tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010-09-01://1 Oleg Novikov oleg@olegnovikov.com    2013-05-06T09:12:30Z         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.079 2013-05-06T09:12:30Z    2013-05-06T09:12:30Z   Regular readers of this site may recall that in the past I uploaded and shared several photography-related newsletters produced by my friend Edwin Leong...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.077 2013-04-30T09:12:30Z    2013-04-30T09:12:30Z   I have now used my Flickr account for a few months, which is long enough to have a good taste of it is, and what it is not. In short, I have decided to close the account and use this Web site only to share images in the future. I thought I would share with you some thoughts and observations, which partially explain my decision...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.076 2013-04-02T09:12:30Z    2013-04-02T09:12:30Z   "If and when I have to shoot digitally, I always shoot to card and never show anyone. I usually give myself a day or two before I look at the session. It's the same thing you would do with film, you shoot your film, it goes to the lab the next morning and you get it back that afternoon. That space in time between [taking the photograph] and looking at it after is a really important thing. It's kind of like counting to ten when someone makes you really mad. If I said something awful to you and you just counted to ten, your reaction would be different than just [snaps fingers]."         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.075 2013-03-30T09:12:30Z    2013-03-30T09:12:30Z   During the past couple of months I continued photographing and experimenting with tools that offer drastically different types and degrees of connectivity. Namely...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.074 2013-01-22T09:12:30Z    2013-01-22T09:12:30Z   I have been using my newly bought iPhone 5 as a camera together with the latest Flickr application for over a month now, and I have to say that being able to share images in a simple and straightforward manner is totally addictive...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.073 2012-12-31T09:12:30Z    2012-12-31T09:12:30Z   Another year is coming to an end and, having spent most of it between Spain, China and Russia, I have to say that I have had a heck of an international one...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.072 2012-12-23T09:12:30Z    2012-12-23T09:12:30Z   As I mentioned a few times in the past, my main computer is an early 2008 eight-core Apple Mac Pro. It is a beautiful machine and, even after nearly five years of use, yet to become morally obsolete...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.071 2012-12-20T09:12:30Z    2012-12-20T09:12:30Z   I realise that you are probably getting a bit bored with the posts about the camera, so this will be the last one (I hope!)...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.070 2012-12-06T09:12:30Z    2012-12-06T09:12:30Z   Continuing with my review of the Sony RX100 camera, I have now had a close look at its high ISO performance...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.069 2012-12-02T09:12:30Z    2012-12-02T09:12:30Z   My friend Edwin Leong has just sent out the third issue of the CameraHobby Newsletter. I have uploaded it to this site before even reading it, because, knowing Edwin, I know it will be a fascinating read. You can download the Newsletter after this link. Enjoy!         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.068 2012-11-24T09:12:30Z    2012-11-24T09:12:30Z   As I discussed in the previous post, vignetting, chromatic aberration and distortion are apparently corrected for in-camera even when you shoot in RAW format. As a result, we have no way to ascertain sharpness of the lens itself and are left to evaluate resulting image sharpness instead...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.067 2012-11-22T09:12:30Z    2012-11-22T09:12:30Z   As the next step of evaluating the Sony RX100 camera I have been examining performance of its lens. As usual, I made a series of tests and have been looking at the RAW files in Lightroom 4 with Lens corrections panel switched off. It struck me right from the beginning that...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.066 2012-11-14T09:12:30Z    2012-11-14T09:12:30Z   I have finally finished working on the images from Yading Nature Reserve: all slides have been sorted, chosen ones have been scanned, and a select few have been printed. On second thought, though, the process has been sort of finished: to me, the final version of an image always tends to recede into the future as I continue to tweak and fine-tune the artistic decisions made in post processing. But anyway...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.065 2012-11-08T09:12:30Z    2012-11-08T09:12:30Z   I bought my Hasselblad 503CW camera in the summer of 2005, which marked the departure from 35mm film photography for me. From the very first day I laid my hands on it, the camera and I just clicked...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.064 2012-11-06T09:12:30Z    2012-11-06T09:12:30Z   I think at some point every photographer comes across the THEN AND NOW images - you know, where you take a picture of someone or something in the past and juxtapose it with a picture of the same subject today...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.063 2012-10-30T09:12:30Z    2012-10-30T09:12:30Z   As promised, here are my further comments on the Sony RX100 camera. Before you read them, though, I should emphasise that they were written after using the camera in the field and before looking at image quality or performance of the lens...