August Moon

August Moon   (In few days time it would be a new moon —– so, a solar eclipse is coming.)      In Japan 15th August is the Moon Festival though, in the Moon Calender, it will be in the September.  But I’m not sure how many people still remember it.  —– They might be thinking more, if north Korean missile is coming when they see the sky now. —— Lunatic isn’t it.

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PS : The photo above which was taken by the Tamron SP 500 mm F8 Mirror lens shows the Red and Blue fringe = it is a chromatic aberration.     This is a reputed to be one of the best 500 mm mirror lens in the history, —– I couldn’t accept such flaw in this lens = I may need to check if any loose element in the lens occurred ?   (By the way, why this photo is not as sharp as the other photo “Red Moon” is, this one was taken through double grazed window —– Red Moon was taken while window was fully opened.  😀  )

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Oleander

This is a tree flower which I have deep attachment, hence I want to see more here = though, strangely she was not planted often.  Probably because people afraid of the poison of this plant.   In deed, if you feed the handful leaves to the animal (cow or goat kind) the animal would die easily = strange contradiction is, its poison (Oleandrin) has very similar effect to the poison of Foxglove (Digitalis / Digitoxin = Very strong stimulant and or poison to the heart) —– yet you can see the Foxglove everywhere even though Foxglove can kill you too.
The reason why I feel such attachment to this flower was, she was associated with some poets who I respect, — and its poisonous nature.    When I was small, my hero was the Ninja or humanoid Robot, not a Superman kind of American comic fantasy.  So, we kids practiced how to make a rope to climb a wall or the formula to make a poison.  (still, I never heard of any accident with those poisons = Japanese got necessary knowledges —– idiot can’t be a Ninja = we kids wanted to master the real skill, not dreaming in a silly fantasy to fly a sky.)

Very remarkable fact of this plant, Nerium Oleander (夾竹桃、キョウチクトウ）is, that this plant has the will and the ability to survive while eliminating other plant with its poison.  Oleander was the plant first revived and flowered on the literally scorched ground of the Hiroshima, after that atomic bomb.   Hence, she was named and honoured as the Flower of the Hiroshima. —– (Hidden message here might not be a flowering peace but a kept poison / we never forget.)

(Those photos were taken by a homemade lens nicknamed “koda-fun lens” with or without extension ring.)
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Zeiss — Who ?

You may noticed that I have some Carl Zeiss lenses.   Some for the late Contax SLR, others for Sony A7, there is even a Nikon mount type as well.  (Old collection of the Hasselblad lenses are all German Zeiss, of course.)  While thinking to get new toys, I’ve checked E’bay listing.   Then, I become aware of the almost chaotic situation.   On the E’bay, many of the quite similar Zeiss lenses were listed-up.  (You can see it by yourself) = Since the Carl Zeiss is a lens manufacturer, no longer a camera maker themselves, they’ve been supplying the lenses for each cameras, such as for the  Contax or Hasselblad.  When there was the production of Contax SLR, the camera was made by the Japanese Yashica and the lenses were originally made in Germany.  (then lens production was moved to Japan — said to be to the Tomioka Optics. —– I’m proud to have my Contax lenses were all made in Germany !) 

Now a days, Zeiss is supplying the lenses to Sony and the Leiz Wetzlar is making the lenses for Panasonic Lumix camera (Leiz is making their own Leica camera while making only hand full number of them by literally hand-carving the aluminium shell and put the Panasonic inside.) (and both Zeiss and Leiz are doing well though they themselves are not making the lens at all = just giving the license. (I’m not sure even the design may not to be by Zeiss, just an agreed common computer program —– So, I wonder how the Zeiss has been survived when there wasn’t much of the Japanese business — such as after Contax business closed, but Sony business yet to be started. ) 

Considering the harsh reality that the virtually all the camera  in the world were made by the Japanese, it’s mean, if there wasn’t a Japanese business, there wasn’t any sale of even just a license. —– So, this was the back ground of Zeiss lenses’ chaos.  The Zeiss was making the lenses for the Nikon, Canon etc mount and selling them as an independent lens manufacturer (like Sigma).  As a results, there are so many almost the same but different types of Zeiss lenses in the market. (If you Google = “Zeiss lens, Ebay” you can see mountain of them.  (Though, even the same Sony E-mount, some may work, others may not and only for manual use.   And many of them were for cropped (APS-c) image size — and is not necessary high quality (made in China or Thailand) — have look the top photo left, even an iris is not symmetric round — still, this lens was sold over £600.)  —– What a hell.  Is Zeiss myth still live and exists ? —– or just a ghost ?    😦

