I may have gotten the best buy ever with my Nikon D40 (priced at P24,000 when I got them August last year), but of course I knew that investing on a digital SLR also means investing in good lenses and accessories eventually. Level-up. I still consider myself a beginner at these things, and I’m really glad to find websites such as Kenrockwell, which, as you may have noticed, I’ve been generously linking to because I’ve always thought his materials are really helpful. Anyway. Here are my latest Nikon toys. :)

Nikon 55-200mm VR

Last May, I’ve finally got myself that Nikon 55-200mm VR lens I’ve been so wanting to have. I would’ve opted to buy the 18-200mm (who wouldn’t?) but it costs almost as much as my D40, heh, so yeah, the choice was pretty easy for me to make. :P

Two things I love about this lens:

(1) Depth of Field. It allows focus on an object, making everything else blurred (at least the farther from the focal point, the more blurred).

and (2) Being able to take *real* candid moments ala sniper shots, as well as shoot profiles without having to point the camera to people’s faces.

I have a few more test shots here and there. No post-processing done on all photos, I’m sure it will look even lovelier with some adjustments. :)

Right now, it’s my brother who’s having more fun with it than me. I just don’t have time anymore for this. :( Maybe soon, I’ll have time. No wait, I’ll make sure I’ll have time soon. (That’s better.) :)

Thinking of getting yourself a 55-800mm? Steve’s selling his because he just got himself teh 18-200mm. *dies of envy* Go see if it’s still available! Go go go! :)

Nikon SB 600

Also, I got myself this little baby. I was originally planning on getting an SB400, and I really didn’t plan on getting one so soon — especially since I don’t have a need for it at the moment anyway. But Ninong Dave was in Hong Kong recently, and you can really get cheaper gadgets and accessories there if you know where to look. So yep, there goes my gullible self.

I haven’t tested this one out though. (I know right, I’ve had it for about a month already!) I’ll get back here with a post once I’ve trial-tested it. Meanwhile, Kenrockwell also has an in-depth review of the SB600. Go check it awt. :)

Two more items off the list, yay. But I’m broke already, so I’m gona have to ceasefire on my expenses, like now. *dies* :P

Almost exactly a year ago, I was thinking of getting a point and shoot digital camera. But after deciding to get a digital SLR instead, a Nikon D40 to be exact, I didn’t think there’s a need for me to buy another digital cam. At least not soon. Eventually, of course, I realized that carrying around a DSLR on a normal day is not practical, and for someone who loves to stash away memories in her pocket, I needed something small enough to fit my purse.

Hence, when I found an opportunity to get a new Sony Cybershot T70 at Greenhills (the same night I got the Sony Ericcson z610i), I was helpless. I had to bite. And I’m soo glad I did. *swoon*. So far, I’m loving the shots I took, they’re actually pretty good — considering how biased I’ve been about Digital SLRs that I’ve unconsciously underestimated what point-and-shoot cameras are capable of. Boo me.

The best part about this purchase is, I get to carry my T70 around everywhere, unlike my D40 (what with all the lens and flash and accessories I have to carry around with it too.)

So yep, that’s another item off my wishlist. I’m broke, but yay. Who cares. :P

Features/technical specs of the Sony Cybershot T70 after the jump.

Continue reading →

Browsing through SMX Advanced reading materials, searching for anything that’s connected with the “Dewey Update” thingamajig that happened about a month ago, I found this.

Here’s Matt Cutts’ Q&A for you:

Q: On the minus 60 penalty and other ‘minus’ penalties, what’s the deal?

– Matt sidesteps question and says they are not going to go into great detail on penalties but rather that they want to deliver most relevant results. He does say that sometimes people are looking a bit too hard.

Err, that’s it?

I sooo love SEO.

I guess it was fate that brought me to Greenhills last night. After months of looking everywhere for this hot pink Ericsson model — not too mention giving up on the search on and off — I finally found (probably) the only place in Manila that had the last stock of this pink Sony Ericsson z610i. :)

I don’t care about the specs. I’m fully aware that there are gazillions of new (and better) phones in the market right now. More so, I’m aware that there’s an upgrade of this model, the Sony Ericcson z750i which comes in purple and silver. But sorry, no pink (at least none yet), ergo, I settled with the old version.

And I’m lovin’ it! I love that it’s clamshell, and I love that it’s pink. I’m still trying to adjust to the interface and all. I’ve been a Nokia user my entire life, and now, I’m in possession of a Sony Ericsson z610i (for my Globe number), and a Samsung E250 (Sun line).

By the way, it’s not the only item I (impulsively) splurged on that night. But let’s save that one for another post shall we. :)

Just for the record, I’ve accepted defeat last week. I wished Marc good luck in his trip without any form of bitterness, trying my best to not cry over the business-class plane seats that had to be canceled because my visa was not shipped on time. But now that SMX Advanced is just a few hours away, I’m starting to have this uneasy feeling in my stomach again. MY. BAGS. WERE. ALMOST. PACKED. I. WAS. THIS. FREAKIN’. CLOSE. Pffft.

Ahhh. America, dear America. Why don’t you like me? Is it my fault that my fingerprints decided to not cooperate at a time like this? How ancient are your fingerprint validation machines are, anyway? This is like the first time I ever had a problem with my fingerprints. Why now, why now??!

But uhkaaayy *struggling for composure*. No more crying over spilled milk — or, in this case, over missed flights because of unfair US embassy procedures that discriminate special people such as myself with “undetectable” finger prints. The time is not now. But I shall have my day. I shall see all ya SEO rockstars someday.

Besides, there’s still several SMXes happening this year. Maybe I’m not meant for Seattle, but there’s always San Francisco. And New York. And London. (Okay, I’m starting to feel better now.) Or gaah, if not this year, let’s all wish I’m still alive next year. :P

So hey, you missed SMX Advanced too? There are more SMX Events this 2008. :)

Meanwhile, I shall watch out for everyone’s coverage. I’m sure it will ALMOST feel like I’m there. (That’s me, trying to be a good sport on this whole thing.) :P