Good Things Topic.

[villagefarang]

Villagefarang,

I find your photos excellent. Keep them coming. Yours are the best photos I've seen on any Thai forum. The clouds are magnificant, the colors superb and the general composition professional. Not at all bad for a mere villager.

I'm looking forward to my visit to Chiang Rai towards the end of the year, provided there is no major flood disruption. I've bought a Panasonic FZ-200 with 25-600mm/F2.8 lens for the occasion. Hope my bicycle doesn't get stuck in the mud in the unsealed roads in the coutryside.

Cheers!

Extremely generous comment Vincent though I’m not sure entirely deserved. After all, Mother Nature does all the hard work. All I do is steal a moment in time and post it for others to enjoy.

You are giving me gear envy with talk of lenses. By the time any major flooding might hit Bangkok, things are long back to normal up North. You shouldn’t have any bicycle worries up here.

[sceadugenga]

The digital camera changed many of us from occasional holiday snappers into wannabe pro's.

The ability to fire away in the general direction of the subject then pick the best results out for keepers as opposed to having to pay for every shot then wait for them to be developed was one of the great recreational technological advances of the last few years in my opinion.

[VincentRJ]

The digital camera changed many of us from occasional holiday snappers into wannabe pro's.

The ability to fire away in the general direction of the subject then pick the best results out for keepers as opposed to having to pay for every shot then wait for them to be developed was one of the great recreational technological advances of the last few years in my opinion.

That's all very true. Years ago, I used to shoot the occasional roll of film sparingly. A single roll of 36 exposures would sometimes lasts me several days or even weeks. During the first year using my first digital camera I took more photos than in my entire life previously when shooting with film.

However, many folks using Point & Shoot cameras, and even some using DSLRs, allow the camera to do all the processing. As a consequence, skies are often too bright and blown out, other areas of the scene too insipid, and shadows often too dark.

Villagefarang knows what he's doing. I'd guess that he mostly shoots RAW, gets the exposure right, perhaps even brackets exposure to merge to HDR, processes the RAW images in Aperture, gets the sky looking as dramatic as it looked before he took the shot, and even improves upon the colors. Not only that, he's got a great sense of composition which greatly adds to the overall appeal of his images.

Well done, Villagefarang!

[VincentRJ]

You are giving me gear envy with talk of lenses.

VF, I usually use DSLRs for my photography, but this Panasonic FZ-200 with its constant F2.8 lens up to 600mm (equivalent) seems ideal for carrying around on a bicycle in the hills around Chiang Rai. However, I might just bring my Nikon D800E as a back-up.

If I succeed in getting photos as good as yours, I'll be happy.

[villagefarang]

You are giving me gear envy with talk of lenses.

VF, I usually use DSLRs for my photography, but this Panasonic FZ-200 with its constant F2.8 lens up to 600mm (equivalent) seems ideal for carrying around on a bicycle in the hills around Chiang Rai. However, I might just bring my Nikon D800E as a back-up.

If I succeed in getting photos as good as yours, I'll be happy.

VincentRJ, I agree with your views on photography and the necessity of a little tender loving care to bring out the best in a photograph, while helping it more closely resemble what was seen and experienced by the photographer.

You are correct about me shooting in RAW these days but I have never posted any HDR shots. With my camera (Canon S90) and skill set, I just wasn’t all that happy with my HDR results so have left that as something to try again later.

Just had a look at the FZ and I must say it sounds tempting. I may have a look while I am in Hawaii later this year. I could see it hanging from my utility belt, where I carry my water bottle, and not being too much in the way.

While I greatly appreciate your lavish praise, I fear it may result in a certain level of heartburn and discomfort for some on the forum. Since I am not the kind of person who revels in the anguish of others, perhaps we could continue our more complimentary interactions through PMs, emails, G+ or my blog and populate the forum with more generic comments. Your contribution to the forum is greatly appreciated and I hope you will become a regular.

Edited September 13, 2012 by villagefarang

[VincentRJ]

You are giving me gear envy with talk of lenses.

VF, I usually use DSLRs for my photography, but this Panasonic FZ-200 with its constant F2.8 lens up to 600mm (equivalent) seems ideal for carrying around on a bicycle in the hills around Chiang Rai. However, I might just bring my Nikon D800E as a back-up.

If I succeed in getting photos as good as yours, I'll be happy.

VincentRJ,

While I greatly appreciate your lavish praise, I fear it may result in a certain level of heartburn and discomfort for some on the forum. Since I am not the kind of person who revels in the anguish of others, perhaps we could continue our more complimentary interactions through PMs, emails, G+ or my blog and populate the forum with more generic comments. Your contribution to the forum is greatly appreciated and I hope you will become a regular.

