Taken at f/1.4 with my Nikon 24mm [...]]]> Playing with children is my forte given the training that I have gone through. This is the same child I met in Chengdu, China when I was there last year. He was a bit apprehensive when we first met and I soon got him to open up.

Taken at f/1.4 with my Nikon 24mm Aperture Priority ISO 400 1/60s.

Peek-a-boo

For those who may be interested, my next photo-safari will be to Northern Vietnam on the Hanoi-Bac Ha-Sapa route. This safari is now open for registration. You may see the details here.

I was doing my usual Chinese New Year shopping at Petaling Street, Kuala Lumpur (or rather my wife was doing hers) when I heard the sound of drums at the [...]]]> Now that I have a iPhone 4S, it makes me wonder if I still need to get a backup camera for my Nikon D3.

I was doing my usual Chinese New Year shopping at Petaling Street, Kuala Lumpur (or rather my wife was doing hers) when I heard the sound of drums at the Kwong Siew Temple signifying a Lion Dance was in progress. Never have I seen so many Lions at one place dancing at the same time. Because I did not bring my D3 I had to fall back on whatever camera I had with me. I have never seriously used the iPhone 4S camera not knowing how it can perform given the type of photography I like to do. Boy, was I pleasantly surprised!

Taken [...]]]> This is another shot of the same two monks but this time it was taken at Ta Prohm, the temple ruins in Siem Reap made famous by the shooting of Tomb Raider starring Angelina Jolie a few years ago (the previous shot posted on January 13th was taken at Preah Khan).

Taken with Nikon D3 + Nikon 24-70mm/2.8 Aperture Priority 2 f/3.2 ISO 400 1/50s.

Enlightenment (Click image to view large)

Talking about teaching photo-safari, I am in the mood for some new destinations starting with the Hanoi-Buc Ha-Sapa route (Vietnam) some time in April or May 2012. If [...]]]> Again taken during my last teaching photo-safari to Siem Reap. It was an amazing and fascinating sight to see these trees as part of the ruins.

Talking about teaching photo-safari, I am in the mood for some new destinations starting with the Hanoi-Buc Ha-Sapa route (Vietnam) some time in April or May 2012. If you are keen to join me on a eat-drink-sleep photography trip, drop me a line here and I will keep you in the loop. Thanks.

By the big, big tree

Taken with the Nikon D3 + [...]]]> This shot was taken during my teaching photo-safari to Siem Reap late last year. We were on our way out to Tonle Sap, the largest freshwater lake in South East Asia, when we passed through this fishing village. What a great place for my type of street portraiture!

Taken with the Nikon D3 + 24-70mm/2.8 aperture priority @ f/3.5 ISO 400 i/400s.

Mama, shed a tear for me

Here is another shot of her.

Aperture Priority @ f/3.2 1/160s ISO400

HMUA – Nigel Nj

One-on-one workshop with participant Tharma [...]]]> I have received comments that Farinaz Banoo Motiei reminded one of Elizabeth Taylor. I will let you be the judge.

Here is another shot of her.

Aperture Priority @ f/3.2 1/160s ISO400

HMUA – Nigel Nj

One-on-one workshop with participant Tharma Lingam

I started off with the very basics talking about my camera [...]]]> Coaching a newcomer to photography and photoshop (I was told 2 months into photography) was indeed a challenge. I knew I could do it and judging from the shots taken by Tharma here, I think I can say that it was a success.

I started off with the very basics talking about my camera settings followed by taking him round showing him how to 'see the light' while waiting for Nigel (our image consultant) to finish preparing our model Farinaz for the shoot. The shoot soon started. Tharma was initially quite shy but he soon warmed up to the occasion. By the end of the session he was shooting like a pro!

Thank you Tharma, for giving me this experience. You can now enjoy photography from a whole new level. Thanks must also be extended to Nigel for your artistic creations, and to Farinaz for being such a sport.

Here are some shots taken that day. Hope you like them.

Window side-lighting is a great place to shoot especially in available light photography. This will be used to the max for this Friday's one-on-one workshop where I will be faced with many challenges. Should be fun.

workshop.

Window side-lighting is a great place to shoot especially in available light photography. This will be used to the max for this Friday's one-on-one workshop where I will be faced with many challenges. Should be fun.

Model : Juria Hartsman

HMUA ; Nigel Nj

Jiuzhaigou Valley (simplified Chinese: 九寨沟; traditional Chinese: 九寨溝; pinyin: Jiǔzhàigōu; literally "Valley of Nine Villages"; Tibetan: Zitsa Degu (gzi rtsa sde dgu)) is a nature reserve and national park in the north of Sichuan, a province in [...]]]> Is there such a thing as paradise on earth? If there is, Jiuzhaigou has to be it.

Jiuzhaigou Valley (simplified Chinese: 九寨沟; traditional Chinese: 九寨溝; pinyin: Jiǔzhàigōu; literally "Valley of Nine Villages"; Tibetan: Zitsa Degu (gzi rtsa sde dgu)) is a nature reserve and national park in the north of Sichuan, a province in south-western China. It is known for its many multi-level waterfalls and colorful lakes, and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992. It belongs to the category V (Protected Landscape) in the IUCN system of protected area categorization – sourced from Wikipedia.

When my dad sounded out that he wanted to see Jiuzhaigou our siblings took the opportunity to visit this place. We knew that the elevation of Jiuzhaigou ranges from 1998 to 2140 m but little did we realise that the air is still quite rarified especially to a 82 year old. We were glad that my dad still did quite well.

Words cannot describe how beautiful this place is. Here is a shot of Five Flower Lake located at the center of Jiuzhaigou. This lake apparently is the only lake that never freezes in winter. It is believed that this is because of the high mineral content of the water and/or the presence of springs at the bottom of the lake which provide for a constant temperature even during winter. The latter was never proven.

Autumn has to be the best time to visit this paradise.

More shots to share when I have them processed.

The laughter we had from this image was no different. We were at a village outside Siem Reap, Cambodia when I took this shot. The [...]]]> It is always  refreshing and comforting to see smiles and laughter from anyone. It doesn't matter where this laughter has come from, it is always a sight to behold.

The laughter we had from this image was no different. We were at a village outside Siem Reap, Cambodia when I took this shot. The children were riding at the back of this bullock cart on a mud path flanked by paddy fields on both sides. I had fun getting them to pose for us (I was leading this photo-safari) and I am sure they had fun doing so too. This child especially was very keen to pose and to break into laughter…glee-fully. What a field day we had!

By the way, it is 3 days to my Nikon workshop. To all the registered participants, I thank you for your support. You guys will have a go at glamour and photojournalistic post-processing using my workflow. I will give you copies from my own collection to post-process some photojournalistic-type of images. There will be 2 models for our glamour photoshoot instead of the planned one.

To those who are still keen to join, I was told there are just a couple of slots left. Hurry if you are interested. It will be my pleasure to meet you. Click here for more details if you are keen. Or call Nikon at 03-21420218. I heard from unconfirmed 'rumours' that there will be a TV crew during the workshop. Cooooool!