Bought New Lenses

Ok...I think went a little nuts this morning (I believe it's because of an accumulating stress from work). I decided to buy two lenses that went on sale. Not one of those great lenses though since I thought I'm still an amateur anyways. Why would I need those L-slash-super-expensive lenses if I can't use them properly anyways?

So, here's what I bought:

Canon EF 28-90mm F/4-5.6 III

(Original price = $190. I bought it for $49.95. Not bad right? And according to the review, this lens is not so bad for its price. It might not be a great professional lens, but I believe it'll be enough for me. But I guess I won't really know until I get my hands on it, will I?)

Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG Macro Telephoto Zoom Lens

(Original price = $149. I bought it for $132. Well, there's not much difference in the price, but the lens can still be considered cheap. So far my experience using Sigma lenses has been pretty good. So, I have no problem in using another sigma lenses. Again, the price pretty much says it all. It's not one of those great lenses but might still be a good lens. According to the review that I read, it's a not-so-bad lens for amateur photographer such as myself.)

So, we'll see how these two lenses work in a few days. So happy to have new lenses. Not that I really need it that much, but I have always been an impulse buyer, which is obviously not a good thing when I have such an expensive hobby.

Well, that's all the update I have for now. I have a set of photos of my friend that I need to edit/play with. But probably it won't be ready for a while with all the work I have in my hands right now. It's kinda hard being a photographer on the side when you have such a demanding job as an engineer.

Plan for This Weekend and Upcoming Weekends...

Tomorrow is finally Friday. Yeay!! After a week not taking any photographs, I'm not sure if I'm gonna be able to take good pictures for the graduation ceremony this Saturday. Well, crossing my finger here. Let's just hope everything will turn out well. I'm going to practice again tomorrow anyways.

So, the plan for this weekend...

1. Irish Heritage Celebration in Fitchburg, WI tomorrow. Going there with Elka right after work. There are going to be carnivals and fireworks. So excited!

2. On Saturday, the graduation ceremony and banquet would probably occupy me for the whole day. So, no other plan other than taking pictures at the commencement and banquet.

3. Sunday...Unfortunately, I'm dedicating this day for my spring cleaning. My apartment seriously needs a really good tidying up. Probably gonna spend the rest of the day studying photoshop.

Upcoming events I'll be attending in the near future...

1. Brat Fest next weekend.

2. Terrace Fest on May 31st, 2008.

3. Wisconsin Chinese Culture Day on May 31st, 2008.

4. Italian Fest in Fitchburg, WI on May 30th - June 1st.

Well, check back here tomorrow. Pictures of the Irish Heritage celebration will be posted here tomorrow.

Unwanted and Trapped Behind the Bars...

The beautiful dogs of DCHS. Please adopt when possible.

Improved Little by Little...

Went to a lot of places today to practice taking pictures. I think I'm starting to improve little by little. Although I would definitely still call myself as an amateur (just because that's the fact), I'm quite happy with the small improvement I had today. Here are some of the pictures that I took today. None of the pictures are edited. Enjoy!

This picture is taken at the Rotunda Theatre at the Overture Center during the Kids in the Rotunda.

I saw this kid posing for his father at the antique car exhibition at the State St. Isn't he just the cutest thing?

One of the most antique car at the antique car exhibition.

The cutest dog who just likes to bark and pose. It's just so cute that he travels in the basket with his owner.

One of my friends who I always ask to model (or more like to become my photography victim) for me during my practice. Haha.

Just one of those great candid moments.

My other friend who has becomes my photography victim. Haha.

Well, that's all for now. I think I need to set up a flickr account or something like that to post the other pictures up. I guess I'll do that when I have the time. A little exhausted right now.

More Experimental Pictures...

Went to Lake Mendota to practice taking some pictures yesterday, the first two pictures posted below are two of the many bad results I got...hahahahaha...This proves that I still need a LOT of practice...

This one is for Elka...hahahaha...

This is something I tried out today. I miss Christmas. *Sigh*

My First Experimental Photo...

Of course, it's not perfect (It's actually a little out of focus) since I took this pictures just like that without reading through the manuals first. Haha. I guess I was way too excited. Gonna start studying tomorrow (A little too exhausted right now) and hopefully, I will get a hang of the camera by this weekend. I wonder if I would be able to get some sleep tonight. Haha.

Everything is Postponed to Next Week...

Yes...Unfortunately, my camera didn't come yesterday. It was shipped yesterday though. So, I will be expecting it to come on Monday. The one thing that I regret the most is that I just lost one weekend of practice, which leaves me with only one weekend to practice before the graduation. *Sigh* This just doesn't lead to a good ending. *Sigh*...

