Make LED Ring Light

While hiding in my cave (:-D ) I found the time to do building work (Since, as

I don’t have a habit to watch TV (I don’t have a TV 

nor able for streaming video signal on USB dongle 

connection) or DVD,I have to DO something 😀 ).

From other project where I changed White LED to 

Color LED I got mountain of White LED, I decided

to make LED Ring Light which can utilize

those LEDs in number.

Ring Light can create (almost) shadowless  

image, or having faint shadow surrounding the  

subjects, some says, it is the Holy Grail in the Lighting effect. 🙂

[]

Funny situation these days is, we can get the LEDs from the products,  

such as an LED Work Light from Lidl which is using 40, 60 LEDs inside,

as cheap as £15 = much much cheaper than to buy LED itself from an

electronic supplier = hence disassemble and use them to make such as

a Ring Light can save a cost a lot. (advantage is, that the LEDs has been

selected and tested already by the maker and the Lidl, hence there is little

chance to get old type dead-stock from unknown supplier in the Net  🙂 )

[]

Basically, all about LED Ring Light is “How to mount a ring around the

lens front” — other than this, everything else are straight forward =

just put a lots of LEDs and connect it to the battery.

—– Sound easy though, the trouble is, not like in a good old days when

most of the lenses from one camera maker has only one or few filter sizes

(such as for Pentax = 49mm, Nikon = 52mm, Canon = 58mm etc), but

now as the role of filter is diminishing (now most of the visual effects were

created by Photoshop), lens doesn’t need to have the same filter size =

in the other words, to make a ring light capable to be used on many lenses

is nothing but a headache. 🙂

To make the situation even worse is, the use of Zoom lens is the norm now

and as the lens starts from wide-angle, it is necessary to make ring light NOT

vignettes (not cut off the corner of the image by the additional protruded edge)

= it got to be much larger than a front element of the lens.

On the other hand, some lenses especially on the smaller camera is getting

even smaller and many of them has even no filter thread on the front at all.

= it mean, the ring light got to be designed and made for the individual purpose

and the choice of lens. —– (hence, better to do DIY 🙂 )

[]

I decided to make one for my 100mm macro and other for 24mm~70mm Zoom.

So that the first sample here is to make it for my Canon 100mm F2.8 Macro (not 

the latest L type — it came to the market only two months later, but this one is

pretty sharp as well, and I like its smaller front lens which would cast less shadow

when we close to the subject and easier to give a lighting.

(in extreme close-up, large front lens allows only side-lighting. 

And I don’t see much of help from the so-called Image-stabilizer = if it helps two

or three stops, why not just set higher ISO speed.  And having very delicate lens

shifting mechanism which is suspending the lens element in the air by the

magnetic coils or ceramic motors, it would make the lens even more sensitive to

the shock.  🙂 )

[A ring to mount the LEDs can be made from a Phenol plastic board with copper

track for electronic circuit, to even just a card-board paper (if it is just for an

experiments, 1 mm thick card-board paper would be good enough) or to mount

the LED from the the back (through a hole) = Art-mounting-board is a good choice.

(Still, precisely drilling 30, 40 holes, this work needs to have a good Zen mind.)  😀

Which ever the material, you need to find the diameter of the ring and cut the

material.  ( I think the photos here are self-explanatory. )

Use caliper to find the diameter under the bayonet to mount lens hood. 

If no caliper in hand, use right-angled paper.

Then draw the circles of its mounting diameter.  I’m using a sharpened needle

mounted on the compass to cut the paper as well.  And cut the Phenol plastic

board, I’ve clumped a cutting blade on the compass.

A paper ring cutted with diameter of the lens  and outer diameter was placed

under the bayonet and the shape of it was taken.   (To place this paper ring /

template, under the lens bayonet, the ring needs to cut on one place to open)

Then the shape of the ring and the bayonet craw was copied on the card-board paper. 

( On the card board paper, two additional circles has to be drawn, + 6 mm larger

than inside diameter and  + 8.5 mm ) — To plot the position to put LED, divide 

+ 8.5 mm circle to 8.  Then, within a semi-circle of 1/8, find equidistant point to

put LEDs — In my case every 11 mm and the holes to insert LEDs are pierced

(Photo above middle)  If you put too few LED you will have ugly multiple shadow,

or if you put too many, the battery will run-out rather soon.  It is a compromise.

(sort of the standard is, put the LED at every 8~12 mm distance )

In this design, I’m connecting all the

LEDs in parallel, and you can see

the different way to connecting them.

Left Top = if the LED came from

another device and having already

trimmed leg, you have to make sure

to insert all of them keeping the same 

direction (inside of LED you will see

narrower pin (+) and the broader pin (-),

you have to insert LED all in the same orientation, say (+) = outside of the ring.

