35mm VS 50mm : Eternal Rivals

We bought a DSLR or CSC (Mirrorless / DSLM), we were very pleased with it, until few weeks, days, or even hours ago when we wanted more from our beloved camera. Almost all of the entry or mid-level DSLR / CSC are shipped with a standard zoom kit lens, and most of the time those are good enough for starters or practice. But as we hone our photography skill, gaining experience, and getting more and more used to our cameras, some of us may feel that the kit lens has its limits, and probably can't do the things we want. The solution for this problem is quite simple probably, you just need to buy a new lens, but with that comes a new array of questions as I've written in my previous post "Picking The Right Lens", you can use that guide to contemplate then decide which lens will suit you the best.

In this post however, I'm gonna write about my past experience when I was going to buy the third lens for my current camera (Olympus OMD E-M10 Mk.1). Here's the situation, I already had the standard zoom lens (14-42mm F3.5-5.6) and the telephoto zoom lens (40-150mm F4-5.6), so I planned to buy a prime (fixed) lens to compensate the small aperture of my previous lenses. Long story short, I was tortured to choose between a standard prime lens or macro lens. I love photographing flowers so a macro lens would probably suit me the best, but then again you can use a telephoto lens to get 'above average' result when it comes to flowers. Plus many experts recommend to get a standard prime lens for an all-rounder, especially when the lighting is not working in your favor. Ultimately, I decided to get a standard prime lens first, before buying a macro lens (hopefully in near future).

When it comes to the 'standard' focus length, there are two most famous focal lengths, 35mm and 50mm, but which is BETTER? Well, you can read many photography books or magazines, read reviews and people's opinions,  but still not getting a satisfying answer, many will say that 35mm is the better choice, while others say 50mm is the 'nifty-fifty' and better than the 35mm. My answer? Again, it depends on your needs and what you like to photograph.

So, why do 35mm and 50mm are called the 'STANDARD' lens? Simply because those focal lengths are the closest to our vision / field of view (what you see through your eyes). For example, imagine that you're looking to your monitor, your eyes are focused on looking at the pictures on the monitor. Sure enough you can still see... let's say a Mac Mini on the left of your monitor, a glass half-filled with two-hours-old instant coffee in front of it, and a pile of comic books on your right, but because your eyes are focused on the monitor, other things seemed blurry / unfocused. 35mm and 50mm lenses will produce image similar to what you see right now, with some differences though.

• 50 mm : only takes the FOCUS part of your vision, so from the example above if your eyes are focused on the monitor, then a camera with 50mm lens will only take a photo of the monitor, with (maybe) a bit of area around it.

• 35 mm : takes almost the same picture as your vision / field of view including the blurry part (in your eyes, not in the camera). From the example above, we can safely assume that the camera will take photos of the monitor, along with the Mac Mini, glass, and also the pile of comic books.

Note : rest assured, the 35mm lens will not take photos that are blurry on the edges (unless you do it on purpose), this is just a depiction to make you easier to understand how broad those focal lengths are.

35mm & 50mm : Both are equally good, trying to say that one's better is like trying to decide which one is first, egg or chicken? It's pointless

In the end, both are good for your everyday all-rounder lens, but each of them still has their own unique use :

• 35mm pluses vs 50mm
• More suitable for all-rounder lens considering its broader range
• More suitable for scenery and landscapes, and for taking photos of larger group of people
• Street photography will also benefit from the 35mm because you can fit more subjects / objects into a photo

35mm for potrait, but the point is to get more of the scenery
behind the subject rather than the subject herself
(Photo courtesy of : www.petapixel.com)

• 50mm pluses vs 35mm
• Can be used as backup potrait lens, because it has less distortion than 35mm
• If your objects are quite far, this lens may help you because of its longer reach
• Can also be used for taking scenery / landscapes, but a more focused one (this might be good in some cases, as the audience might have better understanding about what you try to show)
• The entry-level 50mm lenses are USUALLY cheaper than the 35mm (albeit not by much)

Used my E-M10 & Panasonic Leica 25mm (50mm) for this
shot, coupled with a bit of digital zoom, enabled me to get
reasonably close to the objects

ONE FINAL NOTE, The 50mm and 35mm I talk about are the focal length in FULL-FRAME camera, so if your camera has smaller sensor, make sure to multiply the focal length on the lens by its multiplier to get the 'real' focal length. For example if you have the 35mm Fujinon Lens for Fujifilm X-T10, you'll end up with 52.5mm focal length, because the sensor is APS-C, not Full Frame. Here's the multiplier for each sensor size :

