Testing new camera -Lubitel 166 Universal (Part 2:B&W)

Alright....After testing out the first roll in colour.. let's see how the Lubitel does for B&W in all it's 6x6 square glory.

Film used: Ilford HP5 Plus 400
Always wanted to try something else other than Kodak's B&W(whose Tri-X series is my fav by the way). Ilford's been reputable in this area for over a century so I guess they are worth a try. I always luv B&W over colour. I wun pretend to be a pro, far from it..... Why I prefer monochrome is plainly cos I'm LAZY! Yeah you got me (esp when it involves study)... there are things more idle than me but they are few and far in between. Somehow I just feel that Black and white just make things beautiful easily without the need to think too much. Esp if post processing needs to be done. Just adjust the exposure and you are good to go! It can't get simpler than that! And no, dun tell me about things like dodge and burn and other techniques cos I dun own or intend to set up a darkroom and which part of L-A-Z-Y dun you get? Heh...
Ok on with the *rather lousy* preview shots.......

Counterclockwise from top left:
1st- Dad lighting the joss sticks
2nd- Nice traditional roof architecture inside the temple
3rd- the Lion arrives
4th- Going round the 4 faced buddha statuette for blessing


5th- The Lion Jumps. Love this shot! So heng to get it! Was waiting with the right settings with the shutter pre-cocked.
6th- The Lion stands- prob startled by the group of cyclist on the main road.
7th- The noise makers!
8th- Oops.. camera shake...blurred! Still trying to get the hang of it.

9th- A different view of the MRT track
10th- CNY Steamboat dinner at Baby's place with Duck and Cat (Whale flying kite with some sort of Emily Strange excuse again). Took like forever to arrange this shot by placing it on a ironing board and the composition still turned up like sh*t. Heh....
11th- Trying to finish the roll by randomly sticking the cam outside kitchen window and point up
12th- Shot this view sooo many times.. this time in monochrome.

School is reopening again this Sat. Damn was suppose to help out Sam with his fitness thingie for senior citizen. Not to mention Ilyana took off from work so we can finally Lomo in daylight! Argh! So paiseh. Even though I do like studying this course, no really I do, there are things I need to get over and through first before I can concentrate fully again.

Testing new camera -Lubitel 166 Universal (Part 1:colour)

Here's the Lubitel 166 Universal. Pic taken off some site on the net found by google image.

Well it's a new acquirement for me but it ain't exactly new. Bought it 2nd hand off some ebay seller cos they ain't available anymore. Production stopped in Russia in 1988, when I was in Primary one and people like Derrick and Joyce are still swimming inside the womb. Prob haven even operated a camera before at that time. The design was based on some 1930s type of twin lens reflex (TLR)system.

I looooooong wanted a TLR medium format(120) camera. Cheapo as I was, I ain't gonna blow 3-6k on a Rolleiflex(droooling), a 1K plus Rolleicord or even the slightly cheaper Seagull or Yashica Mats). The Lubitel seems like the cheapest entry to experiencing the pains of using this sorta cam.

Cheap to produce also of cos mean cheap materials. The body is made of plastic but i dun mind, that means it's weightless compared to my magnesium alloyed D300. No more strain to the upper trapezius! Heheh.. Moreover the plastic seems damn sturdy. No flexing at all.

When I first started using it, it's really quite a challenge. Had to use my Fujifilm F31fd as a lightmeter guide before racking my brains in calculating the shutter speed and aperture setting. Next, I had to lift up the loupe and peer monocularly at the small ground glass and adjust my focus. It doesn't end there! I had to place the view finder directly under my eye at a exact angle and exact distance or the full image cannot be seen.

THEN as you try to compose the image, you had to:
1) get used to the 6cm x 6cm square type of format (I found that there are advantages once you get used to it)
2) get used to the horizontally inverted image (you pan the camera right, the image goes right instead of the usual left! Vertigo siah!)
After all these, hold your camera steady and cock the shutter lever. Finally you can choose to release the shutter and take your hard earned pic!

