Skipping on mud (DSC9294)
It was late afternoon, passed by the riverside on my way back from seeing a friend mending his yacht. The light was too beautiful to miss the opportunity of wetting my pants in the mangroves.
Leitz Wetzlar Elmarit-R 90/2.8 | Leitax Adaptor
Sailing to exotic corners of the earth (DSC7043)
We’re usually more concerned about what’s being served on the china, rather than the china itself. But if you ever stopped to consider how china is made, you’d be amazed — it’s actually fascinating. Porcelain, also called ‘fine china’, featuring its delicate texture, pleasing color, and refined sculpture, has been one of the earliest artworks introduced to the western world through the Silk Road. The features of porcelain lie in texture of basic body, color of glaze, decorative pattern, shape and style, while porcelain at that time had sublimed to be at the most elegant. Through the development of over 4,000 years, now it is still a brilliant art that attracts many people’s interest.
Flowers in chinatown (22430030)
Gears: Leica R6 and Leitz Leica Summicron-R 35mm F/2.0, on Fuji Superia 100
Location: Kampung Cina (Chinatown), Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu, Malaysia
Celebrating Monsoon (DSC_0633)
To some the monsoon is a celebration but to some it is a disaster. Due to the non-stop heavy rain for over a week. Only a couple of weeks ago over 3000 of Terengganu evacuees were placed at flood relief centres throughout Terengganu.
Oh how I miss my flickr buddies so much. I’ve been off flickr for almost 3 months now. 3 months away from flickr has not been easy since I’ve never been away more than a few days. So much has happened since then. I’ve just very recently started working on my second book for a well known local writer. It’s a book about Terengganu. Thus, my future posts will not be as frequent as it used to be, which was like one photo a day.
Gears: Nikon D300 and Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm F/1.4 AI
Location: Pulau Duyung, Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia
Tagging along the route of the photon particles (89800004)
We were special guests for Mr Tseng Lip the generous and hospitable resort owner of Laguna Redang Resort
in Redang Island of the shores off Terengganu
The photon differs from many other elementary particles, such as the electron and the quark, in that it has zero rest mass; therefore, it travels (in a vacuum) at the speed of light.
This guy (I mean Photon) is the elementary particle responsible for the electromagnetic phenomena. His scope of work is to carry electromagnetic radiation of all wavelengths, including in decreasing order of energy, gamma rays, X-rays, ultraviolet light, visible light, infrared light, microwaves, and radio waves. Oh yes, of course he also carries the visible light that we all use for photography.
Photon particles travelled through the: Nikon Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 AI lens, into a Nikon FM2 film SLR body and finally it arrives on the Fujichrome Velvia 100 (RVP100F)
And all this took place at the: Redang Island, South China Sea, Terengganu, Malaysia
And I: Did not mess with what the photons did to the film emulsion afterwards
A study of ripples and bokeh (DSC8056)
Gears: Leitz Wetzlar Elmarit-R 90/2.8
Location: Pengkalan Mercang, Marang, Terengganu
Being limited in its maximum aperture, dramatic bokeh isn’t expected; however, you can see how there is a smooth gradation between the in-focus foreground and the out-of-focus background (an important consideration). That is one aspect of bokeh character that I like most with my Leitz Wetzlar Elmarit-R 90/2.8.
Exploring the tropical highlands (499570022)
- Gears: Leica R6, Summicron-R 35/2.0
Location: Berincang, Cameron Highlands, Pahang, Malaysia
Off in the distance I could hear a calming rumble of thunder. The rain patters softly on the roof of our hut while the occasional cricket can be heard just outside my door.
Do you realise the peaceful, calm feeling most people get when walking through, or living next to, a large group of trees belonging to a forest.
Well, this calm, peaceful feeling is not felt by people walking through or living near other areas where trees exist, such as large cities with treed boulevards, paths leading to haunted mansions, and edges of cliffs.
I truly believe that these “feelings are real… and DO matter”. Therefore, the happy feelings that people experience while walking through, or living near, a large group of trees belonging to a forest are not felt when walking through busy cities, heading toward a haunted house, or perched on the edge of a tree-lined cliff. This provides clear evidence that these large gatherings of trees encompass an unseen mystical force that can only be described as a forest.. Oh! How I miss the forest…
Waiting for the right light
Gears: Leica R6 and Leitz Leica Summicron-R 35/2.0, on Fujichrome Velvia 50 (RVP50F) Location: Terengganu State Museum, Losong, Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia
With practice and patience, one can anticipate when the conditions will be favorable. After a while my senses are more attuned to things like clouds, weather, and distractions. Rather than relying on luck and serendipity, I usually plan, research, and study the scene for long periods of time before I find “the right light”.
Sure, one can manufacture it, and we’ve all seen the wonder shots in the galleries of others – but if you think about the time and energy that goes into capturing that perfect scene, imagine all the “almost” shots, and the time and energy that went into them.
I would suspect that many photographers would say there is value in every shot. Because, even if they didn’t get the light just right in their location, someone – somewhere – when the sun set, nailed it perfectly!
However primitive or sophisticated your photography equipment, from a home-made pinhole camera to the most modern, totally-digital wonder, you, as photographer are striving to control, manipulate and exploit light.
Photography depends on light. Therefore, an understanding of light, what it is, how it behaves and how you can learn to use it, is essential to creating superlative photos.
Because the character and quality of a photograph can be altered by the character and quality of light, even the most-seasoned photographers puzzle over how a scene should be lit, what lighting angles to use for good results, and what exposure settings will bring out the best detail and tonal shading. When you are armed with the basic facts about light, you will find that such elementary questions become more easily-answered.
writing with light 