR purchase license from the Mrs yet. As you know, I'm an amateur and I'm still learning, and I took many shots of the scenery at HK, most of which turned out blurred, except for the above. Initially it wasn't as good, but after Picasa it looks better (I'll have a new post about that).
Here's what I recommend:
a) You'll need time to get good shots. Don't be in a hurry.
b) For all shots, use a tripod but do not press the shutter directly. Use the timer, either 2 seconds or 10 seconds. When you press the timer, the camera shakes, and the pix will be blurred, but after the timer, camera stables down and they'll be sharp.
c) Use either Program Mode or Shutter Priority mode and max at ISO400. IF you use auto ISO, the camera will always go to ISO400. Try ISO100 and if it's too dark for your taste, either increase the shutter time or increase the ISO. Remember lower ISO means less noise.
d) If you intend to photograph people with the scenery, open up the flash and make sure your camera is not too far from the subject (people). I find that about 10 feet or less works best.
e) Make sure your flash mode is set to red eye and slow sync. Slow sync means that the camera will activate the flash but will also open up the shutter longer to absorb the night light.
f) Always use the timer with people and make sure you ask your subject (people) to stay still for a second or two after the camera flashes, as the camera still has it's shutter open during that time.
Perhaps a new post is in order....thanks for visiting and commenting Ronald.