It's actually not all that difficult once you are used to it and it's actually very rewarding too. No to mention addictive.
Below is the first roll of 12 exposure from the 120 format film. No adjustments done except shadow adjustment on Picassa.
Film used: Fujicolour Pro 400H Prof
Yeah not much to look at but it is my first roll of tryout leh!



From Top left counterclockwise:
First shot failure. Tried to take Colin and Atiqah at the shelter of Bukit Timah peak. Did not bring my F31 so I used the "Sunny 16" rule of exposure. Sure outside was sunny but I forgot we are in the shade.....crap. After I released the shutter, I was not even if the pic was taken cos all you here was a small "tick". Too used to SLRs' noisy mirror slapping and auto film camera's film advancing (For this Lubitel, you had to wind the film yourself).

Second shot: Photo of my family having dinner. This time it's a test trial of long exposure on a tripod and the remote cable shuttle (which Joshua can't get enuf of last fri night at Cineleisure)

Third Shot: Another trial on Tripod and remote cable but this time is a very long 15 sec exposure. Yet another shot of my bedroom window. Metered the exposure on My Nikon F50 with a AF-D 50mm f1.8 lens.

Fourth Shot: Tried a sunny open and exposed atmosphere. Vivocity will be it since it's nearby. Turns out the contrast of the lens ain't so good in this sort of situation. Went there early in the morning so wun be disturbed by people. But ended up helping 2 separate PRCs take photo. They are everywhere nowadays!



Fifth Shot: Getting really impatient liao!! When can finish the roll so that I can develop?? It's only 12 exposures not 36 like the 135 format (35mm) but somehow I have prob finishing it! Collected my another 135 format film from a photo shop(the real brick and mortar type, not the adobe software!) and soon bian take a few shots of the most photographed artificial arch of Singapore.... yawnz.

Sixth Shot: Still at Sunset way trying to find ways to "conducively" spam away my remaining shots.......

seventh shot: Still lingering around the place...

Eight shot: Found myself walking the KTM train track separating Tanglin Halt and Portsdown (both significant childhood places of mine) tried taking the greenery and some Blangahlahs playing cricket in the distance.



Ninth Shot: loosing track of myself liao........

Tenth shot: Closer view of the cricket game and to the end of the roll.

11th!: suddenly the train came and i struggled to take the camera out of my pouch for this shot. No time to compose or make adjustments... Just shoot! See beh heng the shot turned out nicely!

Last shot i totally dunno what to take so just took the lift to the top floor of my flat and shoot. Overexposed the shot as it was way sunny that morning or prob can see Pulau Bukom and Semakau.....

Finally finished this roll. Next post: Testing of 120 black and white.
This reminds me... I got more than 10 exposures left in my Nikon FM10(after 10 outings!)... argh.
Anyone want their portrait taken?

Records of the past week (Feb)....

Sch starting soon.. better log more stuff before blog goes for another retreat.........

Last Sun morning 15th Feb:
Met up Hang Chong in the morning for a guided raptor watching session at Telok Blangah Hill Park. So convenient.. no need to wake up super early and travel to far off places like Sungei Buloh, Pulau Ubin or Sungei Khatib Bongsu. Not that I mind anyway. It's just that I got the luxury of waking up abit later, grabbed my camera and WALKED to the meet up pt.


Lotsa kids around listening to the Nature Society guide.

Honey Buzzard soaring straight above. Even with the 300mm zoom, these birds are still like a few hundred meters away. Fortunately when cropped down, there's still enuf resolution to see these pics.
The all too common Brahminy Kite.

Flying in formation.

And this reminds me of a typical airshow where the stunt pilots would fly their planes damn close to each other.


Other than birds, this Sumatran Flying Dragon (Draco Sumatranus) was also spotted on a tree. First saw one at Tanjong Chek Jawa. Seems like they are common at my backyard too!



It was quite entertaining to watch as it glide from branch to branch.

Not enuf pic of nature? Here's a couple of crab taking refuge in a mud lobster mould.





These pair of rather cute cats just love sitting with their butts stuck to each other and balancing on the door stop. All 4 pics taken at Ubin on 11th Jan.

