Hey all,
Week 10 of school just went by and that simply means that there are 3 more weeks of school left! Well, classes at least. I'd still have 1 week of study vacation holiday and 2 weeks of final exams after that. Despite having gone by the period of the semester when most assignments are due, I still have 1 more major ECMT group assessment due between now and the last day of class. So: I'm not exactly free of schoolwork just yet.
Work has been tedious for the past couple of weeks. It's getting less and less busy, and with nothing to do, time passes incredibly slow. My bosses have also been rather hard to talk to lately, perhaps because I told them that I am going back home before Christmas -- the busiest time of the year when they need more staff to be available. They told me that it was bad timing. Well, I can't help it, because home is home and that's as important as it gets for me. If they do decide to set me off next year when I come back, I probably wouldn't be too opposed to the idea as working while studying has definitely been a setback to my university life.
Outside of school and work, I have been working out of course. This week has been rather productive as I went to Wentworth park twice to make use of the recreational facilities there. Some quiet time by myself while working out during the golden hour felt refreshing. The body has also been quite honest lately and I feel stronger than ever. Last Thursday, I also went to the Magical Music of Disney concert performed by the Sydney Youth Orchestra. I got the ticket a couple of months ago and almost completely forgot about it. The concert turned out to be fantastic as it brought back old memories of childhood. Listening to the wonderful music and remembering the plots of these Disney classics (ie Tarzan, Aladdin, Hercules, Mulan, Lion King, Beauty and the Beast etc.) now made me realise how meaningful and deep these Disney films are. Despite the fact that almost every protagonist fulfills his/her goals, make optimistic friends in the process, and gets their romantic interests in the end, the storylines are full of cultural symbolism that teach kids a lot about the world.
Photography-wise, I got a second-hand Fujifilm X100 as an experimental camera recently. Have been wanting to get this beautiful retro-styled camera a couple of months ago but prices then were too high. Now, with the recent release of quite a number of cameras, the X100 has dropped in price and I managed to get a relatively new second-hand one with a lens hood set for less than $700. There have been plenty of mixed reviews regarding the camera, with a majority of people absolutely adoring it and a minority of people despising it. With the camera in my hands now, I think I am part of the majority. The camera, so light and quiet compared to my D7000, is beautifully crafted and thought-out. It resembles an old film rangefinder with its shooting design: with aperture control on the lens and shutter control on the shutter dial. Performance-wise, it surpasses my expectations, with ISO up to 3200 usable and almost noise-free! The white-balance is also unbeatable, producing beautiful tones in colour and B&W. However, perhaps the thing that makes this camera so unique is its interchangeable hybrid optical and electronic viewfinder. I have never owned a camera that uses either, and so far it has been a great joy to use. Totally unexpectedly awesome camera. With a quiet shutter, I have been using it to take street photos, and below are a couple that I managed to snap just yesterday.
Week 10 of school just went by and that simply means that there are 3 more weeks of school left! Well, classes at least. I'd still have 1 week of study vacation holiday and 2 weeks of final exams after that. Despite having gone by the period of the semester when most assignments are due, I still have 1 more major ECMT group assessment due between now and the last day of class. So: I'm not exactly free of schoolwork just yet.
Work has been tedious for the past couple of weeks. It's getting less and less busy, and with nothing to do, time passes incredibly slow. My bosses have also been rather hard to talk to lately, perhaps because I told them that I am going back home before Christmas -- the busiest time of the year when they need more staff to be available. They told me that it was bad timing. Well, I can't help it, because home is home and that's as important as it gets for me. If they do decide to set me off next year when I come back, I probably wouldn't be too opposed to the idea as working while studying has definitely been a setback to my university life.
Outside of school and work, I have been working out of course. This week has been rather productive as I went to Wentworth park twice to make use of the recreational facilities there. Some quiet time by myself while working out during the golden hour felt refreshing. The body has also been quite honest lately and I feel stronger than ever. Last Thursday, I also went to the Magical Music of Disney concert performed by the Sydney Youth Orchestra. I got the ticket a couple of months ago and almost completely forgot about it. The concert turned out to be fantastic as it brought back old memories of childhood. Listening to the wonderful music and remembering the plots of these Disney classics (ie Tarzan, Aladdin, Hercules, Mulan, Lion King, Beauty and the Beast etc.) now made me realise how meaningful and deep these Disney films are. Despite the fact that almost every protagonist fulfills his/her goals, make optimistic friends in the process, and gets their romantic interests in the end, the storylines are full of cultural symbolism that teach kids a lot about the world.
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| Magical Music of Disney Concert |
Photography-wise, I got a second-hand Fujifilm X100 as an experimental camera recently. Have been wanting to get this beautiful retro-styled camera a couple of months ago but prices then were too high. Now, with the recent release of quite a number of cameras, the X100 has dropped in price and I managed to get a relatively new second-hand one with a lens hood set for less than $700. There have been plenty of mixed reviews regarding the camera, with a majority of people absolutely adoring it and a minority of people despising it. With the camera in my hands now, I think I am part of the majority. The camera, so light and quiet compared to my D7000, is beautifully crafted and thought-out. It resembles an old film rangefinder with its shooting design: with aperture control on the lens and shutter control on the shutter dial. Performance-wise, it surpasses my expectations, with ISO up to 3200 usable and almost noise-free! The white-balance is also unbeatable, producing beautiful tones in colour and B&W. However, perhaps the thing that makes this camera so unique is its interchangeable hybrid optical and electronic viewfinder. I have never owned a camera that uses either, and so far it has been a great joy to use. Totally unexpectedly awesome camera. With a quiet shutter, I have been using it to take street photos, and below are a couple that I managed to snap just yesterday.
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| The X100... (Taken with D7000, processed with Silver Efex Pro) |
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| Students studying for an exam on a Friday evening |
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| Walking towards the exam hall... |