• APS-C : Focal length  x  1.5, except for Canon x 1.6
• Micro Four Thirds  : Focal length  x  2
• 1 inch (Nikon 1 Series) : Focal length  x  2.7
• 1/2.3 inch (Pentax Q Series) : Focal length x 4.7 (Q7 & Q-S1), x 5.6 for others

Picking The Right Lens

One main problem when you have a DSLR or Mirrorless camera is choosing the right lens. With so many choices in the market, consumers are left confused, which is the best lens? Well one thing for sure, there is NO such thing as the best lens. Let's say there is a great quality lens that produces superb photos with body made of feather-weight super-durable carbon fibre (no, carbon fibre lens does not exist, but maybe it will in the future), but almost 100% of the time it has a super expensive price tag as well. So, there is no way to get a 'perfect' lens without paying a high price, but you CAN still get a decent or better lens while having to pay less by of course sacrificing some things in return. In the end, the art of picking lens is made up by your camera (brand, type, etc), what your needs are, and how much budget you have.

1. Camera

• What is your camera? Is it a DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex), or DSLM (Digital Single Lens Mirrorless / CSC)?

• What is your camera sensor size? Full-Frame, APS-C, Micro Four Thirds, 1 inch, or even a medium format? You can usually find this information in the product specification page of your camera's user guide, and some brands even print it on the body of the camera. You can USUALLY use bigger sensor lens for smaller one (for example : Full-Frame to APS-C), but NOT vice versa, in one condition that they're meant fot the same brand or adapter.

• What is your camera's brand? You don't really wanna accidentally buy a Sony lens for your Canon DLSR at home. Of course, there is an accessorry called 'adapter' which enables you to mix and match different type of brands, sensor sizes, and lenses (Example : Pair a Micro Four Third Panasonic CSC with a Nikon APS-C DSLR lens), BUT you usually have to sacrifice the camera's Autofocus function and even some image quality, plus matching a lens for a camera with different sensor size means different focal length which you have to count by yourself. Some more expensive adapters still enable you to use the Autofocus though, but those are rare and not available for all brand nor camera.

2. Your Needs

• What do you like to photograph? Human, nature, animals, flowers, or small objects? Different object needs different type of lenses, especially on the focal length. 

• 16 - 28mm : Ultra Wide / Wide lens, suitable for taking photos of the environment because of its wide scope. Also suitable for taking photos of lot of people and fashionscape (fashion and landscape mixed together). Beware of lens distortion though (straight lines become slightly curved, more apparent on the edge of the photos, not so in the center).
• 
  

  

  Sony 16mm (24mm) F2.8 Pancake Lens - APS-C (4 million Rupiah / US$ 305)

• 35 - 50mm : Normal Lens. This category is an all-rounder, usually suitable for any kind of shooting. Called 'normal' focal length because it has almost the same field of view with our eyes. This is usually the first choice for beginners because of its naturally wide aperture and lower price (although some premium or pro series still cost you a fortune). 
• 
  

  

  Panasonic Leica DG Summilux 25mm (50mm) F1.4 - m4/3 (6,8 million Rupiah / US$ 520)

• 75 - 150mm : Mid-Telephoto / Potrait Lens. Like its name, this category is the cream of the crop when it comes to shooting potraits. It comes back to you whether you prefer the shorter focal length (75-90mm) or the longer one (100-150mm), longer focal length usually means greater bokeh, but some prefer the shorter one so they can get more intimate with the model.
• 
  

  

  Olympus M.Zuiko 75mm (150mm) F1.8 - m4/3 (12 million Rupiah / US$ 920)

• > 200mm : Telephoto Lens. This comes with variety of focal lengths and sizes. Some are small like normal zoom lens, and some are very huge with the added benefit of stability and picture quality (and high price). Often used when you can't get too close to the subject (wild animals, birds, distant landscapes, or sports).

