Fake Lens ? ? ?

While looking for the items in the ebay, I found a small article “How to spot 

the fake Nikon lens” by gmek111  in which, they says 7 points to check — but 

in fact, it was try to sell their App. —– Think about the “Fake camera lens”

—– on the market, there are thousands of the cheap camera lens though,

I never heard of such as Fake Nikon or Canon lens kind.

[]

In the world, one particular county is notorious for their fake products —– in fact

80% of counterfeits in the world found to be coming from there.  And in there,

such as cooking oil made out of fat from the sewage has been sold and so on, the list

of the scandals were endless.  And their cheap products such as the netphone of

Shaomi sold very well and eating away Samsong’s share. —– Yet still, its  screen

was made by Japan Display, camera sensor was made by Sony etc etc = more than

60% of the component inside were imported from Japan = they can copy the product

using the same components imported from Japan = but they don’t have the

technology to produce those components by themselves.

[]

 

You might have seen a cheaper Memory Card from that country —– half price for

128 GB kind = do you know, only 5 companies in the world having such nano

technology and non in china.  —– So, where those cheap memory came from ?

When those electronic component were produced, there always defective reject

found on the test, which goes to the bin — somebody pick-up those from the dump

and sorting them for such as the one, 90% of memory is still usable —> make a package

and the label then export. The device jump the address of dead memory = still usable.

It may have only 127GB, and due to register dead address and jump = a bit slow for

industrial use though, the amateur on the street wouldn’t notice on their camera.  😀  

—– the reason of defect might be caused by the mis-process and the memory would 

deteriorate further by its heat,  then the photo would be disappeared next by next !

= on the market, you will get what you paid.  There is no such things of good bargain. 

[]

When Contax camera was produced in Japan, their “Carl Zeiss Lens” was said to 

be made by Tomioka-kogaku — though, after the production of Contax camera was 

ended, the rumor said that the Zeiss lens for other DSLR were made by Samyan.

(under license of Zeiss, using their design and microchip — in fact I have one, but

that one says “Made in Japan” and the other rumor says, it was made by Cosina.)

(But I couldn’t find where “Zeiss lens” for Sony camera was produced now.

—- of course, optical part of Sony was former Minolta, they got own production line.

And Minolta was the inventor of the Auto-focus system, = they got top technology.)

[]

To make a fake Rolex watch is easy = it’s a matter of making a copy of its outer case and

put a cheap moving-unit inside. = it shows the time, therefore not much trouble to sell.

Similar situation was such as a fake computer HDD — inside may have just a SD card.   

Though, to make “Convincing, working copy” of the Nikon, Canon lens is very difficult.

Those lenses are as sophisticated as the camera body itself.  In fact, having a Zooming,

auto-focusing drive mechanism, let alone the tricky optical design =

It wouldn’t pay for making counterfeit.    And to defraud the buyer, it doesn’t need to

make a counterfeit —– just show a real photo, then grab the money and disappear.

If the company has such technology and capable production line, the company would

do much more profitable business, instead of taking a risk to commit a police matter.

[]

So, the article in the ebay, “How to spot the fake” is just a scaremongering

only to sell their App.    This article or advertisement itself is the fraud !

I buy small adapter, filter-ring kind, from ebay, but about £2~£7 of cheap products.  

Because, I prepared to lose money = I never trust them.   In fact, I never be successful

with the internet shopping when it was more than £50 price. — Ebay is having useless

“Claim system” — we need to report the transaction-code kind — Type-in — they says

“Code is wrong” — Type again “Code is wrong” repeating for ever.    😦     😀 😀

On the End, sake of security, pay a bit more in the shop would bring more peaceful life.  

Ha ha ha. 

[]

 

Why Live ? ? ?

