glock19

Peter Luger FTW!

2.8 because aside from landscapes and outings or vacations I shoot indoors a lot (family events, etc) and also like it that I rarely need to use flash. Plus the bokeh is great too. I now have only 2 lenses the 17-55 and 70-200 both 2.8 is usm.

But I agree wholeheartedly that what's important is the Indian and not his arrow. My mindset is I have to be worthy of the equipment I'm using. I want to reach the point where I'm maximizing my equipment's potential. Nakakahiya if ang ganda ng equipment tapos bulok pa din mga shots ko. I hope someday to be able to tell great stories with my pictures. But malayo pa siguro. As one expert said: the best way to grow is just keep shooting.

So why 2.8? What sorts of pictures do you shoot?

 

One thing to note, guys - it's not all about the equipment you use, although at some point that becomes important. But most ofyo are not at that point yet. It's all about the photographer.

 

Lenses, bodies, printers - those are just tools. Nothing more than that. You have to learn two things - one, how touse your tools to your best adavantage, and how to SEE. Bright, over-saturated, overly contrasty, over sharpenened images - yes, there's a WOW! factor tothem, but they are no better than commercial-grade photos. ANY monkey with a decent set of equipment can produce those.

 

Show me REAL photos with emotion, feeling and depth. Tell me a story with those images. Make me feel what you felt when you decided to shoot that image. Not another dramatic sunset - so what? Those happen every day. Not another red umbrella on a sea of grey. That happens every time the rain clouds come out.

 

Yes, I have a lot of cameras, and some of them are really great cameras. But I only have them because they are the best tools around for me to tell my stories with my images. And I am lucky enough to be able to afford them. But I started with a Yashica 35 - a cheap fixed 45 mm f3.5 lens 35mm camera. And I won two photo contest with that - against pros using Nikons and Hasselblads. What does THAT tell you?

 

Camera equipmentitis will only get you one thing - poor. It won't get you good photos. You doubt me? Take a look at what Dominique James shoots with his iPhone. Look it up on Twitter. With a simple iPhone camera, he shoots images that are haunting, poignant, powerful. I wish I could shoot like that. BTW, Dominique is a Pinoy photographer who's moved to NY and now works in the fashion photography industry.

Before I bought my equipment I did some research and asked a couple of friends who were pros. One of them told me whatever lenses I buy make sure it's 2.8 or faster. I checked the different websites and compared lenses. For walk around on crop bodies the best was the 17-55 2.8 is usm from canon. It was an L-quality lens in an efs shell. And it was wide enough with just enough tele for everyday use (27-88 equivalent). The kit lenses were either 15-85 or 18-135(?) and both were f3.5 - 5.6. Too slow. I wanted to be able to shoot in low-light or use available light without flash as much as possible. True enough the 2.8 allowed me to take a lot of shots indoors and outdoors without using flash. No regrets talaga. The camera stores will keep recommending the more common lenses but my vote goes to this one. Next target 70-200 2.8 is2 sum

Imho mas maraming issues ang 17-55 f/2.8 ... errr sigma lens is slow on focusing... even 24-70 70-200 di sharp....

 

Sigma is the cheapest lens around that's true.. pero kung wide lang im going for tamron 11-22 f/2.8 Bakal pa

 

@glock19 - what made you buy 17-55 F/2.8? (just want to know your thoughts)

 

@agxo3 - pentax owner what model? Question lang.. what made you buy pentax?

Recently got into photography as a hobby. First time dslr user. Got a 7d and the 17-55 lens. It is awesome. Makes me look like a better photographer than I really am

Gustavus Steak Lounge in Legaspi Village

TSUMURA is a partnership between the "owner" & jap chef while KURETAKE solely by the owner.

in short different chef.

maybe that explains the difference in quality and taste between the 2 restos.

Tsumura ower is the same to Kuretake one,

 

but Kuretake is worse on the taste.

 

I highly recommend Seryna near Kikufuji. You will be

 

absolutely satisfied. :thumbsupsmiley: :thumbsupsmiley: :thumbsupsmiley:

i agree. kuretake no good. overpriced pa. haven't tried seryna yet. a friend of mine said their whole group had diarrhea after eating at nihonbashitei.

I just came back from Inagiku but unfortunately didn't enjoy it as some other members here. Maybe it was what I ordered (Gokujo sushi)? I would rate the meal 7.5/10.

