How to Pick a Medium Format Camera

Selecting a medium format camera depends on what you intend to use it for, how much you are willing to spend, and whether you want a new model or an old one. There are a wide variety of medium format cameras and here we'll go through the steps of selecting one.


How to Pick a Medium Format Camera


o 1Decide what you'll be using it for.If you intend to do professional photography, this is now done almost entirely using digital cameras. Art photography still makes use of film, and for this, medium format cameras are fantastic, because the larger film creates greater and lusher detail in the print.



o 2Know your price range.Medium format cameras can cost as little as $20 or as much as several thousand, depending on what kind of camera you pick. If you want a small investment that will get you started, try a Holga, which is a plastic lensed medium format camera available for around $20. The film quality will be arty and strange with a Holga.Twin lens reflex cameras like the Rolleiflex, Rolleicord, or Seagull, can run you a bit more in used condition but the results will be clearer and more traditional.



o 3Make sure you can develop your film.If you aren't developing your own medium format film, make sure you have a local source who can develop it for you. Sending your negatives out of town for printing can be time consuming and expensive.



o 4Search well.Auction websites are a good source for all things used or cheap, especially if you know exactly what you're looking for. But, you are likely to find a great deal on a medium format camera at a thrift store, antique shop or even at the Salvation Army or Goodwill Industries.

What Are the Great Walls of Castles Used For?

The Middle Ages was a violent time. There was very little safety from people who wished to do harm or from wild animals. Castles not only served as residences for the landed gentry but as fortresses. A castle was also like the town center. It was where people from the surrounding areas could come to trade goods or get work done such as thatching or smithing.


Motte and Bailey Castles
 Two types of castle were used in the Middle Ages. The motte and bailey castle was first developed in France. It was originally made of timber but was switched to stone when it became clear that timber wasn't safe. The motte was a mound of dirt on which the castle's keep was constructed while the bailey was the land surrounding the motte where supplies were stored and barracks were erected. Using many laborers and built on the highest ground available, motte and bailey castles were used by the Normans to help control the serfs as they tried to conquer Britain.


Concentric Castles
 Concentric castles are known as castles within castles. The keep was round with many walls and drawbridges to protect it. Imagine a bow and arrow target: the keep would be the bullseye in the center while the surrounding rings would be the various walls that kept it safe. The inner walls were of various heights and depths as you went deeper into the castle. This type of castle was used regularly after King Edward I of England realized that these types of castle were harder to attack then the original motte and bailey castles.


The Curtain Wall
 The curtain wall is the name of the great wall surrounding the whole castle. It was any where from six to 20 feet thick and up to 45 feet high. The drawbridge connected to it and was the only way into the castle from the outside. Towers, called bastions, were located at the corners to house weapons and soldiers. Concentric castles had more then one curtain wall inside the outer most wall.


Uses of the Curtain Wall
 Defense was the primary reason the curtain wall went up. It was patrolled by guards and -- at 45 feet high -- not easy to get over. The height also made it easier to see enemy invaders headed your way. Soldiers used the bastions as rudimentary barracks when they were on guard. There were special features on the curtain walls called arrow slits and murder holes. The arrow slits were used for firing arrows out of and murder holes were holes in the top of the wall you could dump hot oil or water out of to defend the castle against invaders.

Benefits of Building the Great Wall of China

The Great Wall of China was first constructed in the 7th and 6th century B.C., but it was not completely finished until 200 B.C. Much of the present wall comes courtesy of the Ming dynasty, which reconstructed the old wall around 1500 A.D. to create the modern version of the Great Wall.

Keeping Out Foreign Marauders

One of the main problems for the Chinese were the marauding horsemen called the Mongols, who would attack from the great steppes that lay to the north and west of the Chinese kingdom. They were a constant threat until the Great Wall was put up.

Containing the Home Population

The Great Wall had the added advantage of defining the border of ancient China. The distinctive boundary was easily recognized by the local citizens, who lived inside the wall.

Show of Strength

Construction of the wall showed that the ruling dynasty was a very powerful entity. This in itself might act as a deterrent to foreign invaders.

A Lookout

The Great Wall served as a lookout post for potential military threats and to observe what was going on outside the boundaries of the wall. This became especially important during the glory days of the Silk Road (600-900 A.D.), when European traders were trying to bring western trade and influence to China.

Symbol of National Unity

Even today, the Great Wall serves as a symbol of unity for the country. This was made very evident in 1972, when the president of the United States, Richard Nixon, visited the Great Wall. He is quoted to have said, "I think that you would have to conclude that this is a great wall, and it had to be built by a great people."

The great wall deserves its name!!

We woke up and had our favourite breakast of eggy bread, honey and watermelon and then set off for the day. We were going on an adventure to find the great wall, we decided we didnt need a stupid guided tour, we were explorers and we were going to get there by any means posible. We set off on the subway and found wallmart to find supplies for our epic adventure. Then back on the subway to the long distance bus station. We found our bus, got on and watched out of the window for two hours. The bus crawled towards the town we knew was near the wall. On the outskirts of the town, men jumped on and encouraged us off the bus into their cars (smart idea you aks? Luckily it worked out). It was a 30min drive in the car to the wall. We made it!!! It only took us 3 hours.