And connect them using a wire such as from telephone cable (better polish it 

before soldering) by running it inside and outside of the LED leg alternative way.

Then you will have two wire ring on the board.

Photo Middle = If you got newly bought LEDs (assuming all of them are having 

the same color and the brightness — some are more blueish 🙂 = the cheaper you

pay, you will have headache — To insert LED’s to the board keep longer leg (+)

outside, then you just bend each leg to touch next LED and cut excess, then

solder each leg next by next = you will get two wire ring on the board.

Photo bottom = If you don’t have soldering facility yourself, and no one to ask, 

don’t worry still you can do !  = Insert all the LED to the board (such as photo

above) always keeping longer leg outside, then bend the leg towards the next

LED and twist the leg wire to next one. Then bend next one’s leg to third LED’s

leg and so on (connect last one’s leg to the first one, need to insert the leg-wire

to the gap between the board. = you needs to have a bit of work.

Use a narrow-headed pliers or tweezers would be a good help.

When you got the board, with all the LEDs were connected together, then

connect the power wire to each wire ring —> and connect to the 4xAA battery

through 2.2~10 ohm 1W register. (this is the MUST ) = If LEDs weren’t light up,

connect the battery other way round. (Change polarity )   2.2 ohm register will

give you brighter light but shorten the battery life = 20~30 LEDs will drain the

power nearly 1 A from 4xAA battery it would last less than 1 hour, but with

10 ohm, it would not be as bright though, in an intermittent use, your battery will

last much longer = it’s depend on how you are going to use it. (Put a switch to

select High and Low would be an good idea).

( The register may get hot though it is normal = pay attention to the layout and

the design for this heat problem.)

(For serious video shooting, use 2.2 ohm and 4xD battery, and make others envy.)

If only a part of the ring was lighten up, it is the point where your connection was

loose = check the connection and tighten it up. If one or two LEDs were not

lighten up, it’s mean that LED was dead and needs to replace (it’s an awkward job

= it’s better to check all the LED before hand ).

Then, fix the power cable to the ring, tie it with strong thread like the photo above

right, or use heat-gun glue.  (I’ve covered the end of the cable with heat-shrink

tube for better protection)

When everything went well, end result should looks like this.

= Voila, LED Ring Light !

(In fact, I’ve used paper one for a template to make it on a Phenol plastic

circuit board.) —– Further to this, such as where to keep or mount a

battery case is largely depend on you.

And I’ll show you my final product in the coming post.

][

Self Healing ? ! ! !

As I wrote on the previous post, I got injury and

the wounds were stitched and patched up.

This is the heaviest injury on my life.   As I used to climb the

mountain, also worked as a voluntary keeper of a mountain

shelter while cutting 10 tons of fallen tree for fire wood every

summer, and a kind of man likes to make everything, using all

sorts of sometime very sharp tools, yet I didn’t get injured.

(Though, in such environment, small cut etc is not rare at all.

In fact I cut my finger first time when I was 4 years old = first

time ever I touched a sharp knife and the finger is still carrying that scar.

= It’s mean, I’m a regular user of a plaster tape.  In fact, Plaster tape , Antiseptic cream and

Tiger balm are the all medicine I got here = nothing else.  🙂 )

(Photo of the Zombie might be up-loaded above, later  😀  😀 )

[]

For a small cut or pierced skin, just clean the area and cover-up = may be 3~4 days, it will be healed.

(You believe, or want to believe or not, I discovered, Super Glue can close the cut and good

to cover the wounds too. —– You may try  😀  —– As a matter of fact, one type of 

Cyanoacrylate = Super Glue which will be dissolved by the water in the body, has been used for

surgical operation = doesn’t need to remove like surgical thread ) —– After all, healing is what our

body is doing, not the treatment itself.  Treatment is to remove the destructive cause, such as lodged

objects or dirt or already dead part of the body, then leave the healing business to the body’s

own mechanism = with small encouragement of stimulant to increase blood circulation or prevent

further infection by using Antiseptic or Antibiotics, wound would be healed by itself.

—– (I’m talking about physical light injury on the skin.  To inject additional metabolic substance

for the body to regain its balance etc, kind of the internal matters are out of the scope here).

[]

If we don’t cover the wound, it will be covered by the dried up blood or bodily fluid to become

so-called Scab and under this natural cover, healing process is taking place. = In other

words we may not need to put plaster tape though, during the work, the same injured part may be

rubbed against other object etc and start bleeding again = it is better to cover up.