 

[ —– 以上のように、名越さんはご自身が仰るように仏教の專門家ではない「門外漢」ながら、

お坊さんでも避けがちな問題に正面から取り組み、行や瞑想を実践することで気付いた

大乗仏教のあり方にまで思索を及ぼしています。大きな問いを掲げ、その具体的な

解決方法を述べつつも、最終的には身近なところからの方便の実践に尽きるという結論は、

お寺やお坊さんの社会貢献の必要性が叫ばれる現代において、非常に大切な視点であると

思います。ぜひ本書を手に、まずはとにかく簡単な行や瞑想を試してみて、そして少しずつ

方便ができるようにチャレンジしてみてくださいね。　合掌

http://www.higan.net/book_review/2015/01/whylive.html?utm_source=mm&utm_medium=245

[]

I’ve come across a small book review (as it was so small, I should say “introduction” ) 

of a book titled “Why live as we are going to die anyway” on a Buddhist’s website

 called Higan-dera.    Its article is small and only minute portion of the book was

 quoted, (and I haven’t read the book itself) I may not to have enough source to talk 

 about —–still, what I noticed was, that despite the “review” was written by a

 Pure-land sect monk, and the book was written by a psychiatrist/alienist doctor,

 their understanding of the Buddhism were so casual and romanticized. =

May be the indication of the social/spiritual situation of Japan today.

= So much (too much) information of everything, hearsay they-say, stereotypical 

 idea (not necessary correct) saturating the society yet, non of the correct,

systematic understanding of the Buddhism was upheld.

[]

The author of the book, Dr.Yasufumi Nagoshi was deducing how individual was

connected to the human-network from a mandala drawing —– what a fancy idea !

Mandala was a symbolic depiction of the Buddhist’s idea of the world, created

2000 years or so ago, — still, long before any Mandala was drawn, human being

has been living in their network/society. —– or Nagoshi was try hard to make a point

“Human relation HAS to be in the Buddhist’s context” — was he ?

[]

It seemed, Nagoshi didn’t give the answer to the question “Why live” but telling that

the Buddhism is providing the Rules, the Practices, the Guidelines for the daily living

and through this daily life, we can connect to the others, and this vital helping network

makes the people to live and make their life living-worthy.

—– and a Pure Land monk, Jokun who gave this review seemed to have very impressed

by this view, as this human network is the way of the Mahayana Buddhism. —– sound

sweet though, still it didn’t make the answer.    Obviously they two were talking about

“How to live” but didn’t aware, or know how and why we exist here.

Otherwise, the burst majority of the world population is living without good cause or

living-worthy reason.    The reason why we live is not dependent to the romanticized

Buddhist’s idea but by the hard rational.

[]

So, Why live ? ? ? — the answer, which they should have given was, that We are having

the life which was given by the Dharma. (Mind you, since Dharma runs the Universe, it

covers non Buddhist as well.  = Same as the gravity affecting anything any people.)

We didn’t ask or chose to exist. We exist neither by accident or random occurrence.

Our existence came from all the cause in the moment of the conception and all the

preceding condition of which the Buddhist calls Karma.    So that, the one exists here,

was made by those cause and the condition = it was a rational consequence almost like

a direction.  This direction can be seen almost like a will or the plan of the Dharma and

the reason why such direction created the Person WAS that there was a needs of which

the person to fulfil. = This on-going total system IS the Dharma.   Law of the Universe.

—– It’s mean, we were here to fulfil the role. = it was not our free choice, neither we can

refuse or escape.   Therefore we live, = we have to.

—– (So that, actuary to undertake the project, “to be me” = we need to find “who me”

and the role to play.   This was the reason why “Self awareness” became crucial to be a

Buddhist — though, don’t mix-up with the “self conscious Ego”. —– the

difference is,  the detached eyes to see the self or the self imposed imaginary self.)

___/\___

[]

Blinds and Elephant

Among the millions of metaphors human culture has, the one such as

“Moon and Pointing Finger” was known to be associated with Zen Buddhism.

A story of the Blinds and Elephant was too widely known and seemed to have

lost its origin.   But this story/metaphor has Buddhist origin too, and this

metaphor was exactly about the Buddhists themselves, was forgotten.

[]

There are tens if not hundreds of the descriptions to explain Buddhism.   Such as

Mushin, Void, Mindfulness, Middle way, Clear-eyes, Detachment, Impermanence,

Ichijo, Compassion, Dharma, Karma, Delusion, Contemplation, Enlightenment,

— etc etc.   So that, the people whether believer or the outsider, they think that

there are many aspects, or the elements in the Buddhism which necessitates to

master next by next — though, it is the utter misunderstanding or misguided idea.

