Fireworks: One of My Weaknesses

I'm normally all-in for green, environmentally-healthy stuff. However, I have the tendency to let fireworks slip right through that "rule" of mine. It creates plenty of smoke where it explodes and it also causes hell of a noise pollution, but it's so shiny!

Anyway, instead of celebrating Queen Victoria's birthday this weekend, I also let my eyes take in the pleasure of watching lights exploding in the sky by Ontario Place. Like everyone else. Cheers.

Priceless Photo Gifts

I love photo gifts. I really do. I think they can be as thoughtful and valuable as hand-made gifts, if done right. And to those with a busy life style, but still want to show their friends, family, and significant others that they care, it can be done so via purchasing a photo gift with the right photo on it.

For those that are not too familiar with photo gifts and don't know where to get'em, you're in luck (as long as you live in Canada). Black's Photography offers quite a selection of photo gifts. So much, that you can probably fill the whole room with photo gifts... which is very, very creepy if you really think about it.

And like all good things in life, there is also a downside. You want to plan ahead is it normally takes 2 weeks for these photo gifts to be completed and shipped to the store you ordered from (followed by you going there and picking it up), which doesn't make it easy to be a last-minute gift. Needless to say if you order something for Christmas, you might get it back after the new year. Sometimes, never, as the order might even get lost in the busy Christmas season.

While I was scanning through these somewhat unique collection of photo gifts such as poker chips ($10 for one poker chip is bit outrageous), book marks, and so on, one item in particular got my attention.

A photo cutting board.

As you probably guessed it, it's a cutting board with a photo on it. What strikes me as odd is that, the example of photo they used is all the same photo for each gift idea, and the cutting board gets no special treatment of this rule as it has a picture of someone's kid on it. Yes, it is suggesting you to slap on the photo your child on a cutting board. Only very special kind of parents would do this. And we can only hope they're in jail.

But perhaps we can have some fun with this. I myself enjoy cooking and I'm sure someone out there enjoys it as much as I do, if not more. Since putting on a photo of your child (or anyone else's) is a mere suggestion, you're free to put any other photo you pick (as long as it isn't pornographic). Here are my suggestions that some people might be able to use.



I'll let your imagination do the rest with these suggestions.





Who knows? A cutting board with your ex's face on it might make that tedious lettuce chopping, just a little more enjoyable. Have a (or the) devil for a mother-in-law? there can be a little stress-relief exercise of chopping whatever you want in the kitchen.

Now, let your imagination go wild and put a photo on that cutting board that you think is best for you. Remember, the whole point of photo gifts is to be extremely personal. So go pick something that really hits you on the spot (in a bad way)!

Now if you excuse me, I'm gonna go find a picture of an arm with slashes and cuts all over it to slap on to this photo cutting board. What? don't give me that look like I'm putting a picture of someone's kid on there. That's just sick.

What The Hell Is "Final Price"?

I've been busy with a few things for a bit. As I predicted earlier, the month of April was pretty hectic for me and I still have a few things to round up in terms of editing and what not. Thankfully, this is the last day of April. Actually, the last day of April just passed about an 2 hours and half ago for me here. Time to start a new month!

Anyway, on with the topic of today's post instead of sad excuse(s) for not posting on regular bases. It seems to me that consumers (of the city of Toronto to say the least) have changed. To say it frankly, they've gotten cheaper. A few may be missing a few screws in the head, but when ever I'm at any store, I come across this typical situation. I've quickly made a comic (via MS Paint so bare with the quality) to show you such situation.



Alright, so the last column never really happens. And yes, we are still in a recession despite what the media is hiding, but here is the break down of it if anyone is buying anything in a shop. You go in to the store, you pick out the item you want with or without a help of an employee of the said store. Then you pay for it and move on. Instead, we have people asking what the "final price" is after looking at a price right next to the word "sale". Has the good chunk of our population forgotten how to read numbers? I don't seem to understand how anyone can stoop that low and ask such a foolish question. And better yet, there are others that could be actually needing the help of that employee somewhere else in the store; such as a guy wanting to ask if they have specific item on stock because he is willing to pay the price on the tag and move on with his life.

Perhaps I'm more sensitive to this topic because of years of sad experience in retail. But why is it that people don't seem to learn, and instead they forget things that everybody should know? The price of what you pay is on the list, then plus tax. Simple as that. By the way, tax is still 13% as I hear that question in shops more often now than ever: "What's the price after tax?" or "Can I not pay tax?". And yes, you can calculate the price after tax from a regular cellphone now a day (it's legal so don't be afraid to give it a shot!), but that knowledge also seems to be on a level of lost art of some sort. By the way, not paying tax is indeed illegal unless you're a native (chances are, you are not), which HST will also screw when Canada day comes around regardless of your origin.