At the wall there was a chair lift up and a toboggan you could get back down. The toboggan looked immense but we only had the money for one option, so it was either; walk up for one and a half hours extreme hike in mid day sun and toboggan down, or cable up and walk down

The cable car won. The view going up from the cable car was beautiful, lush grass, mountains and the wall above us curving away as far as the eye could see. The cable car must have been at least 100-150ft up, heidi was slightly scared! We walked on the wall for an hour it was fantastic. Mutianyu was meant to be one of the quietist parts of the wall and it lived up to it, it felt like we were the only people on the wall. We were really glad we went. We then had the fun journey home, which for some reason only took two hours.

By the time we got back we were knackered! We showered, shoved dinner down and then fell asleep, it was a long day but well worth it!!

Exhibition Hall of Weapons Used by Chinese Militia

The Exhibition Hall of Weapons Used by Chinese Militia sits in Jiaowangzhuang Village in Tongzhou District. Modern weapons as well as those used in the Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945), China's Revolutionary War (1945-1949), the Korean War (1950-1953) and the Sino-Vietnamese War (1979) are all exhibited. In addition, weapons from more than fifty countries are also housed, representing a total number of over 10,000 pieces. The exhibition hall consists of a main hall and a fieldwork artillery lot.

On the second floor, weapons are displayed in chronological order. The Northern Expedition War (1926-1927) section boasts various swords, rifles, and guns of different calibers, among which the most eye-catching are two 2-meters-long guns named Jingall (Wall Gun). The Jingall is a type of shotgun unique to China and requires two soldiers in order to use it. The Sino-Japanese War section features weapons such as rifles made in Japan, and submachine guns made in America and Britain. Interestingly, there is a vivid model of tunnel warfare with shotguns and broadswords used at that time. Further on, visitors find China-made weaponry post 1949 and German-made box cannons. Over 5,000 pieces of small fire arms like handguns, muskets, submachine guns and light machine guns are housed in the small arms exhibition area. Visitors will find handcrafted special guns, guns designed specifically for collectors, and many Mauser pistols. The M1896 series shows the development of weapons in the early years of China.

Most of the weapons are displayed in the two-storey main hall, whose roof is built with crenels like those used on the Great Wall. Entering the hall, visitors will find a copper relief showing Chairman Mao Zedong (the founder of the People's Republic of China) with the militiamen. More than 300 antiaircraft guns, mortars, anti-armor weapons, observation equipment (both in and out of commission) and ammunition are exhibited on the first floor.

Behind the main hall, twenty-seven cannons made in countries like China and Canada are displayed in the fieldwork artillery lot. A shrapnel cannon made by the Japanese in 1940 occupies the top of the lot. This cannon, with a caliber of 300 millimeters (11.8 inches) and a range of 2 kilometers (1.2 miles), has a three-tier round base and is easily moved.

Admission Fee:	CNY 30
Opening Hours:	08:00-16:00 (Closed on Mondays)
Bus Route:	388, 649, 675 to Jiaowangzhuang Village (焦王庄), then take a small bus to the Exhibition Hall of Weapons Used by Chinese Militia (中国民兵武器装备陈列馆).

Zizhuyuan Park

For visitors who are fond of bamboo and wide waters, Zizhuyuan (Purple Bamboo) Park is hard to beat. West of the Capital Gymnasium in Haidian District, this park is renowned for its bamboo scenery. Three lakes, filled with lotus blossoms, occupy one third of the area. They are connected with two islets by five arch bridges. Pavilions, corridors and bridges hide in the tall bamboo all across the park.

Since Zizhu in Chinese means purple bamboo, visitors may eagerly want to see this species of bamboo. Among the diverse bamboo stock, such as mottled bamboos, purple bamboos, fishpole bamboos, by far the most common in the park is the purple bamboo. Every year, people crowd to the Bamboo Culture Festival held from April to June. And once, there was a Zizhuyuan Temple on the north bank of the biggest lake, hence the park's name.

Entering the park, visitors find themselves in a bamboo world: the entrance, tables and chairs are made of bamboo; even the bridges and pavilions are decorated with bamboo. A grand Dai-style bamboo bridge lets visitors see how the Dai people find shelter from the rain. Slowly revolving bamboo waterwheels; visitors dancing the eerie 'bamboo dance'; actors performing on a bamboo stage-all of these give you a glance of southern China's Dai culture. Stores along the lake bank also sell fancy bamboo craft works.

In summer, floating down the river and enjoying the delectable aroma of fragrant lotus blossoms is a marvelous way to relax. And nowadays, the Zizhuyuan Park is open to visitors for free, allowing more people to enjoy the bamboo scenery.

With all these in the limelight, you might overlook the treasures still in the shadows. In the north of the park, there is enchanting and quiet Yunshi Garden. A hexagonal pavilion, an elaborate courtyard and bamboos disperse in picturesque disorder, harmonizing with the gentle slope and artificial hills in this garden. Visitors can also find additional pavilions on the two islets. The pavilion in the south islet provides a whole view of the park while at the edge of the north islet stands a double-storey waterside pavilion.

