Movie-perfect

Ohhh-kay. Time to bring out a little more diversity for this one, and post a book review. Yes. A book review.

I had just finished reading Dan Brown's latest novel, The Lost Symbol, two nights ago and... well, it didn't actually blow my mind off.

So I guess it would be needless to say that Brown's Angels & Demons is still on top of my Robert Langdon adventures. With that in mind, I'm still second-guessing on which is better -- The Da Vinci Code or this one.

I do not know if Brown is lobbying for a third movie installment (of course he is, right?) but with the way the novel is written and the way it's time frame is delivered, The Lost Symbol is perfect for a two-hour movie.

The telling of the story is pretty much straightforward that you'd think you were actually watching a movie unfold before your very eyes.

As expected, Brown has once again sprinkled it with lots of trivia about things what we already know, and you can expect this to go on the moment you turn past the first pages until the very last chapter. If you're a trivia buff about general knowledge (like I am), you will be giddy about this book which covers interesting facts over a vast array of disciplines -- religion, art, history, technology, to name a few.

There is only one major twist in the story that would make you utter the words "I thought so," although there is a number of turns on the side.

Much like the first two Langdon adventures, The Lost Symbol only contains a handful of action scenes... sheesh, I'm now talking like this is a movie review.

Speaking of the movie-like way the book was written, I'm imagining Morgan Freeman to be cast as one of main characters. If only the female boss of The Incredibles was a real person, I'm quite sure that she'd make it, too. ^_^ Surely, Tom Hanks would reprise his role as the great cryptologist, Robert Langdon. And as for the main antagonist, a good friend of mine, Bryant, suggested Dwayne Johnson. LOL!

Come to think of it, what he said is a possibility.

All in all, I'm not a ratings (read: n out of 5 stars) kind of reader/reviewer, but The Lost Symbol is definitely a must-have. Just go out and get your copy. Now.

Want some Koji?

I currently too lazy to play around with words right now. So, I'll just let the photos do the talking.

My GX-45 Mazinger Z (Shin Mazinger)

Want some Koji?

I couldn't wait for the GX-49 Mazinger Z, which is the same as this one except it would include the God Scrander... I'm not that big into taking photos of Maz with his Scranders anyway. Well, maybe someday, I would. ^_^

Click here for the full set of my SOC GX-45 photos in Flickr.

Happy birthday, Superman!

Well, kinda for my Kal-el.

MISB photo from a year ago.

Almost after a year of acquiring this marvelous DC Direct (Justice Series I) figure inspired by the great Alex Ross, I decided to let him out of the box and take some photos.

The faithfulness to Ross' depiction is virtually spot-on, and I believe that of all Big Blue's action figures out there, this is the best of the lot... exept for the Retailers Version wherein he had those red pupils that seem like they're going to give an unlucky villain a very long day.

What do you think is Supes' best action figure to date?

Mine is bigger than yours

Some images of the MG Astray Blue Frame Second Revise from Amiami.

Considering that this is just an MG, I'm really impressed by the details that Bandai have incorporated into this particular kit. It can rival those of Perfect Grades.

Have you ever seen a bigger sword among the current Master Grade Gundams other than this? The Blue Frame's sword can put those in Final Fantasy to shame! ^_^

My third... and second.

I drove for about 45 minutes in order to pick the SOC GX-45 up from the store just moments before their closing time last night.

I know that this is just another SOC Mazinger Z, but the sheer articulation of this figure is reason enough to justify the purchase. ^_^

Oh, about this post's title? The GX-45 is my third SOC, and it is my second SOC Maz.

Now I really, really want to get that GX-45A Mazinger Z Atami Night Version. :)

GX-45A Mazinger Z Atami Night Version

Available at Tamashii Nation's Autumn 2009 event for 6,500 JPY.

If you're a Maz fan, this is another must-have SOC! ^_^

The event runs from October 2 to October 4, 2009. Anybody going? :)

The greatest ever

Today, the greatest player ever to grace the NBA's hardwood floors will be inducted to the James Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Image courtesy of NBA.com.

Michael Jordan, along with David Robinson, Jerry Sloan, John Stockton and C. Vivian Stringer, will comprise of the greatest Hall of Fame class ever.