Still, this Scab seems to be the best protection than a plaster tape. Plaster tape keeps

the wound moist and the scared skin cell were exposed inside, hence bacteria can get in and

the infection would takes place = then the pus would be oozing out. = this infection would prolong

the healing process though, it is a necessary evil 🙂

If you observe the scar covered by scab, it pulling the skin around, hence when it was cured the

scar is more visible. Wet cure show less scar. —– any how, it’s a small patch on the skin. 🙂

[]

It seems the scab made by the bodily-fluid which got anti-septic property, and it can keep the

wound in just right condition = germ-free and able to keep injured, exposed skin tissue in

exact right humidity. = Hard enough to be a protective shield and able to keep inside germ free,

yet able to evaporate excess moisture. —– I don’t know, is there any artificial material can do this.

Scab on the injured skin is not a kind of welcomed guest though, they are so well designed (or well

refined during the history of the evolution of the life), we should pay respect to the Nature =

or Buddhists should say the Dharma. (=Whole system of the Nature and its Rules)

Without having this badly perceived, badly named Scab any animal include us

even the plants (their bleeding sap = bodily fluid such as Rubber plant’s is not for

us to make Car-tire but to seal the wound) couldn’t survive till today. Otherwise

all the animal and the plants had been infected and eradicated by the bacteria.

[]

Having more than inch of stitched dark scar on the forehead, I didn’t like to have dark scab on

my nose and the cheek bone hence, I’m under the patched up state. 

= Not very pretty sight in deed 😀   So, I’ve been inside all day (in fact this is the second day)

—– only the trouble is the egg and the onion has run-out — M m m ?

Should I go out shopping pretending “Frankenstein here” or walk like “Zombie” to scare local kids,

and giving them an opportunity to enjoy a nightmare or two ?   Ha ha ha 😀

It isn’t like a “Good Peaceful Buddhist” is it ? —– Otherwise settle with humble meal ?

Good question 😀

___/\___

[]

Smashed Camera and the Face !

Only yesterday, I managed to stumble on a curb stone and smashed myself on a concrete

car-park.—– Unfortunately, my camera was on my shoulder hence,

the camera was smashed too.

 

I was landed on the concrete, over my specks apparently fallen before me, hence one of the lens

cut into my forehead.  I was amburanced to a hospital and my face was stitched and patched up. 🙂

The hospital’s handling of my case was what we know well = I was left waited more than two hours

still bleeding yet just sitting on a bench. (While waiting, blood pressure etc were taken by nurses)

Then I noticed, despite of my camera being smashed and the view screen was shuttered, yet

amazingly it was still functioning, even more of my amazement, a Zoom lens fitted on the camera

= Canon’s 8~15 mm F4 Fish-eye lens was still working perfect ! ! !

(with its fragile movable structure, Zoom lens couldn’t survive this kind of shock = this is the

exceptional case !  = May be Canon designed it for the photographers with rough

and tumble in mind 😀  = Anyhow it was a good news in a bad situation 🙂

ERA[]

On my life, I don’t have accident or should I say only seldom = On the Ski, I’ve

broken 3 Skies but never broken any bone or heavily cut myself.

On the climbing, I’ve fallen 10m and about 5m —– still always landed on my rucksack hence never

injured. (other small falls were the nature in the climb 😀 ) Therefore, I had no experience of the

hospital, except the one when I was attacked and hospitalized in 24 hours coma and woke-up there.

So that this occasion was a rare chance to observe all the people involved = local people who saw me

fall was very kind and as he saw the gushed blood, called the ambulance at once.

The ambulance people were very professional (got to be) and I was taken to the hospital in 5 min

drive. —– (then long long waiting started while seeing another patient such as a lady mugged and

injured and so on) —– on the end, the Nurse and the Doctor did very good job to find out the

broken glasses in the cut (down to the skull !) and stitched it up.

—– And, I walked back 15 min to my place in the middle of night = 7 hours after the accident.

[]

As far as I know, the Zen mind should have an Hyper Vision in such case = when I fell

on the rock, I saw the slow moving details of the rock and the surrounding view.

When my ski caught the tree under the snow and my body was flying forward in the air,

I saw my body in a slow-motion. —– though, in this occasion, I only found myself laying on

the ground = there was a kind of lapse of the time = it seemed to have a jump of memory.

—– Why I couldn’t have seen my falling body nor able to take Ukemi (受身 / Safer

bodily movement to reduce the impact when falling to the ground).

(Bruise on both of my back hands indicates that the hands instinctively moved to protect myself

though, why didn’t hit the ground palm first, as an Ukemi.  ? ) = May be, the Hyper Vision could

have happened only the moment when the Mind was in a fully alerted state, not in an

absent minded casual situation = after 30 years, I still have a moment of absent-minded or lapse

of my mindfulness. —– Or, I must be getting old and getting rotten. 😀

It’s mean, should I look for the protective gear of mountain biker or even a walking frame ?