• 

  Nikon AF-S 300mm F2.8 - Full Frame (81 million Rupiah / US$ 6180)

• Macro Lens : Used to photograph very small objects (insects, flowers, etc) because you can get very close to the subject and the lens will still focus, paired with excellent sharpness in most cases. Comes in wide variety of focal lengths from 30mm, 45mm, 60mm, and even up to 100mm.
• 
  

  

  Panasonic Leica DG Macro-Elmarit 45mm (90mm) F2.8 - m4/3 (8,8 million Rupiah / US$ 670)

• Fisheye Lens : Even wider than the ultra wide lens, fisheye typically comes in the range of 8 - 14mm. This lens enables you to capture very wide scenery, even up to 180 degree! However, keep in mind that most fisheye lens have high distortion rate, meaning your pictures will look rounded rather than flat.
• 
  

  

  Samsung 10mm (15mm) Fisheye Lens F3.5 - APS-C (4,2 million Rupiah / US$ 320)

• You lens is an amazing stuff and its function is not only limited to one thing. You can use macro lens for potraits or telephoto to take photos of flowers, and the results might be better than you'd expect. Improvise and keep learning, because the only limit in the world of photography is your imagination.

• Fixed or Zoom Lens? Zoom Lens will give you more flexibility because you don't need to walk away or get closer to your subject when you want to recompose your photo, use this when you want to travel light and don't want to carry many lenses. The downside? Zoom lens usually has much smaller aperture than fixed lens, making indoor shots with dim light rather tricky, and makes you harder to get good bokeh (especially in short focal length). Fixed lens usually comes in smaller size, have much wider aperture than zoom lens, but trades you with flexibility where you have to move away or closer when you want to recompose your subjects, and sometimes you have less-space-than-you-desired to do it. Although with its wider aperture, shooting indoor with higher shutter speed and lower ISO is much easier.

3. Budget

• The most infamous problem, budget. You want to buy a dedicated macro lens. but it costs 1.000 bucks, while you only have 500... Still, you have some alternative solutions when budget is the issue.

• Search for third-party lens, most often than not they sell the same type of lens for quite a lot cheaper. Tamron and Sigma are the most well-known third party lens manufacturers, especially for Canon, Nikon, and Sony DSLRs. They produce many great lenses, some even better than the companies', even more they often sell them with affordable price. Some manufacturers like Samyang and Voigtlander also produce high-quality lenses but almost all of them (if not all) only come with manual focus.

• Search for second-hand products. Luck plays an uncomfortably large part in this, because finding one with decent quality and bargain price isn't always easy. Better try searching from well-known merchants, they usually sell used products for higher price than individual sellers, but the quality is more guaranteed. For individual sellers it would be much better if you could meet up and test the product yourself before deciding to buy it.

• Never lazy to browse or search, there are many merchants out there who sell the same product with different price tags. For Indonesian buyer I recommend looking at www.tokocamzone.com for 'normal' price, then search www.tokopedia.com or www.bukalapak.com, and cross your fingers you will find lower price, but make sure the merchant has good reputation and record.

First Look On Monster Hunter Generations Demo : Improvement Over Perfection.

Monster Hunter Generations is the fifth major installment in the series and although the localized version is still about two more weeks before we can get our hands on it, the demo is available to download on June 30, 2016. I downloaded it. I played it. I am now having a light scratch on an itch you so desperately want to scratch only to realize that it just gotten more itchy. You just can't wait for the game to be released.

Capcom have seriously outdone itself. I gotta admit, what they've done to the game is seriously genius. Gigantic franchises often hit the point where players will grow tired of the whole game. Die hard fans will endure and persevere. But mainstream gamers will gradually lose interest. So what will developers do? They change things. The game industry is doomed to undergo perpetual change. A certain game has changes from survival horror into a generic shooting game. A certain angry, god-slaying, demi-god grows a beard and angrily teaches his children how to hunt. Things change. Some accept, others deny. Of course, not every changes is for the better albeit every changes in game franchise development is always for the better. Compare Final Fantasy series prior to the super linear III. But Capcom though...

What Capcom has done is improving an already perfect product. That is theoretically impossible. I can't believe it myself but after about 5 hours into the demo, I can feel it. Of course, given the right team, budget and fresh IP, a team of developers can yield a great game but what is so brilliant from Capcom is the decision to include these features: Hunting Arts and Styles.

One of the three monsters to fight in the demo. This is called Malfestio.

Hunting Arts comes as special attacks or maneuvers that you can perform in a battle. The demo version comes with the arts pre-selected on each weapons we choose but I have a hunch we will be able to customize which arts you want yourself.

Styles is the main meat of the game. Styles affect your available moves for attacks and evasions. Some style are offensive, some are defensive and evasive. The styles available in the demo are:

• Guild Style

Basic, versatile and balanced. This is the old and essentially the same moveset from the previous MH series. This style allows you to equip two Hunting Arts. Honestly, I don't play this style, simply because I know most of them will be identical with the previous titles. Some weapons undergo changes in their moveset, however. Very balanced and friendly style.

