Hello World....

So in the almost 9 months of my absence, I have moved house, downsized my collection, got back into vinyl (of all things), given up on hosting both radio shows, become addicted to Instagram and pretty much shirked all of my other online responsibilities for getting out there in the 'real' world.  It has been fun, but I thought I would put the blog hat back on for a day or two and see how that works out for me....

So as I mentioned above, I have been getting back into vinyl....a week or so ago was Record Store Day here in Australia and I was able to pick up The Lego Movie Soundtrack from my local store...it is a pretty cool picture vinyl set as you can see below:

Anyway...I picked up a Audio Technica AT-LP60 and was pretty impressed by the sound quality for a $200 unit!  I have had 2 or 3 turntables lately and this was by far the best value for money! Here are a few other records I have managed to collect over the last few months...these images come courtesy of my Instagram feed so they aren't exactly detailed, but hey I am posting something so.... :P~

The Muppet Show

The Neverending Story by Klaus Doldinger and Giorgio Moroder.

The Aristocats Storybook & Songs

Empire of the Sun by John Williams

Lost in Translation (Japanese Release)

Disney Picture Album Releases - Hot Topic Exclusive

O'Brother Where Art Thou? - Various Artists

Crocodile Dundee by Peter Best

Arachnophobia - Trevor Jones & Various

The Jungle Book Storybook & Songs

The Labyrinth by Trevor Jones & David Bowie

 So there you have it! A blog post...finally....

Cinemagraphs Part 5

I hope you are sitting down!  Yes, I am posting a new blog post!!

One of the things I love about Nokia Cinemagraph is that it comes in very handy when trying to capture a moment for which a still image just won't cut it!  Here are a few of my latest Nokia Cinemagraphs at taken on my Nokia Lumia 1020! 

Steelbook Update!

Well here we are again with some new additions to the collection.  Above is the Kimchidvd exclusve steelbook edition of Tangled featuring a lenticular slipcover. It is very difficult to photograph, but is certainly much nicer in person!  It also came with a storybook (In English), some photocards and a sticker sheet.  A very nice set indeed.  Next up we have some Zavvi releases:

I have held off buying Starship Troopers on Blu-ray, but then I jumped when this was announced.  Haven't watched the disc yet, but it is a nice steelbook.

Oblivion was a bit of a miss for me, but I absolutely loved the score by M83 and bought this simply to get the isolated score in DTS surround sound!  Basically if you treat the film as a music video it works very well ;)

Again, The Little Mermaid is not one of my favourites, but I do really like this artwork.  I am a bit pissed though that I wasn't able to secure copies of Dumbo or Lady & The Tramp, two films I would much rather own... so this may get traded.

Byzantium was a blind buy, but I really enjoyed it and the stunning visuals look fantastic on this Blu-ray.  I am actually not a fan of the artwork they have used on the back cover, but that front cover almost makes me cry admiring its beauty :P

Double dip time, Close Encounters is missing the second disc and booklet from the original release, so really I just bought it for the steelbook. I note it has now sold out.

and last, but not least.  I did enjoy Django, but I wasn't going to own it.  I picked this up for $12 and as it came with the soundtrack I thought that was quite a good deal :)

I have more goodies on the way including the new 50th Commemorative JFK release from Warner so will be posting pics of that when it arrives, I have also ordered both versions of the Kimchidvd release of A Tale of Two Sisters so I am looking forward to those too!!!

Cinemagraphs Part 4

Once again I present you with my latest Cinemagraphs as captured on the Nokia Lumia 1020!  Water is still one of my favourite things to capture, so much so that I have visited countless waterfalls, lakes, streams, rivers and beaches in my quest to find things to photograph! The rest of the images can be found after the break and as usual I will warn you that the page may take some time to load depending on your connection speed! Enjoy! :)

Airlock Kickstarter Campaign!

The makers of the awesome Aussie horror flick The Tunnel have a new project in the works and like The Tunnel, you the consumer, can help bring it about!  Airlock is a sci-fi horror series set in space!!  If you thought being underground in the tunnels of Sydney was scary, imagine what these guys could do in space!!

Pledges start at only $5 and every $1 counts!!  The best part is the that series will be FREE to watch worldwide upon completion!  Everyone wins! :D

So please consider helping to get this project made!!

You can find all the relevant details including a teaser of things to come over at their Kickstarter page!

The Wizard of Oz 75th Anniversary Edition

 Well I have double dipped on The Wizard of Oz! I always regretted not purchasing the initial limited edition box that came out, settling instead on the local limited edition release, but now of course I am glad I held off as I really do like this edition. It will compliment my other version quite nicely :D

Anyhow, this set features the newly created 3D version of the film (not that I have any interest in that what-so-ever) on Blu-ray as well as a normal 2D version and extra features presented on two more Blu-ray's, a standard DVD version with extras and a double sided disc featuring the MGM documentary "When the Lion Roars". Other "extras" include a 52 page hard cover photo book, a journal, a map of Oz, a Nobel Collection pin set, a light up ruby slipper snow globe and my personal favourite (and exclusive to the Amazon version) a USB flash drive in the shape of the Wicked Witches legs! :D

Cinemagraphs Part 3 and Phone Upgrade!

Hello Hello,

Yes I am still alive.... not many updates of late I know!

Well the month of September came and went and with it I have changed mobile phones once again.  The Lumia 920 has been sold (and is currently doing a trip across Europe!) and has been replaced by its bigger brother the Lumia 1020!  Featuring 41 Megapixels of awesome!.

As usual, a new phone needs a bit of a work out and whilst the operating system and apps remain the same the upgrade to the camera also came with a change to the Cinemagraph app which now allows photos to be taken in HD (720) resolution.  Cinemagraph is still by far my favourite photo application on the Lumia phones and is constantly giving my ideas for photos I want to try and capture! So here are a few of the Cinemagraph shots I have captured on the Lumia 1020!

Please be aware that some of the files after the break are 10mb+ and as such, the page may take awhile to load on slower connections!

New Things!

A few new things have been added to the ol'collection in the last few weeks!

Firstly Joss Whedon's short lived series Dollhouse has finally dropped in price on Amazon UK so I have finally picked that up after months of staring at it in my cart!

Zavvi continue to punish my wallet releasing wave after wave of gorgeous steelbooks... I have no less than 10 pre-orders for their upcoming releases, but here are a few that have arrived thus far:

Withnail & I (Another double dip for me!)

Aladdin & The Jungle Book

 I must admit that the Disney steelbooks are actually a little disappointing when compared to the Canadian Viva Metal cases that Futureshop was releasing (prior to Steelbook suing Viva of course), but the Brave, Muppets and Finding Nemo cases are vastly superior to these latest releases which is such a shame....

I have also completed my Resident Evil U.S Walmart Exclusive steelbook collection (I don't really have any intention of owning the 5th film as frankly it was an abomination)

and lastly a couple of single releases...

 I really enjoyed Sound of My Voice, in fact there have been very few Brit Marling films I haven't enjoyed and I am really looking forward to the upcoming release of The East!!

Saving the best for last, my current favourite film of the year,Chan-wook Park's first English speaking film Stoker!  With exceptional performances, fantastic cinematography and an amazing soundtrack this film was the highlight of my Sydney Film Festival viewing this year!!  It has just come out today in cinema's here in Australia and I highly recommend checking it out!!