Day 116

I bought myself a new toy. It arrived on Saturday, and I delightedly opened it and attached it to my camera only to discover that it didn't work. WHAT? I didn't get too upset though, figuring that I was probably doing something wrong. I had the whole of Sunday to work it out, however, and still didn't manage to find a solution. In a bit of a panic, I posted onto some photography websites asking for some advice and was told that there was nothing wrong. I didn't believe them! I had seen what this toy could do! I did receive one piece of advice that I took to heart however. "Get closer," someone said. It turns out that this person was exactly right. As soon as I got close, everything came into focus, and I am pleased to say that I have finally figured my toy out. So today's picture was taken with my new set of extension tubes!! JOY!! You may notice that there is no aperture. That is because the camera could not communicate electronically with the lens and could not detect the aperture. It didn't stop me from taking this pic, however!

Shutter speed: 1/50
Aperture: f/00
ISO: 2500
Lens: Canon EF 50mm 1.8 II

Day 115

Yesterday ended in a bit of a lame shot once again, this time of the cutesy mousepad that I bought from Artbox awhile ago. I must say, I do love Artbox and the cutesy things that they have! If I had unlimited funds, I am sure that I would be their best customer. I intend to make another purchase there tomorrow in fact, of a travelling bag this time for my trip next week! More about that later though :)

Shutter speed: 1/50
Aperture: f/1.8
ISO: 100
Lens: Canon EF 50mm 1.8 II

Day 113

On Saturday I attended my first ballet performed by the Korea National Ballet. It was a rendition of the Christmas favourite - The Nutcracker, and it was wonderful! I didn't quite know what to expect from it, and for a 30,000 won seat, I wasn't expecting to see much, but I ended up being in a perfect position, and I thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing. Though cameras were technically not allowed, I did snap a few shots at the end of the applauding, and thought that I would share one of those. I don't quite know how I feel about the photo that I have chosen. It has been edited, adding rather a lot of shadow, and I like how that enhances the backlighting, though I don't like how it cuts some things off. In any case, here is the cast of The Nutcracker.

Shutter speed: 1/50
Aperture: f/3.5
ISO: 125
Lens: Canon EF 50mm 1.8 II

Day 114

Sunday was another quiz night, and tonight's photo is of my fellow Saffa, Mr. Roger Murray. He was on my team for quiz, and though we lost (and he is most certainly going to blame the other members of his team), the night wasn't a complete loss as I did manage to take some photos. I don't know what it is that draws me to this one. It isn't technically the best that was taken, but I love it in any case. Thanks for obliging, Roger :)

Shutter Speed: 1/10
Aperture: f/1,8
ISO: 1250
Lens: Canon EF 50mm 1.8 II

Day 112

I decided that today's photo had to be of the snow. I could have put one up of the snow falling that was taken from my school, but instead I decided to put up this one of the little snow covered zen garden and bonzai tree up the road. There is reason for the high ISO - it is called silliness. I raised the Aperture to cut off some of the overly bright sunlight that was coming in, but forgot to change the Shutter speed and ISO. Thankfully, I think it still turned out okay.

Shutter speed: 1/100
Aperture: 9.0
ISO: 3200
Lens: Canon EF 50mm 1.8 II

Day 111

After my shoot of the fan on Wednesday, I decided to do something similar on Thursday, but with the fan that I was given way back in July. The symbols are Chinese and the message on the fan reads something like 'All the world is an ocean" or something. *Shrug*

Shutter speed: 1/25
Aperture: f/1.8
ISO: 100
Lens: Canon EF 50mm 1.8 II

Day 110

When looking around my room on Wednesday for something to photograph, I remembered the fan that I bought in the summer and decided that would make a great subject. So here is the fan that I haven't had to use in months.

Shutter speed: 1/25
Aperture: f/1.8
ISO: 100
Lens: Canon EF 50mm 1.8 II

Day 109

I went to the Indian restaurant for dinner on Tuesday night. I love taking pictures here because everything is just so colourful! Anyway, today's photo is really simple, but I absolutely love it!

Shutter speed: 1/25
Aperture: 1.8
ISO: 1000
Lens: Canon EF 50mm 1.8 II

Day 108

Walking home from school on Monday it was so cold that when it finally came time for me to go to dinner, I made a decision. I knew that this time would come eventually, but I was dreading it. Yes, that's right. I have finally resorted to taking out the outer-coat of my jacket and am now walking around looking rather alot like an eskimo. So, today's photo is of the inner and outer, together at last.

