Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Who is that thumping on the roof??

We've been hearing loud thumping noises on the roof lately. It would be like the sound of a sack of rice falling onto the roof. And the Bunny and everyone would be immediately on red alert.

So this had been happening a few times a day. I was very sure it was Mr G. You know how big he is and that would explain the loud sound.

Last night, it rained urine from the edge of the roof!

Yes, again. It had happened before and it was definitely Mr G. He stood at the edge of the roof of the pantry and urinated down on us. I saw him doing it.

But last night, I did not catch a glimpse of the culprit, I only heard the sound of urine dripping and all the cats were also looking up at the edge of the roof. I suspect it was Mr G.

This morning, there was a sudden loud thumping again...

mini-20130826_071028

Our masked hero, Indy Jones, was already on the ledge to investigate.


mini-20130826_071058

Someone is there....but who is it?


mini-20130826_071126

I'm retired, let the younger generation do the job now.


I craned my neck to see which cat it is....


Aha..!!!


mini-20130826_071149

It's Elmo!


(He is Mr G's friend and his name is ET, but we call him Elmo.)


Indy was totally up in arms.


mini-20130826_071217

OMG!!!


mini-20130826_071226

Now this is not so scary...


mini-20130826_071240

I'm not getting involved. My minions will take care of such trivial matters.


I must apologise for the blurry photos. My camera is still not back from repairs and I'm at my wit's end because the service is....deplorable. They can be sure I will never buy another camera of this brand....ever.


And I must ask your advice here if you know of any affordable cameras (the point and click type) which can take good enough photos with a good zoom function, please do share, because I'm not waiting for that camera to come back. I think they have probably lost it in transit as they cannot trace it even with the receipt number. Now, how bad is that, right? I was earlier told it might take 3 months to get it repaired. I think you can probably build a car in a shorter period, right?


Updates: After 3 phonecalls where I am told they have no record of my camera at all, I had to raise my voice (something I dislike doing tremendously) and within 5 minutes, I received a call saying my camera will be coming back this week....repaired (I hope!). Is this what it takes to get things done?


In any case, I still might need to buy a new camera....just in case. So if you know of any good brands, please, please share. I am a total camera dummy, so I need the point and click type.

24 comments:

Donovan said...

Have you gotten your camera back yet?

Joy E. Saga said...

Hope this information helps!
http://point-and-shoot-camera-review.toptenreviews.com/

You can also check the other reviews.

Dayana said...

you can try canon. the basic ones are good enough, i think.

chankahyein said...

They said by Friday. Sobs....

chankahyein said...

Thanks!

chankahyein said...

My old one was a Canon. Yes, was good. But just not slim enough for pocket. Maybe I should go back to Canon. Thanks!

Chen said...

I have used the basic point and shoot Canon ones - Powershot and Ixus cameras for cat pictures. Both are not satisfactory when lighting is poor and the cat is moving about. Black cats are near impossible to capture! I have not tried the Panasonic Lumix before for taking cat pictures, but I have 2 friends that love their Lumix. Plus Panasonic (based on previous experiences with their household products) often gives good after-sale service and available spare parts. Not sure if this applies to their cameras, though.

kelly said...

maybe you need one that can take good picture at night too ( low light )with smaller f/1.8 the better and then one with animal face detector , means it detect kitty face and is auto capture.. then u need one that have fast aperture ... so you won't miss any shot. a bit greedy you may think but there is also one with continuous shot of say 3 shot with one click (max 60 shot in one click ).. wow that is a bit too much info you think ? hahaha. try look the spec of Nikon coolpix P330 model. compatible with Canon S110 if you still prefer canon brand. hope this help. by the way, given model is all "point and shoot" camera for ppl like you and me . I tak main 4/3 system ( like those Panosonic lumix or DSLR bulky camera ....

kelly said...

those low light picture (f/1.8) , fast aperture , animal face detector and continuous shot can be found on both Nikon CoolPix P330 and Canon S110. these are slim camera that fit to your pocket. maybe Canon one is f/2.0 if not mistaken. BUT the most important feature is the "user" know how to take photo, not the camera as priority. All the best and thank you for your blog.