But can anyone really blame these "smart" shoppers? All they are looking for is a good deal. Maybe in a few years, people will even try to negotiate with a waiter of a restaurant for the price of their meals and it'll be considered normal. Who knows? Even still, I still have a few words of advice; If you're looking for a deal and truly want to negotiate the price of a product or service, go buy a car before HST kicks in. That's one place I can think of where negotiating the price seems normal so you can pay a fair amount of money instead of a godzilla-sized price for the car. And lastly, if you truly want to be a smart shopper sniping out those good prices of the stuff you want to buy, learn to be patient to find those good deals in a place other than retail. Ebay and the rest of the internet exist for a reason and contrary to most urban myths, it's not as devil-ish as people make it appear to be. Happy shopping.

End of April

It's been a few weeks since Spring arrived (kind of) to the city of Toronto and while we do have some windy/wet days here and there, it's safe to say that it is getting warmer (quite slowly). That also means the Sakura (cherry blossom trees) bloomed not too long ago. Actually, it's been a week or so since they bloom, I just haven't had the chance to post this yet -.-;;



On the bright side, before heading to work last Wednesday, I took some photos of the cherry blossom trees near the infamous Robarts Library (they have many old and rare books) in U of T territory. Despite posting just one photo with this blog post, I took a good amount of photos that I am somewhat satisfied with. Unfortunately, most of them are cliche shots that everyone else probably took from the same angle since I didn't want some ugly looking building (*ahem* Robarts Library) to be in my frame.

While taking these photos, for some reason, I started thinking about what a good photo is. And quite frankly, after looking at some of the shots that my friend took (he takes photographs for various magazine and newspaper companies), I started to grasp the idea of a "good photograph." As it gets warmer, I plan on taking my camera out more often. Hopefully, someday, someone can take a look at one of my photos I took and say, "That's a good photograph."

Well, that and a cheque for it will be nice XD

I Hate Perfectionists- Oh Wait, That's Me Too!

For the last week or so, I've been rather busy with several things. Actually, just two things; my day job and editing a short documentary for a co-worker of mine (and hopefully it'll be published!). The editing is done (for now), but even still, I think it's safe to say the busy days (and nights) are here to stay for a while.
I'll be quite honest on my thoughts about editing any video: I hate it. Yes, I get better every time I edit something, but it's tedious, time-consuming, and worst of all, it brings out the perfectionist-side of me. In the film and broadcasting industry, that's the mindset you need to have; you simply cannot stop with "just good enough" work, you need to aim and achieve the "perfect" work. My co-worker saw that in me and requested for my help as an editor, which I took up on since it was for a good cause either and hey, it may help to get my name out there, who knows?
But going back to the perfectionist-side of me, here. I hate it for several reasons. First, when I get into my "perfectionist-mode" every single one of my cells in my body is trying to defy my philosophy called, "No human is perfect." It also reminds me of somebody I used to know in the past who was a perfectionist. For some reason seeing a perfectionist used to get me pissed off back then, but I guess I just regret how I didn't understand why we all need to be perfectionists sometimes.
Anyway, here is my advice to all the perfectionists out there: Don't forget that we can't be perfect in an imperfect world and sometimes, things are most beautiful because it is imperfect.
Well, time for me to get some sleep while I still can. I barely slept for the past week due to editing -.-;;

Harmonized Sales Tax Waiting To Screw Us All On Canada Day.

Alright, so I didn't post anything last weekend since I was busy with some stuff, but it's not the end of the world... since I'm writing one right now to make up for it. As mentioned in my previous post, it is getting warmer here in Toronto and people are indeed traveling.. at least to Toronto. This is a season to be dealing with many people wanting to check prices of things (+tax) with little to no english, which makes things really interesting, and wanting to either bang my head against a wall or their heads against it instead. It does get quite annoying when they look at me with a weird look when I give them the price including tax, which is clearly more than what's on the price tag (by 13%). Believe it when I say this: if it were up to me, products all over Canada would have price, tax amount, followed by the total of what you're paying on the price tag. Now, if that were to happen, that would be being quite honest as well as being efficient, but we that just wouldn't be a city in North America, now would it?
Talking about the tax also springs another question in the air: HST (Harmonized Sales Tax). Instead of dealing with both GST and PST, it simply combines both taxes. This means you still pay 13% tax minus the steps of paying 7% + 8%.
So if it makes things simple, why do 74% of Ontarians oppose it? Once HST hits Ontario (on July 1st, 2010), you will end up paying full 13% tax on things like your milk, food that costs less than $4 before tax, and many other things, chipping you away of those pennies here and there, which adds up in the long term. So there you have it, fellow Ontarians.
I do have a solution, though: move.

Spring Is (Almost) Here and That Means...

