root@geeklanka$_

400mm at f6.3 (click and view original size):

400mm at f9 (click and view original size):

Note: both images have been saved as jpeg, so there is some quality loss.
Summary
When used correctly, the Canon EF 2x II  Extender / tele-converter with the 70-200 f2.8l, yields extraordinary results - however this requires a good tripod [...]

Visited metropolitan recently, they have a new lens (15-85 usm)
have you heard of that lens before?
me either!
anyway, it looks like a good consumer lens - apparently it was released with the 7D
some quick thoughts:
Performance:
no major complaint - lens was sharp, worked as it should have.
pros
good build quality, solid, IS, USM for focus (FTM I think)
15mm [...]

I’m trying out a new Canon point and shoot (a480)
Here are two sample photos:
http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/5337/img5481jm.jpg
http://img513.imageshack.us/img513/605/img5480b.jpg
I’m definitely impressed by this camera. I will write a detailed review soon

Purchased a camera from Metropolitan, the local agent. The camera developed a manufacturer flaw within about 2 months. Sent to metropolitan who forwarded it to canon singapore
canon singapore have fixed the camera, but metropolitan can’t seem to get it to me (it’s weeks since they fixed it, nearly 2 months since it was given).
I miss [...]

Really good news for dialog TV users - UTV world movies is available as an additional channel, for just $1 + tax! previously, you had to upgrade your whole package (which would cost about quite a bit more depending on what package you were subscribed to.)
So, go ahead, call dialog and request this channel be [...]

At f2.8, dof becomes paper thin. This means that when you focus on something or someone, everything else melts, in a sea of soft color.

Don’t feed the trolls.
When you stop the feeding, the trolling will stop.
It’s really that simple.

These kitteh’s are looking for a new home. They’d like to be moved as a pair, if anyone is willing to adopt them. They love to play with each other..

They have a temp home and they are OK but if anyone out there wants to adopt them both, please post a comment here.

There’s a bird hidden in this photo. See if you can find it (click to view full size)

Speaking of birds, here are two more photos:

Thanks to Preveen of Autolanka who identified the bird as a Koha

Sample photo taken with the 50mm 1.8 - at f4 I think..
The 50mm 1.8 is an excellent lens. Its small, light, and quite sharp. At around $80 (10k here via agent) it’s also quite a bargain.

For:

Sharp,accurate color, focuses OK in low light (at least compared to the 18-55 IS)
Comparatively cheap - this may be the [...]

Disclaimer. I’m not a photographer. If you want real advice, drop a note to Dominic Sansoni or Sebastian Posingis. I did, and both of them replied with a list of useful suggestions. So thanks guys!

Anyway, this article should summarize most of what I’ve gathered over the past year. Prices are approximate.

Background
Some time last year, I [...]

Dropped by the autolanka G2G at marine drive, managed to test drive the 18-55IS lens. Here are some photos

3 interesting links you may have missed:
The evil behind the smiles: An insightful and disturbing article by NYT Op-Ed columnist Nicholas Kristof - read complete article here. Also see: girls for sale. More excellent content from Kristof here
How Porsche hacked the financial system and made a killing
On a lighter note, entirely unrelated to the topics [...]

I took some photos with my Canon 90-300 zoom lens today. This photo is a good example of what this lens can do. Sharpness is set at zero, aperture f9, ISO unknown probably 200. Click to view original size. As you can see, at 100% it’s pretty decent!
Resized to 50% and the photo is even [...]

Well, its not like me to write late night rants, with 4chan inspired titles, but hey, it’s always good to try something new once in a while.
So I crashed my car today. Well, technically a bunch of people in an Aban’s truck decided to soojoch me. Now my already bumped up car looks even more [...]

Smart people collect sensible prime lenses. The not so brainy collect telephoto prime lenses. Crazy people go for super-zoom’s
The budget super zoom is the worst of all. Cheaply constructed, with poor optics, it tries to be many different things, and fails usually.
Of all the budget superzooms, the worst is reputedly the Canon 75-300 zoom.
So, naturally, [...]

55mm, F5.6 (est) - sadly my current kit lens maxes out at 5.6 - so bokeh requires getting real close. Hopefully I’ll be able to get a 50mm 1.8 soon (its currently out of stock at Canon/Metropolitan)

AJ wants to know why I’m photographing the marmalade jar, she says there’s no way I can make it beautiful. Actually, its chilli paste.. also I think the bokeh makes it look quaint.
Huh, here’s an odd thing. Seem’s like the local shops have run out of Canon lenses. Either that or they don’t like me [...]

Well, I’m back. Whatever that means. Right now, all I want to do is get a decent camera. That’s easier said than done, but I’m optimistic as always.
So what’s new in my life?

Kittens
I’m now 100% linux. Yay!!!
I’m searching for a camera I like (might take a while)
Usual continual quest to stay alive, I guess.

So, there [...]

If you are a dreamhost customer you might want to check your credit card/bank statement. A glitch in billing means dreamhost customers were charged various amounts from $200 - up to $4000 for their accounts..
Dreamhost is working to fix the problem and refund victims, if you are a customer I suggest you check your credit [...]

Summary: ‘resetting’ the XP swap file causes a dramatic increase in performance.
Notes

This hack seems so stupid, and implausible that I don’t blame you for being sceptical. I suggest you TRY it OUT, and see the results for yourself. Believe me, it works, and the results are quite amazing, especially on low ram PC’s
This hack works [...]

Sometimes… Linux confuses me
Some time yesterday night, I found out that my monkey wasn’t running. Apparently, diggers found this amusing, so my site was featured, for a fourth time this week, on the front page of digg, bringing this weeks unique visitor count to something over 250,000 (excluding the large number of people who [...]

So a server glitch (file permissions) meant that 99% of the traffic coming to this site over the past 48 hours was unable to get through. For the moment things are stable, though I’m still getting a lot of traffic.
Anyway… I really should get back to IT. My latest experiment is setting up a classic [...]

As of today evening I’m somewhat unable to log into skype. Are any of the local ISP’s blocking it? or are Skype experiencing any problems?
Anyone have any ideas?
Update: It appears Skype is down

This site experienced a surge of traffic (more than 50,000 unique visitors) over the past 48 hours, as well as some downtime (especially yesterday), thankfully now things are returning to normal.
To all of you visiting the site, welcome, hope you enjoy the site, do take a moment to browse some of the content!

I can’t remember school being this much fun for me…

(Click for zoom)
(Photo from Webpark.ru)

Credit: Photo is by Chris Danals, National Science Foundation
About the photo (text from the Wikipedia link)
A full moon and 25 second exposure allowed sufficient light into this photo taken at Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station during the long Antarctic night. The new station can be seen at far left, power plant in the center and the [...]

Coming soon, my article on how to turn a 200MHz PC into an encrypted fileserver. Or a really decorative wastepaper basket. Whichever comes first.
In the mean time, here’s an amusing advert I ‘borrowed’ from some Swiss bike maker:

Advertising Agency: McCann Erickson Geneva, Switzerland

Unknown pic, via the Internet - Any idea who made this?

Here are the latest prices for AMD CPU’s and motherboards from Digital House (AMD Agent). To purchase, please contact Mr. Fahim, using the contact info below.
Looking at the pricing, I would suggest the following:
Budget PC - Sempron 3000 AM2 (should be OK for light stuff like email, web, DVD’s etc..
Bit more performance (any of the [...]