(May be not a coffin yet)    Ha ha ha 😀

___/\___

[]

Yet again, Higgs Boson and the Buddhism

———————————————————————————————————————- (Image from  CEAN)

Behind the any Physical Phenomenon there is always Physics

(that’s why it’s was called so :-)) and LED is one of literally very visible sample.

= When particular material was stimulated by electric current, it start to vibrate (in Atomic level)

and start to emit the Photon.  As its frequency of the vibration (which depends on which material

and resonating structure) is happen to be the frequency of a visible light, we see the colored light.

= Voilà this is a Light Emitting Diode !

(Another material gives off different frequency, such as invisible infra-red = We call them not LED

but Infra-red Emitter. — One of them called Gan Diode gives much lower frequency, in a

Microwave range which can stimulates the water molecules hence heat up them = so, they were

used in a Microwave Cooker to heat up our meal. :-))

[]

LED will work only one Polarity hence it called Semiconductor.   Yet another material

which conductivity is not high like Silver or Copper = having high resistance (like Nickel-Chrome

Iron alloy), it convert the electric energy to an heat (and emits / radiates red to infra-red lay)

which ever the polarity = they are not Semiconductor hence “good old red-hot room heater” can

be connected to AC main (Alternative Current) = Polarities change 50~60 times in a second

(so that, heater can work on DC as well, such as the one in a car. :-))

[]

In the Buddhist’s term, the existences of those materials and its structures, and how

they are functioning and interact each other = the system and its governing law of

physics are called Dharma.

When a stimulant such as Electric energy causes the material to vibrates and start to emit the

photon = those relation, cause and the result are called Karma and a part of the Dharma.

—– So, to say the Dharma is the fundamental existences and its system default, and

the Karma is a variable given, which causes and starts the chain of reactions.

(So that, unless you switch on a LED, it wouldn’t light up, even if the system = the materials and

the structure, such as thin layer of Gallium Nitrate on a Ruby crystal is there).

[]

We human being often misunderstood that those technological inventions are solely “created” by the

human ingenuity though, it is utterly wrong, they are still within the Dharma and precisely following

the rules. = we are only utilizing its inherent character and maximizing the effect.

= We might have seen a back of a gang-star Al Capone in a bar, down town of Chicago for few seconds

= few second does not mean he exist only few seconds = he is still there out of our view.

[]

The scientists in CERN had glimpse of the Boson by paying so much high price for a ticket

= 1.4Tv (1.4Tela Volt given to the coil = the higher the voltage, magnetic field created has

stronger push to the Proton Particle) acceleration and smashed them together

= resulted to see the artifact of Boson.  (yes, only the Artifact = If you believe, it’s there 🙂 )

= Does the Boson exists only in such condition ? —– A virus might have seen under an expensive

electron microscope, it isn’t necessary they only exists in a chamber of microscope = without

microscope’s image,  they still exists. 😀

If the Boson isn’t exists, all the Particle couldn’t have their Mass = No gravity to

bound them together = World would be just disintegrated and disappear 😀

Trouble is, we = who could be a witness, are also made-up by those particles = we disappear too.

= The effect to have the same Dharma inside of us.

[]

I wouldn’t pretend to understand this level of Nuclear Physics, neither able to guess how

Peter Higgs could predict it on the paper, the existence of Higgs’ Boson which gives the mass to all

the particles should be there yet to be discovered !

—– So, we said to have all the elements of the Standard Model completed. —– ? ? ?

= Does it makes any difference over my life ? —– I don’t think so.

Even if the Standard Model is the ultimate truth, which is governing our existences, it wouldn’t make

any differences for me from a fantasy, useless delusion (sorry, scientists = you were payed to do the

research but I wasn’t = I have no reason to jump and dance with it’s discovery. 😀 )

Even Lord Buddha did ignored such details of the Dharma and left it unknowable.

= Even without having such knowledges, we know, we were still entwined with the Dharma.

= Still the matter for us is how to live the life in the every days front.

= I wouldn’t expect to see Boson in a super market and cook it for tonight’s soup.

Do you aware, the inside of an Apple, it has Boson = without it, it hadn’t fall to the ground hence

Newton couldn’t find the Gravity —– it must be true.  Believe me.

Ha ha ha 😀

___/\___

[]

Great Fire-wall of China

This is the first time after the long lapse, I received the access from the China.

( 3 access may not be an accident !)

Long since the WordPress blog has been blocked by their authority which has been

dubbed as “Great Fire-wall of China” hence, to access it needed to have

long chain of proxy. —– It might have changed !

Thanks Buddhaness.

___/\___

 

Carl Zeiss 85mm F1.4 lens — and Maneki-Neko

On the face, photo here is a Japanese Kitsch, so-called Maneki-Neko / 招き猫

(of its rather small mascots) I found in a Japanese restaurant’s window.

For some people, me to branding Maneki-Neko as a Kitsch might be unfair as they are so popular

= almost like the nation’s most beloved icon.

