Exclusive Experience with New SONY G Master, Fraser's Hill

​I had the pleasure of being invited to attend the "Exclusive Experience new SONY G Master Lens" event in Fraser's Hill on 13.07.2019 and 14.07.2019, hosted by SONY Malaysia & Studio Zaloon and facilitated by En. Shaiful Baker of SONY Malaysia and Mr. Chin Yok Fee of Studio Zaloon Alpha Pro Shop. All participants were housed at Shahzan Inn Hotel, complimentary of the organizers.  The participants of the event were largely from a group called Birding, Nature and Cameras, or in short BNC, a group of bird lovers who preserve, promote nature awareness and capture best images of the birds in the wild. ​

Group photo on day 2. Photo credit: Chin Yok Fee (Studio Zaloon).

SONY's latest G Master lens, the SONY FE 600mm F4 GM OSS (SEL600F40GM) and SONY FE 200-600mm F5.6-6.3 G OSS (SEL200600G) lenses were brought by SONY Malaysia for the participants to touch, feel and test these two great lenses.  Apart from the lenses, they also brought with them not less than 10 units of SONY a9 flagship cameras, several SONY FE 1.4x and 2.0x teleconverters for loan to the participants.

The itinerary was as follows:
​
Saturday, 13.07.2019
1.00pm: Gather at hotel lobby & registration, pass room key (participant may put their luggage into the room)
2.00pm: Talk 1 (production sharing how to birding and camera setting by Shaiful Baker)
3.00pm: Group photo & tea time & loan unit (group photo)
3.30pm:  Birding (group photo)
6.30pm:  Return loan unit, pass room key to others
7.30pm:  Dinner
8.30pm: Talk 2 (by Mr. Alagan)
9.00pm: Talk 3 (by Mr. Chin, Studio Zaloon)
10.00pm: Tea time

Sunday, 14.07.2019
6.30am: Breakfast
7.30am: Loan unit
8.00am: Birding (group photo)
11.30am: Back to hotel return loan unit & check out
12.30pm: Lunch 
1.30pm: Disperse

My editing workflow can be summarized as follows:

1. Open the RAW files from Adobe Photoshop CC 2019. I would check on the exposure in Adobe Camera RAW and adjust any over or under-expose condition of the image;
2. Image will be cropped to suit the desired composition, thanks to the 42.4MP sensor on the a7RIII;
3. Run Topaz Labs DeNoise AI plugin to reduce the noise. If required, I will run Topaz Labs Sharpen AI plugin;
4. Run Skylum's Luminar 3 plugin for image enhancement;
5. Insert the watermark and save the file.

Here are some of the images shot on both days with my SONY a7RIII + SONY ​FE 100-400mm F4.5-5.6 GM OSS (SEL100400GM) + SONY FE ​1.4x Teleconverter.  For the Red-headed trogon's image, it was captured using the SONY FE 200-600mm F5.6-6.3 G OSS + SONY FE 1.4x teleconverter.  I was using Gitzo GT1542 Mountaineer Series tripod with Leofoto LH-40 ballhead setup on day 1 and used Leofoto LS-284C tripod with Leofoto LH-40 ballhead on the second day.

Name: Chesnut-capped laughingthrush
Scientific: Garrulax mitratus.
Family: Leiothrichidae
Gear: SONY ILCE-7RM3 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC
EXIF: 560mm, f/8, 1/1000 sec, ISO 3200, handheld.

Name: Chesnut-capped laughingthrush
Scientific: Garrulax mitratus.
Family: Leiothrichidae
Gear: SONY ILCE-7RM3 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC
EXIF: 560mm, f/9, 1/1000 sec, ISO 6400, handheld.

Name: Fire-tufted barbet
Scientific: Psilopogon pyrolophus
Family: Megalaimidae
​Gear: SONY ILCE-7RM3 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC
EXIF: 560mm, f/8, 1/1000 sec, ISO 3200, handheld.