Shutter speed: 1/15
Aperture: f/1.8
ISO: 200
Lens: Canon EF 50mm 1.8 II

Day 107

I brought my camera with me to quiz on Sunday as I had yet to take a photo, and towards the end of the night, I took it out to snap a few pics. Angelina was kind enough to provide me with this picture of her (hopefully feigning) annoyance as I snapped a quick pic.

Shutter speed: 1/25

Aperture: f/1.8

ISO: 3200

Day 106

After spending a day skiing on Saturday (I didn't want to risk bringing my camera onto the slopes, though I am sure that some amazing pictures would have been taken) Amy and I headed out on Saturday night to celebrate Geri and Maria and their aging processes! Any celebration of aging generally involves at least a little alcohol, and these were the poisons of choice for Amy and I.

Shutter speed: 1/25

Aperture: f/1.8

ISO: 100

Day 105

Today's photo should really really be of the museum that we visited as part of a cultural experience for the Guest English Teachers. And don't get me wrong, I took tons and tons of photos of the museum. But none seemed to compare to this photo that I took of Chanel saluting the American flag at the entrance to the museum. There was a giant G20 summit space surrounded by the flags, and I just loved how this pic turned out. So today's photo is of Chanel. I hope she doesn't mind ;)

Shutter speed: 1/100

Aperture: f/2.5

ISO: 160

Day 103

Wednesday was another day of shopping, and though it started snowing in the middle of our trip and I really wanted to put up a photo of that, this one of Jess ended up being my favourite of the night.

Shutter speed: 1/15
Aperture: f/1.8

ISO: 100

Day 104

Amy, Jess and I ended up going out for sushi on Thursday. It wasn't what I'd had in mind for a winter meal, but it was truly delicious and the chefs were lovely and friendly. I will be going back there very very soon for another meal!

Shutter speed: 1/30

Aperture: f/1.8

ISO: 100

Day 102

Today was another fail for me. I could say that I was sick again, but it would be a lie. What was I doing instead? I am embarassed to admit that I was... playing WoW. Yes. I am a WoW addict, and it has finally come in the way of my photography. So today's pic, instead of being one that I took, is of my character in all of her level 40 glory! I need to get her up, but what with photography, school and my social life, I have been struggling to find the time. Say hello to Keillan!!!

Day 101

Today's is another self-portrait. On Monday night, I went shopping with Amy and she managed to convince me that what I need in my life is a hoodie. Not just any hoodie either. I need a hoodie with ears. And so I bought this wonderful kitty-cat hoodie which is super warm and lovely, and today's photo is of me wearing it. Kitty-power FTW!

Shutter Speed: 1/15

Aperture: f/1.8

ISO: 160

Day One Hundred!!!

I finally made it to day 100. Unfortunately, today's photo is not quite as special as the day itself. A couple of months ago I bought myself a book in which I intended to write stories, thoughts, lists and other such things. I totally intended it to be a daily thing, but it has fallen by the wayside a little. But, to renew it just a tad, I took a photo of the book and my writings. That is today's photo.

Shutter speed: 1/15

Aperture: f/1.8
ISO: 100

Day Ninety-Nine

Saturday, I was still sick as a dog. Not wanting to do too much, Amy and I had planned a day of watching 90's movies with friends, and we did just that, indulging in classics like The Adams Family Values, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and Clueless. After watching a couple of movies, a game of cards ensued, and though I didn't participate in the playing, I was there clicking away with my camera, taking in all of the action. My favourite from the night has got to be this shot of Amy's friend looking all innocent.

Shutter speed: 1/15
Aperture: f/1.8
ISO: 125

Day Ninety-Eight

I returned to work diligently on Friday, and brought my camera with me this time, not wanting to have another photo-less day. Unfortunately, nothing of excitement happened, and today's photo is of the pens at my desk and the focus is on the multicoloured pencil that I bought and love!

Shutter speed: 1/15
Aperture: f/1.8
ISO: 100

Day Ninety-Seven

Thursday came to find me diseased once more, and unfortunately this was the one day that I couldn't bring myself to leave my apartment or even take a photo inside it. After taking the pills that I got from the doctor, I was passed out by 9pm, and there was to be no waking me. Not until around 2am anyway, when I woke myself and spent the rest of the night rolling around in feverish agony. Fun times!

Day Ninety-Six

On Wednesday, Amy, Jess and I trundled ourselves off to Chungdae for some Chinese. When I say Chinese, it is not the typically greasy Chinese that you would get back home. It is still a little greasy, but we had lamb kebabs, vegetables and some potatoes that were all lovely and spicy and divine. At the end of the night, this photo was taken of Amy setting things alight from the leftover coals. Who knew that she would be such a firestarter?