Donovan said...

It actually all depends on your budget but I think for compact P&S cameras, you really can't go wrong with Canon (and I'm a Nikonian)

chankahyein said...

Thanks, Kelly, Chen and Donovan. Assuming my camera does not come back by this week, I'll go Nikon and Canon hunting! Thanks. My son has a Nikon and he is happy with it. My old camera is a Canon and I was happy with it too (but it was too bulky for my pocket). The only plus point of my (now spoilt) camera is that it does not display the photo after shooting so I can already take the next shot. With cats - that is a necessity!

Donovan said...

Actually you can change the setting of the camera so that it does not show you the preview right after the photo is taken. I don't think any modern camera forces a preview.

Chen said...

Go to a camera shop. Ask for a camera to try. Ask for a cat or cats to photograph. If no cat or cats available to try, then no buy :p

Donovan said...

Forgot to add that if you're going for a compact P&S, I wouldn't go for a Nikon. They make pretty unimpressive P&S cameras

chankahyein said...

Canon then!

Chen said...

More views on camera for cat pictures. Not only does must it have a good shutter speed (to capture the action) and also an instant "pause" time before you can press the button for next shoot. It must work well in low light. For me, low light is the deciding factor because any camera can take a decent picture under good light. Any camera can take a clear picture of a tree under sunlight. The difficulty is when you get patches of dark shadows or dark corners, with an animal is half light - and whether the camera can still capture the image clearly. That would be what I'll look out for too. Because cats like to stay under cars, sleep in boxes, creep along drains, hang out under the moon and stars, etc And if one needs to take a picture of an animal in a boarding facility, it's usually dark. And lately, I've been taking lots of pictures of a black cat - gosh it's so difficult when you need to capture a black shape with a dark background or half light.

Chen said...

Donovan, can I get your opinion about Go Pro cameras? I know a lot of sport people use it to video/photograph their sporting activities. Wouldn't that also make it a good cameras to capture active cats? It's purposefully made to be tough, mobile, small and light and able to capture fast movements.

Chen said...

For your info Kah Yein. Go Pro cameras are made for extreme sport enthusiasts who wants to video/photograph their exploits. They are waterproof, small and light, and drop-crash friendly (supposedly). They are used by divers, parachuters, surfers, etc. They come with a strap that can go round your arm or around your head or whatever equipment you are using for your adventures. I've only seen one but never used it. There are people who has strapped a Go Pro camera around cats to see what they do when they are off by themselves. So if you want to know what Willy is doing during his off days, this you can do - provided you don't mind losing it, that is :p

chankahyein said...

Thanks, Chen. I googled and it looks pretty bulky. But will check it out.

Chen said...

Cat photography is an extreme sport?!!!!

Donovan said...

Hi Chen,

Actually it wouldn't work well at all. GoPro's are good to capture action from the 1st person perspective. So unless you're attaching it to your cat (which I wouldn't), it doesn't work that great. The thing is that the GoPro has a very wide angle view, so you won't actually be able to get in the action unless you're very close to the animal (which also doesn't make sense).

Donovan said...

Don't bother with the GoPros, it won't work for what you need it to do.

Donovan said...

The best camera for capturing cat photos are of course a DSLR with a fast lens. However, this is not for everybody. What I would suggest is a compact camera that focuses fast with a fast lens. I would look at the Panasonic Lumix line. If you are willing to go for something slightly bigger and larger, the m4/3 GF series cameras are very good. Or you could check out the LX5 or LX7. There's also the Olympus XZ-1.

chankahyein said...

Ooh...I'm seeing stars already! But thanks for all the tips. I'm giving it until tomorrow for them to call me, if they are as good as their word.