• Striker Style
  

Super offensive style as it lets you perform three Hunting Arts at the expense of some original moveset of weapons omitted. This style may seem powerful but in the real fight against monsters, you gotta consider the timing of using the arts. Most arts takes a while to actually deal damage, some takes forever, even. On top of that, most of the power moves, like the full spirit combo from Long Swords and the overhand-swing charge attacks from Great Swords are missing. It kinda limits your damage output and I totally understand it for the sake of balanced gameplay. I have to say, though. Striker seems to be more oriented for Blademasters than Gunners. Blademasters will enjoy a sudden spike in their damage output given the arts manage to hit the monsters full on. Gunners, on the other hand, often has long animation and straight, narrow hitzone. I'd rather use the time to either dodge, heal or reload.

Striker Style is a shock trooper in a team. You will be whittling monster's health as you build your arts gauge. Once the gauge is full, however, Strikers will be the nuke of the team. Good thing this style lets you build the gauge faster than other styles. Try this when you use Switch Axe: *fill the phial gauge* -> use Demon Riot -> use Trance.

• Aerial Style
  

Aerial style is... tricky. I spent some time fiddling with the aerial style on Blademasters and I genuinely had a hard time. It's even worse on Gunners. Malfestio killed my archer twice. Anyway, Aerials WILL work wonders on flat, open terrain, which practically present in all MH maps. One argument, though. The monsters seem to have either increased tolerance on falling down from jumping attacks or they possess a sweet spot that needs to be hit for the attack to be counted as jumping attack. I'm not sure myself. I used Aerial in a Long Sword run and the Malfestio only falls ONCE in the span of ten minutes clearing the quest, and I did A LOT of jump attacks. This kinda bugs me over the actual effectiveness of the style. I'd personally prefer utilizing Insect Glaive for the built in vault attack OR jumping off ledges.

This style really shines in a team hunt far better than solo. Aerials are the utility guy with the task of technically dropping and mounting monsters to leave openings for the rest of the buddies for a gangbang. Now, I know I contradict myself by saying that this style is bad on Gunners, but that's just me playing it. A good gunner can actually benefit from the increased maneuverability and options from this bouncy, awkward style.

• Adept Style

Adept is the most technical of all style, and in my humble opinion, the most fun. The style suffers the same missing moveset from weapons, this limits your offense but if you're good, you can practically clear a Deviljho quest naked. You will perform the art, Absolute Evasion everytime you press the roll button a split second before a monster hits you. This takes clever memorizing of monsters' attack pattern. I ended up trying all weapons with this style. Gunners will rejoice. The paper-thin armor will benefit from the invincibility as you perform the corkscrew dodge. If my hunch is correct that you can choose your own art, then a team of three Gunners and one Hammer user with Provoke and Adept style will be virtually invincible.

Need more? Adept style lets you perform a counter attack distinct to each weapon after successfully dodging. Sword and Shield's counter move is the best. Try it.

Now, where's the genius in Capcom, you ask? Most games's new installments either suffer from missing identity and/or stale, overused concept where they used their source material too often that the game becomes boring. Recent Final Fantasy series are struggling ever since they left their classic turn-based system and end up being ambiguous in their gameplay. It feels too linear to act like western-RPG but too fast paced and action-oriented as J-RPG. Another example will be Resident Evil (Biohazard) series, which is ironically comes from Capcom itself. But in Monster Hunter Generation they add new gameplay concept. Risky. They still maintain the old gameplay (Guild style). Safe. That there, is genius.

Did I mention that you can play as your Felyne, too?

Olympus OMD E-M10, A Smart Buy

On my previous post I have stated that two months ago I wanted to change camera but had some difficulties to find the right one, mainly because of fund issue (duh! :v). My previous camera the Samsung NX2000 was a good camera, but I wanted more, here’s why :

• Samsung doesn’t offer many choices for lens / accessory, and they are quite rare to find and pricey in my country
• No viewfinder, truth be told I don't mind shooting with the LCD screen (or "Live View”) probably because of my experience with smartphone and prosumer grade camera before, but having a viewfinder surely helps a lot when shooting under bright sunlight
• The rumour about Samsung going on hiatus for some time in the camera world (dunno whether it’s true or not)