VF, Your great humility does you credit.

[VincentRJ]

VF, Your great humility does you credit.

:->

That has to be the funniest statement I have seen in this forum for a long long time.

What! You mean VillageFarang is not a humble person with great compassion for those snap-shooters who proudly display poorly composed, poorly exposed and poorly processed images, in the hope they will receive the usually accolade of "Great shot!", "Nice shot!" etc.

I get the impression that VillageFarang has the compassion that one associates with Buddhism. I might even suspect he's been influenced by his good wife in this respect.

[skybluestu]

Vincent, you are absolutely right! VF is an excellent photographer and takes some fantastic pictures but I feel his talents are wasted on the sort of folk who hang about on the CR forum, surely he'd be appreciated more in the photography forum?

Sent from my GT-I9003 using Thaivisa Connect App

[VincentRJ]

Vincent, you are absolutely right! VF is an excellent photographer and takes some fantastic pictures but I feel his talents are wasted on the sort of folk who hang about on the CR forum, surely he'd be appreciated more in the photography forum?

Sent from my GT-I9003 using Thaivisa Connect App

Vincent, you are absolutely right! VF is an excellent photographer and takes some fantastic pictures but I feel his talents are wasted on the sort of folk who hang about on the CR forum, surely he'd be appreciated more in the photography forum?

Sent from my GT-I9003 using Thaivisa Connect App

I'm not sure his talents are wasted here. We all need standards to aspire to, and in this case Villagefarang provides them. That's a good thing, and we should all be grateful.

As someone who is generally interested in Thailand, but put off by the enormous congestion in Bangkok, and to a lesser extent in Chiang Mai, I find places like Chiang Rai and Maehongson very attractive.

Villagefarang, with his photos, has given us a better insight into the beauties of Chiang Rai than one normally gets with the average snap-shot, for which I'm grateful.

[villagefarang]

What a gracious comment Stu. The thing is, I just have so much love to give it would be unfair to deprive anyone, especially the appreciative visitors to the Chiang Rai Forum. What can I say, I just love to share the love. Besides love is never wasted.

Edited September 14, 2012 by villagefarang

[sbk]

Off topic bullying posts removed. Don't make me come moderate this forum. It won't be the outcome you hope for.

[villagefarang]

Here is an example of a good thing here in Chiang Rai. Thais come from Bangkok and beyond to enjoy retreats like this one near Huay Sak.

[Lite Beer]

Off Topic post removed.

[Lite Beer]

A provocative post has been removed.

[villagefarang]

I unknowingly walked right through this swarm of bees today. I was looking at one of our dogs and not paying attention but did notice a humming noise not unlike the tires of a big container truck interfacing with the road surface. Wondering where the truck was, I looked back and saw these little guys filling the air just behind me like a cloud. Obviously I walked right through them but they were nice enough to let me pass unmolested.

Not being stung by bees is a very good thing in my book.

[sceadugenga]

Never mind you, did you find the dog?

Did they settle somewhere and clump up?

I think that's when they get dangerous if disturbed.

Last year I had to stop the maid from knocking a swarm out of a tree with a broom.

[VincentRJ]

Not being stung by bees is a very good thing in my book.

Indeed! Might we surmise that these are Buddhist bees and therefore less aggressive?

　

Another great shot, VF. I can't help wondering if you'd been carrying one of those new Panasonic FZ-200 bridge cameras with a 600mm F2.8 lens, you might have ventured to get a few close-up, macro shots of some individual bees from the safe distance of 2 or 3 ft that the 600mm lens allows.

[pomchop]

It's really not hard to find good/interesting things around Chiang Rai. All you have to do is observe. Here's a few more:

Going to the big C premium counter and winning a bag of rice for no discernable reason.

Having a delicious meal for 60 baht, beverage and tip included.

Going into a frosty a/c room after sweating like a pig mowing the yard.

Sitting on the deck and watching it rain on my driveway like a horse pissing on a flat rock.

Learning where all the potholes are on your normal routes and how to dodge them.

Getting behind a motorbike with a side cart that is full of pigs.

Seeing Thais ride motorbikes with their dog sitting between their legs or on the back pillon.

Watching Thai gals balance sidesaddle on a motorbike while reading a book without holding on to anything.

Standing at the old Chiang Rai bus station and trying to imagine where everyone is going.

Watching the neighbors gather around a "camp" fire in the early dawn of a chilly morning.