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.062 2012-10-25T09:12:30Z    2012-10-25T09:12:30Z   Yesterday and today I continued photographing in Yading Nature Reserve. Again, the scenery was breath-taking, the weather played along, and stirring photographic opportunities were abound...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.061 2012-10-23T09:12:30Z    2012-10-23T09:12:30Z   Last night I finally arrived in Daocheng Yading. As it turned out, the ride from Chengdu to Kangding was nothing but a minor rehearsal for junior students: the trip from Kangding to Daocheng Yading was a lot longer and rougher...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.060 2012-10-21T09:12:30Z    2012-10-23T09:12:30Z   I thought I would post a quick update on the progress of the trip to Daocheng Yading. After flying to Chengdu yesterday, today I spent the whole day on the bus...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.059 2012-10-18T09:12:30Z    2012-10-18T09:12:30Z   I have finally had a chance to work on the images shot in Altai Mountains, Russia in August and would like to invite you to look at my favourite photographs. No, there is not need to get panicky...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.058 2012-10-01T09:12:30Z    2012-10-01T09:12:30Z   Whenever a new camera is announced one of the aspects most photographers are concerned with is whether high ISO performance has been upped a notch further...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.057 2012-09-25T09:12:30Z    2012-09-25T09:12:30Z   I have been noticing for a while that discussion of photography on the Internet increasingly tends to be in terms of books, exhibitions or, at the very least, portfolios...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.056 2012-09-05T09:12:30Z    2012-09-05T09:12:30Z   A reader has asked me to go a bit further into detail regarding what equipment I brought on the Altai expedition. I thought it would be easier and more graphic to make an illustration instead of providing a list, so here is a snapshot of my camera backpack...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.055 2012-08-31T09:12:30Z    2012-08-31T09:12:30Z   My friend Edwin Leong, the ex-owner of NikonLinks.com and the man behind the now-closed CameraHobby.com site, has produced a first Newsletter in which he discusses several interesting pieces of equipment, his recent photographic undertakings and other photography topics. I found it a very interesting read and thought I would share it with you. I have uploaded the Newsletter to this site - if interested, you can download it after this link. Enjoy!...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.054 2012-08-29T09:12:30Z    2012-08-29T09:12:30Z   Two weeks ago I returned from the adventure in the wilderness of Altai Mountains, Russia. In case you wonder where exactly we went...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.053 2012-07-27T09:12:30Z    2012-07-27T09:12:30Z   Just before I head to Russia I thought I would share with you what can be photographed with the simplest camera that you have without going anywhere...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.052 2012-07-20T09:12:30Z    2012-07-20T09:12:30Z   I have finally managed to bring my entire Hasselblad V-series camera system to Spain and started shooting with it...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.051 2012-07-05T09:12:30Z    2012-07-05T09:12:30Z   "If you pack a camera in your pocket in order to be ready for the unexpected you are, on some level, like the guy who carries a condom around in his wallet on the off chance he might get lucky."         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.050 2012-06-27T09:12:30Z    2012-06-27T09:12:30Z   I do not know about you, but I have always been intrigued by the so-called "alternative processes" in photography...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.049 2012-06-15T09:12:30Z    2012-06-15T09:12:30Z   Recently I corresponded with a reader of this Web site regarding exposure metering with film. We both agreed that...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.048 2012-05-18T09:12:30Z    2012-05-18T09:12:30Z   If you have been reading photography related Web sites for a few years, you are likely to have been noticing a subtle yet obvious and ongoing shift in the photography webscape...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.047 2012-05-05T09:12:30Z    2012-05-05T09:12:30Z   As you most likely know, the camera that is being most talked about at the moment is the new megapixel champion in 35mm format, the Nikon D800(E)...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.045 2012-03-28T09:12:30Z    2012-03-28T09:12:30Z   "We should never deny the power of intuition or hesitate to follow its revelations..."         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.044 2012-03-23T09:12:30Z    2012-03-23T09:12:30Z   Here are several more sketches of Madrid from last weekend's exloration...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.043 2012-03-17T09:12:30Z    2012-03-17T09:12:30Z   In an unfathomably lucky twist of fate my life is now divided between Shanghai, China and Madrid, Spain, mostly tilting towards the latter at the moment...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.042 2012-02-11T09:12:30Z    2012-02-11T09:12:30Z   Recently I have been thinking about whether photographic art is "created" or if it "happens". The precursor of this train of thought is that...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.041 2012-02-06T09:12:30Z    2012-02-06T09:12:30Z   I have now returned from Italy, and here is the executive summary: it is possible to ski with a Hasselblad system - or, indeed, any system of comparable size and weight - and a tripod! Let me not get ahead of myself, though...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.040 2012-01-19T09:12:30Z    2012-01-19T09:12:30Z   Chinese New Year holiday is just around the corner and, instead of traveling to some remote destination in China as I have been doing for years, later this week I will be going skiing in Dolomiti, Italy...