sOleiLian

The Sunday that’s just passed was the day I was lookin’ forward to for sooooo long. I was all set to welcome the addition of a new babe to my life, the multi-award winning Panasonic LUMIX DMC-LX3.

Sorry to disappoint some of you, I didn’t opt for a dSLR. I wished I had, but the model I was targeting was way beyond my budget. Besides, the idea of hauling along a huge-ass camera wherever I go doesn’t seem to fancy me for the time being.

The LX3 mounted on the funky Joby Gorillapod

But hey, this LX3 is a gem alright! Having been praised and recommended by countless leading photography review sites, I knew I wouldn’t go wrong with this top-of-the-line high-end compact digital camera. And since it’s pointless and unjust for a lame reviewer like me to do a concise write-up on this superb camera when you can find loads of professionally-written ones on the Internet, I’d just list out a few of the noteworthy features of the LX3 that distinguish it from the usual compacts:

• 1/1.63″ 10.1-megapixel CCD (most compacts are equipped with the much smaller 1/2.33″ CCD)
• 24mm ultra-wide DC VARIO-SUMMICRON lens by Leica (when 28mm wide-angle is the norm)
• F2.0 maximum aperture (nearly twice as bright as the F2.8 lens)
• 3.0″ 460,000-dot TFT LCD monitor (compared to the 230,000 dots of most compacts and entry-level dSLRs)
• 720p HD motion picture mode at 24fps in addition to WXGA at 30fps and the usual formats (VGA is seriously outdated)
• 1/2000th to 60-second shutter speeds (great for shooting light trails and more)
• 1cm macro capability (sweet!)
• hot shoe for expandability as a system camera (don’t think I’d use it as this would ruin the convenience and compactness of LX3)
• full manual operation and RAW image format (awesome!)

Being my 1st ever standalone digital camera, I was as excited as a kid who just got his brand new toy. But different from an ordinary kid, I suffered a monetary damage. Guess I’d have to save up more and plan wisely if I were to splurge on a new gadget in the future. iPhone? iMac? MacBook Pro? dSLR? Ouch!

Anyway, I know you guys have been waiting to see these:

Strictly no Photoshop tricks have been applied to alter the image quality of the photos. They are as they were. And oh, comments and suggestions are most welcomed. :)

By the way, did I tell you guys that I’m entitled to the 33-month extended warranty by Panasonic in conjunction with the 33rd anniversary of its Malaysian branch? Plus, the camera is Made in Japan.

c a t e g o r y | juz bloggin'
f l u f f e r p u f f | gadgets

24 sOleiLians

The other day, I was feelin’ rather creative and inspired. And off to the kitchen I went.

With ingredients like cream cheese, red and green pesto sauce, tomato purée, and some biscuits, I churned out this…

Looks good? Whatever. I got hooked to the awesome pesto sauce lately, especially the olive green pesto alla genovese with its distinctive burst of flavours. Nice to spread on bread or simply as a topping on any rice or noodle dishes. Man, I should’ve discovered this earlier! It doesn’t come cheap though. One tiny bottle is priced at RM10 onwards. But for the sake of Italian deliciousness, who cares?

Mum was having some fun too as she placed a stalk of asparagus on top of each biscuit. And I thought the idea was great. Haha!

But taste wise, well… It was a disappointment. The first taste that immediately alerted my taste bud was the saltiness of the dish. Even the wheat biscuits were salty. How pathetic!

Then on another day, I helped mum to prepare our all-time favourite, the fabulous Thai tom yam for lunch. We had all the essential ingredients ready, such as the torch ginger flower, bird’s eye chillies, kaffir lime leaves, limes, tomatoes, and so on.

Being the vegetarian version of the iconic Thai dish, succulent squids and tiger prawns saw their imperial status in this dish usurped by the mushrooms and tofus. Even the tom yam paste we used in our cooking was specially made for vegetarians. I so love the idea that I don’t have to starve myself and bid my favourite food goodbye for choosing this path. There’s always an alternative, ain’t it?

Ooh… I feel like licking the screen of my notebook computer right now. Bon appétit, my friends!

c a t e g o r y | yummylicious
f l u f f e r p u f f | food

19 sOleiLians