[]

Since those Notion and the Words were used to describe a state of the mind,

people were made to believe that such each state IS exists.  = Just same as

one blind man told while touching its flapping ear saying “The Elephant is a

soft thin disk just like a nan bread” and the other said “Oh, it is a very thick

rubbery hose, like a vacuum car’s hose” etc etc.

—– The trouble to deal with Buddhism was, that the most of its phenomena,

state of the mind are in the subconscious of the person, hence it is invisible to

the people, even to the person himself.   Inevitably, all those descriptions were

nothing but a guess work of the person, mixed with the hearsay. —– It’s mean,

a person who couldn’t even see the own mind speaking about the Buddhism, let

alone whether he himself had reached to the level to know what the Buddhism is.

[]

Typical sample of it in these days is, the fashion of “Mindfulness” even in a kind of

business lecture !   The most funny things about this word “Mindfulness”, there is

NO Japanese or Chinese word of this notion exists. = It was a western invention or

made-up —– probably, a sham doctor selling miracle portion kind of “Zen monk”

had used the word first, while having a misunderstanding that the Zen is “a kind of

concentration of the mind”.

If you know about the Zen Buddhism a little bit, you may know the word “Mushin =

Mind of no-mind” —– sound somewhat opposite of “Mindfulness” though, as a state

of the mind, those two is in-separable one.  (and nothing like a concentration at all =

Zen is a completely relaxed, open, detached mind = hence No-mind / Void = in fact,

all those different explanations were about the same state —– the person who said,

didn’t know the real situation / state in his real experience — came from hearsay )

= So, it is clear, the person who is using a word “Mindfulness” is a person who is

pretending to know the Zen Buddhism, (and telling “It’s a hose of vacuum-car”) 😀

[]

—– A funny story in Japan is, one of the big University, Waseda Uni’ has a

student group called “Mindfulness Society” = obviously following a book (or two)

written by the westerner. —– Or, they might have learned that “Mindfulness is no

longer the Buddhism but New religion” = Cool western religion !

— What a hose. 😀

___/\___

[]

Soft Effect by Camera Shake

While experimenting the effect of the camera shake, I got the idea to use the old

images on the PC screen as a subject. (Give a shake to a screenshot.)

Shaking photography become an industrial scale —– and it’s much easier to give

a different way of shake in the room = hand-held or a tap on the camera, mounted

on a flimsy shaky tripod. —> It created pretty nice soft blurr. (Photo above )

On the screen, this was the original image taken by Zeiss 85mm F1.4 Lens.

The photo above, the soft effect was made by a free program Picasa. = It’s obvious,  

a mechanical shake gives much more interesting effects. — and a fun !

Though, the screenshot having an inherent trouble to show the grid of the screen.

(If you enlarge this and next image, the grid would be seen.)

If there wasn’t a trouble of the visible grid, this was a rather pretty image.  Pity.

(When right amount of the shake was given, the soft effect dissolve the line of grid. 

Too much shake spoil the image but too little leaves sharpness and the grid too.)

There is a possibility to use the Image Stabilizer for an opposite effect =

make an image blurred !   (Though, it needs to hack-in to the control program

otherwise the lens has to be modified !)

[]

Camera shake

(This image above was shot by tri-color pinhole and 10 second exposure. )

Among the photographers in the net-sphere,  Karen McRae of “Draw and Shoot” 

must be the master shaker of the camera.   Not only incredibly precise macro

photography, she covers fantastic landscape, some of them were mixed with

subtle camera shake, multiple-exposure, layard images etc.

(I strongly recommend you to visit her site and see them by yourself !)

Her effective use of camera movement for the sake of creative imaging, such

subtle blur of the image, showed not only the movement but also a

flow of the time, depth in our time and space =

even a feeling being in the spiritual infinity.

(I’ve been trying to learn and simulate her movement of the camera,

while calling them “Karenisque Photography” — I succeeded very little. )

(The trace of the light while camera has been shaken = 10 second exposure here)

( While try to copy the movement of her photo, I realised that she must have

exposed the camera even minutes long — with 10s of test shots if not hundreds.)