Simply said, I wanted to change brand and find a camera with a viewfinder. The latter wouldn’t be a problem if I just bought a DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex), but for me they’re quite big, heavy, and not as easy to handle as a DSLM (Digital Single Lens Mirrorless / ‘Mirrorless' for short), so I wanted to stay Mirrorless. Next was brand, in my country Canon and Nikon were, are, and (maybe) will always be the top selling camera brands in DSLR category, but they started out a bit late in Mirrorless so their products still needed some time to catch up with the current top-tier DSLMs. Fujifilm, Sony, Olympus, and Panasonic are the top four when it comes to the world of Mirrorless. So, long story short (again), after many many days of browsing, reading reviews, and finding the best price, I narrowed down my choice to four, here they are : (My budget : more or less 7 million Rupiah (US$ 530))

Olympus OMD E-M5 with 12-50mm Kit Lens

1. Olympus OMD E-M5 Mk.1 + 12-50mm Kit Lens (used) - 16.1 Mpx Micro Four Thirds (m4/3) sensor - 7,2 million Rupiah (US$ 545)

     My first choice, considering its good reviews almost everywhere, packed with a good all-rounder kit lens and weatherproof body. It has smaller megapixels and sensor size from my NX2000, but reviewers say it produces better quality photos with faster AF performance. The negative side, it has no Wi-Fi, the screen resolution is a bit low, and it is a used product, so there’s no guarantee it doesn’t have small (or bigger) problems and won’t break down after a couple of uses (I have a little phobia to used products, forgive me >_<). By the time I wrote this, the Mk.2 version has been available for quite some time, but it doubles the price for not-so-different performance, so it is out of contention.

Olympus OMD E-M10 with 14-42mm PZ Lens

2. Olympus OMD E-M10 Mk.1 + 14-42mm PZ Lens - 16.1 Mpx Micro Four Thirds (m4/3) sensor - 7 million Rupiah (US$ 530)

     Ahh, the little brother of the E-M5, it has the same sensor, solid body (but without weatherproof), and newer engine than the E-M5 (TruPic7 vs TruPic6). All around it performs almost identically to the E-M5 (even better in some cases) along with the addition of Wi-Fi and higher resolution screen. The AF speed is as fast as its older sibling, plus more focus points (81 vs 35). The only downside, it is packed with lesser quality kit lens compared to the one in E-M5 package (still good enough for starter though). The Mk.2 edition is already available by the time this article is written, but then again it almost doubles the price of the Mk.1, so bye-bye.

3. Canon EOS M3 + 18-55mm Kit Lens - 24,2 Mpx APS-C sensor EF-M Mount - 6,8 million Rupiah (US$ 515)

Canon EOS M3 with 18-55mm Kit Lens

   I know I just said that Canon’s DSLMs are not in the same league as those of Sony, Olympus, and Panasonic, especially after reading about the dismal Autofocus performance of the original EOS M (first generation). But rainbow always comes up after the rain, many reviewers say that the performance of the M3 is much better than its predecessor and when you do it right, it takes superb quality photos. And don’t forget that this is Canon's, a company which already has plethora of choices when it comes to lenses & accessories (you need an additional adapter to pair it with DSLR lenses though) and it has a whopping 24,2 Mpx sensor for an affordable price. The biggest downside is that it has no viewfinder, but an additional electronic viewfinder is available, BUT again, it takes your hotshoe port and it is VERY pricey (about 2-3 million Rupiah).

Sony Alpha a6000 with 16-50mm PZ Lens

4. Sony Alpha a6000 + 16-50mm PZ Lens - 24,3 Mpx APS-C sensor E-Mount - 8,2 million Rupiah (US$ 620)

     The priciest, yet probably the best choice when it comes to feature, photo result, and performance. It has phase-detection Autofocus meaning it focuses faster when shooting in dim light compared to the Olympus-es which only rely on contrast-detection. AF speed is blazingly fast, takes great quality pictures, and the build is rigid, so what are its weaknesses? First, no touchscreen , and second, the lens choice for the E-mount system is still rather limited compared to the Micro Four Thirds (and it exceeded my budget, my problem not yours, hahaha). If you got the budget though, the a6000 is a better choice than the others on my list.

