Largest candle light choir I have ever seen...

This is one of the most impressive Christmas Choir performance I've ever seen. Simply put, the sheer size of it is completely mind-blowing! Imagine this... hundreds of carollers occupying the Main Street of Disneyland. Each holding a candle, marching in unison to the mega stage near the entrance to the park. The photo take below shows the carollers march towards the park entrance to begin the evening performance.

Love it! this is where dreams come true!

Fisheye in Rochester Downtown

I just bought the fisheye lens for my Sony Nex System... actually this is a fisheye attachment that gets fixed to the 16mm f2.8 lens. I brought it to Rochester Downtown for some Xmas lighting shoots. It does not disappoint, very good quality photos.

The only problem was the temperature... it was 30 degree Fahrenheit when I was there... way too cold to be taking photos.

As the weather gets colder...

With temperature dropping rapidly outdoor, I have decided to take my photography indoor - Henry Ford Museum.

Set the float free!!!

Always wondered what if a strong gust of wind came and set the float free... I'm sure everyone along Woodward Ave will be cheering!!! Don't you think?

Temple in Cambodia

Cambodia is a land of many temples - this is one of the temple I visited when I was in Phnom Penh. Buddhist believers would bring offerings of lotus flowers into the temple... there is a "florist" at the entrance of this temple and there is only one type of flower the shop sells... lotus flower of every size, colour and form.

Detroit Thanksgiving Parade

This is my first time at the Detroit Thanksgiving Parade. The parade takes place along Woodward Ave... a main street that runs north to south of Detroit downtown... the place was crowded, we were fortunate to find a place along the street to view the parade.

Looking back, I should have brought my camping chair (but decided against it as I was leaving the house... for wanting to travel light for this parade) and set it up nicely ... plus a piping hot coffee (that would be nice). Seriously, if someone had been enterprising enough to sell some hot chocolate and coffee... business would have been seriously profitable ...

Morning at Niagara Falls

Which side should I view the Falls from ... Canada or US? This seem to be a widely contested question. The truth is, when you are at the Falls, it doesn't matter because ... just because it's the world's largest falls... Niagara.

An elderly lady in Cambodia

One of the key challenges of travel in a foreign land is finding a clean restroom... as simple as that sounds, it's something that urbanized folks (like myself) take for granted. I was in a Cambodian village in Phnom Penh, couldn't find somewhere to relief. Then I spotted a "good'o" toilet sign from across the road. I hastily make my way into the toilet, on my way out, I was followed by this elderly lady... she was holding out her hand and pointing at the toilet. This is the universal sign language of ... "you owe me some money for using the toilet!" 

I reached into my pocket to get some Cambodian currency to pay her... honestly, I don't even know how much I paid... probably no more than a quarter. I could tell she was very happy with the payment. I then lifted my camera and pointed at my lens (with a smile), she nodded & this is the shot!

What I love about street photography...

I made a post about the Invisible Photographer Asia (IPA) a few days ago. I also mentioned that while I mainly take landscape, I also enjoy street photography as well. I love the spontaneity and the "unknown" factor - literally, you never know what you're gonna get with street photography. Sure, with landscape photography it's exhilarating when you are at a location that is awesome, breath-taking and "unreal" (that's what I like about landscape photography), but these elements in a photo usually comes at a cost... you'll have to pay to travel to these locations... not to mention accommodations & leaving my dog at home. Street photography is different - I know of friends who would "stalk" their subjects at one location every weekend. Each weekend, they'll get a different picture! The photos invokes a different emotion, a different atmosphere! How cool is that!!

Anyway, back to IPA... nope - I have not gotten a response from them... I am still slightly hopeful that they will select my work to be published. Hopefully, my work will get published before Xmas. In any case, here's another of the shot I submitted to IPA.

The Mackinac Sunrise

The Mackinac Island is one of those "must-see" places in Michigan - you can tell from the faces of the people who lives in Michigan that they are very proud of this place. Faces would light up at the mentioned of the word "Mackinac" (seriously). What makes this place wonderful is that it is surprising easy to get around. No cars are allowed on the island, so you'll have to walk everywhere, ride a bike or hire a horse carriage (in ascending order of costs). We were very fortunate to be in Mackinac Island to witness this beautiful sunrise.

Renaissance Center, Detroit

If you've ever watch the movie "Real Steel" by Hugh Jackman, I am sure you would have caught a scene that is filmed outside of Renaissance Center, Detroit. Never have I imagined that this work be my workplace for the next two years. The sunset here is beautiful, glad I decided to bring my camera to work one day to be able to catch this sunset.

Chasing deers in Troy Nature Center

I soon found out that it's not often that you get a good 66 degree Fahrenheit day in November, so we decided to make the most of this weekend's good weather! We went to Troy Nature Center after receiving a tip off that this nature park is home to a group of White Tailed Deers. 

