I like things raw and real, when they are in their most truthful state. It’s probably unusual to many when the unreal, the “photoshopped”, the “beautiful” are what the world is after generally. I see beauty in true honesty, transparency and originality.

This is a recent shot from a dinner I was photographing. Most kids are natural posers. It’s interesting to see how a person’s self-confidence gets diminished as he/she grows up to be an adult. The most difficult people to photograph are people with no self-confidence. Beauty starts from the inside, not outside.

I have not been writing much as I have been quite reclusive. So sorry, everyone. I hope you’ll still stay with me through my journey in life, watching me grow as a person, as a photographer, as a teacher, [...]]]>

The unspeakable joy of a mother and her baby! No amount of words can express!

I have not been writing much as I have been quite reclusive. So sorry, everyone. I hope you’ll still stay with me through my journey in life, watching me grow as a person, as a photographer, as a teacher, and maybe as a friend as well. I thank all of you who has been motivating or correcting me through your comments both in facebook and in my blogs. I’ll do my best to share what I know as much as I can.

Happy Belated Mothers’ Day to ALL you mothers out there!!! You have the special calling which we men will never have. And you experience the unspeakable joy from pregnancy to breastfeeding and watching your baby grow which we fathers will always feel that missing link between us and our baby. I did try making my baby suck my nipple but that didn’t work! Hahaha……..

My preference has always been film cameras but undeniably, film cameras suck at high ISO. The only high speed films available [...]]]> Recently, I have been pondering, what will the choice be if I want a digital camera for street photography which has high ISO capability. Now, imagine… F8, zone focused, ISO6400 or higher, at night.

My preference has always been film cameras but undeniably, film cameras suck at high ISO. The only high speed films available today are Ilford Delta 3200, Fuji Neopan 1600 (recently discontinued),  Fuji Superia 1600/800 (color negs). Kodak TMax 3200 has been discontinued a long time ago. The only other way to shoot at high ISO for films will be pushing standard ISO400 black and white films to 3200 (or higher if you know how).

Since the development of digital photography, we experience both the benefits from the technology as well as the downgrade of image quality in general. Tons of low resolution pixelated images from phone cameras, point and shoots and low end DSLRs started flooding the internet.

Now, back to the current choice of digital cameras suited for night street photography, I have also fine-tuned my search to just one focal length, something close to human’s natural eye’s perspective. Many have argued that 42mm is the closest but I shall give myself  a bigger allowance, from about 35-45mm.

So, my criteria shall be:

1. No Shutter Lag

2. Prime Lens between 35mm to 45mm (fixed focal length: easier to pre-visualize images before shooting and to build a good discipline of “zooming” with your feet instead)

3. Compact, Small and Portable

My list is as follows:

1. Olympus E-PL2 with Panasonic 20mm F1.7

Effective focal length: 40mm

Highest useable ISO: 3200

Depth of Field Scale: None

2. Sony NEX with Voigtlander 28 Ultron (F2)

Effective focal length: 42mm

Highest useable ISO: 6400 (at 12800, some banding starts to show)

Depth of Field Scale: Yes

3. Leica M8 with Voigtlander 28 Ultron (F2)

Effective focal length: 37.24mm

Highest useable ISO: 1250

Depth of Field Scale: Yes

4. Leica M9 with Voigtlander 40mm F1.4 Nokton

Effective focal length: 40mm

Highest useable ISO: 3200

Depth of Field Scale: Yes

5. Canon 550D with Olympus OM 24mm F2.8 Lens via adapter (smallest 24mm SLR lens I can find)

Effective focal length: 38.4mm

Highest useable ISO: 6400 (at 12800, some banding starts to show)

Depth of Field Scale: Yes

6. Fuji X100

Effective focal length: 35mm

Highest useable ISO: 6400 (not sure about results at 12800 yet)

Depth of Field Scale: None

So, what do you think? (Tell me your preference either in my FB page or down in the comments column). The Fuji does look tempting… :p

As I look through my archives, I find more and more of my past works “unacceptable”. I think I have grown much more fussy and picky and difficult to live with. LOL…

I LOVE FILM!

Because film is imperfect. Film is coated with a layer of chemical emulsion that can be easily scratched or finger-printed by human. Loading a roll of film requires human touch. Unloading a roll of film also requires human touch. In fact, the whole process of developing a roll [...]]]>

Medium Format Film

I LOVE FILM!

Because film is imperfect. Film is coated with a layer of chemical emulsion that can be easily scratched or finger-printed by human. Loading a roll of film requires human touch. Unloading a roll of film also requires human touch. In fact, the whole process of developing a roll of film, whether it’s by the lab or D.I.Y. requires human touch.

Unlike in digital, pixels are often perfect. Technology advances toward perfection. We have perfectly clean ISO6400 today. We also have super-sharp digital images, perfect white balance, and Photoshop to perfect our images further. Yet, so many software are trying to introduce “film flaws” back into digital photography via plug-ins, photo filters, etc. It’s ironic!

