F&M Xmas Window 2015 (A)
Yes it’s the season to see one of my favorite subject = Xmas
show-windows. And they are the Xmas window of the
Fortnum & Masons. (It’s an annual customs. Sir.) 🙂
(And for me, to shoot them, it’s the annual custom too.)
And on this post, they are rather ordinary kind of the photos.
(In my standard) 😀
I mean ordinary = By widely available Lens in normal shot.
= no artificial lighting or stage up = Just clicked straight photos.
If you think it’s looks a bit strange — don’t blame me.
Blame F&M for their crazy decoration. And if you click,
a fish-eye lens, it naturally produces this kind of image
= It’s normal nothing special.
I think I took the pictures of the same man on the door so
many times = every year he is in the same place.
(And he might be thinking too, Gosh, that photographer again.) 😀
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New Year’s Card 2016
So, It’s the season again. 🙂 2016 is a year of Monkey !
The card samples here are from Japan Post and they are free to
download for personal use.
In their original site you can see lots lots more design though, you need
Japanese reading still, you can try click and find what’s there.
Some of the cards showed the pattern of 申 it is in fact the
letter of monkey. Normally, we (Japanese) use the letter 猿
for the monkey, but Chinese use the 猴 for the monkey.
Still, only to say the Year of Monkey we use 申 for monkey.
Don’t ask me why, it’s the ancient 4000 years tradition.
🙂 🙂 🙂
Those Links also provide Free Design Templates.
They are reputed, trouble-free good site. = Worth visiting. 🙂
http://cp.c-ij.com/en/categories/CAT-ST01-0016/index.html — (Canon)
http://www.designbank-nenga.com/
http://nengarank.com/html/index.html
http://www.wanpagu.com/top_illustration.html
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8150 — Ha-I-Go-Rey 背後霊(?) again!
To renew my passport, I went to the Japanese Consulate and
obtained an application form. — M m m m ! Gosh, 8150 again.
This number is like Big Brother, where ever I go, it’s follows me,
or stalks me. = It might be Guardian Angel
or the Guardian Spirit Behind as the word Haigorey mean.
Maybe, that’s why I don’t get ill or accident.
But, I couldn’t see a point for this = why for this time, what for ?
My Guardian may telling me “Be careful with this business” or
gave me an alert “It would have a heavy implication”.
Otherwise just reminded me “I’m still here, watching you”.
(Expecting to give me a piece of mind — or irritation ? ? ? )
—– the Consulate’s staff just picked a form and gave it to me =
so the serial number happen to be 518A6 must be purely random.
— Still the Question or problem is, why always this number comes ?
Who choreographed those coincidences = who is “WHO” Is it the
Karma or the Heaven/Dharma. ( —– otherwise, who could able to
foresee where I go next or what I pick-up next.)
— It’s definitely there, such as this IS actuary happening. Same as
the existence of Gravity. You can see it exists but nobody know WHY ?
Or is it still in my imagination ? = See, what happen next.
(So far nothing serious happened to myself (= nothing mean
good news ) but in somewhere, without me seeing (I noticed it
much later), such as someone was bankrupted or suddenly died
though whether it was because of the trouble with me or was it
just their own fate — I could only speculate.) Anyway, I can’t test
it — What IF the course was different. = If the man didn’t betrayed
me, could he still be alive? Or he died anyway with his own fate ?
Life is only once = never able to repeat it in different way.
And when mistake was made, has to pick-up its fruits. = no escape.
This is what the Cause and the Consequence really mean.
And, I don’t know how to ask “Stop 8150” to the Karma !
(So, I can’t test without it’s intervention = IF not —)
I’m doing what I need to do — and the Karma might be just
removing the obstacle on my pathway. I should be Grateful,
Lord Buddha IS walking with me. ( — I dare say. If I may.)
___/\___
PS : You might think it is a
very special heavy occurrence
though, in fact it is casually
happening almost everyday.
Photo left was a number on the
letter I received few days ago.
PPS : Now I became aware why there was a warning on the passport
business = it seems heckle a lot of trouble ahead = to receive my family
registration certificate from Japan, there is no way to send its fee,
because the International Reply Coupon is no longer available in UK.
— still,they insists it is the only mean we have to use.
— how can we ? It’s no longer exists here.
