Travel

London with the Leica SL

Going through my pre-pandemic trips and rekindled my travels through London with the Leica SL. There is nothing better than remembering the good old days and how life was prior to COVID. We are getting there, sooner than later we will be back to travelling and experiencing what life around the world has to offer for us. For now walking down memory lane is what we have. I do not have the Leica SL anymore but in reality, today, it is still a very good camera even with its age. Today’s cameras are moving towards the high megapixel technology but in all honesty 24 megapixels for me is still the sweet spot. Large enough to print great quality photos and small enough that it wont break the bank with all the hard disk space and processing power you will need. Who wants Lightroom to hang up trying to process those high resolution files? At 24 MP, the original Leica SL is still a fantastic camera, and for the price and those wanting to get into the Leica SL ecosystem its a great choice! This post is more so to share images from my trip to London with the Leica SL.

London with the Leica SL

Photography and the COVID Pandemic

It’s been a long time coming and to say the least 2020 has been the biggest challenge, struggle, roadblock ….. you name it. We all have likely had our own demons and issues getting through the last year and we are all in this together. 2020 was particularly tough for me this last year, not only were we dealing with the events of the pandemic, lockdown and the “new normal” but I personally had health challenges take its toll on me for the last 12 months. There were months where I questioned would I even make it through 2020, as my mind would race on what is going on with my health. These conditions would linger for the next twelve months. So many things I can write about but I have been taking it one day at a time and slowly been working my way back. Its been almost a year since I last posted a new blog but it almost feels like an absolute achievement to be writing here again. Today is really to talk about what’s changed in my life, what things I have overcome and what I have been shooting during these crazy times. Hopefully this will inspire you to go out there and shoot again as we all look forward to getting past and flushing this pandemic down the toilet.

Photography and the COVID Pandemic

Leica M10 decision over the SL2 and Q2

It’s always a temptation to want the newest and shiniest things in life but after hands on use and a thoughtful consideration I moved to a direction that I was not expected and so far I have not looked back. This post is my decision and thought process on how I chose the Leica M10 over the SL2 and Q2.

Leica M10 decision over the SL2 and Q2

A Weekend in Boracay with the Fuji X100F

A travel review of the X100F on a trip to Boracay Island, Philippines. Experiencing the colors and beauty of the beaches, sunsets and beach life.

A Weekend in Boracay with the Fuji X100F

Exploring north eastern France with the Leica SL

The last year has been a challenging one to say the least and it has been quite a while since I last posted, shared or wrote any content on my site. We all run thru trials and tribulations and the last six months has had me stay away from writing. I am restarting and kicking the wheels on getting the ball moving here again and as a first post in almost a year I would like to share some time I spent last summer in the quaint small towns of northeastern France. Having been to Paris for a second time in the last few years we wanted to explore the countryside of France and ended up visiting the towns of Colmar, Ribeauvillé, Riquewihr and Château du Haut-Kœnigsbourg. Definitely a change from the city of love and the bright lights of Paris but lovely and charming in its own way and right. Beginning the second year of owning the Leica SL, this would just be another place to continue to put the test to the Leica SL.

Exploring north eastern France with the Leica SL

On the go with the Fuji X100f

Those of you who follow my blog or my posts know that I shoot with Leica cameras or primarily the Leica SL at the moment, but today I will be going over my experience with the Fuji X100f. With my move to a Leica SL from a Leica Q, the one aspect that I lost in between that decision was portability for times when I am on the go or need to travel light. With this my decision came to try and give the Fuji X100f a shot as a companion camera to my main set. For the days when I need a semi pocketable camera that I can take along to places like amusement parks, family get together's and so on. This gives me a camera that's way better than just a smartphone for times when I do not want to bring the Leica SL. What I will go over in this post is how well the Fuji X100f complements my Leica SL from functional and technical perspective.

On the go with the Fuji X100f

Leica SL + Zeiss 50mm Sonnar 1.5 ZM Review

Love it or hate it, that's the term or review I have found the most about this lens, but one statement I have also heard is how this lens has a special character to it. If your looking for that classic or Hollywood glam look of the 1950s, this lens design is your lens. That is really what drew me to this particular lens, my style is looking for those timeless photographs that feel like a lost memory. So I took the plunge and made the effort to make this my primary lens for over one year and decide whether I love it or hate it. With that, I look to share an extensive review of the Sonnar f1.5 to provide a personal field test and view of the lens. When I first started looking at this lens, there really was not any reviews or articles on it, probably due to the fact that there are not many fans of this lens. I've often heard comments about it's softness or so but I will go through how to overcome this and hopefully through this post I can add public information about this lens for anyone interested.

Leica SL + Zeiss 50mm Sonnar 1.5 ZM Review

Sub Zero Weather with the Leica SL

Recently an opportunity came across my lap and got me excited, my brother in law was looking into getting into the Leica system and was jumping straight into it with purchasing a Leica Noctilux. He has asked me to purchase it in advance and my only response was heck yeah as this would give me a week to try out the legendary Noctilux. Its very rare that you get to hold and shoot with a $10,000 lens so this was an opportunity that I was excited for and had me waiting for the UPS truck to arrive. 

Sub Zero Weather with the Leica SL

Leica SL in Manila, Philippines

Recently an opportunity came across my lap and got me excited, my brother in law was looking into getting into the Leica system and was jumping straight into it with purchasing a Leica Noctilux. He has asked me to purchase it in advance and my only response was heck yeah as this would give me a week to try out the legendary Noctilux. Its very rare that you get to hold and shoot with a $10,000 lens so this was an opportunity that I was excited for and had me waiting for the UPS truck to arrive. 

Leica SL in Manila, Philippines

Packing light and ready to go

Travel Photography is all about being on the go and exploring countries, cities and small towns of the world. Those of you who follow me know that my philosophy in photography is one lens and one camera and being agile and ready to go is the biggest advantage in just going out and shooting photos. Trusting in a single focal length for that particular day, shoot or walk is the approach I take as this will let me just focus on framing my composition.

Packing light and ready to go

One week with the Leica Noctilux + Leica SL

Recently an opportunity came across my lap and got me excited, my brother in law was looking into getting into the Leica system and was jumping straight into it with purchasing a Leica Noctilux. He has asked me to purchase it in advance and my only response was heck yeah as this would give me a week to try out the legendary Noctilux. Its very rare that you get to hold and shoot with a $10,000 lens so this was an opportunity that I was excited for and had me waiting for the UPS truck to arrive. 

One week with the Leica Noctilux + Leica SL