Initially we were worried that our deer spotting trip may be futile as all we saw were squirrels (hordes of them)... after about a 20mins track, we ran into the deers!

My Photo Essay Submission to IPA

I have been a fan of the IPA (Invisible Ph t grapher Asia) website (http://invisiblephotographer.asia/about-2/) since it started in 2010. Despite its relatively short history, it has quickly become one of the leading platform of street photography in Asia. This site publishes some of the most impressive and cutting edge street photography works of our time. While I take mostly landscape, street photography has a special place in my heart. I love the way in which street photography can invoke thoughts and feelings about the world we live in. 

Anyway, I have recently submitted some shots I took in Phnom Penh's Psah Thom Thmey (Grand Market) to IPA... hoping I will be one of the lucky few to be selected for publication.

Here's one of the shots I submitted to the IPA website... fingers crossed!

Having fun with my newly bought Zeiss 24mm F1.8

So far I've only brought this lens out on two outings... I don't think I have come to fully appreciate what it can do yet. The initial signs tho'... are very promising. It is fast becoming my fav lens on my Nex 7. It is not the sharpest lens I own... but it has a very interesting character. 

I will surely do my shots with this lens in the future... can't wait for my exams and assignments to be over tho'... I am definitely looking forward to spending more time with this new lens.

-- One "T" and Three "Cs" --

TCCC - stands for "Think", "Compose", "Click" and "Check"

Through my mind's eyes... over the years I have semi-consciously put together a portfolio of mental images that I want to take. This set of semi-conscious mental imprints was formed through the hundreds (maybe even thousands) of  photos that I have seen and admired. It may even be my own interpretations of photos I have seen or feelings I have experienced. The bad news is that in the heat of the clicking moment (when I am actually on-site and looking at the scene), I tend to fall into two traps that always adversely affected the outcome:

1. Clicking without thinking and composing - this is my no. 1 enemy. And sometimes even when I told myself consciously not to do it... I somehow forgot about the simple, think, compose then "click" rule (TCC rule). An example is when I visited the Michigan Capitol Building recently, I ended with only a handful of images that I felt happy about (and I have spent three hours there). How did this happened? Simply because there were "great" scenes all around me and I was trying to capture everything without applying the TCC rule. I forgot to "think" about what is the subject matter... what message am I trying to convey. Because the subject (or hero) of the shot wasn't well defined, I didn't "compose" the shot. I just click on whatever is in the frame... indiscriminately. Well, the end result... I did a lot of "clicking" but zero thinking and composing - and I ended up with almost nothing. Sigh!


(Only a handful of shots out of almost 500+ taken at Michigan Capitol Building)

2. My next mistake is what happens after I click... I forgot to check. Sounds strange? Oh yeah, I thought so too... it wasn't until I opened my image on photoshop that I noticed the subject was completely out of focus!!! Another recent experience, I was at a baseball match at CoAmerica Park last month. I decided to go for a panoramic shot of the Tiger's Stadium from behind the grandstand. The scene was awesome (with dramatic sky) and I knew that it will be a great shot... well, if only I checked my shots. I would have noticed that the two critical shots right in the middle were completely out of focus! I could still do a panoramic ... the only problem is that the center shots would be completely out of focus.


(Love this shot I took in the Detroit Packard Plant)

Hopefully we all get better and exercise the discipline of TCCC.

Sunrise in Mackinac Island

This is the Part 2 (also Day 2) of our recent trip to Mackinac Island. After having dining in a warm and cosy restaurant along main street, we finally decided to call it a day and start heading back to Mission Point Resort (this is a hotel I will not recommend staying in!). We were really struggling to fall asleep given the thin walls & blabbering hotel guests.

Vaguely, it was a night of toss and turn... at around 6am, we decided that we would brave the cold and head out to get some photos of the sunrise. It seem logical ... we were staying in a resort minutes away from the beachfront. Well, actually it was a big struggle - first, we were still sleep deprived... then, it was extremely cold outside I remember checking Yahoo! Weather and it was around 35 degree Fahrenheit (that's like close to zero degree celcius)!!

After much struggle, we decided to head out... nothing ventured nothing gained.

(Photo of sunrise taken at the mini-golf course on Mackinac Island)

We first stopped at a mini-golf course near the resort, there was no one around at this hour, and we had a blast taking photos of the manicured landscape in the mini-golf course. The sun in the background was glowing red, orange and yellow reminding us that the sun will be up any minute ... we decided that we should head out towards the beach for more shots.



Interestingly, we met another couple taking photos of the sunrise when we reached the beach... what a surprise! Thankfully, we were not the only ones crazy enough to take photos in this cold weather. They looked a lot more well prepared then us! After a quick "hello!", we wasted no time to find good spots and started a "golden" hour of "clicking". By the time we were done, we knew we have some nice photos to bring home... *satisfied*!