—– On her photo of ” lingeringlights 1.jpg ” = camera might be held and exposed

even 30 second long.

But, the use camera shake to the everyday objects, = it become clear, not only 

the choice of the subject but also the lighting (weather / cloud) overall darkness

become crucial. —– otherwise, the photo become just a mess.  🙂

Karen’s use of camera movement was very complexed = not only the overall movement,

but also a combination of a follow-shoot (such as to keep aiming to one subject while

moving in a car) the background would be totally blurred  but the aimed subject would

maintain less blurred image. = still, it’s just a technique.  

The matter is the end result. = and she’s been creating utterly puzzling images. =

I couldn’t guess what she did it —– So, I described it a “Magic”.   🙂

[]

Winter Cherry for New Year

 

First Post for this New Year, I was thinking to put photo of Sunrise or

yet another New Year’s cooking ? —– but I’ve got bored with Sunrise, seen  

from my window,  and the cooking doesn’t necessary to be for the first day.  

( though, I’m not such keen, travel to a beach just to see sunrise. —– Do you 

know some people travel as far as an island in the south Pacific, just next to

 the International Date Line, to see the earliest sunrise in the World ! —– so,

 the Japanese TV goes there as well.    And Air Companies in Japan operating

handful flights to see the first sunrise above the clouds !

Such as this one. — but what a shoddy video. )  

So, I decided to put sweet images of the (That !) Winter Cherry Flowers.

Beautiful soft Bokeh was created by Zeiss Planar 50mm F1.4 T* with and

without Ultra heavy Proxer out of a TV zoom lens.  (In this instance, instead

of 85mm lens like before, I used 50mm lens, because I wanted to have a bit

wider view though, 50mm lens has not as smooth Bokeh like 85mm lens.)

 

 

Those flowers were the other tree standing next — a bit narrower flower petals,

still flowers in the winter = it’s mean, the gardener in charge with those trees

did intentionally planted those Winter Cherry here.

(so, the tree was not a fleak, but the established winter variety.)

(It seems, the best bloom was about a week ago)

Still, it’s a view to make our mouth shut — it’s mean, either you follow

or you were rejected by them.  (Nothing between.  No argument with the Nature.)

___/\___

[]

 

Rimbaud and Zen Mind

There was yet another funny coincidence.   At my friend’s party, I met a designer/

planner who happen to know an artist friend who also run a café called

Small White Elephant, which happen to be in my area.

As she suggested, I paid a visit to the café and met a guy, Dale who run it.

Dale was a painter, we got a common talk in the art. — so, while showing my work

in Youtube and the photos in this blog, I talked about what and who influenced me.

As I mentioned my taste of the Surrealism art and the Symbolist poet Arthur

Rimbaud, Dale jumped up, went to his jacket’s pocket to fetch a small book.

It was a Rimbaud’s Poem, [A season in Hell].

[]

When I use the words “funny coincidence” it’s implying “Karmic encounter” =

no rational connection or likely happening situation still, from the hidden history

or life’s context, the pathway got to cross, of which only the heaven knows it.

And my life is having so many of them.  

If not, I’m not in here, or even this blog didn’t exist. —– looking back, have I ever

chased anybody and met ? (I mean, from a reputation, I sought to meet the person.)

NONE. I am completely passive. (of course, it exclude the case on the business =

like interview and photograph somebody = it was for the editor’s needs,

not necessary my interest)

[]

In my teens, I started to read Osamu Dazai = rather popular choice of  “ a kind of

young people then” and I read all of his work include the letters.

In the same time, I also read the books written by the opposing group of Dazai,

critiques, poets etc.   A critic, Hideo Kobayashi and the friend poets were all

influenced by a French Poet Arthur Rimbaud. —– then, I end up with this Poet.