So far I couldn’t find its origin —– probably once there was a cat sat on front of a shop moving

a hand as if he (she ?) is inviting the people = and he attracted a lots of customer,

hence the shop’s business flourished. —– And this story spread and has become a legend. 

(This might be an equivalent of Garden Gnome in this country, especially its Kitsch appearance :-D)

This is a photo just next of Maneki-Neko above = despite it looks very rustic, they are still same

Maneki-Neko, some may say more artistic though.

( Incidentally, a dog-like figure behind is probably a figure of Tosa Champion Dog = a thick rope

on the neck symbolizing that he was the Yoko-zuna / 横綱 (of Sumo wrestling rank = Sumo was

once a part of Shinto festival, hence the thick rope is common with a rope hanged on a Shinto Shrine

Gate / 鳥居) of a Dog fight competition. = may be the owner of the restaurant had him before and

the figure was it’s commemoration to became Yoko-zuna )

[]

Though, what those figures were about, was not a point of those photos.

The matter was a test of a depth of the focus of 85mm F1.4 lens made by Carl Zeiss

= once a must have lens for a professional portrait photographer, because of its high quality to

capture beautiful skin-tone and smooth softness of the out of focus Bokeh. —– the top photo was

in its F1.4 hence showed very shallow depth of focus, and the second one was set to F2.8.

( This lens convinced me to change my camera system from Nikon to Contax in the 80^s. 🙂 )

[]

Just for a curiosity, I tested this lens at the life-size close-up with 85mm extension ring.

( In general, if we extend the lens same as its focal length, it would produce life-size image —–

though, some exception)

This Carl Zeiss 85mm lens has shortest shooting distance 1m, not 0.85m therefore, it imply,

the lens was not designed (= aberration was not well corrected) for shorter than 1m.

The photo here which was taken at F1.4 showed its life-size close-up image.

( This is yet another experiment to see “How shallow the focus can be”).

—– In the photo, the focused image is pretty sharp though, the out of focus image showed

quite visible Chromatic Aberration. = right photo, the saturation was exaggerated to show

separate red and green images. (To see it, please click and enlarge the photo)

= it was utterly out of what this lens was designed.

To design large F- aperture of 1.4 was hard enough and never considered a situation

under such extreme close-up. 🙂

(In comparison to Primary lens, Zoom lens can adjust the position of each lens element, hence it is

easier to compensate the aberrations, many Zoom lens has very extreme yet sharp Macro setting

though, as the lenses were suspended by tiny 3 pins in the curved channel, one drop would destroy)

Everybody knows that a prism can make rainbow color

= when the light pass through an angled grass, the light

would be bent according to its color (wave-length of the

light) hence each color is separated = resulting a rainbow.

A lens is a kind of prism of which the angle of

the grass surface is gradually changing. = naturally, never all the color light comes

to the same focal-point = this is called Chromatic Aberration.

So that, lens designer compensate this effect by using different kind of lens element

within one photographic lens though, aberration also changes depend on the

distance of the object, it is impossible to be perfect. (Even for the Carl Zeiss  🙂 )

—– still, it was an interesting test for me = I never encounter the out-of-focus Bokeh image

in such clear red and green. (Again, please enlarge the photo to see it )

[]

No Sake, neither Garlic ! —– Why not ?

My friend in Japan showed this photo in his blog while describing

scorching hot day over there.

What photographed was a stone-post = regular feature of a Buddhist

temple gate, which says “Kun-shu San-mon ni iru wo yurusazu”

(不許葷酒入山門 = Sake / Alcoholic drink and Garlic kind are forbidden

to be brought in) = It is the notice of the Rules from the Pali Canon,

that the Buddhists have to keep away from the evil acts.

—– Drink Alcohol and eating smelly food typically the Garlic, are

forbidden in the temple —– It is a formal pretense 😀

[]

Despite the Garlic has been long eaten and even used as an herbal medicine (use it

as a poultice to an inflammation = very potent stimulant for blood circulation)

only its pungent smell is its unfortunate nature 😀

—– The hard-core austere in the Tantra Buddhist sect, Gyo-ja (行者) regards Garlic as a potent

medicine (hence, wild Garlic was called Gyo-ja Nin-niku ) to enable him to achieve hard practice in

the mountain. (— so I heard = I haven’t established it with [with and without] kind of objective

repeated research. 🙂 ) — What-so-ever, everybody knows, Garlic is pretty good for our health.

—– So that, may be a smell of the Garlic is a mere pretext, real intention was to

prevent a monk gains his potency and become sexually active. 😀

[]

But funny facts are, even the time of strict Shogun era, the Sake was drunk in a temple only with

the name of Han-nya-tou /般若湯 (Drink of highest wisdom 😀 ) and the wife of the Priest was

called Dai-koku sama / 大黒様 (the name of a divine figure — but in Taoism). = a lots of excuse.

