wow, we are already half through the second months of the year 2013, Chinese New Year just happens with the year of the water snake coming to light. Been back for four weeks now and having worked like a dog or whatever else you want to call it. Whatever effect the leave was supposed to have has completely and utterly worn off. I have been sick with a flu like I haven't been for a long time and work in the office with the budget was a bit overwhelming too, so of course any kind of photography has come in short. Except for a few walks through the old city in Tyre and one trip to Beirut, nothing has happened. However from my last experience traveling, I have concluded that the huge big DSLR systems are nothing good for making an enjoyable travel experience. While traveling I almost always try to avoid the bulky DSLR in favour of the more manageable Micro-Four Thirds system of the Olympus. Of course my Canon G series is my favourite all time travel camera and carry around camera. DSLR and bigger is probably great for location and studio work but with MFT systems of these days like Olympus and Panasonic and the range of lenses offered now, this seems to me the perfect match for the traveling photographer looking for the 'MonsoonLight'. I decided to purchase the Olympus OM 5 D system. Period and done.

What else, I will be traveling to Syria from next week until the middle of March. I am excited to go and see something different and meet new people and challenges and hopefully with a chance to catch a few good photographs from the Golan or wherever else I manage to go. What will I take with me? Probably the Olympus EP2 and 3 lenses as well as the Fuji HS 10, maybe the G-10 too. I won't take the DSLR. By the way, my expensive 70 to 200mm Sigma lens let me down again, autofocus malfunctioning. This happened already in 2009 a few month after I bought it with only a few hundred exposures and now again. Very disappointing, so Sigma, you might not see my money again. I attach a few images I took in Beirut and the Tyre Old City, maybe soon some images of Syria and some stories from there. Bye for now.

The Red House - Tyre Old City Quarter

Sunday Morning in Beirut