Canon CPS(Canon Pro Services)

I've been a Canon CPS member for a while now. Here's how the CPS member's card looks like.





I haven't used the privileges until today. Had some specks of dirt in the viewfinder of 1 of my cameras. I also wanted them to calibrate my 17-40L to see if my own AF Microadjustment was spot on. The CPS service is simply brilliant. There is a service counter just for CPS members. We don't have to take a number and wait in line. Thank god for that, there was a long line of people waiting their turn, over at the normal customer service center. I just walked up to the CPS counter and the staff attended to me immediately. After leaving the camera with them, I proceeded to the CPS Lounge to chill and wait for my camera to be cleaned and calibrated.

I was most impressed by the CPS Lounge. It's an enclosed VIP room just for CPS members. I had to swipe my CPS card over the security keypad to open the door. Once inside, it felt like home. Everything is nice and comfy. I wouldn't mind waiting in there all day if I had to. Hehe. Here's a picture of the CPS Lounge.




Aaaaaaaaah the luxuries of being a VIP. Nothing like a wee bit of VIP service eh?. Life Is Good! Hehehe. Right at the other end of the room is a drinks machine that serves coffee, hot chocolate, tea, etc etc etc. There's lotsa nice food there too. There was a nice selection of donuts, curry puffs, spring rolls and a few other things. They also provide 2 computers to keep us entertained while waiting. I guess you could catch up with some office work at the computer but I'm a lazy fella, so all I did was surf the internet, lounge around the sofa, had some coffee and food. Haha. I also asked for some reading material and here's what the nice lady provided. I was handed 4 copies of the DCM/Mook EOS 40D Guide Book but I took only 3. 1 for myself and the other 2 for my friends. There's also a few other interesting books there, all for me to keep.




My wife and 3 kids were with me. Most times, they would go berserk if I make them wait with me at service centers coz it's just sooooooooo boring. The fact that my wife and 3 kids were having a blast in there shows just how good the service is. Nice comfy room, good food, nice drinks, computers with internet access and comfy sofas make for a supremely pleasant experience. Just 20+ minutes later, the lady brought my camera to the room for me to inspect it and make sure I'm happy with the service and everything. Can you say F.A.S.T? It took a mere 30 minutes from the time I stepped into the Canon Service Center to the lady bringing my camera back to the CPS Lounge, all cleaned up and calibrated. They gave the camera and lens a good wipe down too. I've never seen my camera and lens this clean and shiny except for the day I brought them home.

A most wonderful experience. I now call it my Camera Spa. Haha. My wife and kids said they wanna tag along when I go to the Camera Spa again. It's gonna be soon as I have another, rather dirty 5D MkII covered in lotsa dust and mud from the last assignment. Big thumbs up to Canon Malaysia for a most excellent CPS.

20 units of EOS 1D MkIV!!!!!

Phwoarrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!! Just take a look at this..........



That's 20 units of EOS 1D MkIV, 580EXII, 16-35mm f2.8L II and 70-200 f2.8L right there! That must be how heaven looks like. LOL. Actually, it's Malaysia's biggest newspaper The New Straits Times taking delivery of the new equipment for their photographers.

EOS 1D MkIII, Machine Gun!!!!

Went shopping today. Dropped by my favorite camera store for some fun. Thought of buying an EOS 1D MkIIn for my daughter as she has been complaining that the 450D cannot keep up with her school photographic activities. She's the school OP and does all the events including sports events. Saw a good condition 1D MkIIn going for cheap and decided to try it out. I was impressed with the 8.5FPS and the 45 AF points and my daughter tried it out too. She was grinning and drooling, hoping I'd buy it for her.

Then my my wife asked the shopkeeper which model is the latest and greatest and he replied "1D MkIV". My wife then suggested that I get the 1D MkIV as she prefers that I get the latest and greatest every time we go shopping. I'm such a lucky guy to have a wife like that. I loooooooooooooove her dearly, she is the ultimate gadget freak's wife. Hehehe.

