H2 Physics P3, H2 Art, H3 Art.

No, Chem P1 and Physics P1 do not count as proper papers because they’re P1s and they only take one hour. Plus, everything’s there for you in multiple-choice form so you know immediately if the answer you arrived at by doing calculations is wrong.

Right now the biggest fear for me is the H2 Art paper because I’ve NEVER FINISHED THE DAMNED PAPER BEFORE and I just do not have the stamina for continuous writing for three hours straight. Looks like some training is in order.

Recently went back and picked up Stepmania again, and am having fun pimping my Stepmania just like how I didn’t use to do it all those years ago. I just used the default theme in the past; now It’s all Cyberia Style and shit fuck yeah.

Yes it is goddamned effing pretty and I’m not going to hear anything else. Maybe if I finally get Stepmania 4.0 and switch to Cerulean Skies 2 I might like it even better but for now Cyberia Style is the best theme for SM 3.9 I’ve ever seen.

In other news, Creative announced their spanking new tablet (ZiiO) in 7″ and 10″ formats, going for $300+ and $400+ respectively (in 8GB). I’m so getting one after it’s released just for the sake of having something bigger to ref from while doing drawings and something I can actually watch anime on on my bed. IT SUPPORTS MKV FUCKYEAAAH I LOVE YOU CREATIVE AND I ALWAYS WILL. My Creative Aurvanas, Zen X-Fi and the broken Zen in my drawer attest to my legit Creative fanboyness.

I will likely forget about this blog and not post for another two months so until then tata. Read my fics go on you know you want to, find me on FF.net with the user FantaisieNocturne.

The Storia visual novel project.

Please head over to the development blog, http://fantaisienocturne.wordpress.com for more details.

I also just remembered that it needs a change of batteries. This signals the time when all the batteries of all the GCs of all the people in JC is about to go kaput, so sales of AAA batteries in supermarkets is going to see a sudden spike.

Coursework progress currently is about 15 to 20%. This is bad because I only have five weeks left to do something about it. I am currently so worried about coursework that I am actually blogging. And can’t be bothered to use my usual 18-marks-for-language GP English for writing because it takes thinking and the proper GP state of mind.

Current grades stand at BDESS. B for GP, D for AEP, E for Math and S for Chem and Physics – an overall improvement from last year. AEP grade was pretty cool, because I left two questions – and 40 marks – blank out of 90. Which means I got 44 out of 50 marks for the rest. So the only problem I appear to have now is stamina and time allocation and NOT FALLING ASLEEP DURING THE EXAM FFF-

Keanu Reeves is hungry and needs to eat a sandwich.

I just realised as well that my blog entries are similar to my handphone messaging style – I type everything in one post and dash it all online at once. Short posts piss me off, bad writing pisses me off even further. And blogging is completely and utterly pointless when you’re constantly fighting with yourself on what information you can post on the net, which is why my writing is almost completely and utterly sterile and makes  too much use of boring utility words like “almost” because I do too much GP.

I now wish to buy a Sigma 20mm Macro that is like $576 at CP but seems to be almost exactly what I need for portrait shoots, apart from my currently existing and rather effective 50mm prime. Which means I will once again be unable to buy any form of gaming console or upgrade my graphics card or do any of the other things normal guys buy because I got myself a too-expensive hobby.

Maybe I should just go back to writing stories and drawing as a hobby or something. Then again, I spend close to $200 a year on drawing equips and blow $14 on a single pen for particular traits that I rarely use, so maybe it’s not such a good idea.

Yay for not knowing what to do with my life and having a blog post longer than a primary schooler’s English essay.

Question chosen was “Great leaders only appear in times of crisis”.

Disagreed: Examples given for supporting the stand were Franklin D. Roosevelt and Adolf Hitler, while against the stand were Mikhail Gorbachev, Bill Clinton and Lee Kuan Yew.

May have gone off topic: That’s a problem.

Why do people say “as easy as stealing candy from a baby”? Babies love candies, and they sure as hell aren’t going to let you take theirs. Stealing candy from an ADULT, on the other hand – all you have to do is go up to a bunch of fine-looking ladies holding chocolates or sweets or whatever, tell them “[chocolate/candy/marzipan/bacon] is high in cholesterol and fat content”, and voila! You have your chocolate/candy/marzipan/bacon. Voluntarily, too – so no hard feelings.

Sora no Kioku (Chinese), S$23.70

It’s all in Chinese, which is good for me, since I can actually understand what’s being written in the book now. It’s good reference for drawing landscapes, and teaches several techniques the master himself uses in his work.

Today I’ll be elaborating on the wired remote.

As everyone knows, the Canon EOS series has a wired remote that costs a bomb to get. It’s really expensive for just a bit of wire and plastic. Here’s a (cheap looking) alternative that cost me S$2.60.