Shutter speed: 1/15
Aperture: f/1.8
ISO: 250

Day Ninety-Five

Tuesday night saw me going to Hungry Eyes for dinner. One of the things that I love about the restaurant is the decor. There isn't much to it - just a couple of lanterns, some colourful tableclothes and some art across the walls, but it is enough to make me smile everytime I go there (as if their curries weren't reason enough.)

Shutter speed: 1/25
Aperture: f/1.8
ISO: 250

Day Ninety-Four

I woke up on Monday morning feeling like death, but not enough so to justify skipping school. Instead, I rolled myself out of bed and prepared for a long day. As I shuffled out of my apartment, something caught my eye, and I ran back into the apartment and returned with camera in hand. Yes. That's right. SNOW!

Shutter speed: 1/100
Aperture: f/6.3
ISO: 250

Day Ninety-Three

Sunday was what my friend Amy refers to as her Australia Day. It was our celebration of the day that Amy was adopted and brought to Australia, and back home she usually celebrates it by going out with her family for Korean food. Since she is in Korea, she decided that a reverse effect would be appropriate, and on Sunday night she invited some of her close friends to share a dinner at Outback Steakhouse. Of course, the dinner had to include wine, and this Australian bottle was the one that ended up being shared by the table.

Shutter speed: 1/30

Aperture: f/1.8
ISO: 1600

Day Ninety-Two

As I said in my previous post, Saturday was spent lens-hunting, and I managed to find one lens for a decent price. So, I ended up adding a Canon 50mm 1.8 II to my lens collection (which now consists of two) and I spent Saturday night playing with my new toy. This is one of the random shots that I absolutely loved, taken of the curtain that separated our table from the next one at the Hof that we ended up drinking at.

Shutter speed: 1/10
Aperture: f/1.8
ISO: 500

Day Ninety-One

So I forgot to take a photo on Friday. I had so much to do (cleaning my room) and it completely slipped my mind. But to make up for it, I spent a large portion of Saturday on a lens hunt. So, I decided that today's photo(s) would be my practice shots comparing three lenses: a wide angle, an 18-55mm and my own 28-80mm.

This was me playing with a wide angle lens. I never got the exact details of it, but it was pretty and I wanted it. Unfortunately, for 690,000 won second hand, there was no way I could afford it. BLEAK!

This second picture is of the second lens that I tried. When Grant and I bought the camera, we decided to get a lens that was slightly better than the kit one, and opted for the 28-80mm rather than the 18-55mm. When I went to the store, the owner tried to convince me that this 18-55mm is one that I need to have. It was very very tempting and he offered me a good price, but I had my mind set, and buying two lenses would definitely have led to some buyers remorse.

This final picture was taken with my own lens. It was a rushed shot, and not the best quality evidently, but I was standing in the same place as I was with the 18mm, so it shows the contrast between the two. I never would have thought that 10mm made such a big difference. I suppose I will probably add a lower zoom to my lens collection soon enough, but the one that I bought will do for now. Check the next post to see what lens I ended up buying and one of the photos that I took with it.

Day Ninety

Thanksgiving! As a South African, I have never celebrated it. But a lot of my friends here are American, and one of them invited me to join in her celebrations. From what I hear, Thanksgiving is supposed to be about family and friends and love and just being thankful for what you have. Even though there was no family to be spoken of, my Thanksgiving day was spent with friends, and we all had a great time. I think that is what really matters after all - being with people who you love and enjoying each other's company. But I could be wrong. Either way, today's picture is of three of my friends having fun and just enjoying being together on the day of giving thanks :)

Shutter speed: 1/20

Aperture: f/3.5

ISO: 800

Day Eighty-Nine

Those of you who knew me back home probably knew of my fondness for jewellery-making. I have a rather large collection of jewellery here, some of which I have crafted myself, some of which I have bought, and I decided that today's photo will be of them. It is not a particularly exciting photo subject, I know, but it was all I could find in my state of sickness and not wanting to leave the house. I apologise profusely.

Shutter speed: 1/10

Aperture: f/5.6

ISO: 800

Day Eighty-Eight

So I am behind on uploading again, but that doesn't mean that I haven't been working hard and taking tons and tons of pictures. Unfortanately, I am running low on subjects once again and have been scouring my room for something to take a photo of. What I decided on for today was the guitar that has been in the corner of my room untouched for months. When I got here, I decided that I needed to do something for me, and decided that something would be learning to play the guitar. Since then, I have taken up a number of other pastimes that are just for me, photography being the main one, and my guitar has been placed on the sidelines. So, today's photo is of my guitar, dust-covered and forlorn.

Shutter speed: 1/10
Aperture: f/5.6
ISO: 3200