Most people are starting think about traveling and there is one thing just about everyone brings on a trip regardless of where they go: Camera. With the technology enhancing faster than a guy on steroids, many people feel pressured to upgrade to a new camera as it makes what their current camera to be.. more or less an artifact. If you feel somewhere on the similar lines yourself, perhaps this post could help you on picking out the right camera, without spending anymore than you need to. Here are the things you should be watching for:

1. Megapixel
I'm going to quite frank here; megapixel isn't everything. Do not be tempted to get a camera over another simply because "it has a higher megapixel." It certainly does have a difference on resolution of the photo you take, but if you're not going to print anything higher than an 8x10, you don't need to stress too much over the amount megapixel; 10MP should be more than sufficient (most models now a days are at least 12-14MP on average). If you're not planning on printing your photos (SHAME ON YOU!) and want to just post it on facebook and/or myspace like rest of the population, you really don't need to worry about megapixel at all as those websites shrink the size down the moment you upload your private public moments to the web.

2. Battery
There are two types of batteries today's cameras run on: Lithium ion or AA batteries.
Lithium ion types are those blocky looking rechargeable battery that usually comes with the charger and as long as you fully charge and discharge them, they should be good for about 4-5 years. Your cellphones are also running on same type of battery if it helps to understand. It's also important not to lose the battery or the charger as it can cost you around $70 and up to replace either the battery or the charger (remember, it's suppose to last you 4-5 years). The cameras that run on lithium ion batteries tend to be more pricey compared to the ones that run on AA batteries.
The AA batteries should be self explanatory, but don't forget there are single-use and rechargeable in AA section as well. Though, you would have to buy them on your own, the cameras that run on AA batteries tend to be more affordable. If you find yourself outside in the wild a lot, it may not be a bad idea to stick with a camera that runs on AA batteries as you can carry many back up batteries. If you're a tree hugger and care about the environment, perhaps the lithium ion batteries should be your choice.

3. Brand
When it comes to brand of the camera, Sony pops up quite a lot. While I think Sony digital cameras are finally coming along nicely, there are better ones out there in terms of quality and what you pay for them. Don't get me wrong, Sony makes great other products such as LCD TV's and camcorders. I would say the only thing Sony's got over the other brands in cameras is the style of how it looks, which makes it more appealing, but when you take a photo, is your camera in your shots? Not really (unless you shoot a mirror to take a picture of yourself).
So what other brands are there you should consider? There are plenty. Canon has been making cameras since God knows when. While I do like Nikon DSLR's, I don't think their point-and-shoots are any better than Canon's point-and-shoots. Panasonic has been coming up nicely as well. If you're looking into Panasonic, chances are, you're looking at a camera with a massive zoom, while having a body small enough to travel with. Finally, don't forget the old school Pentax. Just because they don't have an ad, doesn't mean they are crap. So the question is, you want to pay for brand or quality? Ask your salesman at a camera store for some insights and do your research as well (incase the salesman is bias towards certain brand, which is understandable, but you want a camera for yourself, not him/her!).

4. Zoom
I promise, it's almost over. Just like megapixel, zoom doesn't determine how good a camera is. It's easy to be carried away by the numbers in their features end up spending for features that you never end up using in a camera. Zoom is something that men go for more than women and obviously, the bigger the zoom, the more money flies out of your wallet. Either way, if you're just taking pictures of your family, friends, and all the regular stuff, you really won't need anything more than 3 or 5x zoom. I mean, when are you going to use a 10x zoom on a family shot? if you need to zoom in at a situation like that, just step up to them. If you come across what of those once-in-a-blue-moon situations where you DO need something on the lines of 10x zoom (like a bird standing far, far away), just take the shot at the max zoom your camera has, then blow it up later on your computer. Even with 10MP, that should still be pretty darn clear (as long it's focused). If you're a sucker for taking lots and lots of landscape shots, maybe 10x zoom is the one for you (don't forget to buy a tripod!), other than that, people rarely use anything beyond 5x zoom so think about what kind of shots you're going to be taking with the new camera. Oh, and remember: never, never use digital zoom. It lowers the quality of the photo way too much. I suggest turning digital zoom off if you can. Trust me on that one.

5. Video Mode
Yes, most, if not all cameras now come with a Video Mode (or Movie Mode). Watch out though, there are two kinds now: HD (High Definition) and SD (Standard Definition). This feature, depending on what definition the camera shoots at, will make about a $100 difference in cameras that shoot HD or SD. If you like to shoot a lot of HD movies with the camera and have an HDTV at home, maybe you wouldn't mind vomiting up the extra cash. If you go for mainly photos and barely any videos, maybe it's not worth spending the extra. Think about important video quality is to you and how far you're willing to go.

There are obviously more things you should be looking for whether it is feature or quality, but that all depends on what kind of shots you want to take with the new camera. Oh, right. One more thing before I sign off: if your camera stills works great, not too old, and you're happy with it, you may not really need to upgrade to a new camera. But that's all up to you. Have fun.