[]

There are interesting parallel between Hinayana Buddhism and Confucianism,

Mahayana Buddhism and Taoism (Laoze).

Both Hinayana and Confucianism set an ideal personality of a man and apply it

with the Rules of Do and Do not.  (= So, Garlic smelled Monk is not very ideal.  😀 )

In comparison, both Mahayana and Laoze says “ Be Natural” = keep away

intentional thinking or imaginary Rules, but live natural and never over do.

(So that, garlic is naturally smelly = What’s wrong with it.   Unless you eat tons of it.  😀 )

Counting Lord Buddha’s teachings in its surface, it could make hundreds of Do and Do not, such

as him in deed forsaken his family and the wife and became a Bhikku. = hence the follower could

copy it = live with no family, no woman etc though, —– think the context of the teachings,

Lord Buddha never accused, or forced anyone to forsake the wife and the child, but simply

pointed out, the Life IS in Samsara = accepted the difficulties to live with family as the default.

Hence, Mahayana accepted the inherent nature of the Life as Karma.  (Try to

impose “ideal type” is just an useless delusion.  Better live in Mushin, as it is.)

(We are born to suffer with the trouble of woman. = It’s a part of joy.    Ha ha ha  😀 )

[]

So, don’t hesitate to eat Garlic. As long as everybody in the family or anybody

near you eat it in the same time, the smell wouldn’t cause any trouble.

And be healthy, fulfilling your potential = make your wife satisfied. Ha ha ha 😀

( Don’t worry this is the Mahayana Buddhism = believe me  🙂 )

___/\___

[]

LED Torch-Lamp

I don’t know how many LED torch lamp I had bought altogether. (not mention Christmas lights :-D)

Here the photo of some torch lamp still I have. —– though, with my bad habit, as often I

disassemble them and utilized it for another purpose, many of them are no longer here.

In the left photo, top is a torch-lamp made by OSRAM using 5 ordinary ( 5mm white ) LEDs

powered by 3xAA battery which I bought 8 or 9 years ago. (but I discarded outer casing which was

too bulky )

The second in the photo was made by Ansman, which is using Hi-power Lumiled 1W LED

and 2 lithium battery = it’s mean powered by 6 volts (current was regulated by a resister) —–

quite bright but, as it use lithium battery, very expensive to run.

non

In the right photo, which I found at Tesco was also 1W torch, but using only 2 AA battery !

LED ( Light Emitting Diode ) is, as the name suggests, a kind of semiconductor diode.

To make a diode start to emit the light ( Photon was emitted) it is necessary to give the high-enough

electric energy = higher than so-called Forward Voltage which is for White LED about 3.5V, therefore

if it was powered by the ordinary battery, it is necessary to use minimum 3 batteries (1.5 x 3 = 4.5 V

—– then the LED will work until the voltage drop below 3.5V)

The Tesco torch-lamp which was powered by only 2 AA batteries mean, it is having an electronic

circuit called DC-DC converter which rises the voltage from 1.5 x 2 = 3 V to

more than 3.5 V. = And in fact this circuit can keep out-put voltage near constant 4V until the

battery become almost empty.

And this torch light is using hi-power 1W LED made by Cree. Even more surprise, this torch was

sold £5  (can you believe ?) = So, I bought 4 of them at once. 😀

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—– But funny story here was, as this torch lamp is able to drain the battery until it is completely

empty = on the end of the life, the internal pressure of the battery rise = battery become fatter =

stack inside of the chamber. (Really a hell to pull the stacked batteries out. :-D)  Battery maker

wanted to make their M-H battery having higher capacity (without using rare earth material)

therefore, the easiest way to achieve this is, to make the battery casing larger and thinner.

In the same time the manufacturer of the torch-lamp body wanted to save the material,

therefore made it to the minimum size, just enough to accommodates the standard AA battery.

= this is the situation, a trouble was waiting to happen  😀

—– Yet still, the reason why I bought 4 of them is to make a video-light kind of device.

= If I use only its light head and having separate battery box, it wouldn’t give any trouble.

( 4 W video-light with DC-DC converter which gives constant out-put, for £ 20 is a bargain ! )

Same as Tesco’s torch-lamp, photos above, this LED torche are also using only 2 batteries

= to say, second generation LED torch-lamp.

= It came from Lidl with £15 price and using Cree’s 3W LED.

3W mean, LED draw almost 1A current, hence it needs to use 2xD type battery and quite

solid aluminum structure with water proof O-ring. (pretty heavy though, it is blindingly bright,

and thanks to a built-in mirror the light can concentrate to narrow 5 degree = can see 50m away)

This one, photo left, was also from the Lidl. But this is a cheaper plastic version and a cost £3.

