Expedition Photography

Minolta XD11 with Minolta 35-70mm f3.5 Macro  I have always heard the praise of the Minolta XD11. Many say it was Minolta's finest manual focus camera body because of it's advanced features and being the last of the Minolta camera bodies to be made out of metal. I wasn't particularly looking for an XD11 when I came across this black version, however it is such a pretty camera that it would be hard to walk away from. To think that the store I got it from had a silver XD11 with a Rokkor lens (this camera had a Tokina 28-85mm) that I was going to buy first but the lens had issues, so hence why I got the black XD11. Much to my surprise when I returned and did more research on the XD11 that I found out that the black model is actually rarer and more sought after than it's silver counterpart! Of course deep down in my soul I knew that the beautiful black model that used a coating technique from Leica (the finish is absolutely gorgeous) was more valuable, but I digress...

The Canon EOS 3 has always been my favorite looking automatic film SLR, apart from possibly the Nikon F4, or Minolta Maxxum 9, or maybe th-, well, let me stop there. Truth be told, I don't find many of the automatic film slr's to be that terribly interesting because they essentially look like their digital counterparts. And the EOS 3 looks exactly like a dslr, in every way, minus a LCD screen on the back. But that being so, there is just something about it that draws my attention. The Canon 1n (which was first in line with the EOS 3 marketed right below it) is alright, but it has the ultra curvy Canon slr look which I've never cared for. I say curvy but actually the prism looks like an elephant's head (seriously, do a comparison). The EOS 3 slightly detracts from this look. It's still an elephant, but it's a bull elephant, with big tusks. I like it, a lot. ***By automatic slr I am referring to auto focus and automatic film advancing cameras*** ...

My first camera was a Canon AE-1. Why did I buy an AE-1? Well, mostly because I had no clue about cameras when I bought it and knew that Canon and Nikon were the main camera brands. So I bought a Canon. Well after a brief foray into the digital slr world, I decided I wanted to get back into film cameras, for many reasons which I will talk about in other posts. So, what to buy? I had tried Canon now for two cameras, and I was still wanting for more, so I bought a Nikon of course. A Nikon F2 to be exact, an absolute hulk of a camera. Not hulk, this is the AK-47's of cameras. I really haven't come across something that is as well made as this camera is. I thought I was set for a 35mm SLR. But after I developed my first roll of Tri-X 400, I was slightly disappointed with the 50mm F2 non AI lens, and the 40 year old meter. The search continues.... I had been eyeing this X-700 at the local antique store for some time, but never liked how plastic and shiny it was. Not to mentio...

This has been in the works for some time now. Photography has been a hobby of mine off and on for about 5 years now. Most of that was spent with a Canon AE-1 and a standard 50mm lens. I made some outstanding pictures with that combination, however common it may be. It was a fairly easy camera to operate, but being film and being the first time I had really taken pictures without one of my parent's point and shoot cameras. It was certainly trial and error at first but I eventually had it figured out. After several years of using the 50mm, I decided I needed a telephoto lens. Not knowing that the zoom lenses of yesteryear tended to be much poorer than the prime lenses, I opted for the Canon 70-210mm f4. Despite the claims of poor performance, I got some decent results from it and it was really easy to hand hold. Grabbing the zoom and focus ring was liking grabbing a 16 oz pounder of Miller Lite. I have a wonderful portrait of me holding this lens attached to my AE-1: Isn't...

The last race in Malaysia we saw Sebastian Vettel very angry after the race when he cut in front of Narain Karthikeyen and cut his tire. It was very clear when you watched the replay (and in real time) that Vettel just tried cutting in front of Narain too soon. This brings me to the point that the front runners need to understand that the back markers are also in the race, trying to finish ahead of their own competition. The back markers have to look in front of them also, not just in their mirrors. It is racing after all, you have to pass everyone, even if they are lapped. It obviously is the polite thing to let a faster car past, but when you are being passed by multiple cars, it is not easy to let off the gas and pull off to the side and let everyone past. I don't mind if cars get stuck behind lapped cars, if you cannot get past a car, you cannot expect them to just pull over for you. So all you front runners need to respect the fact that there are slower cars that are still in ...

I think I remember last weekend saying that the next race would end with Fernando Alonso on the top podium spot with Sergio Perez in 2nd. I believe I also predicted Sebastian Vettel and Jensen Button not finishing in the points. Or may be I didn't? Either way the Malaysian Grand Prix was definitely a nail biter to say the least. Where to start? First of all, Alonso's victory is huge and I was surprised to hear him downplay it after the race. That being said winning a race doesn't make the car magically faster, so I see where he was coming from. Fernando was lucky. Sergio Perez was gaining on Alonso almost a second a lap, only his small error that resulted in him running off the track caused him not winning. I would say this race has been Perez's highlight of his F1 career, but I undoubtedly see him on the top spot of the podium in seasons to come. Hamilton finished 3rd once again after starting on pole. The season will go good for him if he can keep getting these podium...

I am afraid I am writing this with my foot in my mouth. Before the season started I predicted Lewis Hamilton's chances of having a successful season seem about as hopeful as Greece going to war against Great Britain. Well, not only did Hamilton absolutely blitz everyone else during qualifying, he also finished on the podium, despite falling back at the start of the race. With that in mind, Jensen Button will appear to be very fast this year. He qualified second Saturday, then dominated the race on Sunday. Personally I am glad that the team that made the best looking car, without that ugly "punched in the nose" front end, appear to have the fastest car. That also being said, the Red Bull RB8 looked pretty good once the race started, so I don't think they will just be nipping on the heels of McLaren all season long. So who will I give the tip of the hat to? Well certainly not Felipe Massa who had a frankly pathetic qualifying session and race. Fernando Alonso on the ot...