Admission Fee:	Free
Opening Hours:	06:00-22:00	May 1-September 30
	06:00-21:00	October 1-April 30
Bus Route:	114, 118, 206, 211, 334, 347, 360, 362, 482, 601, 714, 804, 809, Te 5 (特5) to Zizhuyuan Nanmen (紫竹院南门), and then you could walk to the Zizhuyuan Park (紫竹院公园).

Spectacle of Simatai Great Wall

Simatai Great wall is exquisite in its details and is grand as a whole, which is the only part of ancient Great Walls with the original features of Ming Dynasty well reserved. Simatai Great Wall connects with JinShanLing Great Wall to the west, the main attractions include Watching Beijing Tower, Fairy Tower, Heavenly Ladder and Sky Bridge.

Watching Beijing Tower
Watching Beijing Tower is regarded as the top tower of the Simatai Section of the Great Wall with an elevation of 986 meters. It is the highest cultural relic in Beijing. From the tower at night one can see the lights shimmering faintly in downtown Beijing.

Fairy TowerFairy Tower is the most beautiful and romance of all Si ma tai watchtowers, with a sculpture of twin lotus flowers above the arched doorway. There were a legend that it was the dwelling place for an antelope who had been reincarnated in the form of an angel who fell in love with a shepherd.

Sky BridgeSky Briage With a cabined width of a mere 40 cm, this very narrow 100-meter-long way path connects the Fairy Tower to Watching Beijing Tower. The ' Sky bridge‘ would waiting for the warriors who pass across this stretch of wall. The sides of the ridge on which it sits are so steep that it seems one is walking along a narrow rope bridge.

Heavenly LadderHeavenly Ladder Leaning against a mountain slope with an almost 90-degree gradient, this is the only way hiking to the ' Watching Beijing Tower ' and the ' Fairy Towers '. Stretching upwards along the steep mountain cliff, the narrowest part is just half a meter wide. It is like a ladder that leads into the heavens.

The Great Wall

“He who has not climbed the Great Wall is not a true man” - Mao Zedong

No trip to China is complete with out visiting the iconic Great Wall so with that in mind we bid farewell to our friends in Macau & Shanghai and packed our bags (filled with warm sweaters, gloves, scarves and toques) for Beijing. With our pre booked tickets in hand (for those who don’t know after all these years of travelling abroad my husband has become a train ticket booking Ninja and always secures the best possible seats at the best possible price... in advance!!! He cut his teeth in India so China's train system is child’s play for him!) we boarded the Bullet Train from Shanghai to Beijing which at 310km per hour only took 5.5 hours. We arrived at dusk to Tiananmen Square and as we walked through the hutongs (alleyways) of Qianmen to our hostel it was very apparent that we had left the modernity and glamour of Shanghai behind and were now in communist China. After settling into our hostel we (on a hot tip from our Aussie friends Dave & Tat) booked the “Secret Wall Tour” through the Leo Hostel

which left the next day at 8am. The next morning we set out in with 7 other travellers in an attempt to beat the early morning Beijing traffic. The section of wall that we went to is about 2.5 hours outside of Beijing and parts of it are restored and some parts are not. We started the climb at about 10:30am and after 2 hours of straight up (and when I say straight up that is no joke) we made to the 6^th and final tower in that section of wall. It was clear, cold (well actually not that cold once you got going!) and the views from the top were spectacular. Everyone in our group made it to the 6^th tower... we were all huffing, puffing and total red faced. It was an intense climb... so many stairs!!! Who knew The Great Wall was all stairs!!! I my mind I envisioned it as a flat toped wall… up and down, yes! But so many stairs, no! On the way up we only passed 3 other people so we had The Wall all to ourselves which is basically unheard of… yay, for the Secret Wall Tour! At the top we

enjoyed a few sips of water, an orange, some photos, sent texts message to our family in Canada and then it was time to head back down... our legs were shaking the whole way down.

The Wall was a great experience and in retrospect we got very, very lucky as the winter smog of Beijing has now set in rendering the visibility to only a few meters. Also, while red faced and out of breath at the top of The Wall Dan and I came to the conclusion that when visiting the different 7 Wonders of The World (so far we have been to The Pyramids of Giza in Egypt, Petra in Jordan, the Taj Mahal in India and now the Great Wall in China… check, check, check, check… 4 down!), the more effort you put in as the traveller the more spectacular the wonder seems therefore "The Wall" is pretty high up on our list.

After our trip to The Wall we spent the next four days we pounding the pavement (with sore and tired legs!) checking out all the major sites in Beijing including: The Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, The Summer Palace, Lama Temple, the many

miles of Beijing’s hutongs and the National Museum. Beijing, although extremely cold (we even woke up to snow one morning!), was a great city and we enjoyed our time immensely.

Now it is onward to Xi’an to visit the Terracotta Army…

Until next time…