The Bride

Joined a theme shoot (Runaway Bride) organised by one of the organisers on our local photography forum. A question was raised during the shoot. "Is it a happy or sad theme?". For me, that really depends on how we want to paint the story. I've tried the two different approaches for this shoot by separating this shoot into two albums. A complete B&W album for the sad theme and another album with a mixture of colour and B&W for the happy theme.

From the number of feedbacks from the viewers of the two album,s the happy theme seems to get more votes than the sad theme. It seems that not many viewers can accept a totally B&W wedding album.

Singapore Photographers 1st Year Winners

The Singapore Photographers from Facebook celebrated their one year anniversary at Supperclub on Sunday. I was invited but I could not attend the prize presentation as I've signed up for a bridal shoot the same day. My first photography award since I started photography two years ago.

Singapore Botanic Garden

Another photoshoot outing with my brother, sister and wife last saturday at the Singapore Botanic Garden. Cloudy and humid, it was very hot too. Didn't shoot much because of the hot weather. Spot the sunbirds flying around the heliconias and catch them on my camera before they flew away. I still get the thrill shooting sunbirds with my 70 - 300mm. =)

I r i s . . . i n . . . T h e . . . F o r e s t . . .

Did a forest theme shoot with Iris last week. It was cloudy and therefore the lighting became a challenge. I tried to avoid using flash as it was really hard to control the direction to bounce off the light to avoid unwanted shadows. That is why I always shoot in raw format for easier editing of photos.

It is hard to let the viewers understand what I'm trying to express in my photos. That's is why constructive comments mean a lot to me. I would really like to know what the viewers see in my work.

A l i n e . . . K i l l i n g . . . M e . . . S o f t l y . . .

Joined a portraiture shoot session last Friday night. This is my third outdoor night shoot. Met up with some regular shooters from the previous sessions. That is one of thing I like about joining organised group shoots - I get to know more people and widen my social circle. Saw one of the photographers using a Leica rangefinder during the shoot. I would really like to try shooting with a rangefinder someday.

There are some winding problems with my Seagull TLR that cause the film to jam. I'm currently looking for another medium format camera. Nothing too expensive as I'm saving up for a full frame camera. Saw a Lomo like TLR from Japan, Black Bird Fly (http://www.superheadz.com/bbf/) and this is available here in Singapore. Will pop by the shops this few days to check it out.

During last Friday shoot, we were chased away by the security guard at our third and final location. That really dampened my mood as the organiser needed to pack up the equipment, relocated to another site, and set up the lighting and other equipment again. This is not the first time I encountered such situation. We are running out of places to shoot locally due to "security reasons". It's a pity as some of the sites are really very good locations for outdoor portraiture.

Chavez & Joanne

I was given the opportunity to help out in my friend's sister's wedding day shoot. It was a two-day shoot. Their Chinese customary ceremony was on Saturday morning and their wedding banquet on Sunday afternoon.

Apparently, it was a good day for couples to tie their knots on that day. There was a small commotion in the morning during the arrival of the groom. We heard the horn of the groom's car and I accompanied the the little boy who's supposed to open the door for the groom downstairs. He almost opened the door of the wrong bridal car. Luckily, I realised it and stopped him in time but not before the photographer of the other groom stared at me. Two weddings at the same place at the same time. That was really a close call. (Lesson Learnt : Make sure you know the groom's car plate number.)

There are different dialect groups in our Chinese community and therefore many different wedding customs. However, as we become more westernised, some of these customs are simplified for the convenience of both families. Besides, the wedding ceremony is supposed to be a happy and memorable occasion for the newlyweds and not to stress them out.