Hey all,
Canon has released the first official firmware upgrade for the Canon 50D.
Also a reminder to everyone to check out the firmware for whatever camera they are using to make sure it’s current. For those that don’t know firware upgrades for digital cameras sometimes offer bug fixes, support for memory cards, performance boosts, etc. So it’s good to keep up to date with them.
Paul
Hey all,
Anyone coming to this website should know that things have changed lately. This is now back to being just a blog. The new Paul Cypert Photography site can be found at
This is where all the new galleries and choice picks will go. This site will remain for advice on gear, technique, and personal stuff.
Thanks,
Paul
Hey all,
If you’ve noticed a lapse in updates…well here’s why. I’m re-branding again. I have a new website which should be launched any day now. So this will stay the same, but will just be a regular old blog. Format will stay the same, but portfolios are going to go bye bye.
Paul
Hey all,
I’ve been seriously waiting for this for a while now. To the point where, this last week, I actually started spending a good amount of time thinking about dumping my Canon gear and going Nikon (D700). It’s still a nice thought because I still miss the ergonomics of Nikon cameras.
But just in the nick of time Canon announced the 5DMKII. This is an upgrade to the classic 5D, my current main camera. This update will give me higher ISO (better low light) pictures and more megapixels. Not actually all that excited for 21 mp…it doesn’t really add to that much difference it’s actually only a 25% increase in resolution. It will let me go a bit bigger in portraits so look for some enlargements in the future.
Also, it’ll allow for HD movie shooting! That sounds kind of cheesy on one hand, but is incredibly cool on the other. I can shoot some artsy stuff with my 85 1.2 for ultra shallow depth of field movies…pretty nice.
I’m sold at this point right now (unless somone will give me a bunch of Nikon gear). I’ll buy this and a 50D when they are released.
Paul
Hey all,
Last night I covered the La Perla fashion show at Paragon. Interesting to say the least. Now I know most guys would probably kill to take pictures of scantily clad women, but me not so much…honestly. Here’s why.
They do look good for the most part. But photographing these events is skivvy at best. There’s loads of wanna be photographers showing up showing off how much of a “pro” they are. They carry unnecessary amounts of gear. These “pros” also push and shove to get the shot…like it’s actually going in anything but they’re obsessive personal collection. I’m sure in larger markets like Paris and Milan these folks get screened out…not so much here in Bangkok.
Also, and I hate to say this, some of these models couldn’t walk. It was like watching an early in the season episode of America’s Next Top Model. Some of these girls need “Miss J” badly. They clomped down to the end of the runway and spun around to exit as quickly as they arrived. One even did a sort of stripper move at the end that I don’t think we’d see on a major runway.
I hope I don’t sound like sour grapes, but Bangkok isn’t the leading edge of fashion. There’s a fair amount of shows and designers, but if models and others were bigger they’d be in a larger Asian market like Tokyo. But then again so would I….
Hey all,
The charity of the night was The Lotus Flower Foundation. This group is working with women and children’s issues. Great organization, with great goals. Looks like now they’ll have more of the funding they need to get things underway. Nice also to see Bed Supperclub using their influence and menu to support the needs of Thailand.
The night was split in two. There was a 5,000THB a head dinner and auction in the early stages of the night and then a party (pictured here). Look for the event part of the pictures to come soon. In the meantime here’s the after party for you to enjoy.
Full gallery on the Events Page.
Paul
Hey all,
Going backwards from this weekend it seems. Here’s last Friday’s party at Glow Bar. This party was Vuiton Productions Chocolate R&B Party…or something like that. I’ve shot one other Vuiton Party at Gazebo. Pictured above are Jam from Glow and the main organizer for Vuiton Productions.
Sadly this party was not so well attended. At least as not as much as the past Glow parties I’ve been covering. They generally play nice R&B (at least it’s not all Justin Timberlake and that kind of “music”), have good drink promotions, etc…but for some reason the people just aren’t coming. Maybe foreigners in Bangkok are all into techno?
Full pictures on the Events Page
Hey all,
Getting parties out of order again. Here’s Saturday’s party first.
This is the 11th Reggae in Thailand party I believe, but the 3rd that’s taken place at Glow. At least the 3rd I’ve taken pictures of and really that’s all that matters 
More pictures on the Events Page
Paul
Finally.
Was starting to get worried. Even starting to peruse the Nikon lineup. Part of me still misses the ergonomics of Nikons. But Canon will come back I keep telling myself. They were on top for a number of years and now Nikon is catching up, but Canon will respond in time. And they’re slowly starting to release. It looks like they’re still going after “Uncle Bob’s” and others with their lineups, but we shall see. I’ll hold off a bit longer. Rumors say there are more announcements on the horizon.
This new camera isn’t what I’ve been hoping for in a lot of ways. But in other ways it’s the perfect camera for a lot of my shooting. There are times when more MP’s don’t’ matter to me. I shoot a lot for clubs and a lot of the wedding day doesn’t need to be blown up large…so the small size raw files on offer with the 50D are of note for me. I like that I can choose to scale down from 15 MP to around 7 and 3. That will save a lot of hard drive space for people who just want web images.
I also appreciate the claims of improved focusing. Let’s hope they are true. Some are saying it focuses better than the top of the line Canons. That would be swell
It’s not actually in many people’s hands so I’m holding off judgement. I recently sold my backup 30D looking to get a 40D, but looks like now I’ll have to wait till October and it’ll be the 50D instead. Looks to be a perfect backup camera that’ll pull extra duty in the clubs and give my aging 5D the rest it deserves.
Paul
Hey all,
Got a little busy the last couple weeks. Wanted to throw some pictures up from my short Cambodian vacation. I l love Cambodia. It’s developed enough to be moderately comfortable, but not as much as Bangkok. Prices are still low, people are still gracious, and… did I mention prices are low?
We went to Phnom Phen first. Spent some time at the FCC (foreign correspondents club) and at a Tapas restaurant.
The next day we traveled down to Kampot in the southern part of Cambodia. Kampot is a very quiet town. There’s maybe 3 or 4 places to stay if you’re a foreigner. Really laid back. Bought some books at a book store that did some of the most elaborate fakes I’ve ever seen. I ate the famous Riki Tiki Tavi burger, which lived up to the hype. I’m a big fan of the pineapple on burgers. The next day we took a short bike ride around town and into the nearby fishing villages.
Then it was off to Kep to eat Crab (this was actually presented to us as Crep to eat Crep). So we thought we were heading off for some French Crepes (lots of French influence in Cambodia so not that far fetched). Found out it was actually Crabs…even better. Ordered two different Crab dishes… ended up with two of the same which is good because that dish was excellent.
Went back to Phnom Phen and ate at a really good Italian place under the FCC (we’re so adventurous ). Next day went to S21 (will put up some old pictures from there) and Russian Market again. Then had lunch at a really nice sandwich shop. Then back home. Just had a carton of Davidoffs, a Paul Smith shirt, some nock-off books, and a bloated belly to show for the trip.
Really need to return to the Southern part. Kep is right near the beach, but not the part you can actually swim in. The beach areas of Cambodia seem like they’d be an excellent vacation.
Here’s a handful of pics from the trip. I didn’t want to carry camera around so much so didn’t take pictures everywhere.