 

So far Kuretake is my favorite sushi-ya. Really good fatty toro, better than Inagiku's. Next place to try is Isakaya-Kikufuji.

inagiku's toro is no good. even tried it twice just to make sure the first time wasn't just an exception. i think they use the lower grade toro there. tsukiji's on the other hand. wow really melts-in-your-mouth toro.

also, inagiku's wagyu is from the states not from japan as tsukiji and very few other restaurants do.

Define authentic Japanese resto? Ang problema naman is that maraming resto dito nagadjust na ng recipes to cater to the Filipino tastebuds. Before Furusato (EDSA) was authentic, kaya lang medyo nahirapan because of the prices of their ingredients, so nagsubstitute sila Mr. Cuenca ng local ingredients, many people couldn't tell the difference anyways.

it is hard to define authentic especially if you haven't compared it to restos in japan. i've eaten at the japanese resto in nikko hotel in tokyo and imho the difference with good restos here are minimal (maybe i didn't know what to order). even restos in japan have their own individual interpretations of authentic japanese food. i would be more inclined to define authentic as using better quality ingredients. some restos for example serve better sashimi than others. while others excel in their noodle dishes. others have better tempura.

an example of how i would rate the best (based on my limited experiences):

sashimi - inagiku (salmon and hamachi) and tsukiji (toro)

tempura - inagiku and umu (benkay)

wagyu - tsukiji (ohmi beef from japan not australia or usa)

noodles - inagiku (inaniwa and soba), shinjuku (different noodle soups)

yakitori - nanbantei (franchise of a yakitori resto in japan)

now that you mentioned it..... I will put it in my shortlist. hehehehehehe Is this the one in the Remedios Circle???? if Im not mistaken, the one beside or very near Cafe Adriatico???

 

I once had the privilege to try the japanese restaurant at Shangrila Makati (Inagiku) with a special friend. the ambience, the food..... i think it made a great impression on my companion. I havent tried the one in Shangrila Edsa (Inahotei)

inagiku is one of the best jap restos here. walang sinabi ang jap resto sa edsa shang. it used to be called inahotei but it goes by a different name now.

Buffet? Then I will definitely stay away from that place. Thanks for the heads-up.

i think the buffet is only on sundays.

Benkay was replaced by Umu last year. Haven't tried it yet.

tried it recently to see if it can compare to the old benkay. went on a sunday so was able to sample their buffet (which includes all the restos in the hotel for P1450. the tempura is still as good as benkay (get the newly fried ones not the ones in the tray). the rest i'm willing to give a pass just because it's a buffet. not bad actually but not as good as benkay maybe because the food has been sitting so long out in the open.

any feedback on tsumura? is it any good?

chateau has probably one of the best locations in gb5. it's very relaxing to have a meal there while looking out the window and enjoying the view.

john and yoko

2f greenbelt 5 :thumbsupsmiley:

diba fusion ang cuisine nila and not pure japanese.

Sayang wala na kimpura panalo tepanyaki nila!

For now best thing is rairaken . Affordable and not too pricey around 150-300 minsan bento box na ung 200.

wala na din ba kimpura sa greenhills? parang meron pa yata a.

P400. katabi mismo ng shell.

meron ba mas malapit sa camarin? just as clean and decent?

tried it the other day. ok nga malinis at bagong bago. only complaints. masikip ang room at maliit ang bed. pero pwede na.

saisaki?

barrio fiesta. masas is good too but i prefer their other resto C2 in powerplant. bagoong there is terrific.

is it possible for a first time applicant to obtain a passport without having to go to dfa? my friend is asking

Meron pa bang KAMAMESHI HOUSE?

alam ko meron pa. sa zobel roxas near south superhiway sa makati and may isa pa yata sa elliptical sa qc. but they too have deteriorated over the years. used to enjoy their kamameshi rice.

TSUKIJI RESTAURANT< PASAY ROAD cor. LEGASPI, same building as milky way, that's near greenbelt, good, pricey but authentic.

i agree. tsukiji is very good as well as very pricey. dinner with my honey last night left me almost 7k poorer. blame the ohmi wagyu beef and hon toro sashimi for putting a big fat hole in my wallet. but it was our anniv so, what the heck...

i also like inagiku in makati shang (premium sashimi, delicate tempura, class A all the way. sugi is also good.

imo, these are the jap restaurants that serve authentic jap cuisine. inagiku and tsukiji fly in their ingredients from japan. don't know about sugi.

i agree with the poster who said that kimpura has deteriorated over the years.

tried nanohana once because they advertised wagyu beef. it was tender albeit bland and oily. didn't go back anymore.

that's so true. and a good thing to always keep in mind...