Having the neighborhood dogs greet you every time you arrive hoping you have some restaurant leftovers for them.

Having cute little thai kids wai you.

Taking a bite of something that seems to be coated in liquid fire and having thais laugh at you..

Wondering if it is pretty much the same thai people who go to the saturday walking street every saturday.

Listening to other farangs in a restaurant talking and trying to identify the accent...and guessing correctly.

Buying a dozen roses for less than the cost of a beer.

Taking a broken item for repair and getting a free estimate 1/4 of what you were expecting.

Hearing a pretty thai gal that drags out her ka aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah like a doctor saying ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

[villagefarang]

Pomchop, it may not be hard for you but I don’t see anyone else able to match your perceptual skills. You are the master of the observational one-liner. Thanks for another good post.

[villagefarang]

Not being stung by bees is a very good thing in my book.

Indeed! Might we surmise that these are Buddhist bees and therefore less aggressive?

　

Another great shot, VF. I can't help wondering if you'd been carrying one of those new Panasonic FZ-200 bridge cameras with a 600mm F2.8 lens, you might have ventured to get a few close-up, macro shots of some individual bees from the safe distance of 2 or 3 ft that the 600mm lens allows.

A friend on Facebook suggested I was perhaps not sweet enough to get their attention.

What is you opinion of the Canon G1X? It seems to have the biggest chip for this kind of camera. I am still not sure what I might choose for my next upgrade.

Edited September 17, 2012 by villagefarang

[VincentRJ]

A friend on Facebook suggested I was perhaps not sweet enough to get their attention.

What is you opinion of the Canon G1X? It seems to have the biggest chip for this kind of camera. I am still not sure what I might choose for my next upgrade.

There's no doubt that the Canon G1X would provided better image quality than the FZ-200, within its focal length range of 28-112mm. If that maximum focal length of 112mm is sufficient for your needs, then the G1X would be a better upgrade because its sensor is significantly larger than either the FZ-200 or your Canon S90 (or is it the S95 you currently use?).

　

The larger sensor of the G1X (about 9x larger in area than the FZ-200 sensor) will definitely produce images with lower noise, especially at high ISO, than either the S95 or the FZ-200.

　

However, the FZ-200 has some advantages which the G1X cannot even nearly match, and that is its long focal length at F2.8. If you need a 200mm lens, or a 400mm or 600mm lens to photograph the Rhesus monkeys as they swing through the trees, the G1X will likely not pass muster.

　

Even if you were close enough to to get a good shot at 112mm, the maximum aperture of the G1X at 112mm is F5.8, over 2 stops smaller than the FZ-200 at F2.8. That means, for the same high shutter speed needed to freeze the movement of the monkeys, you would have to raise ISO by 2 stops, which would increases noise and result in an image which would perhaps be only slightly better than the same shot from the FZ-200.

　

I can understand the dilemma. For me the decision is simple. When I buy the FZ-200, I'm buying a very lightweight 600mm F2.8 lens. The FZ-200 is not going to be my sole camera that meets all needs.

　

When it comes to cameras, I'm a bit like a Muslim who needs 4 wives. One for doing the shopping and cooking meals, one for general house-keeping, one to attend to the garden, and the other for..... well you know what.

[villagefarang]

Thanks for the long reply. I am still up in the air but image quality is an important factor for me moving forward.

[VincentRJ]

Thanks for the long reply. I am still up in the air but image quality is an important factor for me moving forward.

VF,

The quality of the images you've posted on this forum look just fine to me, so I presume you mean you are interested in better technical quality as you move forward, such as higher resolution, higher dynamic range and lower noise, all of which will be useful if you intend making prints larger than A3+ size, or if you intend making enlargements from crops of your images.

An alternative to the G1X you might want to consider, is the Sony DSC-RX100 which also has a significantly larger sensor than most P&S cameras, but not quite the size of the G1X.

The advantages of the Sony RX100 are its greater number of pixels, 20mp as opposed to the 15mp of the G1X, its lighter weight (less than half the weight of the G1X), its larger maximum aperture at 28mm, which is F1.8 as opposed to the F2.8 of the G1X., and its higher dynamic range at base ISO, which is surprising considering that the Sony RX100 sensor is less than half the area of the G1X sensor. This just goes to show how much Canon is lagging behind in this DR aspect of technical performance.

The advantages of using a camera with a high Dynamic Range capability are most apparent during post-processing. If you've reduced exposure to capture the amazing cloud detail in the skies of Chiang Rai, as many of your images show, the shadows can sometimes be very dark and noisy if the camera has poor dynamic range. The RX100 would have a noticeable advantage in this respect, compared with the G1X.