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.039 2011-12-31T09:12:30Z    2011-12-31T09:12:30Z   So, another year has come and gone, evaporated like morning dew before you barely had time to finish savouring your morning cup of coffee. As I always do in the end of each year...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.037 2011-12-04T09:12:30Z    2011-12-04T09:12:30Z   For the lovers of the photographic work of W. Eugene Smith, here is an uncannily striking account of a certain period of his life from the biography of Thelonious Monk by Robin D.G. Kelley...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.036 2011-11-26T09:12:30Z    2011-11-26T09:12:30Z   Yesterday was one of those days when I spend several hours in front of my speakers with a wine glass in hand and mobile phone switched off...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.035 2011-11-24T09:12:30Z    2011-11-24T09:12:30Z   My apologies if you are becoming bored with the posts regarding the X100, but just when I thought I was done grumbling about the downsides of the camera, yet another glitch has crept up and seized my attention...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.034 2011-11-19T09:12:30Z    2011-11-22T09:12:30Z   I find it rather curious that I started sharing my thoughts on the X100 with mostly negative commentary: first I mentioned a minor yet real image quality issue and then discussed the camera's viewing extravagancy...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.033 2011-11-11T09:12:30Z    2011-11-11T09:12:30Z   I have been using the X100 for almost three months now and, in all honesty, it has been somewhat of a love-and-hate relationship...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.032 2011-11-07T09:12:30Z    2011-11-07T09:12:30Z   It is interesting how differently the notion of encountering screaming colours has resonated with some of you...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.031 2011-11-03T09:12:30Z    2011-11-03T09:12:30Z   Sometimes we encounter wild, screaming colours that inevitably divert our attention from whatever our mind is occupied with at the moment...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.030 2011-11-01T09:12:30Z    2011-11-05T09:12:30Z   I have finally started closely looking at the RAW (.RAF) files I shot during the past couple of months with the Fujifilm X100 camera as well as doing some printing, and after converting a handful of RAW files in ACR my attention was almost immediately drawn to a strange rendering whereby some - i.e., not all - smooth lines and edges have exceedingly strong zigzag appearance at micro level (or pixelation)...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.029 2011-10-27T09:12:30Z    2011-10-28T09:12:30Z   Having now travelled to Badain Jarain desert twice, I find that photographing in a desert is a very challenging undertaking that stretches rules and approaches we take for granted and automatically rely upon in other types of landscape photography...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.028 2011-10-23T09:12:30Z    2011-10-23T09:12:30Z   I have returned from Inner Mongolia and Gansu, China, and, in contrast to the expedition to Xinjiang in June, the trip was one of the most coolheaded photographic undertakings that I have ever had...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.027 2011-09-23T09:12:30Z    2011-09-23T09:12:30Z   As I am preparing for the next photographic expedition, it is time to finalise the Xinjiang theme and move on...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.026 2011-09-07T09:12:30Z    2011-09-07T09:12:30Z   Last month I went on a non–photographic trip and, although photography was of secondary consideration, I still envisioned the possibility of having some quality photography time...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.025 2011-08-31T09:12:30Z    2011-09-07T09:12:30Z   In case you are wondering why I have been quiet for such a long time, well, I have lost the USB flash disk where I kept all work in progress...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.024 2011-08-04T09:12:30Z    2011-08-04T09:12:30Z   Upgrading to a new, latest and greatest computer operating system nearly always guarantees that something will get broken, and that some things might become irrevocably unusable. When a couple of weeks ago I installed...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.023 2011-08-02T09:12:30Z    2011-08-02T09:12:30Z   Today I am posting last three images from Xinjiang, thus more or less concluding the subject. I am still going to spend some time re-scanning and printing the best images, as well as...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.022 2011-07-29T09:12:30Z    2011-07-29T09:12:30Z   Before the trip to Xinjiang I never suspected that grasslands come in all shapes and sizes, both literally and metaphorically. While Bayanbulak Grassland mostly made me...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.021 2011-07-20T09:12:30Z    2011-07-20T09:12:30Z   Suppose you are on a landscape photo tour, arrive at the shooting location earlier than expected - say, in early afternoon - and the plan is to stay and photograph until after sunset...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.020 2011-07-17T09:12:30Z    2011-07-17T09:12:30Z   Sometimes going too far is the only way to know where the limit is and where you should stop. I had so much fun shooting and post processing...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.019 2011-07-15T09:12:30Z    2011-07-15T09:12:30Z   Continuing with the images taken on the trip to Xinjiang, the photographs in this post were captured in the area surrounding Kuqa Gourge...