men at work

men at work, originally uploaded by maximilian.lin.

so i was going to blog something christmas-y... but then i realized christmas was yesterday... boo.

anyway, these pictures were taken a little more than a week ago when the northeast was hit with a blizzard. i think 20 or so inches fell in baltimore? if im exaggerating, feel free to correct me.

youre looking at the top floor of the lexington market parking garage. picture can be viewed a little bit larger here. notice the two cars stranded on the deck... i wanted to catch the owners reactions but i dont think they even bothered until the next day.

i set my camera on an improvised tripod in my room, manual exposured it without considering the fact that these guys would take a pretty long time... plus they took a lunch break. so, towards the end of the series the pictures were starting to get underexposed so i compensated from the third to last frame on.... everything else was "auto-toned" in lightroom to compensate for the underexposure.

20 exposures taken roughly 20-25 minutes apart (i did this while studying).
iso 100
35mm
f/2.2 (i wouldve stopped way down but theres a screen in front of my window... did my best to get the screen out of focus)
1/4000-1/640s

christmas bokeh

christmas bokeh, originally uploaded by maximilian.lin.

in the wake of the snowstorm, i thought id make a christmasy post... im just glad that the semester is almost over... its been a rewarding but very draining semester... definitely need a break.

anyway, picture was taken at ricks place during this dinner... bokehed (out of focus) christmas tree lights...

iso 800
50mm
f/1.4
1/80s

apple murder

apple murder, originally uploaded by maximilian.lin.

an apple was harmed during the making of this photograph. it was delicious.

so i played with the lx3 a little more this weekend. here are some thoughts so far:

likes:
- lens. f/2.0 at 24mm equivalent is great for low light snapshots
- raw. compact that shoots raw. love it.
- macro. the macro af is quite accurate in my opinion, even in low light. a bit slow, but its tolerable.
- size/build. smaller than any dslr. all metal build is solid
- hotshoe. looks/feels a bit ridiculous with a speedlight attached, but it works.
- image stabilization. it works. shutter speeds of 1/low teens have come out sharp.

dislikes:
- high iso. id only use 800 if i have to. forget about 1600-3200...
- lens cap. attaches to the camera via a loop (provided). takes away from what is, in my opinion, a pretty esthetically pleasing design.
- menu. have to scroll through multiple pages to get to a setting sometimes... or maybe im just missing something.
- size. yeah i know i listed it as a like too, but the lens protrudes a good inch from the rest of the body... and its not quite small enough to be pocketable.

iso 80
12.8mm (60mm equivalent)
f/4.0
1/40s

oh boy...

LX3, originally uploaded by maximilian.lin.

i received a pleasant surprise today... my lx3 arrived from amazon ahead of schedule. ive had my canon sd800 for 3.5 years now and it leaves a lot to be desired in terms of image quality... the 4/3 cameras are still too expensive (and not that pocketable)... the sigma dp1/dp2 is a good idea, but a mess (and again, too expensive). so, ive decided on the lx3. the selling point for me was the 24-60mm 2.0-2.8 leica lens... plus it shoots raw... oh baby.

since im so excited i thought id take an elaborate photo of it. sb600 subject left angled to illuminate the background... "gel"ed using two red tupperware lids. sb800 with softbox below and to the left of subject. highlights painted with led penlight.

iso 100
50mm
f/11
10s

a different view

a different view, originally uploaded by maximilian.lin.

my dschool peers will probably recognize the landmarks in this picture... albeit from a different perspective. i had a chance to photograph the alumni reunion and awards ceremony back in may... you can see some alumni and their wives from the class of 1959 on the left (bcds wasnt coed yet...). anyway, dean stohler used his special key and let us up on the roof of the school... i got to snap some pictures while we were up there.

unfortunately the final image is 34 megapixels... so flickr has graciously resized for the sake of internet viewing. heres the original if youre curious: click me

five landscape images stitched together in cs4
iso 100
f/11
1/250s

peekaboo

peekaboo, originally uploaded by maximilian.lin.

i was going to write a long and drawn out post, but i remembered this is a "no frills" photoblog... so, heres my cousins baby daughter the morning of our family reunion in california. very cute, no?

iso 400
50mm
f/1.4
1/60s

SLC airport

SLC airport, originally uploaded by maximilian.lin.

bonus post! two in one day!

on my way to and from los angeles, my flights stopped in salt lake city. it was my first time at the airport and i must say that the view is breathtaking. if the rest of utah is anything like the view from the airport... wowza.