After raptor watching, went esplanade to watch "Breakout" with Joyce. First time I watched a performance there and it was definitely worth the time. I wonder if there is anyone in Singapore who have reached their standard in breakdancing. Joyce wanted sooo much to have pic taken with the performers but I guess that is very much impossible unless you got a way to crash the backstage! After that went to have dinner at Casuarina Curry. Now my turn to say damn wasted never took a pic. Joyce was wearing the exact same colour (orange and dark blue) as the restaurant. Heheh...
Only pic that we manage to sneak with my HP. Any other attempts to self cam whore would be stopped by the ushers. We were not the only one. I saw ushers all around damn busy trying to stop tons of other people trying to cam whore themselves!

16th Feb:
Met up Kester after work to apply for the new modules. Another 3.5K burnt. Paid up in cash at the Springs office. Brought them in $50 denominations. Slowly counted the notes one by one in front of the administrator who still asked me in my face: "Are you paying by cash or cheque?" My god. At first I thought he was joking.
To such a brain freezing question, a wry response would be in order. With which I replied: "By cash, I dun think I brought all these cash so that I can get the kick out of counting them in front of you leh". All 3 of us laughed and I think he was damn paiseh. Must have worked till blur liao.

After that went to Killiney area to have dinner. Walked around and finally decided on Vietnamese food at "The Orange Lantern". At first wanna eat economy rice but then din wanna drive all the way there for that! Eat until sian liao! Turns out to be a good choice. Taste is a refreshing taste from the usual. Recommended. Vietnamese Decor is simple but enuf but the music they were playing is 88.3! Spoil ambiance.... but they later changed to a Vetnamese song. Perhaps Kester's comments about that were spoken too loud! Heh....

Wed 18th:
Kanna shot by traffic police on the way to work.... therefore contribute more $$$$$ to the Singapore economy. Not to mention DIPS pts .....Dun wanna emphasize on sickening matters here....

Fri 20th:
Got my Lubitel 166 Universal back after sending it in for clearing the fungus in the lens. While at the repair shop, had a good chat with the owner and played with the LCA. Now my view on the LCA changed completely..... My Holga now really feels like a junk! Well actually it is a plastic junk in the first place. It's just that we lomo shooters just dun wanna acknowledge it. Hah... I wanna the LCA (or the LCA+)now!!!! These Russian old school cams really have their charms. But not this month.... nor the next.... the hole I blew in pocket this month is way too deep.

Yesterday 22nd Feb:
Was informed of a website to check my overall results by Quan Li yesterday. I wonder why SMa personnel never emailed us regarding this. So far their service as a provider of education services has been far from satisfactory. From the administration to something as simple as the quality of the study notes. Hope they can get their act together fast. The fees they are charging us is definitely quite ex and even with the recent rapid dip in Aussie dollars ( a whopping 35% within 2 months!!!), they are still charging us the same amount. Imaging the amount of profit they are sweeping in.

Evening time went to Edmund's place for a BBQ session. Joining us are Jeremy, Kester, Damian, Ryan and Edmund's relatives. This is the final weekend of study break already. So sad... only 2 weekends of play. Haven even shot much pics with my new acquirement. Next 3 consecutive Sat and Sun will be yet another new round of 9-5 lecture. Environment was cooling and quiet and the food is just as enjoyable (prep by the relatives), with stuff like some nonya glutinous rice filled with heh bee hiam, herbal prawn, chicken curry, etc... Both Jeremy and I, being the most experienced, prep and fired up the charcoal. It was fun.. haven set the fire in quite awhile. Thinking that I used to do that like 3-4 times a year last time. Edmund kept wanting to drink.... really the chiongster! Still did not have the chance to try out his Maserati Spyder. Damn... I need 400 bhp adrenaline rush!