Well, since I can't practice this weekend, all plans have been changed to next weekend. So, here is a new list of the places or events that I want to visit next week.

1. Circus Day at the Chazen Museum on Saturday. It's a free family event.

2. The Ivory Room Piano Bar on Saturday. Just in case we don't have a chance to go tonight.

3. Kids in the Rotunda at the Overture Center on Saturday since I won't be going to this week's performance. The theme is supposed to be 40's and 50's blues music.

4. Farmers Market at the Capitol Square on Saturday.

5. Northside Farmers Market on Sunday just in case I can't go to the one on Saturday or could also be an additional practice.

Some upcoming events that I might be interested in...

1. Brat Fest. May 23rd - 26th. Well, this is not exactly for photography related purposes. It's simply a tradition.

2. Wisconsin Chinese Culture Day on May 31st. Don't even know what this is, but might be worth checking out.

3. Isthmus Jazz Festival on the Terrace. June 5th - 8th.

4. Madison Feis on June 7th.

5. Mounds Dog Fest on June 8th. This is a MUST!!!

6. Rhythm and Booms at Warner Park on June 28th.

7. Dane County Fair on July 16th - 20th.

8. Maxwell Street Days on July 18t - 20th. Again not for photography related purposes but to satisfy my appetite as a Shopaholic.

9. Opera in the Park on July 26th.

Well, that's all for now. I'm sure there will so many other events that I can attend in the future. For now, I will only look forward to the events for next weekend, which I don't think I can attend all on the same weekend. *Sigh*.

Friday Please Come Soon...

It turned out what I feared the most came true. Adorama sent me an e-mail this morning telling me that my order was backordered. *sigh* But not to worry, it turned out US1Photo still had stocks of the Canon Rebel XSi. So, I immediately made the purchase and picked the 2 day shipping so that it would be here by Friday. I simply couldn't stop being restless until I get my hands on the camera. So, I'm crossing my finger now hoping that nothing goes wrong with the order.

So, assuming that the camera is really going to arrive this Friday, here's what I'm planning to attend this weekend:

1. If the plan to try out the new Brazillian restaurant, Samba, is a go, I can practice taking pictures of my friends there.

2. The Ivory Room Piano Bar if I can find someone to go with me though. Don't think it would be fun to be all alone in a piano bar. Can practice taking pictures while enjoying live music entertainment (Ka, ayo yuk!!! Hari Sabtu ada live entertainment.)

3. The Overture Center featuring Kids in the Rotunda on Saturday. A free performance at the Overture Center by kids. I believe they're performing "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe."

4. Farmer's Market on Saturday. Maybe before going to Overture since it's pretty closeby.

Hmmm...it looks like almost all of the events fall on Saturday. I guess Saturday is going to be a pretty productive day then. Teeheee!!! So excited!!!

Another Step Closer...

Spent hours at Borders yesterday looking through hundreds of photography related books. Ended up buying two of them. Starting to understand how to take good photographs bit by bit. Unfortunately, I can't really practice what I learned until I get my camera. I can't wait 'til my camera finally comes so that I can finally experiment with it.

Hopefully, nothing goes wrong with my order. I'm so worried that I'll be getting e-mail from Adorama one of these days that my order has to be delayed due to availability issue. I seriously can't stop feeling anxious at least until I finally see the shipping confirmation code.

I guess I just have to keep on waiting. *sigh*...

One Step Closer to Being a Photographer...

Finally purchased my first SLR Cameras...Yeay!!! I actually ALMOST didn't get it since it's out of stock like EVERYWHERE!!! Thank you to Adorama, I can finally get my hands on my XSi in a few days. Can't wait!!!

So, I guess my next post here would be my first picture taken using my new camera. Yeay!!!! For now, I guess really need to finalize this blog design. Maybe I'll do it this weekend (most likely on Sunday since I'm going to be out of town this Saturday).

Hmmm...I wonder where I should go to take my first few pictures. I'm thinking of maybe going to Milwaukee Art Museum on Friday after work. The museum is pretty close by from my work place. I think I might be able to take a lot of good pictures there (of course assuming if I could actually operate the camera...hahaha...). Never mind...I just found out that the Museum is closed at 5 PM. Hiks...Gotta find another place to go...

So, check back here again maybe sometime next week. You might see some pictures!!!

A New Blog for My Photography...

This blog is not finalized yet I'm afraid. I can only spend a few minutes every day to make all the changes needed. And for today, this is all I could do. Well, I guess I'm not in much of a hurry to finalize this blog anyways since my camera is not going to reach my hands until early next month. So...I guess that's all for tonight. Check back here again for more updates and changes. NiteZ.