First, you need a 3.5mm stereo jack (male on both ends) and a 3.5-2.5mm converter.

3.5mm double-male stereo jack, 3.5-2.5mm converter (S$2.60)

I only bought the 3.5-2.5mm converter, as I already had the double-male sitting in one of my drawers. You also need a short length of wire; any wire will do, as long as the contacts are exposed. If you need to get the 3.5mm, Daiso sells them for S$2 apiece.

At the side of your DSLR (only the EOS 1000D up to EOS 50D, the higher ones have different jacks) plug in the 2.5mm converter and the 3.5mm wire.

Now, this isn’t a pretty solution like all the DIY remotes out there, but for sheer laziness and speed, this will get the job done.

Take the short length of wire and touch one end to the base of the jack. The middle portion of the jack connected to the base will autofocus, and the base to the top will activate the shutter.

Remote shutter release

I fitted the loose end of my 3.5mm jack with a 6.3mm converter (I also had this lying around) for easier release and holding. The larger jack allows an easier release.

The picture above was taken with the “remote”.

While this is a very (very) efficient temporary solution, it is always a better idea to build your own DIY remote, as standing in the middle of somewhere with a jack and a wire pressed across it is a sure way to earn you disdainful glances from others in the know. Doing a BULB release with this is also rather boring.

Lighting Setup

As can be seen, my lighting is still woefully inadequate. The light used is a modified IKEA no-frills ceiling lamp holder, outfitted with a three-pin plug for wall socket use. It was intended as a lightbox table alternative, and is still used as such, but it is a very versatile piece of equipment. The bulb is a Philips 27W energy-saving bulb. The black tube is just a normal cardboard tube, covered on the inside with rolled-up white paper. It used to hold two SCANIA glasses, but after the tube lost its use I took it in the event it might see use someday.

The tripod is a telescope holder, taken from a small telescope my uncle gave to me. They used to sell them in Carrefour many years ago for around S$50.

The table you see holding the actual setup is the lightbox table in question: A S$22 bedside table from IKEA, which comes with a sturdy glass top.

The simulated reflector is a semi-translucent box cover from IKEA as well. They don’t seem to sell it anymore, but the closest would be the SNALIS box lid.

SNALIS lid, 60x40cm, S$3.00

Here is a shot taken with the setup:

Hatsune Miku, single light source, reflector

As you can tell, the light is still woefully inadequate. However, it does provide some rather nice pictures:

Lamborghini Diablo VT, by Bburago, same lighting setup

It gives a very mysterious feel when the light is arranged correctly. Single light setups are best used with a black background, because the lack of lighting can be used to greater effect.

All pictures taken with a Canon EOS 450D with a Canon 50mm f/1.8 lens.

The Tertial N worklamp from Ikea, S$14.90 without the lightbulbs.

The Tertial N worklamp is a cheap light, which is pretty much a steal for something with as much versatility as it does. The top will probably get really hot, but that isn’t much of a problem where I’m coming from.

For the lights, it is most probable that two bulbs will have to be bought: a relatively high-power 6000k lamp to simulate daylight, and another 6000k lamp at half that power. This will provide a very efficient dual-light setup, which is adequate for most settings.

A snoot, diffuser or barn-door can be easily constructed from spare materials, e.g. cardboard boxes or black card, which I can easily find lying around the art studio in school. For the diffuser, I am intending to scrounge a leftover copy paper box from the local school photocopying shop, the lid of which is coincidentally just the right size to build a diffuser that does not take up too much space and stands up on its own.

Another option that Happy Soda brought up is the DIODER multi-use lighting system, which is a small light that functions rather well as a spot when accompanied with a snoot.

DIODER multi-use lighting, S$79.99

These lights burn cool (they use LEDs), which is very good for prolonged studio sessions where the normal worklamps could get very hot. The effects that these produce on a black background is also rather interesting: I would like to do more exploration on it.

Besides figure photography (I intend to borrow some figurines, they’re not new but I’ll post on them once I take some pictures) I believe this setup will be very efficient in, say, food photography. Carrying worklamps around may not be the easiest of things but I do have more confidence in a prop-light setting than a strobist setup.

However, I still need a strobe: For this, I am intending to purchase another Nissin Di622 to replace the one I had lost.

Nissin Di622 flashgun - S$127 up to S$250

The Di622 has the same flash power and rotation capabilities of the Canon Speedlite 580EX, but without all the bells and whistles that come with the latter. A very down-to-earth flash.

I also intend to purchase a wireless transmitter and reciever for the flash – an extra S$70. A filter system on top of that would be adding another S$78.

Of course, all these are for later. For now, I’ll be making a trip down to Ikea.