New Toy

I finally got my first constant 2.8 aperture wide angle zoom lens. I have been doing a lot of thinking on which 2.8 lens I should get. I have considered Nikkor 17-55 DX or the new 14-24, but they are very pricey. I need to allocate my budget for other things in life as well. After reading a lot of reviews, I finally decided to buy Tamron 17-50 2.8 lens. The price is only about 1/3 of those two Nikkor lenses, and the performance is really good based on review by Thom Hogan and SLR Gear.

However, cheap stuff always comes with drawbacks. The Tamron casing is plastic, and for sure it is not as robust as the expensive Nikkor.

I got this lens at very decent price in Indonesia, it cost about $370 which is cheaper compare to price in Canada; however, it only comes with 1 year warranty. I also find out that price of camera equipments are cheaper in Indonesia compare to Canada.

Tamron 17-50, taken with Nikkor 60 2.8

Tamron 17-50, taken with Nikkor 60 2.8

Following are some photos I took using my new lens.

Sample Doraemon Shot

I am looking forward to use this lens as my main lens. I have left my Nikkor 18-70 in the hand of my brother :)

Goodbye Makassar

I have finally left my hometown Makassar. The feeling is mixed, I am happy to start a new journey with my wife, but at the same time, I also miss our family in Indonesia. Following is picture I took two days before I left Makassar city. It is taken from Taman Bahari, Pantai Losari, overviewing cityscape instead of the beach.

Makassar Cityscape

There are two main buildings shown in picture. The first one on the left is Stella Maris Hospital (Rumah Sakit Stella Maris). It is one of the well known hospital in Makassar. Another one on the right is Imperial Arya Duta Hotel. The hotel is not there yet when I still live in Makassar (i.e. ~13 years ago). Time did fly very fast. The hotel is 5 star hotel overlooking Losari Beach (Pantai Losari). Viewing sunset from the top of this hotel must be amazing, even though I haven't tried it yet :)