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.018 2011-07-13T09:12:30Z    2011-07-13T09:12:30Z   As is almost always the case after returning from a major photographic expedition, one is presented with two titanic tasks...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.017 2011-07-04T09:12:30Z    2011-07-04T09:12:30Z   I have now returned from Xinjiang and, wow, the expedition was an absolute blast. Every aspect of the trip was as exciting as it gets, and...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.016 2011-06-14T09:12:30Z    2011-06-14T09:12:30Z   So, later this week I will be heading to Xinjiang Province, China on a dedicated photographic expedition - for the third time...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.015 2011-06-11T09:12:30Z    2011-06-11T09:12:30Z   I realise that this will be of interest to very few people, but I thought I would let you know that I have just posted a review of the Hasselblad Sonnar CFi 5.6/250 lens...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.014 2011-05-31T09:12:30Z    2011-05-31T09:12:30Z   I am in the process of preparing for a major photographic expedition that I will undertake in June (more on that later), and I took this opportunity to critically review what equipment, how and for what purposes I have been using during the past couple of years...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.013 2011-05-19T09:12:30Z    2011-05-19T09:12:30Z   Continuing on the subject of interest in photographic gear, another reader has written to suggest that photographers often do not have sufficient motivation to actually go out and photograph...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.012 2011-05-09T09:12:30Z    2011-05-09T09:12:30Z   A couple of weeks ago a long-time reader of this Web site sent me an email to basically say that his relationship with photographic equipment has more or less been following a path not entirely dissimilar to mine (see previous post). This lead me to further think...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.011 2011-04-22T09:12:30Z    2011-04-22T09:12:30Z   Recently I have been getting the scare that I am no longer interested in photography. You know, the kind of scare that you are no longer in love...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.010 2011-03-22T09:12:30Z    2011-03-22T09:12:30Z   35mm-ish has always been one of my favourite focal lengths, and I have been extensively using...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.009 2011-03-15T09:12:30Z    2011-03-15T09:12:30Z   As regular readers might recall in the end of last year I bought a Canon PowerShot S95 compact digital camera. At the time I made quick...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.008 2011-03-10T09:12:30Z    2011-03-10T09:12:30Z   I thought I would let you know that one of my star trails images has been published in the current issue of the Practical Photography magazine (March 2011)...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.007 2011-03-06T09:12:30Z    2011-03-06T09:12:30Z   Rules are foolish, arbitrary, mindless things that raise you quickly to a level of acceptable mediocrity, then prevent you from progressing further...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.006 2011-03-04T09:12:30Z    2011-03-04T09:12:30Z   I have used my 2008 eight-core Mac Pro computer for almost exactly three years now and, generally, have been very happy with it. It is...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.005 2011-02-22T09:12:30Z    2011-02-22T09:12:30Z   I believe that each artist, like everyone else, has strong views about the world: what it is, what it should be, and how it could be improved. As such, I think that...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.004 2011-02-17T09:12:30Z    2011-02-17T09:12:30Z   I do not photograph panoramas often and generally find composing in square format very natural and easy. A few years back I did consider buying a dedicated panorama camera, but medium format panorama cameras tend to be very bulky and heavy...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.003 2011-02-13T09:12:30Z    2011-02-13T09:12:30Z   Whenever we go on a photographic trip we expect to bring back some great images. Of course, you say - why would we go otherwise? However, there are so many things that can go wrong and ruin our expectations...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.002 2011-01-25T09:12:30Z    2011-01-27T09:12:30Z   Importance of filters in photography is a very debatable issue: whereas some photographers could not care less about them, others find their use crucial...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2011://1.001 2011-01-10T09:12:30Z    2011-01-10T09:12:30Z   I am having a bit of a slow start this year, mostly because I have been doing some housekeeping on the Web site...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.028 2010-12-31T09:12:30Z    2010-12-31T09:12:30Z   I am posting last three images from Western Sichuan, thus concluding the series - and the year on this Web site. Today actually is an interesting day...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.027 2010-12-29T09:12:30Z    2010-12-29T09:12:30Z   If you found the post of 17 May 2010 titled "Less is more" of interest, I also recommend reading...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.026 2010-12-28T09:12:30Z    2010-12-29T09:12:30Z   Here is a couple of recent favourite quotations...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.025 2010-12-27T09:12:30Z    2010-12-29T09:12:30Z   Last major destination of the trip to Western Sichuan was Aba, and all remaining photographs will be from there. I will finish posting them before the year is out.         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.024 2010-12-24T09:12:30Z    2010-12-24T09:12:30Z   Today I am posting three images that are probably not as visually striking as some of the photographs posted earlier — I am showing them to mostly illustrate...