my d200 was in my carry on and not readily accessible... at least without a lot of digging. so, in the spirit of chase jarvis' book, i took three images with my cameraphone and stitched them together. color correction and vignetting were also added.

three landscape photos taken using my e71 and stitched together.
no iso info available
4.9mm
f/3.2
no exposure info available

cinnamon rollssss

DSC_0002, originally uploaded by maximilian.lin.

as you may or may not know, im not a huge fan of sweets, but last night was quite the exception. i had the pleasure of sharing a meal with some fellow dschool peoples last night. along with a whole slew of cookies, one of the dessert options were cinnamon rolls. delish!

i havent had a chance to shoot much lately... hopefully thatll change. i can already see that im falling behind on the blog :(.

anyways, this is my homework, dan!

iso 800
50mm
f/1.4
1/125s

surfs up

surfs up, originally uploaded by maximilian.lin.

so im in my third year of dental school and i guess im starting to think of where i want to end up after all the schooling is over (if it ever comes). as nice as orange county / la is, i dont know if i could ever live there... i think if i ever move to california, ill end up in san diego or the bay area somewhere... other places on the west coast id consider are the portland and seattle metro areas...

i wonder how it is getting accustomed to a new place. ive only had to move to a new city once (for college) and even then... that was college, which i dont consider to be the real world for many reasons.

anyone with some insight?

iso 100
85mm
f / 6.3
1/250s

sometimes it just aint fair...

sometimes it just aint fair..., originally uploaded by maximilian.lin.

so at the wedding my cousin let his son roam around and take pictures at the rehearsal dinner, family reunion, and reception. this wee setup included a d3, 24-70, and sb900 mounted on a bracket. im not exactly sure how old he is, but not bad for a primary school kid, huh?

i did get a chance to play around with the setup as well as his leica m8 + 50 f/2... man, i love that fx... d700? maybe if i get another job...

ive been spoiled by af so i wasnt used to the m8 at all... with some practice i can see how the leicas can be a joy to shoot with... something about them certainly is magical... check out this flickr pool if youd like.

oh and happy thanksgiving!

iso 400
35mm
f / 2.8
1/60s

flowergirl

flowergirl, originally uploaded by maximilian.lin.

this past weekend i attended my cousins wedding in huntington beach, california. the wedding was outdoors by the beach and timed so that the ceremony was held as the sun set in the background... very nice.

heres a picture of the flower girl, my cousins (different cousin... not the one getting married) daughter.

iso 100
35mm
f /1.8
1/500s

mm... burger

20091122037, originally uploaded by maximilian.lin.

ive actually blogged about in n out in one of my xanga blogs... but here we go again.

every time i go to california i have to make a stop at in n out... its too good. some may attribute its draw to novelty, but i knew quite a few california natives that love the restaurant. in addition, with every visit, regardless of location, each restaurant always seems to be jam packed... i highly doubt each patron is an out of towner.

for my atlanta friends those whove never been to in n out, its kind of like the varsity... but with a much more simple menu (even with its secret menu) and is of MUCH better quality.... the varsity doesnt even compare... i just make the comparison because it has a similar diner, old school feel. for those whove been to five guys, its actually quite similar, but with fewer topping options and is less greasy.

anyway, despite its simplicity, the food is simply just fresh... in my mind, its how a burger is supposed to be. although a cheeseburger is pictured here, i think the double double is the perfect burger... mmm.

hopefully i havent offended any burger connoisseurs... just my opinion haha.

oh and i guess ill start posting picture information from now on...
taken with my camera phone

...keeps the doctor away

...keeps the doctor away
Originally uploaded by maximilian.lin

our school had h1n1 vaccines today... but the line was way too long, so i didnt get it. plus, they only had 145 doses for staff and students... which i dont understand.

anyway, ive previously professed my like for vitamin gummies... still holds true... but ive renewed my love for apples... fujis are still my favorite, but i still enjoy a granny smith once in a while (i know, really tart... but i like the tang).

so, during this season of sneezes and coughs, stay healthy! (and eat an apple!)

trial and error

trial and error, originally uploaded by maximilian.lin.

my roommate recently acquired a d90 and weve had a few impromptu "classes" in which i do my best (however under qualified i may be) to teach him how to use his new camera. as a way to demonstrate depth of field and the importance of larger aperture lenses in low light, i took this little snapshot while he reviewed his pictures.

in my opinion, you can read about photography and understand concepts, but until you really immerse yourself and make mistakes through trial and error, youre really missing a big part of the art.