I love film because film is imperfect. It reminds me that life is imperfect. It reminds me to accept what I cannot change.

A friend in Facebook recently wrote: ” Life is not always a bed of roses. Will you allow your unhappiness to overwhelm you or will you try to find a ray of sunshine through the seemingly dark skies? It is all a matter of choice.”

My comment was, “To enjoy the fragrance, softness n beauty of roses, we need to accept the thorns too.”

What’s roses without thorns anyway? It creates depth of field. Hahaha…

Cheers!

I am not a big fan of digital HDR (high dynamic range) shots. Few HDR shots I’ve seen impressed me. That does not mean I will not attempt a HDR shot in future, but I prefer to keep things as it is.

As for the above shot, I saw [...]]]>

Leica M6, 15 Heliar, NPH400.

I am not a big fan of digital HDR (high dynamic range) shots. Few HDR shots I’ve seen impressed me. That does not mean I will not attempt a HDR shot in future, but I prefer to keep things as it is.

As for the above shot, I saw a silhouette, it’s a silhouette, it’s never HDR to my eyes. I find most digital HDR artificial-looking. It’s my personal preference, period.

HDR has become so easily achievable digitally today (even the latest Olympus E-5 has an Art Filter for it). But if we start depending more and more on what “surprises” latest software is gonna give us, we naturally become less and less of a photographer.

We will grow so dependent on what software can give us that we will attempt to shoot anything, in any angle, under any lighting condition, with any composition cause the software will make it look “good” ultimately. You will be amazed at how an ordinary-looking snapshot in the mid day sun with totally flat details will stand out after a HDR processing for example.

After we have batch-processed the hundreds to thousands of shots with software, we just have to select the few “best” to feature as our portfolio. Not much thought needed during shooting, isn’t it?

At post-processing stage, if a certain effect doesn’t look good, we can try another effect. With such high megapixels from affordable full frame cameras today, we can also crop till it works during post-processing. We no longer need to nail the composition right at the point of shooting.

“… for nothing is impossible with 21MP 5Dmk2…” the book of Canon 1:37

The invention of AF (autofocus) has already made many photographers slaves to it. Many photographers swear by fast and accurate AF and can’t live without it. We easily will dump a 45 point AF system for a 51 point AF system without much consideration. Our priority in choosing cameras become centered on AF system more than actual image quality.

Now is year 2010. Will our works be taken over by software and modern digital cameras by year 2020? Will the “photographer’s eye” still be as highly regarded in another 10 years’ time? Will “the decisive moment” still be sought after when digital cameras do more than 100 frames per sec?

I don’t know.

But I choose to follow my heart to do what I love and continue to hone my photographic skills and vision. It’s the “decisive moment” that gives me the kick in photography, not rescuing photos at post-processing.

What I basically did was I cut down the number of weddings I shoot to about less [...]]]> My blog has been void of wedding images for a long while now. If you have been following my blog, you would have known that I have quit from shooting weddings as my main genre since last year.

What I basically did was I cut down the number of weddings I shoot to about less than 6 a year, in order to rediscover my passion in photography and re-learn photography all over again.

My life has been so much more fruitful since then and I am enjoying photography like a fresh new enthusiast once again after more than 10 years in the business. I realized there’s still so much to learn, and there’s so much I have been missing out as a professional all these years.

The “professional” label is lame. It means nothing more than you are making money out of photography and you are dependent on it for livelihood. It certainly does not necessarily mean you are skilled, knowledgeable and passionate in today’s context. If the level of judgment/fussiness by our clients in this part of the world suddenly increase by 50%, I guess more than 1/2 of the professionals around us might be facing unemployment.

Doing photography as a job is entirely different from living photography as a lifestyle. Doing photography as a job is to meet the standards of our clients. Living photography as a lifestyle is to constantly strive to reach higher standards set by ourselves.

A painter won’t choose to paint a same painting over and over again in his life if he’s an artist. I can’t paint the same stuff over and over again either. Shooting less weddings enable me to focus better on each job and personalize my brush strokes, my eyes for each wedding. NOT looking at other wedding photographers’ works IS a MUST in carving out your own style.

Guess it’s about time I update my portfolio. Here’s just one photograph for the day to start with. (I must admit I have a self-discipline problem to tackle)

I love the quality from a medium format film and the skin tones from the NPH400.

NO, this is NOT a digital camera, neither is it the upcoming E-P3. This is my Olympus RC film rangefinder. I just hope Olympus will remember they ever made so many FAST and legendary lenses in history and why should they stop doing it? The other collectibles are the Olympus 35SP: 40/1.7 and the [...]]]>

NO, this is NOT a digital camera, neither is it the upcoming E-P3. This is my Olympus RC film rangefinder. I just hope Olympus will remember they ever made so many FAST and legendary lenses in history and why should they stop doing it? The other collectibles are the Olympus 35SP: 40/1.7 and the Olympus 35RD: 40/1.7.