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Onion Business

Some time, I had to buy the onions from a street open stole, which has been wet by the passing shower.   Of course I have a choice to go to super market but I’m not such fussy.  (The same onion could be half of the price on the street — still, it would be only a matter of 10P 20P kind of money.) —– Then what will happen to that wet onion IS a bit different story. = I peel off all the wet skin and made them dry.   With wet skin, onion would get rotten easily = so, why not to make them naked. —– You might say why DO I choose to have so much trouble,  just because I didn’t buy dry onions from a roofed shop while paying 10P more. —– Is that true ?    AM I doing  more with wet onions ?    Whether it is a dry one or wet onion, we need to peel off exactly the same number of the skin = only the difference IS to do it now in advance or later.     Without seeing this, most of the people who saw my naked onion just got shocked.  Very Very funny.   😀    This IS the typical sample of,  how our mind was stacked with a preconception and couldn’t see even a plain truth. —– Open your eyes.   😀

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Remove the reflection

After I published the post “Instamatic Macro” I received a mail asking me how I could manage to eliminate the reflection inside of the shiny Macro Tube.   The man was a reader who read my old post “ Tiny Life ” long time ago and in fact, he made the same Macro adapter using similar aluminium can, but having the trouble from the internal reflection. 

(He said that he splayed the inside with a Mat Black Splay Paint though, even with such paint, the surface was pretty smooth and making rather high reflection which is ruining the image.)  On top of the smooth surface, the inside of the round pipe acting like a converging mirror, making a hot bright-spot in the center of the image.  (Hence, its reflection created the images in the previous Post —– though, those photos were the exaggerated reflection from a shiny metal pipe, not from the real macro tube.   😀 )

There are the several method to eliminate the internal reflection = Applying a good Black Velvet is the one, though to glue-up a soft cloth inside of a small can is a very awkward task.   ( I can guaranty you struggle — I know, as I did it before.   😀  )     Proper design will put the proper light barrier discs, though, to insert the full-size disc need to have a full opening of the pipe-end.   Bend and insert a semi-flexible disc (ring) and make it stand in the position is the other way.   (Still, not easy though.)

—– What I did was, to insert a paper spiral inside.   I made a spiral using a semi-soft (stiffer than drawing paper) = (First, made the 3 paper rings which got 2 mm larger  diameter of the can’s internal diameter— then cut and connect them to make a spiral) Then this spiral was slipped inside of the can.  (It needs a good rotating manoeuvre ! ) (I made a paper tool to catch and move the spiral = Photo left.  And how to use it = Photo right.)  —– when the spiral settled in the good position where all the reflection and the glare was shielded, fix the position using a glue.  = Job done !   (for the clarity sake, in the photos, the edge of the spiral has not been painted black. —– I hope, you can see how to work-out this game.)

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PS : For an educational purpose,  I’ll show you the scene behind. Photo left was the same mosquito but without having a reflection eliminated.      And the photo right was how the spiral inside of the macro tube looks like.

 

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Reflectgraphy

Those images were the products of which I didn’t intend or a by-product occurred in the other process.

You will see what I was doing on the next post.







Half of the Photography said to be made just by chance encounter — may be true.  😀

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Instamatic Macro

Well, as I suggested in the previous post that  25 mm lens of 110 Instamatic camera is suited for macro use = So, I made a lens.

No doubt, this must be the most funny looking lens among my homemade lenses, since the material I used was a water bottle for bicycle.  (No problem, it only costed me £1)   The lens was fixed on the cap in the reversed direction, and with its about 17 cm extension, its makes about x6 magnification of the image.

Photo left was  a dead mosquito I found in the kitchen.    I’m not happy with its bit blurry image (available light with 1/3 sec exposure —– at moment I’m not using my Sony with flash light = no synchro-socket, nor adapter) —– anyhow, I need to go out to see something small insects or a kind.  (Photography is a kind of life live on the leg. = You can’t do it while sitting.)   😀

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Instamatic Camera (and its 25mm lens)

I found a dear old 110 type Kodak Instamatic Camera (together with their 126 type brother as well) in a junk-box of a camera shop.  This camera shoot 12×18 mm size image with its 25 mm lens. = So, it is possible to put this lens onto Sony A7 camera and see small round image though, if it was a case, have a test on the original camera with a film would be more worthwhile. 

But what I was thinking was, try to expand the image by adding a diverging lens on front (make it to a retrofocus type lens).