—– I’ve talked about this story in a post. [My starting point (2) ] (I might be the first person

in the history to connect Rimbaud to the Psychological mechanism of Zen mind.   🙂 )

[]

—– (Quote of the post)

< What makes reading of Rimbaud Poems somewhat common with Buddhists Pathway

was, that his approach to be a Boyant (Seer / Watcher) in Alchemy of Life was,

to examine the own mind again and again, deeper and deeper, exposing everything

like a dissected dead body = effectively made his own mind (and the life) a completely

detached dried object.  Detachment while having cut-off the Emotion, will lose 

the tag of the SELF, hence creating a state of mind, similar to the Buddhists’ Selflessness.

(This process is very similar to the Hinayana Buddhists practice  = Process of  Self-denial )

And as Rimbaud’s subject, include his own life became a detached object without the 

emotional attachment, it was described as a metaphorical object or the Symbol =

thence his poetry was called Symbolism.  (This detachment was the self-alienation too, so that

Rimbaud called the state of mind before, as a slumber of the animal

—– he missed it with tears, but it was too late) > 

[]

The modern trend of the art then, Symbolism, Surrealism and Dadaism were all try 

to find the way to express “True reality” of the existence or the human mind.

So that, all of them created uniquely formed style, since they thought that to express

straight as perceived, couldn’t show the reality or truth. —– with the idea of Freud,

they thought, since there was something behind of our mind, there couldn’t be the

straight raw expression (so, they tried autonomous writing “Automatism” etc with

futile results.)   What common in those attempt was that they tried to replace the 

subjects with something related or not so related.  =

Symbolism used the objects somewhat related or looks like, as a metaphor.  

Surrealism tried with unexpected one and Dadaism denied any connection. 

[]

Though, there was an inherent trouble departing with raw expression = as it was

a two-step conversion, first, it needed to observe the feeling, then to find a symbol to

replace it = When the original mind, perception was “observed”, its Subject became

an OBJECT = It mean, he is no longer the innocent author. —– Even if it was the

own mind/perception, it was now the separate entity = OBJECT.

(For instance, even a hot love, when it was observed as an OBJECT and written down

like a stage act, down to the every movements of sexual act, it is no longer the love but

the words in the pages of DOCUMENT. =

That was how Rimbaud’s poem “A season in Hell” was created.  And Rimbaud

described it “Je me vois me voir” = I see myself seeing myself.)

In this process, not only the own mind/perception became separate object, but crucially,

the Mind lost the connection to its “Emotion” therefore, the own mind is no longer

connected to the SELF.   His life became a Puppet show remotely played.

(Self couldn’t define the own place without having tethered to the own Emotion !)

(When Alzheimer sufferer lost the connection to the emotional region of the brain,

his/her identity, the recognition of the family also gone.)

[]

Unlike most of the Surrealists, Dadaists who has been a part-timer = “Pretender” for

the sake of their art,  Rimbaud was a full-time Symbolist, he lost the raw feeling of the

“Live-view”, hence the sizzling excitement of the life.  So, he try to sex-up the life, such

as with absinthe, heroin or to play homo-sexuality etc which didn’t bring any solution.

—– on the end, lured by a false excitement, he left to the Abyssinia.

———- (And the other trouble of the Rimbaud’s poems to a reader was, —– as they

were written as narrations, after a while, his words became the reader’s words and

gradually they seeped into the bottom of the subconscious, then “who I am” would be

slowly eroded. = in the end, we will be left in the middle of nowhere alone, without

identity = it would be our Abyssinia.)

[] * * * * * * *

Fundamental difference of Selflessness and the Detachment of Rimbaud against

the Buddhist was, —– to Rimbaud, it was the unexpected by-product.

But to the Buddhist, it was the requisite way to reach peace of life and ultimately

the Enlightenment.    In contrast, Rimbaud wanted to have a true reality of the life

which should enhance the excitement though, to became Voyant (seer / watcher) 

gave him the opposite effect.

—– ? ? ? to give a thought,  ISN’T IT strange, nobody did gave him an advice or after

100.000 years history of human culture, why such wisdom haven’t been established ?

—– then think more, ? ? ? ? ? —– Have we got a wisdom in the first place at all ?

What is the wisdom ?