Since the announcement of the Fuji X100 which made so many photographers drool for it (including me), I started thinking what I would like the next PEN to be. This is my wish list:

1. To have the dials on the E-P1/2

2. MUST have “auto-rotate” feature

3. 3-inch high resolution LCD with 360 degree tilt and swivel capability

4. Back LCD display to show filename, ISO, S, A, WB, Quality, format, date and time all at once. I like the way the NEX’s display shows the necessary info. I find the E-PL1′s display of pixel dimensions, in-camera sequence number unnecessary and the fonts too big.

5. Same MF assist system like the NEX (half-press shutter to exit magnification)

6. Useable ISO6400

7. AF infra red assist beam option

8. Full HD Video

9. Weather-proof body as an option (E-P3 tough?)

10. NEW collapsible kit zoom lens: m-zuiko 12-42mm F3.3-4.5 msc internal focusing type

11. External electronic viewfinder VF-2 can still be separate as I would like to keep the body small

12. Better AF capability in lowlight

13. 5 frames per sec

14. Lens hood bundled

15. Additional hook by the side with option to strap camera sideways

16. Additional accessory: leather hand strap

I think I am expecting reasonable improvements to the current PENs available which Olympus is well capable of producing. Personally, I am willing to pay MYR2500 (USD800) for a normal body and MYR3500 (USD1133) for a weather-proof body bundled with the NEW kit lens with hood. (well, the new kit lens can have a weather-proof version). I do hope the price of the VF-2 can be reduced to MYR800 (USD260).

This is the list of lenses I hope Olympus will produce other than the new kit lens I hope for mentioned above:

1. mzd 17/1.8 msc (effective 35mm great for street-shooting)

2. mzd 50/1.8 msc (effective 100mm great for portraits and candids)

3. mzd 30/2.8 macro msc (effective 60mm great for close distance macro)

My first preference setup (since I ‘m not a hardcore macro guy) will be E-P3 with 12-42/3.3-4.5, 17/1.8, 50/1.8, 9-18(spare), if necessary 75-300(for safari). The kit zoom will be able to do general macro which is good enough for me.

All the above is just my dream. My fingers are always crossed as to what Olympus will produce next. Being a lover of Olympus’s Jpegs, I do hope for the best in the development of Olympus.

It basically also means alien and foreigner.

Life is ironic. We depend on one another but we refuse to know one another. We are supposed to be educated NOT to be racist, but we still are racists in our hearts at times. We are [...]]]> The meaning of the word stranger can be easily found HERE.

It basically also means alien and foreigner.

Life is ironic. We depend on one another but we refuse to know one another. We are supposed to be educated NOT to be racist, but we still are racists in our hearts at times. We are taught NOT to judge a book by it’s cover, but yet we judge all the time.

In portrait photography, I discover the joy of knowing people.

I am well trained for years in photographing wedding couples (since the 1990s), posing untrained “models” for pre-wedding portraits, catching them in their best angle and in their most natural but flattering state. I took pride in my ability to photograph ordinary people cause I think they are much harder than trained fashion models.

To me, there’s ONLY one word in portrait photography: Communication.

You can use the best equipment, a F1 portrait lens BUT have absolutely no positive communication with your subject.

It’s hard, cause it drains emotion, it drains energy, it tests your true sincerity in photographing your subject. Sometimes, when I am emotionally tired, I just can’t do it the way I want it.

In wedding jobs which I have done for years, I must say there were times I knew I just didn’t “make the mark” I wanted, BUT I did make the mark the clients wanted. Whew! (I have since quit being a “hardcore” wedding photographer since 2009 and am concentrating on developing my photography passion afresh)

In street photography, we are actually photographing strangers all the time (unless you have made some friends on the streets you regularly go to). Now, this is even harder, cause they don’t pay us to photograph them, and many of them do not even wish to be photographed.

I am still learning and I think this learning will never end.

It’s NOT just photography I am learning. It’s 90% communication, 10% photography I am learning.

Each time I go out on the the streets for a shoot, it’s a test to my sincerity, a test to whether I am genuinely interested in my subjects.

I meet them FIRST as a person, and second as a photographer interested in making some good portraits of ART. When we put ourselves in the shoes of our subjects, we will naturally NOT do to them what we do not wish others do to us.

There are generally two approaches to street portrait photography: one is to photograph unobtrusively, at times “stealing” shots without really asking for permission, AND another is verbally or non-verbally (the use of body language) asking for permission before shooting. I do both.

Shot in Penang.

It is interesting when Strangers are turned into acquaintances when you give yourself a chance to put down your camera, have a chat with your subject, get to know them, or even help them… before you pick up your camera to take a shot again.

An old man in Ipoh, with one eye blind. He used to live in a rented wooden house with a broken roof but his son has since fetched him home.

So, the next time you pick up your camera, think of yourself FIRST as a person, second as a photographer. Take some time to care for your subjects before rushing to take a shot. It’s a totally different experience!