After contemplating for a few days, I decided that I would pick the Olympus OMD E-M10, and after a few days of using it, I knew that my choice was right on the spot, here's why : (I'll try to somewhat compare it to NX2000, because that is the only DSLM I've experienced using for more than a year)

Sensor size comparison

• Okay, the E-M10 only has 16 Mpx sensor, lower compared to the NX2000 and even some high-end smartphones. Not to mention that the sensor size is also smaller than the Samsung (Micro Four Thirds vs APS-C, see the picture on the right). But even only after a couple of shots I noticed that the image results're brighter, sharper, and had more vivid color than the NX2000. They packed plenty of detail too, both outdoor and indoor. Just remember that megapixels count isn't everything.
• High ISO performance, previously I said that the NX2000 noise spikes very high when you set the ISO more than 1600, but that didn't happen on the E-M10. Noise is barely noticeable up to ISO 3200, and you can even use ISO 6400 and still get good result.
• Lens size, this is a BIG deal. I've read an article before, and the author said that it's pointless to make a Full-framed Mirrorless, why? Because the main advantage of Mirrorless cameras is their small and light body, BUT by using Full Frame sensor on the body, the lens must be made bigger to accomodate the equally big sensor in the body. So in the end you'll get a small camera body, but HUGE lens which makes the balance somewhat wrong and erodes the portability of the Mirrorless. With Micro Four Thirds sensor on the E-M10 though, you get a small body, matched with the equally small lenses.

  

  Samsung NX2000 with 50-200mm telephoto zoom lens

My E-M10 with 40-150mm telephoto zoom lens, the lens' size is
much smaller and match the body size better than the Samsung,
considering the same focal length between the two lenses 

• Design. I would say this a thousand times if I must, I LOVE THE DESIGN OF THE E-M10! Compact size, metal build, classic design, and the two-tone color make this camera simply a beauty to see (and to use). Its two-tone color (silver and black) makes it less bizzare no matter what color of the lens you paired it with (Olympus usually sells their lenses in black and silver). Not an important matter to some people, but it's definitely a plus.
• Battery life. Not much to say here, the battery life of DSLMs will never match DSLRs (but who knows what would happen in 3 or 5 years). The LCD and electronic viewfinder of some Mirrorless camera just consume too much energy, and you can't simply put a big-sized with big capacity battery inside that small body, can you? Still, the battery life of the E-M10 is slightly better than the NX2000 (250 vs 200 shots in a single charge).

Lastly, I want to give some advice for smart buyers who're looking for a good camera with limited budget :

Panasonic 20mm F1.7 pancake lens

• There are many brands out there, not just two (Sorry Canon and Nikon fans, your cameras are awesome as well). Don't be afraid to look for other options from many brands (Sony, Olympus, Panasonic, Pentax, etc), but make sure that the brand is widely recognizeable (aka famous) and have good history of product quality. So, if you stumbled upon a "BestCamera" or "MightyEdo" brand with mega specs and down to earth price, you'd still better stay away from them :))
• Don't be lazy to compare prices between retail store and online stores. Many merchants sold the E-M10 for 9 or 10 million before I found ONLY two merchants offered their brand new E-M10 for 7 million only (2 million cheaper!)
• Focus more on the lenses, you better buy the mid-to-lower-end of the camera body and save the money for buying good quality lenses. Remember, the camera body WILL usually get obsolete after 2-3 years, but a good lens will last for more than 5 years (Panasonic 20mm F1.7, still considered one of the best lenses for Micro Four Thirds system since 2009)
• The most important is, read many reviews from different sources. Some reviews may differ from others, but not by much. After reading some, you can draw a red line between reviews to determine whether the camera really suit your need or not.

Happy hunting!

Is It Safe To Say... That In Monster Hunter Series, YOU Are The Antagonist?

Well met, Hunter! Before you start getting pissed reading my post here, let me share a bit of myself. I'm a big fan of the Monster Hunter series and have played almost all of the installments that I could get my hands on and I'm also pretty good at the game. Not THAT good, but still pretty good. So I know what I'm writing about. I'm pretty happy with how the series currently are right now and not necessarily want a change in formula but this post is all about my rambling about the games that happen to cross my mind, that 'what if' question that makes me want to perceive games through another perspective, so enjoy!

We all know that most of action games involve around killing things... For the greater good. Yes, we play games to escape the mundane world and become a hero. We role play as the protagonist. Every storyteller can simplify his story as 'the protagonist killing the antagonist'. We play as a knight in shining armor that kills the dragon who robs the treasure and threaten the kingdom... But wait, what if....