So, I needed to make a lots of Email exchange with Japanese officials
of which even a received time of the Email was 0815 ! 😦
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Fate and the Mentality
Few days ago in Japan, one of the busy commuter train breakdown due to
the safety mechanism in their over-head power cable. Stranded passengers
in the trains were lead to a nearby station, 20 minutes walk on the rail track.
(Japanese train takes the electric power from the over-head cable, not from
the side track, so that, without a danger of electrocution, it is safe to walk
on the track.) = All 5000 passengers were just walked in orderly manner and
no trouble was ever occurred.
When this news was reported on the Chinese News Paper, the Net users in
China responded with their astonishment saying such as “If this was happened
in China, within 5 minutes passengers started riot, smashing the windows etc”
“How 5000 Japanese could keep calm and quietly walk for 20 minutes long
without showing any anger or frustration !”
—– And the Japanese Net users responded to those Chinese thread saying
“It’s no point to make a riot and break the train because it would only cause
even more delay” “When all the people having the same fate, making trouble
wouldn’t get any situation better” “Anyhow, the company or school where
people will be late wouldn’t accuse them because it was like an act of God =
It was the fate anybody has to accept”.
[]
They are the two contrasting mentalities = in my view, each mentality
originated from the Chinese Taoism and the Japanese Buddhism.
I quite doubt, in China how many people ever read the Book of Taoism =
Tao Te Ching, still, most of them seemed to visit the temple to read their
fortune = by throwing two wooden sticks six times to find Yin and Yan’s
combination (It is in fact the Ai-Ching). The funny things were, they keep
doing it again and again until they receive good prediction. (=they would
not accept bad prediction !) In other words, Chinese doesn’t follow even
the will of God (or Heaven) or vend it by their Ego). (China has Confucius
and Buddhism as well though in mentality, they all got the same.)
—– in contrast, Japanese Buddhist is far more cool, or even cold,(may
be even Cynical) for not to have a passion for riot. 🙂 = since they know
the situation, what sort of the process would be needed to repair the
breakdown system etc well. They are far more rational to know
what they can do —– in fact, the situation IS telling them,
Just Walk. = So, they did.
This is the Mentality to accept and follow Dharma and the Karma (or Fate)
and the Wisdom or the Belief, that the end result would be better with this.
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Toys (Are Us) Exhibition Opening
Last night, there was an opening of
the Exhibition titled Toys (Are Us)
at the Crypt Gallery, Euston, London.
It was organized by Kosha Hussain,
and my old friend, Wayne Chisnall
brought his sculpture, Magnet as a
major piece. And I joined the party
wearing Rotating LED Disco Costume
which was created out of £0.5 Chinese Toy.
(So, it was in line with the concept of the Exhibition) 🙂
(Kosha Hussain, a Kurdish Artist who organized Exhibition address )
Some more information about the Exhibition, please see this.
Mind you, I joined the party to see old friend, as a
photographer, not to show you a journalistic report
of each piece and the artist.
(The photo above was taken by Concentric-Double-Density Pinhole
— for my fun)
This was the Wayne’s piece, Magnet (in normal view ) 🙂
(It seems, Wayne is giving a lecture. = make a jaw of the people drop) 🙂
As a Crypt of the Church, they got quite a collection of Grave stones,
though I have no idea what those white staffs were and doing what.
Well well. Some good staff, some not so staffs. Still, the exhibition
open till 21st (two more days) it must be interesting to pop in and
see the exhibits.
They got one of the most unusual atmosphere among art galleries.
(By the way, photo above was taken by 5 seconds exposure,with
Canon Fish-eye 8~15mm, on 5D-MkIII —– if the image was not
fuzzy DD Pinhole, the lest were all by the same Fish-eye Lens)
[]
What is MUSHIN ?
May be I’ve talked about this ten of the times if not hundred.
—– Still, I was asked the same question.
So, this is the most up-to-dated straight answer.
[]
It is a well known medical symptom among the Alzheimer patients
who lost the nerval connection to the Emotional region in the Brain
lost the recognition related to the SELF such as to recognize own
possessions even to distinguish the face of the own family.
So, Emotion judge the interest of OWN — in other words, this is the
center of EGO, Greed, Well being, Safety, Security, all those Instincts.