Yet still this is 2xAA battery type. In the photo you can see a LED and a Switch-mode DC-DC

converter circuit.  In the circuit-board, round black component is a coil to induce high voltage, and

together with 2 transistors (one oscillate and other is acting as a feed-back comparator to stabilize

the voltage) supply the power to a LED. (round aluminum block under the LED is a heat-sink).

When the battery is new and giving 3.2V, it supply 130mA 3.5V to LED and even the batteries are

nearly the end of life = 0.8Vx2, converter still give the same 3.5V though much reduced current,

10mA therefore the light out-put is not as bright as on the beginning (still usable).

(This LED is about 1/2 to 1/3 W —– 3.5Vx0.13A= 0,45W on the paper, but it seemed LED is not

a genuine Cree = cheaper copy ?) = Still, this one could be a best buy

= second generation LED torch for £3 !

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Yet still, the battle in a market is so fierce, a torch-lamp, photo right,  looks very ancient which

is using 3 LEDs was found to be also 2xD type which cost whopping  £1 only ! ! !

By using 3 standard LED, heat is not much a problem and 0.1W each x3, the light out-put is more

or less the same as the other one.  The circuit-board has only 2 component with 3 LEDs

—– in one glance,  I thought they are 1 transistor and a register though, they are in fact,

transistor-shaped 3 pin microchip and a coil in a shape of register.

= it was a proper switch-mode DC-DC converter.

With an atmost mean simplification it managed to make a £1 products. (Wittingly or unwittingly)

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  In comparison to those rather elaborated approach,

  the photo left is the opposite.

  It was made in a meanest way —– it’s using

  3xAAA batteries in the traditional manner but uses

  no soldering at all but just push-fit, relying only

  on the friction = Still, if it is only £1 and as long as

  it works, who bother. 

  While using 9 LEDs, it has a reasonable brightness.

  —– But, my intention to buy this was, again for

  different purpose 😀 —– somewhat properly made aluminum

body which got ON-OFF switch and 3xAAA battery holder = it can be used like a battery case or

handle of another device.  Hence, I bought 10 of them. 😀

( to make such parts from scratch, it needs to have a lots of work, and it couldn’t be £1 )

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Whether, to use it as a Torch-Lamp or utilize part of it, they are very useful tool.

= Torch-Lamp is not only looking for a lost coin under the bed. 😀

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LED Lighting in Photography

In most of the case and for most of the people, Photography starts when the subject

was found to be there. = Has found mean [It was seen] = it’s mean [There was a light]

= if it was in a total darkness, we couldn’t see = we don’t notice its existence,

hence no photography.

Though, more of the often, photographer need to take picture because the subject was still

known to be there = it could be a nocturnal animal or cave paintings —– when I needed to take

picture of French wine cellars, it was a challenge. = It has to be clearly visible in the photo, yet to be

seen as a deep dark cellar = what a contradiction especially all the bottles were covered

with black fluffy fungi. 😀

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Modern Hi-Tech Camera seemed to be able to see better than our eyes though, it’s light measuring

capability is still only down to EV-o or -1 or so but  Auto Focus doesn’t necessary work under such

dim light. (Hence, Focus-assist-light in the Flash-light or so-called Active Focus System using

projected LED light).

But when the photography has gone outside of “expected scenario” of the use of camera, such as

[Pinhole photo] or use another lens for higher close-up magnification, lords of troubles comes in.

Equivalent F-aperture of Pinhole = F-125 (think, keep stopping-down F-22 to 32, 45, 64, 90

then to 125) or F-250 is far beyond of what camera can handle.—– Or, use a lens in reverse to

have x5 magnification, the image become too dark to see in the view finder

= additional strong light become necessary.

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Thanks to the easiness to use LED, which doesn’t heat-up the subject like as Halogen-light does,

I’ve been using them as a focus-light or even to take picture. = Use one or some LED to make a

focus-light is very easy such as seen in the another post [Tiny Life] (link here) —– it is just a

matter to connect LED to a power, normally to the battery(s), normally series with

small register. (I’m going to write about those “Technical” details in the next post) but an

easiest way is to utilize ordinary LED Torch-Lamp or even a USB Keyboard light which you can

find in a Pound-shop.  🙂

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Here some sample demonstration (of simple adaptation or simple “mod” work 😀 )

This is a little adaptation of a 1W LED Torch-Lamp (This one need only 2xAA battery !

= I’ll talk about a significance of 2xAA battery in the next post) —– in order to mount the lamp

to a stand, a piece of C-channel was drilled and 1/4” screw was tapped.

Use it as a spot light or diffused light etc is just up to your imagination.

And this is a way to use USB light.  = USB sockets were fixed and soldered to a piece of

circuit-board and they were connected to an 4xAA battery holder which acts as a stand as well.