From Wiki, here are some of MJ's accomplishments:

• 6× NBA Champion (1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998)
• 5× NBA MVP (1988, 1991, 1992, 1996, 1998)
• 14× NBA All-Star (1985-1993, 1996-1998, 2002-2003)
• 6× NBA Finals MVP (1991-1993, 1996-1998)
• 1× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1988)
• 10× All-NBA First Team Selection (1987-1993, 1996-1998)
• 1× All-NBA Second Team Selection (1985)
• 9× NBA All-Defensive First Team Selection (1988-1993, 1996-1998)
• 1985 NBA Rookie of the Year
• 1985 NBA All-Rookie Team
• 3× NBA All-Star Game MVP (1988, 1996, 1998)
• 2× NBA Slam Dunk Contest winner (1987, 1988)
• 2x Gold Medal Winner in the Olympics (1984,1992)
• NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
• 1× NCAA Men's Basketball Champion (1982)
• 1982 ACC Freshman of the Year
• 1× ACC Men's Basketball Player of the Year (1984)
• 1× USBWA College Player of the Year (1984)
• 1× Naismith College Player of the Year (1984)

I have watched him play since his first year in Chicago; back when the name "Chicago" was still written in cursive on the Bulls uniform.

I can not think of anybody (sorry Kobe and LeBron) that can equal the phenomenon known as His Airness.

Nobody can come close. Perhaps, nobody ever will.

Gundam RX-78-2 is falling down, falling down, falling down...

The 1/1 Gundam RX-78-2 in Odaiba, came crashing down when they tried to dismantle it.

I wonder what could've happened during the process.

On a lighter note, I bet that Char would've been very, very pleased. ^_^

From Danny Choo's blog.

Canon EOS 7D 24p footage

The 7D's 24p video capabilities.

All I can say is "wow!"

Dublin's People: Canon 7d 24p from Philip Bloom on Vimeo.

I want! I want! I want! ^_^

Another way to lazily light your figures

Here's another lighting setup that I use if I'm not that lazy in putting up the lamps when I'm shooting my toys.

This time I'm using a dark background and two 23-watt fluorescent lamps to capture the Volt Bomber's profile.

A black board was utilized as the platform and background, while the two lamps were placed on both sides. The one on the left was placed slightly above the Lander, while the one on the right was level with the toy.

Copy papers were used to diffuse the direct light coming from the lamps. This was necessary to eliminate the harsh lights and to keep the highlights from being blown up.

Finally, since I do not have barn-doors (metal flaps that allow you to prevent the light from a certain area) two more boards were used to block the lights from spilling over to the background*.

You can click on the image of the setup above to view the complete notes.

Oh yeah, the result --

* I know, I should have taken comparison shots to clearly show what the heck I'm talking about when I talk about harsh lights or blown highlights. Promise, I'll do that next time. ^_^

Canon EOS 7D

It's official, and it's coming at the end of the month.

Canon EOS 7D

18-megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor (WTF? Not FF?)
8 FPS continuous shooting
1080p 24FPS HD video (full manual control)
3-inch LCD
19-point AF system
Wireless flash control, finally!!!

US$ 1,699.00 (body only)

Tough as nails

I've had this Seagate FreeAgent Go for around a couple of years now and it is still working flawlessly.

My uber-tough 160Gb FreeAgent Go

I'm mentioning this in spite of the fact that I have already dropped it (unintentionally, of course) no less than three times -- once from my car's passenger seat to the pavement, once from the top of a 3-foot high table, and once again from the same table -- while the drive is still connected to my mobile computer.

Call me lucky... or you can call it tough. Either way, it's definitely a must-have for someone who shuttles gigs of files to and from the office everyday.

Caveat emptor: I've read reviews on the interweb where consumers have dropped it ever so slightly and it failed to work afterwards.

How to lazily light your figures

Lazily. That's the operative word for this guide.

If you can't afford (or haven't bought) a decent lighting setup yet, then I guess this is also the guide for you.

In other words, this is a cheap solution in setting up your figures for a decent photo.

This is the setup I almost always use when I do not want to bother arranging lamps and other stuff for about 20 minutes just to take an image. Yes, lazy.

Here are the things you'll need:

1. A table where you're going to set your lights up. If don't have a free table around, you can use the floor. Just be prepared to lie on your stomach for quite a bit.
2. A bristol board or any large sheet of paper (you can use cloth/textile) to use as the base and background of your figure.
3. A 32-watt fluorescent lamp.
4. A couple of rods.
5. A couple of boards or large boxes to serve as light reflectors.

A tripod is not required, but it certainly can be a big help, especially for those with shaky hands.

I'll skip the narratives on how to set this up and just show the pic --

For the complete notes, just click on the image above.

Here's the result --

By the way, secure the lamp and aluminum rods safely to the boxes on the left and the right. I made the mistake of not fastening them at all. As I was adjusting the background for a different angle, the lamp fell and broke into a gazillion pieces. That happened within an hour of taking the photo above. Oh well, great luck!