Of course, they are the key to the survival though, the total amount
of the signal/Data the brain has to deal is burst, so that there is a
rationalized economical saving was designed = coming data was
selected according to its importance.
The harmless insignificant data or repeating same data, are ignored.
We wouldn’t pay any attention to the same boring TV CM etc. and when
we do the repeating same work, we do automatic without Emotion. = In
deed, in such a case, the Motor Region of the brain would be programed
to do such routine work automatic, involving no Emotion at all.
[]
So, if we block the data/signal reaching Emotional region, we can do
the job automatic, without the Emotion. (= With highest efficiency !)
Without Emotion mean without the feeling of “Mine” = SELF —
because of no feeling of Ego, Self interest (mean, no envy, jealousy to
others), Own Greed, even No Cling to own Life, be free from the SELF.
This state of Mind mean, no need to cling the past, nor need to imagine
a dream= in other words, just see the world on front of the eyes as it is
Now, without having any Thinking.—– This eyes IS clear eyes.
And this state of Mind IS the “Mind of No-Mind” = Mushin.
[]
In order to acquire “block the Emotional process” Buddhists use
the long repeating practice for the brain to learn “How to
Opt-out the signal process” and DO the job (or Life) automatic.
(Like, you can branding “The matter” same as to the boring TV CM
and make it no longer recognized to be exists —
we know it’s still there though, it became a remote landscape.)
In certain extent, Zen Buddhism is very cool, even cold.
But, use this to live the life very hot is the other stage of Zen.
___/\___
PS : The Related Readings :
Clear the Deck for 2013 Reverse Engineering of Zen
Emotion / Meditation —– they are good to read. = It’s amazing
how Google Algorithm worked out to see the contents !
[]
Crèche in the Zen Buddhism
There are quite few Crèche in the Zen Buddhism.
Such as Mindfulness, Middle way, to live in Now,Selfless etc etc
and indeed, I did talked about those topics in the early posts.
Yet still, funnily enough, in the Agama Sutra, there was no word of
Lord Buddha for about those topics. And I realized that, the talking
of those Crèche started to appear in the Mahayana scriptures,
typically like Middle way.
—– as a matter of fact, I too wrote in somewhere, the Middle way is
not in the both extreme, somewhere in the Middle.
Though, think about the extreme — in the Nature/Dharma, if it was
too little, we may not noticed it was existing. And if it was too much,
there is no such things in nature. It was only a product of imagination.
In other words, if we follow the Nature/Dharma, we are
naturally live in the Middle way. Likewise, to live in Now, if we don’t
cling Past, neither indulge imagined Future, we only deal with Now.
In the same way, Mindfulness is not a special notion, it was the state
of Mind, when there was no other imagined matter / things, but seeing
the subject on front = what else can you think of ?
— in short, there wouldn’t be any of those issues exists in the Mushin.
= Mushin mean, live Selflessly. So, it became to clear / too clear that
the script writer of the Mahayana has written those Crèche from an
overheard rumor “That the Enlightened said to live in Middle way,
live in Now and facing the life in Mindfulness”etc etc = and started
mimicking the antic = pretending of “Middle way” “Mindfulness”
“Live in Now”etc. and talked a lot blah blah — While not knowing
what the “Middle way” was = because he hasn’t even experienced the
Mushin, there was no way to know what the real “Middle way” was.
The people who doesn’t know, talk a lot, to pretend !
Still, the matter IS very simple. = once you vacated (emptied) your
Mind, what you can see is only the matter on front (= no memory
of the past, neither imagined future) = when the matter only on
front exists, what else to think about = this is Mindfulness.
And when you follow what you instantly conceived (on that Moment
= so-called intuitive perception) is the way of the Dharma.(what else ?)
(Because the Dharma is rational and harmonious as a whole system,
inherently, there is no extreme = this IS the very Middle way)
—– You see, it’s so simple in real (practical) life.
But, “talk about” the misconceived concept is much more complicated.
Because, such concept (=Crèche) is in the intellectual thinking, BUT
Zen Buddhism is a matter in the state of Mind (the way to handle the
data in the Brain) so, try to find the meaning by way of thinking is like
“To THINK HOW to ride a bicycle” instead to make own body to
“LEARN it”. 😀
___/\___
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Pinhole Machine in the Field
It’s not a Pinball Machine. And a photo above is a Japanese maple !