What if we play as a knight in dragon-scale armor kills the dragon guarding its egg and never actually seen threatening the kingdom? I'd feel bad. We all know and we all consciously overlook the fact that the game lacks any sort of real 'narrative' element aside from the thin dialogues among the characters, simply because the game is surprisingly fun in a challenging sort of way (cringe when remembering G class monsters in Freedom 2). We are thrown into the world filled with monsters so majestic and often possessing god-like qualities, with little to no narrative explanation. You are there to fulfill a request sent by troubled INDIVIDUALS to hunt down the incredible beasts. Remember how a certain quest comes from a spoiled princess who wants Rathalos captured to be a pet?

Zamtrios: 'Oh boy, I'm so full it's hard to move--A hunter? Wait--Hey, no, hold on--I--I can explain--Lemme get a breather!'
Hunter: (2.5 seconds to full charge...)

The beautiful creatures are not a subject of worship, they are resources. You outfit yourself with parts scavenged from their carcass. You appear in front of a Rathalos wearing the armor made from the remains of the Rathalos's brother. You break A Congalala's Elvis hair that it may have spent hours grooming. You slice them to oblivion using their own bones and claws. You grab wyvern eggs and let your partner hunters kill the mommy wyverns. Hell, you even eat them! (Gravios wingtip with gravy sauce, anyone?) Some quest backgrounds DO tell that the monsters are threatening at some point but never have the game showed the home village destroyed by a rampaging, horny Rajang who just got dumped by a female Rajang in mating season. We even almost always encounter them when they are walking and enjoying sunshine...

Gore Magala: ''Tis a peaceful day and a full belly, time to sleep...'

Hunter: 'DIE, FRENZY FREAK!!'

Gore Magala: 'DAFUUQQ!?' 

Things like these that makes me scratch my head... Good thing they wrote children, if it's other guards being attacked, I'd skip the quest altogether....

I'm well aware that these considerations are far-fetched, but hey, this is the 'Is it safe to say' article, and right now, with all the considerations, is it safe to say that are we actually the antagonist of the game? In my honest opinion, what actually draws me to love the game, aside from the gameplay, are the main characters. By characters, I mean the MONSTERS. Seriously, the monsters are so well-designed that we can just feel them alive as characters as opposed of some hunkering meat bags for weapons testing. Each have its own individuality, even the roars. You can close your eyes, pick a quest at random and tell what you're fighting against just from the monster's roar itself (aside from several theme songs). Every new installment can and will often give you that 'sinking' feeling whenever we face a new monster, whose patterns of attacks we don't know yet (happens to me every time a Deviljho theme song replaces an original song in a quest). The monsters are as much a character like the humans/wyverians in the game. I guess that's what makes me feel increasingly uneasy doing quests over and over with nothing to do except testing equipment or farming materials (Rajang Tail, anyone?)

Right. I shouldn't have been paid... I'm not supposed to kill the spider, am I? CMIW...

We come, we see and we conquer. We rolled, we trap and we carve. Honestly, if the game provide more meaty explanation as to why we are actually hunting them story-wise, I may have felt somewhat more content, as by having the responsibility of killing them is definitely for the greater good. For example, maybe Kokoto is about to be run-over by thousands of crazy Popos and Antekas coming down, galloping from the mountains and that the only way to stop them is to kill the Tigrex in the mountain who farts so loud that the herbivores got scared and decide to run for their lives. It would give me plenty of satisfaction to actually finish the quest. 'Saving the village' is a better premise than 'I need ONE more Tigrex Scale. Because a whole 200-kilo wyvern carcass yields only ONE SCALE'.

Hunter:'Let's take a wefie, Kirin!!'
Kirin: 'Sorry, Dad... If it wasn't to keep me alive, you wouldn't be made into a pair of underwear....'*sob*

'Alright, cats, gather the shrooms you want, but don't tell the hunters bout me. I've got kids to feed. I haven't even laid eggs in a decade...'
..... And I'm pretty sure we'd still kill it Bushido-style.....

After all is said and done, my thoughts on Monster Hunter Series? Good job for Capcom for making an addictive game with plenty of interesting characters while having NO NARRATIVE whatsoever. I'm not against the series continuing their traditional trademark of the game since the latest installment is already on the good track of providing us a decent amount of storyline but I find myself yearning for that words of the divine to drive me to go hunt a majestic beasts. But right now, I must be content with killing grand creatures as ordered by the words of the Professor. In the name of Science! 