One light has only one LED hence used as a spot-light and other has line of 5 LEDs hence covering

it with tissue-paper, it can be used as a diffused-light.

—– USB light was designed to be used on USB socket though, as long as it was

connected to 5V it will light up. (4×1.5V battery may give, up to 6V on the beginning though,

it wouldn’t destroy the LED, and even if you connected wrong polarity, it wouldn’t destroy them

neither, simply it wouldn’t light up = connect other-way round to make it light)

USB connector has 4 pins, of which both outside pins are carrying 5V supply.  You may find which

is + with multiple-tester though,  in this LED light case, JUST Connect = if it’s light = It’s right. 😀

Female USB socket can be taken out from Multiple USB Port which you can buy from £1 shop

= it’s much cheaper than to buy socket itself.  😀

If you don’t have soldering-iron and such skill, just smash open the USB plug = you

may find 2 wires in the spiral tube = fix the spiral tube with wire or what-so-ever the

manner and connect each wire to the battery + and – = if it doesn’t light-up,

change polarity.

(If you want to place the USB light on the camera, best way is to use camera bracket and fix the

spiral tube to the bracket and the cables can be extended to the battery holder.

(1m, 2m of wire wouldn’t make noticeable change of the brightness of LED)

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If you are interested in = just try.

You may realized how easy it is, and fun to experiment with mini photo-studio !

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San-sai (山菜) = Edible Plants from Mountain

Early summer, lots of Japanese goes out field or mountain to gather edible plants.

They appreciates each plant’s distinctive tastes and the flavor which is unique to the season.

= Naturally, I receive my friends Email with those stories and photographs (Link here).  (He was few years

Younger member of the Alpine Club = In his older Posts, you may see that he is climbing snowy mountain

every week and skiing ! = That’s how Japanese is living with the Nature )

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—– those custom was behind of my Bracken story. = for me, as an ex-patriot, it is a sort of nostalgia to my

Japanese taste,  in the same time it is a resistance to the modern western culture “Vegetable comes

from Tesco”, —– but in fact, it often came from a farm other-side of the earth, 

and regardless the time of year.  (Still, I got tasteful great memory to eat full-ripen tomato in the

very middle of dizzyingly vast, red tomato field in a Canary Island which tomato is destined to

a shelf of super market in England.  A farmer stopped me to pick, and gave me the better one  😀 )

For a sake of convenience, it degrading the one’s only life to a life in statistical number.

To live in its moment mean = unique moment = unique to its year’s season. = not standardized

homogeneous pattern, which was mass produced and sold by a Supermarket.

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The stories from Japan is not a kind of surprising news = went so and so place and picked this and that plants then

enjoyed eating them as a Templa and so-on.

(In the photo left, underneath is Wasabia Japonica (that Wasabi /山葵 , comes with Sushi.

They grow in a very clean mountain stream).    And the Small Bamboo Shoots (Takenoko / 竹の子 ).

The big one on top is Aralia Cordata (Udo / 独活).

Right photo is also in the Araliaceae family, Eleutherococcus Sciaphylloides (Koshi-abura / こしあぶら) = may

be not in the west and its bitter taste may be too strong for other than to Japanese ). —– Yet, I noticed, this

Japanese tradition may have some displeasure to the western people which might be originated

from the difference of the natural environment in Japan, and their attitude toward the plants.

= In comparison to the England where only 20% of the land is mountainous,  Japan got their 80% is the mountain

= hence the area where those plants grow is huge and those plants are everywhere = human activities wouldn’t

affect so much (anyhow people wouldn’t go to the same area which got too much competition) and

the plant would recover by making side shoot.

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—– It may sound too funny though, only a week or two ago I discovered that I can use Google and Wikipedia

in Japanese. 😀

Because of my knowledges of the plants are all in Japanese, I didn’t necessary wrote the name of the plant in English

or in Latin before. —– But when I Googled and saw Wikipedia in Japanese, then found the English name, I noticed,

some of the plant which Japanese eat, are the garden plants in the west.

Like Foster, they are quite common in the gardens here, and in Japanese mountain they are everywhere.

= they are easy to distinguish and easy to cook such as to put into Miso soup though, the western people may not

feel comfortable to eat them as they make pretty flowers.

The Japanese “Udo” Aralia Cordata is now widely sold in England with a fancy name of “Aralia Cordata Sun King”

hence people never considered to eat as “Udo” like Japanese does.

There is a very firm idiosyncrasy

= plants in the garden is only for visual pleasure never for eating !

And they may not want to be seen as an hungry people. 😀

Kitchen garden might be only for a show-off of their rich folly and for a talking piece.

—– For a Japanese, nature is not just for looking at. They eat a lot from the nature as well

= literally living together.

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