As I explained in the Previous post, it is a combined / selectable Pinhole.
Single Pinhole, Multiple Pinholes and a Concentric-Double-Density Pinhole
were all in one panel, with or without a Wide-angle Front Lens.
Those were taken by the Concentric-DD pinhole.
They too, by the DD pinhole with the typical radiating halation.
And those images were taken by the Multiple (4) Pinholes.
If you carefully check the photo, you will find the 4 repeated images.
And DD pinhole image again. (Some years ago I made similar image !)
In the same time same subject but by the Multiple Pinholes.
Taken by a single pinhole though, with a very slow shutter speed =
camera was shaken, bird has moved = hence utterly blurry image. 🙂
Still, they were the very painterly images which I wanted.
By the DD Pinhole.
Last moment of sun hit the Single Pinhole and created
fantastic diffraction pattern.
Single Pinhole with half a second shutter speed = camera shake. 😀
And this image —– 1.6 second exposure.
(I would rather say, not too bad for a hand-held shot !)
I think, the Lens (?) worked well for the purpose to produce
impressionists like / painterly image ! 🙂
(You must have seen the most unusable photos here though,
if you like to have so-called good photo, use Phone-camera.)
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Evolution of PINHOLE System
Till now, I made quite a lot of Pinhole to take pictures for my
Canon, Nikon and invented “Concentric-Double-Density Pinhole,
and Wide-angle Pinhole.
On top of those, even Double, Triple Pinhole, Tri-Color Pinhole
— on the end, it’s a mess. = In order to rationalize, I designed a
Convertible Type = Simple Single Pinhole, up-to-4 Multiple Pinhole
and Concentric-DD Pinhole with Selecting Tab, on the Nikon Mount
(Which is easily converted to the Canon) together with Detachable
Wide-angle Lens on front.
So, the sample images were, Top photo Left = by Single Pinhole,
Middle = Triple Pinholes, Right= Concentric-Double-Density Pinhole.
In this photo, Left is the Detachable Wide-angle (Diverging) Lens.
In the Middle, Triangle-ish panel which got 3 selection of Pinholes can
be moved to each position. Right is a NikonAI to CanonEF adapter.
Photo left is my kitchen.
Or you may call my work shop.
—– you may realized, how
my work is casual. 😀
Still, it’s OK to produce
properly machined like quality !
And the photo here showed the effect of = with or without the
wide-angle lens.
And the photo here, right, the panel shows 4 holes — by moving
rear panel, the selected Pinhole will come to the position.
Photos from the window —
Left = Single Pinhole, Middle = Triple Pinhole.
Right = Concentric-DD Pinhole.
—– So, I have to go out to make worthwhile pictures !
* * *
Incidentally, a test shot of “that rose” with this DD Pinhole was:
Considering it IS mere hole, without focus or any control, still
the image was somewhat comparable to a good German lens
—– isn’t this, amazing ?
—– Or, unlike the Leiz, the Zeiss might have kept their belief
on “Natural Optical Image” like this !
—– Mind you, the Pinhole is not a “Light-bending” Lens or a
Grass, therefore neither has aberration inherent to the Lens at all.
Still, the outer (larger) hole of Double-Density Pinhole here is
acting as a “Dispersed” Light-pass, hence showing similar effect of
the Spherical Aberration (= effect of light coming from not only the
center but the outer area of the lens as well which is not necessary
converges the light to the same point = make the image softer.
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Bonfire
I got quite few typical round flower like Fire-work photos of film
time, somewhere. but nothing special of such ubiquitous photos =
no interest to find the photo from bottom of the box.
Instead, I just clicked the shutter and found the expected exposure
(ISO 200, 1/2 sec, F-5.6) was correct, when I saw the Fireworks
over my window. —– Then, I set my camera (5D Mk-3) to 5 frames
Multiple Exposure.) So, this is the end-product.
Those Fireworks were just made by locals and seen over the roof,
so, nothing grand at all, still it was a fun to watch.
And the Golden Rule to make a humble subject looks rich =
give multiple exposure while shaking the camera, worked perfect. 🙂
So, it was my Bonfire Night.
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