(Here's another shot we took in the early morning - the colors of Fall in full view!)

Welcoming Autumn in the Mackinac

Since the day I stepped into Michigan, I have been told that Michigan has the most beautiful Autumn in all of United States. "You should visit the Upper Peninsula," one said... "Mackinac Island is the place to be in Fall" said another... and the often heard, "It's BEAUUUTIFUULL!"

Surely there must be something special about Michigan during Fall, since almost everyone I spoke to raves about the colors of Michigan Fall. This October I decided - it's time to verify... let's see what's the hype about, I'll be the judge!

First, it was the drive. It takes about 5 hours (long drive) to get to Mackinac City where you'll take a 20mins ferry to Mackinac Island. After an hour on the I75 highway, I was pleasantly greeted by a sea of green, yellow, orange and red on both sides of the road. Clearly, just the colours of the Fall on each side of the road is already... "impressive". 

"This is a good start," I thought. And yes, the best is yet to come.


(Scenic drive to Mackinac City - my wife says I need to acknowledge her as the photographer of this photo) 

After spending about 5 hours on I75, we finally got to Mackinac City. The city looks very welcoming with heaps of restaurants and hotels but we wasted no time and went straight to the ferry point (tip: those of you who wants to visit Mackinac Island, try going with Arnold Transit and if you purchase the ferry tickets online it's a saving of $6 per person).

No motorized vehicle is allowed on Mackinac Island, so you'll have to either walk, ride a horse-drawn carriage or cycle.  Great exercise for city dwellers like myself! We've decided to bring our mountain bikes with us into Mackinac Island.


(If you bring your bike with you on the ferry, there is an additional $8 fee you'll have to pay - I think the $8 is well worth it.)

As with all tourists, the first thing we did on arrival was to check into our hotel - Mission Point Resort. While the exterior was breath-taking, the rooms were... in short, much less impressive. For over US$250 per night, you'll expect much more. The rooms are dated and the worst part - the walls are so thin you can hear you neighbour talk throughout the night... not to mention the occasional footsteps. Really... it was just a horrid experience for us at Mission Point Resort. But thankfully that was the worst part of the trip for us... everything else was "Awesome!"



(Mission Point Resort - I don't recommend it!)

After dumping our heavy luggage in the room, we went straight for the beach - yes, it was in the middle of Fall and way too cold to take a dip (altho' it was tempting). The beauty of the island's beaches was simply captivating - the water was crystal clear (and I have not seen such clear blue water in a beach for a long time).


(Mackinac Island's beautiful beaches - perfect BBQ spot!)

After enjoying the island beautiful beaches, it was almost dusk! We headed straight to the Western Bluff of the island to catch the island sunset. The island's Western Bluff is a short walk away from the Grand Hotel. We found a scenic spot and waited for the sun to set (while trying to take as many photos as possible).


(Outside the famous ... and $500 per night - Grand Hotel)


(Western Bluff - waiting for the sun to set. Grand Hotel in the background)


(Horse-drawn carriages)

The "Golden Hour" started... Pearly and I were busy clicking away, while ensuring that we take in as much of the moment as possible. As nightfall approaches, the tourists return to the mainland leaving only the folks staying in the island behind. There was such a sense of serenity and peace... the buzz is gone and now replaced with calmness and the Island.


(Enjoying the moment - as the sun goes down)



Well, if you think the sunset was beautiful... wait til you see the sunrise shots in Mackinac Island (stay tuned).

St Thomas church in NYC

This shot was taken in our recent visit to NYC. We were actually on our way to the MET when we came by this church. I have been to NYC several times but never into St Thomas church. It's front doors were always closed when I went pass the church in the past. This time I was "blessed" - the church has its regular Sunday service at 11am. It opens an hour before service (10am) for choir practice and early church goers. I was there at 10am... there wasn't too many people there then. I quickly set up my tripod (they don't mind tripods in the chapel :) and took a few shots. 

The church has some stained glass... but the single most captivating item in the church is the front wall! The sculptures are awesome... simply awesome... it must have taken a long time to complete!

One of the best Cirque Du Solei show I've watched!

We managed to catch the last show of Zarkana in NYC. Wonderful performance on one of the most beautiful stage I have ever seen - Radio City Music Hall. Cirque du soleil , Zarkana has kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. I loved the beautifully detailed staging. The artistic content was unique and amazing. They have definitely brought out the "wow"... such a big contrast to the disappointing "Spiderman - Turn off the dark" (I actually paid more to watch Spiderman!! duh...)

Seeing beauty in things abandoned

This photo was taken about 3 months ago at the famous Packard Plant in Detroit. I have blogged a fair bit about this place and often described it as a photographer's paradise. It truly is... it always bring a smile to my face every time I scroll to my Detroit Packard Plant folder.