But, while disassembling this camera, I was amazed how the designer made this camera complicated.  (Due to the camera has to do so many tasks = wind the film, charge the shutter, rotate the Flash-cube, change the shutter speed for bright or cloudy day, together with shutter click then return the mechanism to the first state) —– Once disassembled, never able to put it back again !   (In comparison to today’s “One time use camera” which is doing about the same with much simpler mechanism,  they looks almost like a hell.)

With an added diverging lens, its became about 32 mm lens though, the image circle didn’t come wide enough to cover the full frame.  (I need to find even stronger diverging lens.)  (Lens quality was just usable with such modification.) 

PS : As I said above, I further tested that 25 mm lens with much stronger diverging lens (which has been used for other “Fancy lens” before) = With stronger diverging power, the lens could have much longer back-focus = hence larger image circle which can cover the full frame.  The image quality of the center was usable though the corner became very bad. —– Then I gave a thought, —– for a technical challenge, I found a sort of the answer though, ? ? ?   DO I need to use this lens ?   = On the end it became rather big = While having Very tiny omnifocus “Fun camera lens” etc, why do I need to use such lens ?  —– The reason why I started to use Sony A7 was, that I can go for shooting with my camera and 3~4 lenses all in my pocket ! =  May be this Kodak 25 mm lens suite only for macro use !

So, I tested this Kodak 25 mm lens as a macro lens, while mounting it on the reverse direction —– with 18 cm extension  = The results wasn’t too bad.  😀

(Photo left was a close-up shot (about  x7) of a Butterfly Wing.  Photo right were the screen of the tablet.)

—– Not so much dramatic outcome though, it was still a fun for one afternoon.  😀

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July Moon

I don’t think I got any obligation to follow the moon — still, as I saw it, and I took pictures.  ( but very brief moment.)  I think may be I saw it less than a minuets or two. 

And when I mounted my 500mm lens onto the camera, soon she disappeared behind the clouds and never come out again.) —– ?  so, what’s the problem ? 

Nothing.    (I just missed the photo. —– What’s the problem ?   Nothing )

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Throw a stone

The words here “Throw a stone” is a metaphor or a symbol indicating that there is a meaning behind of such action — in Zen term, a Direct Transmission.  Why Direct Transmission ? — Because the words couldn’t convey the meaning behind or such meaning would be lost if it was expressed in the words. 

After many years, I suddenly realized that Lord Buddha never spoken about the Concept or the Idea conceived in the mind other than in the metaphoric stories.  His teachings were doing or show what or how to do.  And never explained what its action for or meanings of it.  So that, the Disciples were guessing or making their own interpretation if not their own understanding. —– The most of the scriptures were such kind of interpretations or guess-works and very little real teachings of Buddha was recorded because of very few could manage to catch the meaning behind, let alone describe them in the scripture.  (So that, the Buddhism has been surrounded by the mountain of buzz-words created by a superficial capturing such as Selfless, No-thinking, Mushin, Dedication, Self-sacrifice, Detauchment, No-greed, No-emotion, No-fear, Mindfulness, Middle way, — etc etc.)

In deed, Lord Buddha didn’t teach  the meaning or the intention behind of his teachings.  BECAUSE to explain such meaning WILL destroy the teaching itself. (It was recorded in the scripture typically as “Unanswered Questions” =  the abstract, imaginary notions such as an idea of  SELF or theoretical existence like an Infinity, were completely ignored by him.)

—– Do something, JUST do something without do other than DO, = such as to take a bicycle and ride, and go shopping.  When you do such riding, you ARE not thinking how to ride, how to push the feet or take a balance = because, you do it without any conscious “Let alone any conscious of I’m DOING the bicycle ride” = In fact, you ARE doing it without your SELF.  AS this IS the evidence of that the SELF IS not exists, and the idea of the SELF was a creation of your conscious or IMAGINATION.  Since the SELF is not exists, the notion or its word is not exists either (in other words, they were INTENTIONALY created to deal with those notion.) = Therefore, it IS not possible to explain the idea of “There is no SELF” = you can’t explain this without using the notion or the word SELF other than you yourself realize that you ARE riding the bicycle without the conscious of SELF.  Lord Buddha taught his followers to learn it through the action (or a kind of repeating practice — mind you there wasn’t a bicycle then.  😀 ) —– still, how his teachings was successful or succeeded was quite questionable = AND as he was aware of it, he had to leave the very last words “Don’t take the other’s words, learn it by YOURSELF” —– The history of the Buddhism showed nothing but the silly misunderstanding or more precisely the lack of understanding among the followers since then.   (I’ll show it with the most typical sample of “Middle way” in the next post.)

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