Yuyuan Garden, Shanghai

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Yuyuan Garden is a famous classical garden located in Anren Jie, Shanghai. The garden was finished in 1577 by a government officer of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) named Pan Yunduan. Yu in Chinese means pleasing and satisfying, and this garden was specially built for Pan’s parents as a place for them to enjoy a tranquil [...]

Jade Buddha Temple, Shanghai

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In the western part of Shanghai, a very modern and flourishing city, there is a venerable and famous Buddhist temple, Jade Buddha Temple. In 1882, an old temple was built to keep two jade Buddha statues which had been brought from Burma by a monk named Huigen. The temple was destroyed during the revolution that [...]

Grand Gateway Plaza and Cotton’s Shanghai

Grand Gateway Plaza (Ganghui Guangchang)

Xujiahui counts as the biggest shopping and entertainment quarter in the southwest of the town. The shopping quarter is named to Xu Guangqi, a scholar of the Ming dynasty who lived in this part of the town. On a surface of 1.2 square kilometers are located Xujiahui the Grand gateway shopping centre, the Orient shopping [...]

Alicia Keys Live in Zurich 2010

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On May 17th Alicia Keys was at the “Hallenstadion” in Zurich to perform the “Element of Freedom” Tour. See some impressions and three videos I made with the Canon SX200 IS. Unfortunately it was not allowed to take a dSLR into the concert hall.

Greifvogelpark Buchs

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The falconry park in Buchs is unique throughout Europe with over 60 species . On a tour through the spacious park visitors meet the Eagle, the hawks, different types of Owls, the Buzzard, Vultures, the Milan and other exotic animals. In the arena, visitors can experience the fascinating animals in flight.     And my favorite

Seefeld in Tirol

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This was another perfect mini-retirement for 4 days. For me, four days is the optimal time periode for this kind of a short trip. It’s long enough to free your mind, to explore and to relax. But it’s also not too long so that it is easy to find back into your daily work routine [...]

NightGlow at Schwendisee, Ballontage Toggenburg

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The 6th International Ballooning day’s Toggenburg were between Friday morning the 25th and Sunday 27th September 2009 at Alp Sellamatt above Alt St. Johann. The weather conditions were OK and Hot Air Balloons from round the world enchanted the sky in the valley of Toggenburg. We went for the famous NightGlow at the Lake Schwendi. Twelve Hot [...]

Testing the Canon EF 180mm f/3.5 L USM Macro Lens on the Canon 5D Mark II

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The big advantage compared to the Canon 100m Macro is that you don’t have to be that close for a 1:1 shot. With this lens it’s easy to shoot insects like dragonflies or butterflies because you can be at a distance of about 0.5 m. Below are some example shots. As you can see the [...]

Arosa ClassicCar 2009

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The Arosa ClassicCar, a international car race from Langwies to Arosa was over the weekend of  10. to 13. September 2009. It is also called the “Monaco of the mountains”. It has grown in recent years, and is a event known across Switzerland and provides many highlights. The event is listed in the national sports calendar (auto sport Switzerland) and in the international [...]

Testing the MP-E 65mm on the Canon 5D Mark II

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These are the first images I took with the new Canon MP-E 65mm lens. I read a lot about it and how difficult it is to focus because of the very shallow depth of field. And I must admit it is not that easy as I thought. Some pictures were taken with the MR-14EX Macro [...]