The wider maximum aperture of the RX100 across the whole range from 28mm to 100mm, will also tend to offset any noise advantage the G1X might have as a result of its larger sensor, assuming the same shutter speed is used. For example, the RX100 at F2 and ISO 100 should provided better image quality than the G1X at F2.8 and ISO 200. Dynamic Range will be better by about 1&1/2 stops, SNR will be about the same and resolution should be marginally better.

How do I know? Check out the comparisons at the DXOMark website.

　

http://www.dxomark.com/index.php/Cameras/Compare-Camera-Sensors/Compare-cameras-side-by-side/(appareil1)/812%7C0/(brand)/Sony/(appareil2)/769%7C0/(brand2)/Canon/(appareil3)/667%7C0/(brand3)/Canon

Cheers!

[VincentRJ]

Oops! That URL is too long. Hope this works.

http://tinyurl.com/8wkep4u

[villagefarang]

Thanks for the long reply. I am still up in the air but image quality is an important factor for me moving forward.

VF,

The quality of the images you've posted on this forum look just fine to me, so I presume you mean you are interested in better technical quality as you move forward, such as higher resolution, higher dynamic range and lower noise, all of which will be useful if you intend making prints larger than A3+ size, or if you intend making enlargements from crops of your images.

An alternative to the G1X you might want to consider, is the Sony DSC-RX100 which also has a significantly larger sensor than most P&S cameras, but not quite the size of the G1X.

The advantages of the Sony RX100 are its greater number of pixels, 20mp as opposed to the 15mp of the G1X, its lighter weight (less than half the weight of the G1X), its larger maximum aperture at 28mm, which is F1.8 as opposed to the F2.8 of the G1X., and its higher dynamic range at base ISO, which is surprising considering that the Sony RX100 sensor is less than half the area of the G1X sensor. This just goes to show how much Canon is lagging behind in this DR aspect of technical performance.

The advantages of using a camera with a high Dynamic Range capability are most apparent during post-processing. If you've reduced exposure to capture the amazing cloud detail in the skies of Chiang Rai, as many of your images show, the shadows can sometimes be very dark and noisy if the camera has poor dynamic range. The RX100 would have a noticeable advantage in this respect, compared with the G1X.

The wider maximum aperture of the RX100 across the whole range from 28mm to 100mm, will also tend to offset any noise advantage the G1X might have as a result of its larger sensor, assuming the same shutter speed is used. For example, the RX100 at F2 and ISO 100 should provided better image quality than the G1X at F2.8 and ISO 200. Dynamic Range will be better by about 1&1/2 stops, SNR will be about the same and resolution should be marginally better.

Cheers!

You obviously know much more about cameras than I do. I shoot primarily landscape in part because my camera isn’t suited for much else but also because that is what I enjoy. I am not the type who considers one type of photography superior to another.

Without a zoom, I do a lot of cropping of the larger image to isolate the best part of a photo. I just want more detail to work with in the post-processing that I do. I don’t do prints and only post online where images get modified a bit anyway by the hosting sites, I would guess. I just figure the more raw data I have to work with the better the end result.

Size and weight are also important as most of my shots are taking on the Mt. Bike or motorcycle. Thanks for your insight and for the link.

[zzdocxx]

Hey are all those people taking a nap?

Or just what?

PS I mean the ones laying on their backs on those mats and so forth.

Edited September 20, 2012 by zzdocxx

[villagefarang]

Here is an example of a good thing here in Chiang Rai. Thais come from Bangkok and beyond to enjoy retreats like this one near Huay Sak.

Hey are all those people taking a nap?

Or just what?

PS I mean the ones laying on their backs on those mats and so forth.

That is a well known Buddhist meditation retreat on the road between Chiang Rai and Thoeng. If you look closely at the tree in the front and follow it half way up, you will see at the back of the group, a man in a white hat and a woman holding a microphone and a script which she is reading. In theory everyone is listening to her and following her instructions, but clearly many people are snoring away, catching up on some much needed sleep.

[villagefarang]

It is a good thing, when you find yourself in a ditch and a backhoe comes along to help get you out.

[AjarnP]

And the driver fled the scene. 555

[sceadugenga]

I was in an accident just outside Wiang Papao a couple of years back where our car got cleaned up by one of those very basic "trucks".

About a dozen field workers on the back disappeared before the police turned up, which they did very quickly when the word got out farang were involved.

They got the driver though... no license, no registration or insurance, plus he was an illegal immigrant.