I was out again today playing with 2 cameras. Warming up for Cambodia. Wandering around I found some new wall art on the walls of the vet’s surgery. He has just added a spa for the small animals of Sai Kung and here are some wonderful ‘adverts’. Unfortunately they are in a narrow alley, not on the front of the building. This gave me perspective issues with the 35mm lens but I hope you will forgive them.
I also found a slightly larger animal out on my walk.
And there were a few other odds and ends that caught my eye. Cambridge for example!
And the Chinese chess players
Ciggy time for the girls
A derelict house
The local view
And Uncle Mak still going strong at 96-ish.
Another run down wall scene to finish up with.
Some of these were shot with the new X100s and some with the Noctilux 0.95 on an M9. Not really a fair comparison. The Nocti retails in B&H for a knee-trembling US$11,000 minus 5 bucks. Mine was a birthday gift 3 years ago from Mrs. Ha (funded from the joint account I suspect). That’s without the body!!!! The X100s on the other hand is a comparatively miserly US$1,300. All in. Both cameras are going to Cambodia with me.
Apart from that I was extremely unhappy at denting the rear bumper on my car. I was carefully parking between a pillar and another vehicle when I heard a nasty crunch. It transpired that there were metal pipes jutting out next to the pillar. I couldn’t see them in any mirror as they were too low. The parking sensors also missed them because they were low. Result – one dent. Not too bad but frustrating. I am slowly coming to detest my Q5. The side mirrors are very odd. When you reverse the left one angles down so you can see the ground as you reverse – curbs, obstacles, yellow lines, they are all visible. The Right hand one does not. And of course the pipe was on my right hand side. You can put the left mirror back up again by moving a button and you need to do so. If you don’t you get a bizarre optical perspective of how you are aligned. It means you have to make the switch as you reverse. Whoever thought of that? If you want to see downwards with the right hand mirror you can position it to do so but then you can’t see the road behind you. Rücksprung durch Technik as we say in Sai Kung. It is going in to be serviced this week ad the laundry list of warranty fixes includes rattles, pulling to the left when braking, sticky petrol tank cover (the Esso guys have given up trying to open it – I have to do it myself now) and wind noise with the windows closed. Never again. I’ll have my Lexus back please. Roll on Thursday and Cambodia.
Oh and if you are interested, Benjamin is doing really well, flying short distances and should fledge fully tomorrow I would guess. He’s a tough old bird, young Benjy.
All downhill from here 
Great set, Andrew. Murphy wants to go to that spa. We don’t have a rubber ducky for him.
Zounds…a great lens the Noctilux, but, but…zounds!!! If Mary Beth bought me one similarly priced I would be quite certain the Rapture was at hand.
A great set of photos, I love the derelict buildings, but my favourite is the cat nurse, that artwork is priceless 🙂
Thank you Vicky. Yes the nurse is very well done. I must go back and see who did the artwork.
Sorry to hear about your luck with the Q5, sounds frustrating. All the electronic wizardry seems to have failed you. Is there no back up camera? Most luxury or even near luxury vehicles found here in Canada seem to have them. You mentioned Lexus which reminded me of a friend whose son works on the Lexus production line in Cambridge…Ontario, and he is in QC. Apparently QC on Lexus is extremely rigid, which is a good thing.
Okay, this is getting wordy but I do want to say that your street/walkabout images are very good. I know you love bird photography but I think your reportage/street photos are top drawer.
No back up camera, Barry. Not even as an optional extra as I was told. We wanted Lexus again – the last one was 8 years old. But 12m ago the Yen was strong and their prices were too high for us. HK has 100% duty on car imports. Maybe next time we go back.
Love that derelict house. We used to play in one similar when we were kids… of course the added attraction was that ours was haunted, all the more to dare nine year olds.
AV
Great photos, Andrew. I particularly like the doggy spa!! 🙂
A group of some very nice images. All are so good but I really like the B & W of the 90+ year old man. So much going on in the photo. Shows his diligent expression as he works.
Thanks Yvonne. Uncle Mak is a mini celebrity locally and definitely a treasure. Long may he go on.
I am curious, Andrew, Does this gentleman make buckets or repair them? I see a stack of buckets to his right (viewers left). The buckets appear to be stainless but maybe not.
It is a good thing then, if he is appreciated and regarded as a local celebrity. Wonderful. Every community should be so blessed to have an Uncle Mak.
He makes all sorts of things Yvonne. He has been doing so for 80 years. Buckets, watering cans, tin boxes, he makes for locals to buy or to sell to ironmongers for them to sell. He is a delightful man.
Thanks for the answer. 🙂
Loved the Animal Crackers ,… Andrew, ‘specially the dog and his little duck!!!
… and what is it about smokers ( sorry if you are one… but I am new here … 😉 ) when they take that smoke break, their expressions are so totally absorbed in the act… erm..smoking I mean… as if every second of the inhaling must be appreciated.. You can probably tell I’m a non smoker, who when first married had to empty the flipping ash trays… strewth, the smell was horrendous…BUT what you do you for the love of your life eh? , which brings me nicely to the cost of your camera, Wow,,, ‘ow much?…(Barnsley war cry) … 🙂 … ok, but I admit ’tis worth it, for the resulting photo’s xx
I’m a lifelong non-smoker Penny from a family of smokers. Moderate though. No chain smokers. Mrs Ha is a rabid anti-smoker. I don’t mind the smell of pipe tobacco or cigars. Just cigarettes.
I never claim it’s worth spending so much on a lens. But I have modest needs and rarely splurge. It is an undoubted luxury but I don’t feel guilty about it. Barnsley eh? Sounds very Northern. 😉
I like the vet artwork and terrific environmental scenes!
Nurse Kitty, pure genius. Cambridge comes second (this is beginning to sound like the boat race) and the rest as always are pretty damn perfect.
Sorry to hear about the motor. What a pain up the arse. I bet you’re not the first that’s come a cropper on that wretched metal pipe. I’ve been caught out like that before. I reversed straight into a porsche in a multi-storey car park once. Wretched thing was driving past me so fast that I didn’t spot it.
Cambodia! SO jealous. You’ve kept that one very quiet Mr Hardacre. How exciting, I’m already looking forward to the pictorial evidence 😀
Lottie, if you are going to hit another car then may as well do it in style and aim big.
I did Cambodia sat year and really enjoyed it. Just had to go again.