Samsung NX2000

  Samsung NX2000, 3 Years Old And Still Worth It

About two months ago, I had a dilemma. I wanted to change camera but it was very hard to find a camera better than my white, small yet superb Samsung NX2000 (gotta admit that white is uncommon for cameras :v) Just for info I only managed to save 7 million Rupiah (about US$ 530), and I bought my NX2000 on February last year for 5,9 million Rupiah (about US$ 450), so finding a camera which could surpass the NX2000 but with only slightly higher price proved to be quite tricky (at least for me).

Don't get me wrong, the NX2000 was a superb camera for its price, let me state some of the greatest strength of it :

• 20,3 Megapixel sensor, bigger is better especially for cropping
• APS-C sensor (crop factor x 1,5 in 35mm format), the same sensor size in most entry to mid level DSLRs, but packed in much smaller body, bigger sensor (usually) means lower noise and better bokeh (blurred background)
• Takes great quality pictures, especially outdoors
• Very fast to focus when there is enough light
• Noise is barely noticeable up to ISO 1600
• Superb quality 3,7 inch LCD with WVGA resolution (840x480 pixels)
• Wi-Fi pairing with smartphone is the best among its rivals

But of course, even the mighty Achilles had his weakness, so these are the most noticeable weaknesses I found after using the NX2000 for more than one year :

• Noise spikes very high above ISO 1600
• Focusing speed decreases dramatically when the condition is a bit dark
• No dial on the body for manual setting (Shutter Speed, ISO, etc)
• No electronic viewfinder
• Lens choice is rather limited and pricey compared to other brands
• Because the camera body is very small and light, pairing it with a bigger lens is like mounting a tank cannon on a small drone, thus doesn't make it feel too comfortable for your right arm when shooting a long time
• Battery life is below average (only about 200 shots maximum for a single charge)

In simple words, NX2000 is a bang for your buck and will be your best partner when you want to travel light but still wanna take good quality pictures. Just remember to bring a powerbank for emergency charging and pair it with smaller lens (Samsung offers many good quality fixed pancake lens) to keep it small, light on your arm, and easy to travel with. Below are the pictures comparison when the NX2000 is paired with the smaller kit lens vs the much bigger telephoto zoom lens.

NX2000 with 20-50mm kit lens

NX2000 with 50-200mm telephoto zoom lens

If you have more budget you can look onto the little brothers of NX2000, the NX3000 or 3300, they have the same 20,3 Mpx APS-C sensor as in NX2000, but they have tiltable screen for easier shooting from difficult angle or selfie (personally I think taking selfies with a camera is very inconvenient compared to smartphones), you traded it with smaller screen though (3 inch vs 3,7 inch). Still, you can take great photos with it as it with NX2000, and the design of the NX3000 & 3300 is more similar to the NX300/500 which is cooler in my opinion.

NX3300's tiltable LCD screen

NX3300 with 16-50mm kit lens

Flowers

Sometimes We Overlook The Beauty In Small Things

I love photographing flowers so much, especially the bright colored ones! Needless to say that I love macro photography, but because of fund issue, I haven't bought a dedicated macro lens yet T_T Thus, in this page, I will post some photos of my respect to the wonderful world of flower. Of course, comments and critics are always welcomed :))

Maybe many of you wonder about how to get a good 'macro' shots without using a dedicated macro lens? I did all the macro shots below using a fixed 25 mm F.1.4 (50mm in 35mm format) and 40-150mm F4.0-5.6 (80-300mm in 35mm format) lenses. You may need a dedicated macro lens for photographing small insects or a really small unique detail on your wooden table, but for flowers I find a fixed lens with wide aperture or a telephoto lens (with not so big aperture) will do the job just fine.

Balinese Kamboja Flowers - 1

Balinese Kamboja Flowers - 3

Balinese Kamboja Flowers - 2

Purple Petunia

Just The Two Of Us...

Maureen's Prom Photoshoot

Maureen's Prom Night Photoshoot

• Model : Valencia Maureen Miracle Stella (IG : @raclereen)
• Camera : Olympus OMD E-M10 Mk. 1
• Lens : Panasonic Leica DG Summilux 25mm (50mm in 35mm equiv.)
• Tools : Yongnuo YN560-III Speedlite + RF603N-II Wireless Transmitter
• Shutter Speed : Various
• Aperture : Various
• ISO : 400
• Location : Victoria Luxurious Guesthouse Bandung (www.the-victoria.com)

Actually, this is my first ever 'real' job as a photographer, currently I'm very lacking in experience and need more practice! Feel free to comment below :))