Name: Fire-tufted barbet
Scientific: Psilopogon pyrolophus
Family: Megalaimidae
​Gear: SONY ILCE-7RM3 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC

Name: Fire-tufted barbet
Scientific: Psilopogon pyrolophus
Family: Megalaimidae
​Gear: SONY ILCE-7RM3 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC, 840mm (shot in APSC mode), enlarged with Topaz Lab Gigapixel AI.

Name: Silver-eared Mesia​
Scientific: Leiothrix argentauris
Family:  Leiothrichidae
​Gear: SONY ILCE-7RM3 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC
EXIF: 560mm, f/8, 1/2000 sec, ISO 6400, handheld.

Name: Silver-eared Mesia​
Scientific: Leiothrix argentauris
Family:  Leiothrichidae
​Gear: SONY ILCE-7RM3 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC
EXIF: 560mm, f/8, 1/1000 sec, ISO 6400, handheld. Cropped to 50%.

Name: Oriental magpie-robin
Scientific: Copsychus saularis
Family: Muscicapidae
​Gear: SONY ILCE-7RM3 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC
EXIF: 560mm, f/8, 1/2000 sec, ISO 6400, handheld.

Name: Red-headed trogon (female)
Scientific: Harpactes erythrocephalus
Family: Trogonidae
​Gear: SONY ILCE-7RM3 + SEL200600G + SEL14TC
EXIF: 840mm, f/9, 1/2000 sec, ISO 6400, handheld. Cropped 50%.

Name: Rufous-browed flycatcher
Scientific: Anthipes solitaris
Family: Muscicapidae
​Gear: SONY ILCE-9 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC
EXIF: 560mm, f/9, 1/2000 sec, ISO 6400, tripod. Cropped 50%.

Name: Large niltava (male)
Scientific: Niltava grandis
Family: Muscicapidae
​Gear: SONY ILCE-9 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC
EXIF: 560mm, f/9, 1/1000 sec, ISO 6400, tripod.

Name: Large niltava (female, sub-adult)
Scientific: Niltava grandis
Family: Muscicapidae
​Gear: SONY ILCE-9 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC
EXIF: 560mm, f/8, 1/1000 sec, ISO 6400, tripod.

Name: Large niltava (female, sub-adult)
Scientific: Niltava grandis
Family: Muscicapidae
​Gear: SONY ILCE-9 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC
EXIF: 560mm, f/8, 1/1000 sec, ISO 6400, tripod. Cropped 50%.

Name: Mountain bulbul
Scientific: Ixos mcclellandii
Family: Pycnonotidae
​Gear: SONY ILCE-7RM3 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC
EXIF: 560mm, f/9, 1/1000 sec, ISO 6400, handheld. Cropped 50%.

Name: Long-tailed sibia
Scientific: Heterophasia picaoides
Family: Leiothrichidae 
​Gear: SONY ILCE-7RM3 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC
EXIF: 560mm, f/8, 1/500 sec, ISO 3200, handheld.

Name: Streaked wren-babbler
Scientific: Napothera brevicaudata
Family: Pellorneidae
​Gear: SONY ILCE-7RM3 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC
EXIF: 560mm, f/8, 1/1600 sec, ISO 6400, tripod. Cropped 75%.

 Name: Malayan Laughingthrush
Scientific: Trochalopteron peninsulae
Family: Leiothrichidae
​Gear: SONY ILCE-7RM3 + SEL100400GM + SEL14TC
EXIF: 560mm, f/8, 1/2000 sec, ISO 6400, handheld. Cropped 50%.

Group photo on day 1. Photo credit: Faizal Sharif (BNC)

Group photo on day 2 with BNC members.

Photo credits: 
​Jamaludin Ismail & Priyan Rathiramanan

Having the chance to hold the SONY FE 400 F2.8 GM OSS (SEL400F26GM) in my hands!

Poster credit: Studio Zaloon

Poster credit: Studio Zaloon

Poster credit: Studio Zaloon

I must say that it was quite a good experience. Will surely go for future outings with the BNC group. Till next time!

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