The blog awakens: a book published in November

Well, the previous post was in May 2015 and now it's the beginning of January 2016 - just the sort of gap that I promised myself to avoid. So what has happened in the interim?

On the work front, November saw the publication of my latest book, Transformation of a River: The Singapore River and Marina Bay. It was commissioned by Singapore's Urban Redevelopment Authority, and the design and production were handled by the company I worked for until 2008, publisher Editions Didier Millet.

The book cover, with an aerial photo of the barrage by Richard Koh. Seen from this angle, the channel to the Singapore River is the left-hand branch of the water body; the right fork leads to the Kallang River basin. Virtually all the land you see here is reclaimed.

When first conceptualised, the book was to focus on the history of the Singapore River; as it developed the emphasis shifted, giving equal prominence to Marina Bay, an artificial, freshwater reservoir  created by reclamation and the installation of a barrage, keeping the reservoir water separate from the seawater beyond it. The reservoir is fed not only by the Singapore River but also the Kallang River further east.

Two pages from the book. This is the story of Singapore's first civil airport, built on reclaimed land at the mouth of the Kallang River. The site of the airfield (in green on the map) is now a modern sports stadium.

The whole bay project is a massively ambitious planning exercise. It has taken some 40 years to complete. From the book's point of view, this broadening of perspective meant that we covered not only the commercial and social history of the rivers, but also the water supply and sewerage system, pollution control, and the development of all the waterfronts as a place for people to visit and enjoy.

It's quite a big book, full of information and interesting photos (old and new), and graphics.

The book's on sale at the URA office. I am not sure at this point when or how they intend to distribute it to the public at large. Lets hope. It's ideal reading for anybody coming to live in Singapore, or doing business here, wanting to know how and why the city and its waterfronts look as they do today.

The buildings around Marina Bay, under construction in 2008 (top) and today. The upper shot was taken with a Pentax DSLR with Sigma 17-70 lens; the lower one with a Panasonic GX7, with 12-32  lens. Both consist of multiple images stitched together with Autopano Pro.

The second half of 2015 wasn't all work and no travel. In fact I made two visits to London, one to Bali, and three to Thailand. Can't complain. More on all of this shortly.

Cuba Part 8: What camera to take?

Of course, the only really important decision was what camera to take.

I decided not to lug a DSLR around on this trip. My back is getting more and more weight-sensitive. That’s why I moved into the micro four-thirds (M4/3), mirrorless format late last year, starting with a trip to Myanmar in December (worth a blog entry,  if I ever get round to it).

So I took a Panasonic Lumix GX7 body to Cuba. It handles and performs well, despite the complexities of the menus and button options.

GX7 with Panasonic 20mm (source: ephotozine)

The lenses were:  Panasonic 12-32mm and 14-42mm zooms (both bought secondhand); Panasonic 20mm prime and 45-150mm zoom, both of which came as a package with the camera. And the Sigma 60mm f/2.8 DN. The two wide zooms largely overlap in range – I used the 12-32 more of the two, probably too much: that extreme wide angle (12mm M4/3 is equivalent to 24mm in old-style 35mm or ‘full-frame’), and can start to look a bit tedious, even gimmicky, if overused, and you have to spend a lot of time correcting verticals on the computer. I find them both very good performers: indeed, for cheapo plastic kit lenses they are amazing. No complaints there.

Panasonic 12-32 (top)
and Sigma 60mm f/2.8 DN

I used the 20mm a bit in low-light circumstances. It’s a good lens for when you really need it. Yes, it's slow-focusing – you jut have to take that into account. The 45-150 comes out well in reviews, but I find it disappointing, even for an inexpensive lens. It’s not a fast lens and I may be relying too much on the in-lens stabilization, but I don’t think I will take it on the next megatrip. The Sigma 60mm, however, is excellent, a fast lens that’s sharp from wide open. A great buy, in my opinion.

My bank account is flinching at the prospect of the GX8 rumoured to be due for announcement later in the year. But then, there are some other juicy mirrorless options coming up …

The electronic viewfinder of the GX7 is OK, but not up to the best that’s now available. I hope the GX8 improves on that, with a higher eyepoint.  And finally, the GX7 battery performance is crap. Totally. You’ll get through two batteries in a day of intensive tourism, maybe more. For confidence on a trip like this you need to take three spares.

For backup I took my Fujifilm X20. It’s a nice little camera within its limitations, but I didn’t have to use it much.

My Pentax DSLRs (K30 and K5) produce better results than any of the above, but so they should with their larger sensors. For a trip that involves a lot of walking around, their extra weight and bulk is an issue, for me anyway. Another of life’s trade-offs ….  Or should it be trades-off? Perhaps so, but without a hyphen.

I've just remembered. I was going to do an entry on cars. I will, but not today.  But here's a contrasting pair anyway, to be going on with.

Top: Cadillac Eldorado, around 1952, I would guess. Pretty gross, but preferable to what Detroit was doing ten years later. Below that is an Austin A35, anything from 1956 to 1959.  A friend of mine at university in the 1960s had one of these,  known as Gruntington Bollockheap. Well, what you saw is what you got.  Some people raced them. Yes, really.

There are quite a lot of European cars in Cuba. There are not many countries where you don't still see an occasional Morris Minor tottering around, and Cuba's no exception.