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.023 2010-12-22T09:12:30Z    2010-12-22T09:12:30Z   Images from Western Sichuan, China: #12 & #13         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.022 2010-12-20T09:12:30Z    2010-12-20T09:12:30Z   Here is another exhilarating photographic moment...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.021 2010-12-16T09:12:30Z    2010-12-16T09:12:30Z   The next major destination of the expedition to Western Sichuan province was Gartze, which is a spectacular place for photography if the weather cooperates. As you might recall...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.020 2010-12-15T09:12:30Z    2010-12-15T09:12:30Z   The road to Bamei, our next photographic destination after Danba, went through a narrow, pretty valley with a clear, fast mountain river running along the road most of the time. We spent several hours...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.019 2010-12-13T09:12:30Z    2010-12-13T09:12:30Z   Images from Western Sichuan, China: #4         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.018 2010-12-11T09:12:30Z    2010-12-11T09:12:30Z   Images from Western Sichuan, China: #3         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.017 2010-12-09T09:12:30Z    2010-12-09T09:12:30Z   Here is an image from Jiaju with dramatic clouds that I mentioned in the previous post...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.014 2010-11-15T09:12:30Z    2010-11-15T09:12:30Z   You probably wonder why my comments on the Canon S95 camera begin with the description of its high ISO performance — after all, one is supposed to start with an introduction, depiction of ergonomics and handling, menus, and so on and so forth. The reason for breaking...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.013 2010-11-13T09:12:30Z    2010-11-13T09:12:30Z   Several posts ago I mentioned a music documentary that I greatly enjoyed, "It might get loud". My Friend Edwin over at...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.012 2010-11-10T09:12:30Z    2010-11-11T09:12:30Z   At long last, my first impressions of the Leica M9 camera are now online. Someone has to call a spade a spade, so there you have it.         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.011 2010-10-19T09:12:30Z    2010-10-19T09:12:30Z   I have finished sorting through the slides that I shot in Western Sichuan earlier this months and would like to add a couple of comments to the previous post...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.010 2010-10-10T09:12:30Z    2010-10-10T09:12:30Z   I am now back from the trip to Western Sichuan and thought I would let you know what worked and what did not on the expedition. I do not want to bore you with the details of the itinerary and, in brief, I first flew to Chengdu, the capital city of Sichuan Province, and then...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.009 2010-09-27T09:12:30Z    2010-09-27T09:12:30Z   Photokina has come and gone, and we have been awash with releases, demonstrations and announcements of development of various photographic equipment. It has been fascinating to watch it all but...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.008 2010-09-13T09:12:30Z    2010-09-13T09:12:30Z   If you are interested in music you might be aware of a recent documentary called "It might get loud". It features...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.007 2010-08-30T09:12:30Z    2010-08-30T09:12:30Z   My review of the Carl Zeiss Distagon T* 3.5/18 ZF lens is now online. To be honest, it is getting increasingly difficult to describe...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.006 2010-08-23T09:12:30Z    2010-08-23T09:12:30Z   Regular readers may recall that I am a big fan of star trails photography. Photographing star trails is very easy if the conditions are right. In particular...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.005 2010-08-19T09:12:30Z    2010-08-19T09:12:30Z   Recently I have been very fond of what is known as "straight" photography. What is straight photography? Well, as the name suggests, it is when you pick up your camera and photograph what happens to be before you at the moment. As Paul Graham put it in his brilliant essay...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.004 2010-08-05T09:12:30Z    2010-08-05T09:12:30Z   Several readers have written to let me know that RSS feed of this page does not seem to work properly. I have now completely revamped it and the feed should work flawlessly from now on...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.003 2010-08-03T09:12:30Z    2010-08-04T09:12:30Z   My friend Tom Willekes recently sent me the following question regarding my review of the Hasselblad CFV–39 digital back: Do you have any subject comment on image "character"? You mention image quality, but not character. What I'm getting at...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.002 2010-07-20T09:12:30Z    2010-07-21T09:12:30Z   Last weekend I happened to be in Beijing and was invited to have dinner at an old friend's home. There were several people whom I had never met before and, naturally, we talked about various harmful topics you usually discuss with new acquaintances. When the discussion came to traveling in China...         tag:www.olegnovikov.com,2010://1.001 2010-07-14T09:12:30Z    2010-07-15T09:12:30Z   I mentioned in one of the previous posts that I recently moved to a new apartment. During the past decade I have relocated so many times that I have become quite efficient at it - I will not be able to rescue everything if the building is on fire, but give me a few hours and there will not be much that I will regret leaving behind. Moreover...