One very scorching, sunny 14th October 2007, a bunch of us went up to Bentong.

Note the shot would usually have a very underexposed building, but the Sony Alpha 700’s Dynamic Range Optimizer, set on DRO Manual Level 5, has maximum effect here. No Photoshopping other than resize and sharpen.

I don’t know what others see in this picture but I’ll put it up anyway.

17mm F2.8 2 seconds ISO6400 with a cheap infrared-pass filter. Oh, and black-and-white mode.

We headed to Chamang waterfalls, where I then whipped out my Super Aberrator – the misaligned, faulty Sigma 70-210mm F4-5.6! 210mm F6.3.

160mm F8. The chromatic aberration is so thick, it could be used for artistic effect.

200mm F6.3. Note the extremely soft corners!

The jungleman cometh!

135mm F11. KJ and the bokeh that appears to swirl behind him in concentric circles (much easier to see in real life, through the lens.)

210mm F11. Enough of the Super Aberrator already!

Now for some animation.

Peleng 8mm F3.5 circular fisheye, at F16, 1/1000s, ISO3200.

DRO was off for 5 FPS burst mode, as DRO would sometimes lag the 5 FPS. However, DRO Level 5 is awesome for extremely bright, contrasty situations, as it brings out the greens. Add that I was in Daylight White Balance for extra effect.

It started to drizzle, so we headed home.

Well, sorta, not before dropping by a restaurant in Gohtong Jaya and discovering that KJ was actually a farmboy. This was actually quite dim evening light. Again, DRO Level 5 brought out the greens to beyond what my favorite Fujifilm Superia could do. I love it!

The rain kept us in the restaurant for a few good hours.