After all the crapping and eating, we tired to pirate a wireless line and check our overall results. It took quite a while shifting form one place to another but finally got one. Overall winner was Kester who got 2 HD! HD as in High Distinction (something like AD in poly) but we prefer to use the term High Definition. Overall everyone got very good results which is not surprising. I also got 2 HD (but actual marks lower than Kester's) and was kanna suan all throughout the evening. Seriously, I also never thought I would get so high. This is coming from a guy who just narrowly scrap through every module back in Poly and failed 5 out of 8 subjects every yr and got 36 frigging pts for prelims back in Sec sch.
The only module which I got an AD grade was Biochemical Process. No, I did not expect that either. So didn't the lecturer Miss Sim Ee Min who remarked my paper again when she saw my name was on a paper she marked as AD! Hahah....
The 2 HD I got was for Human Anatomy and Physiology.
There is some sort of pattern here.
Perhaps my acad talent did lie somewhere more science related rather than engineering which I hated so much due to the calculations. But I shall not assume too much. Cos this is only the first intro sem which is suppose to be easy and results for AOS is not out yet.. which I will prob get crap results. Not looking forward to it.

Records of first Lomography outing...

Feb Fri 13th:
Met up with some Njd juniors. Ilyana, Joshua, Shipei & her fren(paiseh I'm bad with names.. forgot liao!) Supposed to be an outing org by Jimmy but end up also no idea so cancelled on thurs. I was like... hmmm... I ain't gonna waste my holiday(only sch holi...work still slaves on) friday evening....
So I jio Ilyana to do Lomography and somehow the rest of them also joined in even thought I only had an extra set of Lomo cam borrowed from Wilson. I also brought along my Fujifilm F31fd for Shipei and company to spam in case they got bored.

Met up in Orchard PS, bought ticks to Underworld: Rise of the Lycans. Bought the 2am show....haven watched late nights for a long while but that leaves us more than sufficient time to shop, eat and Lomo!

After a brief (and squeezy) tok on how to use the Diana+, we went around orchard erm.. lomo-ing... It's my first time using the Holga too!

Think most shots were taken when we were at Emerald Hill where there is less people around.

Thanks to Joshua who agreed to pose with the hydrant.

and on with the shooting!

Ghostly blurs... Shipei almost looks as if she's floating above Ilyana.

Joshua trying to impersonate the "hunter" zombie in Left 4 Dead.

The above eerie effects made possible with these makeshift filters.

Joshua fell for the oldest trick in the book. Landed hard on his butt when I suddenly stood up...heh...

Ilyana shooting some late night skaters outside dolby ghaut MRT.

And finally got to see Underworld at 2am....The show was a let down... sianz...Even Kester agreed it was bad.. Perhaps we were expecting way more since we already told the plot since part 1.



And since I have the fisheye lens with me.. i decided to arrange a few fun shots.

After developing... only 5 out of my 12 shots survive the night Lomographing. Well it was a long shot anyway. Cross processing of the positive slides used (Fujifilm Provia 400X) prefers over exposure and yet we got to shoot it at night in our first ever tryout.
Here's how they look like:


Streaks of car headlight at junction and Emerald Hill houses
Multiple exposes for 'evolution' of Ilyana and Streets of Orchard(cineleisure)

I like this the best....eerie figure on the streets....

Next time Lomography will be done during daytime!!!

Njd 08 Tourny Pics

As promised....the pics for the Njd 08 tournament. Whatever that is impt to mention about this event is over HERE. So less chatter and on to the selected pics:

The girls playing with Jinzhou's daughter. What a good way to psyche yourselves up for a fight.........


The warming up session.

Fights of the visitors.

Whoa that backthrust was TOO close... the blue exponent was lucky. Marcus was not.

The one and only take down of the day.

Cat fight! Good effort on their side.

The kick that slit open Xinyu's chinny chin chin.

Marcus's "agonizing" road to glory. Why agonizing?

This pic might give you a clue or two.



Tourny Victors getting their trophy from Victor Sir.

Final group shots of the visitors together with Ignatius and son(s).


Njd Tournament Group Shot!

Casualties of the day: Xinyu- split chin, Amin- fractured ulna, Marcus- lacerated lips and sore.. erm... jewels.


Lingli having fun with her baby at Al-Amin.

The (hard fought) End.