Cordillera del Paine with Fujifilm X-E3 and XC 50–230mm
I'm selling a bunch of gear, so I'll be posting some of my fav images shot with that equipment, sort of as a farewell or a homage. This one is shot using the budget XC 50-230mm lens. It is a very underrated lens, doubly so because it suffers the ignominity of being the mk I ...
A Portrait Does Not a Soul Capture
I love portraiture. It’s the kind of photography that I keep going back to, again and again because people are endlessly fascinating. The flicker of emotion. The in-between moments. The quiet tension. The laughter right before it spills. But let’s get one thing straight: A portrait cannot capture someone’s soul. I know that’s the cliché. ...
Squid Game and the Freelance Photographer: A Survival Story
Let’s be real: if you’ve ever tried to earn a living as a photographer, you’ve basically signed up for your own version of Squid Game. You may not be wearing a green tracksuit (although, hey, comfy), and there may not be a giant robot doll shouting “Red Light, Green Light!” but emotionally? It’s basically the ...
The Fuji X-E3 is not a cat
OK, let's try pets analogy... Cameras are like pets. Some are Labradors: loyal, helpful, but absolutely everywhere. Others are like cats: high-maintenance, and kinda judgy. But the Fujifilm X-E3? It’s like a Schnoodle: small but sturdy, clever, quick and also very good looking. This little thing might just be my (second) favorite pet ever. I’ve ...
Using GF50mm for Portraiture
Portrait of Mr. Phua: Making Space Where There Is None — with the GF 50mm Some portraits stay with you long after the shutter clicks. This one of SK Phua, the master craftsman carpenter in his impossibly packed workshop. is one of them. The space was tight. Every inch of wall, floor, and bench was ...
Why GF 50mm is the Perfect GFX Lens
When people think of medium format photography, they usually imagine something big, heavy, and slow. A tripod kind of camera. A “set it up and wait” kind of experience. And sure , medium format can be all those things. (I have a Contax 645 that I love) But what if I told you there’s a ...
Pentax 645 – The Quiet Romantic
Ode to the Pentax 645: The Quiet Romantic of Medium Format In the world of medium format photography, some names shout. Hasselblad shouts pretentiousness, I mean, status. Mamiya is more like a dependable workhorse, all business. But then there’s Pentax. Humble, earnest, quietly brilliant. And among its creations, the Pentax 645 stands as something truly ...
The Disappearing X-Pro 1
X-Pro 1, still number 1 Of all the cameras I've sold over the years, my biggest regret was selling the Fujifilm X-Pro1. It does not have the most megapixels or high-speed tracking, but it was a special camera. It was the perfect balance between digital and mechanical. It was like a digital version of the Leica ...
Falling in Love Again
How the Fujifilm X-Pro1 Rekindled My Love for Photography There was a time when I stopped taking pictures altogether. It wasn’t that I fell out of love with photography , I fell out of love with cameras. As the industry marched forward, chasing specs, screens, and speed, something was lost. The once intimate connection between ...
An Ode to the Contax 645
Why I Still Shoot with the Contax 645 And Why You Should Too In a world dominated by the latest mirrorless marvels and AI-powered phone camera apps, my go-to camera is a relic from a bygone era , the Contax 645. Yes, that Contax 645: heavy, film-hungry, temperamental at times, and entirely devoid of megapixels. ...