u/Sad-Love-3581

Steam (UK) finally came knocking & I'm ready. Good luck to the rest out there in purgatory (reserve/waitlist).

Recently, picked up my first Hasselblad after much debating with other medium formats. The choice for really simple after hearing so much about the X2D II 100C & new XCD 35-100mm.

First impressions:

First the unboxing was incredible, you definitely feel the heft of the boxes. The layout was really nice & compact having everything accessible without tons of digging.

And as i expected the build quality was insane, a gunmetal gray finish & iconic orange shutter. My favourite part has got to be the screen however it's by far the best i've got to use & makes taking outsight in bright daylight no problem at all.

35-100 lens:

Generally, I stick to primes but given the weight & size of this I thought it would be a change of pace. It seems super versatile for shooting everything & having insane autofocusing.

Acessories:

The falcam was really a definitive pickup, the weight was no worry compared to the security in the material & safety (hidden airtag slot). Plus a handstrap to ensure extra safety for any mistakes.

Other thoughts:

Coming from Fujj the simplified system is really refreshing & testing a bit of the HDR it looks incredible. Overall, I'll keep shooting Fuji because it's so fun but the Hasselblad has its own unique charm.

Closing thoughts:

I've heard the battery as a weakpoint so might look into getting a spare & charging dock.

And if anyone else is running the 20-35 how is it? I'm interested in picking that up soon aswell.

But that's it happy shooting everyone!

Just got back from my 21 Days Across Japan Trip & wanted to share my Smiski finds & tips! I've been loving these little glow-in-the-dark figures for a while but never really had an opportunity to find full box cases like I usually like. So up until then I only had a few random Smiskis & non-blind box Smiskis (Bobble head, zipperbite, toothbrush stands, etc.) .

But I loved Japan & with Smiski's originating from Japan I got to learn a lot about them from some Japanese fans & found the best way to get them.

Anyway without further or do I'll share my haul & the release timeline which i was aiming for:

• Series 1
• Series 2
• Series 3
• Series 4
• Note: Series 2-4 are officially discontinued from the Smiski production line as of 25/6/26 so you can only find them through second-hand services
• Toilet Series
• Bath Series
• Living Series
• Bed Series
• Yoga Series
• Cheer Series
• Museum Series
• Work Series
• Dressing Series
• Exercising Series
• Touch light V1
• Cushion Pouch
• Moving Series
• Hippers Series
• Sunday Series
• Zipperbite Series 2
• Plush Key Chain
• Birthday Series
• Smiski Plush
• Strap Series 1
• Strap Series 2
• Strap Series 3
• Strap Series 4
• Touch Light Series 2

Where to Hunt/Find them:

Generally your best regions across Japan where i found them was in the Kyoto/ Tokyo areas. But primarily Kyoto due to Tokyo being high traffic & often having less product due to this with some store restriction's on purchases.

The absolute cheapest you can find them is in Don Quijote where you can get tax free for around 1100 Yen but couldn't find any full assort boxes here.

SONIANDSMI (Shibuya) was the most fun location being the official flagship store joining Smiski's & Sonny Angel together. This is a treasure trove that has pretty much confirmed stock of all mainline series. However there was missing stock & limitations which I will talk about later.

Hands/ LOFT/ KiddyLand the holy trinity & where pretty much all my stock came from, these places are literally everywhere in Japan & have extremely varying stock BUT you can get full assort boxes from here with tax free!

Amazon & Sonny Online Store are also great choices if you want more simple option however I prefer going into stores for the experience & ensuring I get it fast.

But what about discontinued stock? For this the best chances of finding some is online via sites like eBay & Mercari where you will likely have to ship to a hotel or place of residence. For reference I was able to find the entire series set 2-4 online (not really a secret's hunter so I didn't look for those but I'm certain there was availability)

How to bring it back:

So, if your now wondering how I hauled all of this back the absolute best way is getting a second suitcase, my absolute favourite being the Lojel Fit which was perfect size for travelling across the country on the Shinkansen & being able to fit literally every single series box I got & having some extra space leftover for nicknacks.

Beside this you can also utilise Japan Post to send things back internationally which is a easy process of going into a branch, asking for a cardboard box & filling out some forms before they weigh it up & send it through. Though I didn't use this method for any big boxes I did use it for some smaller stuff like the keychain, zipperbite & plushy.

Extra Segment:

For finding things I'd suggest travelling outside popular regions to nearby places like Okayama & Yokohama which were nice places to find full showcases that weren't bought out.

Furthermore, look for any pop-ups happening as stock is concentrated there & you might get some limited time stuff like the 10th Anniversary goods from Yokohama.

Don't rely on SONIANSMI since you:

• Need to get a digital ticket before you even enter the store (individual so if your going as a group each person needs a ticket)
• Doesn't feature tax free discounting
• Won't let you purchase full assort box
• Quite a small cramped space that's generally full of customers due to ticket system moving people in & out constantly
• Won't have full Smiski stock (missing thing's like some strap series & other misc Smiski products

Go to SONIANSMI if:

• You want a great experiential store with tons of themed decoration
• Want to only get a few individual products with confirmed chances of all main series boxes
• Your already in the Shibuya area & have some free time since you can drop by get a digital ticket then come back later depending on the queue

Overall, Japan was a awesome time & I got lucky enough to find everything I wanted minus some rarer product. I'll likely post an update including what I found or maybe a trade/sell post (UK mainly).

I anyone has any questions send them through & I'll try to answer.

If anyone else has had an experience of collecting Smiski or Japan related experience drop it down below!