—– Very basic morality ? Such as that, DON’T do wrong or bad otherwise the society,

and ultimately you will get a repercussion and suffer. —– And the way to see what is

wrong or bad. —– In reality, the burst majority of the practical detail on the

“life’s how to do” is open to the person to experiment on the spot, and find the answer

by themselves. = It’s mean that existing / ready-made “Wisdom” is not more than an

Opinion, since even the people, so-called “Burst majority”, among them, non of two

Karma is the same, and operating strictly individual base.   This was the reason why,

Lord Buddha ordered to his disciples “Don’t believe what others said. Think yourself”=

Simply because, the answer will be different, person to person.

—– (This was originally intended to be the 700th post —– though, it gone to banana.   😀 )

[]

 

New Year’s Card Design for 2015 (Free from Japan Post)

Yet another big provider of the free card design is the Japan Post (日本郵便).

This year, they got the Anime Character style designer ! — Cute ! 

Their Web Link is — << http://yubin-nenga.jp/index.html >> — though,

they are offering so many services from Card design to Blush writing Program,

so that, without Japanese reading, it’s not easy to use their site. — added trouble

was that the downloaded image is very hard to use with its compatibility = they

push the user to use their Mailing Service = Mailing can gather the information

of the sender and addressee’s real name, address, on top of the banking info’. =

Very valuable reliable info’ = can make big business !   😦

Above photo left got blush drawing —– I think it was

an ancient Pictgram  (origin of the Chinese letter)  of the sheep.

Manga, Anime is now almost a global young culture.  

And their cute character is not only for the Otaku now.

(But don’t count me in.  😀  )

M

M

M

M

M

 So,—– hope us to have A Happy New Year, 

 with or without, pretty Anime Costume Player.

M

M

New Year’s Card Design for 2015 / Sheep Year ( Free from Canon )

Those card designs were provided by the Canon of printer.  🙂  

(Why Printer division is such generous, you may read last year’s post =

https://yoshizen.wordpress.com/2013/11/23/2014-japanese-new-years-card-design-free-from-canon/

You may better go their site to see and download from 1000 times more selection.

http://cp.c-ij.com/ja/event/nenga/index.html   > —– Their front page

Their site is in Japanese though, its layout and function is very user-friendly =

anyhow no harm would be done, just try click and see =

Formal card design, Casual card design, Design material, Blush Calligraphy, etc.etc.

http://cp.c-ij.com/ja/contents/10n202/list_45_1.html?log=nt-02   > — Casual card design

http://cp.c-ij.com/ja/contents/10n201/list_45_1.html   > —————–Formal card design

(Choose a design, Click Download —> Copy and save from the small window)

Photo above, Left = you may see white blush calligraphy or pictogram, it was

the ancient graphical depiction of  a goat/sheep and from this, a letter [未]was

made though, this letter [未] was used only to tell yearly guardian’s case.  

Normally, we use a letter [羊] for a Sheep/Ram. (Goat got another letters［野羊］)

Those Link also provide Free Design Templates.

They are reputed, trouble-free good site.  = Worth visiting.  🙂

http://www.designbank-nenga.com/

http://nengarank.com/html/index.html

http://www.wanpagu.com/top_illustration.html

As long as you use those design for your personal purpose, it would be no problem.

( But sending out thousands of customers from your company is a business. ) 

So, prepare a greeting for the coming New Year 2014 ! 

[]

Selfridge’s Xmas decoration for 2014 (it was)

I know, it was a bit (very) slow to upload.  Still, they are the 2014 annual Xmas  

decoration of the Selfridge.  As expected, Oxford Street was very noisy and vibrant.  

—– those Steel band musician were the first people I saw wearing Santa’s

costume on this year.  (As people fed-up, it must be out of fashion.)

Selfridge put an explanation of the concept / story though, — ? ? ? who read it ?

So, I have no idea what about those decoration meant.  😀

And those decorations are quite mysterious and bizarre.   😀

Last one of those circular image was not by fisheye lens.  

It was a reflection of me on a mirror ball.  🙂

I guess, you opened all the presents received. (did you ?)

What ever, enjoy a holiday.

(The lens used were, Canon EF Fisheye Zoom 8-15mm F2.8 , EF Zoom 24-70mm F2.8

on Canon 5D Mk-III )

[]