freedom-of-xpression

FINALLY after nearly a year of no/slow activity i am now back behind the reins of the 5Dm2!! Uni is over, finally passed everything, first year that ive had that has been fail free. Damn mechanical engineering, its so hard! I have just recently obtained a yashica rangefinder which is currently loaded with some Rollei B&W 400 film, and i find shooting with this camera totally realigns my creative mind on how to shoot and compose. I now have 4 months of holidays with which im going to shoot as often as i can and get posting all those half completed Psd images ive done throughout the year, as well as utilize my new cokin ND filter set and TC-80N3 remote timer set for those beautiful long exposures! Stay tuned because this profile is going to get a workout!

I had some upsetting news yesterday. Initially, my friend and I from highschool had arranged to meet up in melbourne to catch a train down to a hospital in caulfield to see an old friend and teacher of ours from lavalla who patiently spent every second she had to ensure we did the best we possibly could for our year 12. She spent most afternoons after school, and most nights staying back with us helping with any question/problem we had with whichever subject she needed, without the slightest sign of frustration if we didn't understand. Her ONLY priority was to make us do well. I can safely say, if it wasn't for this woman's contribution to my schooling, I would not be in the course that im in right now, and I would not have gotten the enter score that I did.

At the start of 2007, it was discovered that she has brain cancer. Shes undergone many operations and taken many drugs to try and extend the inevitable. A few weeks ago she went in for an operation in which her surgeon said she should have about 3 years of comfortable life left. However shortly after something had happened and she is in a bad state. Initially this friend and I had planned to go in to see her, but after meeting him in the city, he informed me that the doctors have suggested no more visits. Her once brilliant brain that could explain every detail of particle physics, space time, Einstein's theory of relativity and more, has now deteriorated to a point now where she cannot structure sentences or even recognise most people. It was suggested that visiting her would be devastating for us, especially if she wont even know who or why we are there.

I was feeling very down after this, and didn't want to go home right away so I went into St pauls church in melbourne and sat for a while. I had my camera at the time and just went for a 3 hour wander through the city taking shots of what felt appropriate to my mood. For some reason I feel a strong connection between this information about Natalia and the photo I have of the elevator doors, "The Inevitable" freedom-of-xpression.deviantar… . It seems very heavenly & pure, and to me symbolizes the simple yet pleasing life she has lead, and what awaits her.

Thats it. The epic new 5D mark ii is all mine, and what else can i say but WOW! It truley is an amazing camera and i love it to bits. I am however amazed at the difference between full frame and APS-C sensors in most other DSLRs available. It is remarkable how much depth of field is affected by this larger format which i will soon get used to.

For instance, when shooting at 24mm (APS-C equivalent of 15mm) at f/4, the level of field blur is incredible! i remember shooting many times on my 350D at 18mm and having very little aperture blur at all. its amazing the new shots this will allow me to take... once i get used to the totally new way of thinking about f stops and mm's.

I cannot wait to show you guys what i am able to do with it, but i dont have a lot of time on my hands with uni so the updates will be slow.

Well just as of Friday the 30th of January, i turned 21 so can now be considered a real "adult" (pfft). But the good news doesnt stop there. Due to the incredible generosity of all my fantastic friends and family....

*I CAN NOW AFFORD THE 5D MARK II!!!!!!!!!!!*

Ive placed my order as of last night, and should have this 21.1MP DiG!C 4 monster of a machine!!! I absolutely cannot wait, and look so forward to being able to expand my knowledge on photography and be able to take those photos that were previously impossible to capture. Im getting it with the 24-105 f/4L IS USM lens kit, and should have it some time over the next few weeks. So keep an eye on my shots and journals, cos this shit is about to get a whole lot better!

Thanks to everyone who showed my their support this weekend and donated such kind gifts.

Gah! so so damn stressed atm! been at uni since january 7, with essentially no break between then and now. Moved house 3 FUCKING TIMES this year due to asshole/tormenting room mates, have had no sleep in the last 4 months, outstanding tram ticket fine, being sent to court for one of my old roomates hiring a dvd and never returning it and racked up a $110 fine that i refuse to pay, studying mechanical engineering at RMIT but am doing terrible, currently im doing 2 second year subjects and repeating 2 ive failed in the past, and its looking like i wont pass any of these.

Ive bought a new lens, the 85mm f/1.8 USM prime by canon which is a beautiful lens, but the 350D cant AF it properly so closed apertures need to be used to get clear shots, THAT I CANT EVEN TAKE BECAUSE I HAVE NO TIME.

Hopefully my luck turns around soon and i can buy the ever so beautiful 21MP Canon 5D mark II with the 24-105 f/4L IS lens that i want so so badly...