I was kinda keen to get the 1D MkIV too but I really didn't need the new features like the HD video and all since I already have the 5D MkII for that. Well, it's got 6mp more, much higher ISO and a few more AF cross points but my 5D MkII already has superb high ISO and 21mp. Only big difference is the extra AF cross points. I could live with the 19 cross points on the 1D MkIII and it's cheaper too. So I asked to try out the 1D MkIII. As soon as I tried out the 10FPS, I was in loooooooooooooooooooooooove. It's like a machine gun!!!!! I just had to have it and told the shop keeper it's a done deal. Asked him for a slight discount and he agreed. So here's my new Canon EOS Machine Gun along with a new SD card and multi card reader from Sandisk.




Went out to buy a 1D MkIIn for my daughter and ended up with a 1D MkIII. Haha. I may just end up using it more than my daughter.

Canon 500mm f4L IS for babies!

Here's a picture I saw over at TheDigitalPicture.com. I hope to get a big white monster for my baby girl too. If only a bag of money fell on my head someday. I'll be sure to take a picture of my baby girl with her big white monster when that bag of money falls on my head. LOL.

I looove my new Apple MacMini

Finally bought a new Apple system for my photo storage purposes. I was using an old PowerMac G5 previously. After buying my new MacBook Air and experiencing the power of the new generation of Macs, I just had to get a new Mac for my desktop. The PowerMac G5 felt absolutely glacial compared to my new MacBook Air.

I bought Apple's Aperture 3 software to go along with this new system too. I've been using it for a couple of weeks now and absolutely love it. Everything's just perfect now. I have enough power to edit photos and lotsa hard disk space for storage. Using the 30" ACD for viewing albums and editing pictures in Aperture 3 is just absolutely fantastic. Next up would be a ram upgrade to 8gb. Apple doesn't mention it officially in the spec sheets but the Mac Mini will handle 8gb of ram. That would be a really nice upgrade but I guess I'll wait a while more for the price of 4gb sticks to drop a wee bit more. The current price is a lil bit expensive at about rm650(USD200) a stick.

Oh I forgot to mention that I bought the Magic Mouse and Wireless keyboard too. The Magic Mouse is simply magical. I love the touch ability of the mouse and it's got a laser sensor for superb accuracy on any surface. It's a bit like the touchpad on my MacBook Air. It's so beautiful to look at. A marvel of industrial design. The bottom part is hunk of aluminum and the top is a piece of glass. The battery life is really good, I've been using it for about 2 weeks now and the battery level is still at 85%. The keyboard is lovely too, a solid hunk of aluminum. The battery life is still at 100% after 2 weeks! The mouse and keyboard costs a fair bit of money but it's worth it. I'd like the keyboard even more if Apple made it backlit just like the MacBooks. I don't see why they can't do it when they're charging us so much for it.

Free 3" EOS screen protector

Check this out guys. It's a lovely Canon branded 3" screen protector for our precious EOS cameras and it's FREE!






It comes free with PhotoYou magazine. I think it's the 1st issue as I haven't seen this magazine before. It's endorsed by Canon Malaysia. As you can see, there's a big Canon logo at the top right corner of the cover.




It's a photography magazine that prides itself on being a magazine by women for women. The Editor is a woman. Looks like more women are getting into the photography hobby eh? Anyway, it is about photography after all and who says guys can't read it. After all, women have been reading "guy" photography magazines for years. So it's our turn to read their magazine now. Haha.

While I was at Borders, I also picked up the latest issue of Digital SLR, Malaysia edition. I was actually looking for Digital Camera Malaysia but it's not out yet. Anyway, here's the latest issue of Digital SLR.

Manilla Envelope for MacBook Air

Remember the manilla envelope that Steve Jobs used at the launch of the MacBook Air? I love how he emphasized the thinness of the Air. It was kinda shocking to see the MacBook Air slip into a normal manilla envelope.

Anyway, I saw this MacBook Air case that looks like a manilla envelope on sale and I just had to have it. Hehe. It's made to look like manilla card. Here's some pictures of it.




Slipping the MacBook Air into it.





It's even got the authentic looking red tabs with string for closing the envelope!




MacBook Air sitting nicely in the manilla envelope. It looks just like a stack of documents eh? Good for some disguise when we're at Starbucks or Coffee Bean. I wish they didn't emboss the MacBook word on the envelope though. Still, it should reduce the chances of someone trying to steal it even if you leave it on the table while you go refill your coffee.