Each time I am reminded of how fortunate I've been, being able to experience life from different perspectives and see things in different light. My next big trip will be to the Upper Peninsula in Michigan. Hope to make it a 3 days 2 nights affair!

Work, study and having fun

A friend of my saw the photos I have posted on Facebook and dropped me a message, "hey, are you in USA now? are you working or studying? looks like you're having lots of fun..." I replied, "I am primarily working, I am doing my MBA now and also having fun! Not easy doing all three... "

Sometimes, I wished I could just do this... ... somethings gotta give, in the short term it's updating my blog *sorry*

Exploring the Toledo Zoo

Coming from Singapore, it is really easy to compare every other zoos of the world to the standard of the Singapore Zoological Gardens. In my view, the Singapore's zoo is one of the best in the world... both in terms of the variety of animals, as well as the general upkeep of the zoo & living conditions of the animals on display.

In any case, this trip to the zoo has 2 objectives... firstly, to get my wife accustomed to driving on the US highway (this trip took about 1.5hrs of driving - yes, my wife drove the entire way! good job!)... secondly, is to spend some time doing something different on a lazy Sunday afternoon. Little did we expect ... the experience at the zoo was fantastic! The weather was perfect, the animals on exhibit was awesome and we had so much fun clicking away on our cameras.

Here's our spoils for the day!

The long road... at Michigan City

This was a photo taken on the way from Detroit into Chicago. We stopped by in a town called Michigan City (right next to Michigan Lake). I suppose in this part of the States, the folks operating the nature reserve haven't come to realise that there are people who would wake up at 530am to catch a glimpse of the sunrise. So we drove 30mins to the entrance of the Sand Dunes ... but... the entrance was blocked off becos' the people operating the park hasn't wake up yet!!!


Thankfully, we found this road near the Sand Dunes and took a few shots.

Lake St Clair Metropark

Pearly and I woke up at 430am yesterday morning. One my favorite thing to do on weekends is to wake up really early in the morning, drive to a beautiful and scenic place and observe the sunrise. Especially when the weather is good. I think it is both physically and mentally refreshing when you take in a lung full of morning fresh air.

Wish I can find more scenic areas in Michigan & "re-charge" in these places more often...

Two busy weeks!

Firstly, ever since my wife arrived in Michigan... life has become somewhat busier (not the bad kind) - just that there are more things to occupy my time, effort and energy on weekends. Oh... to balance things up, there's better food at home as well!


I have also become a bit more active with the Google+ Michigan Photography Group. Two photo-walk events held in a space of 3 weeks! First one was in the University town of Ann Arbor. The latest one was held in the Packard Plant in Detroit. I took a lot of nice shot in Ann Arbor... but I feel they somehow pale in comparison with those taken in the Packard Plant.


For those who have never heard of the Packard Plant... Packard was a major motor vehicle manufacturer in Detroit in the early 70s. The company gone bust in the 80s and the plant (which was a technological marvel of its time) was left to rot and decay away. 


In a way, the Packard Plant is the equivalent of the meccas of urban exploration photography. It wasn't until you actually set foot on it that you appreciate the sheer size of the place. Nested in Detroit... it is one of those place that you wouldn't go without a group of friends... the plant has in more recent times become a haven for the homeless.


In the photo below... you'll see someone has actually skilfully erected a wooden wall (yes, someone lives in there). I decided that this is the closest I am willing to venture in this side of the plant. I don't really want to upset anyone by going too close to their lodging (if you zoom in... you can actually see a igloo box).

Katz Deli - NYC

Believe this is the restaurant where the famous "diner" scene was shot in the movie "Harry meets Sally" - Katz Deli

Huron-Clinton Metro Park Street Photography (Part 2)

Here's the rest of the photos I took during the day. Kids are so animated when they start playing! This place is like heaven for these kids.


<I like the way in which a fast shuttle speed captures the details of the water drops>

Temple in Cambodia - nature reclaiming the land

Siem Reap is a unique place, all over the world we hear of human destroying nature through deforestation... in Siem Reap, it's the reverse. Here, we see the forces of nature claiming back the land.

Huron-Clinton Metro Park - Street Photography

I was provided wrong information of an Independence Day Firework event at the Huron-Clinton Metro Park - victim of internet scam! After arriving at the park, I found out from the rangers that there is actually no firework event being planned for until Jul 2, 2012! What a disappointment... well, at least I get to rest earlier. I looked into my camera bag and found some long lens... then I thought, since I haven't done this for a long while, I thought I should probably try my hands on taking some street photos again. Actually, I always admire the work of street photographers but I always cringe at the thought of doing one. Reason? It's extremely "unnatural" for me. 


You see, I like to close up and take the details. It's the expressions on people's faces that make street photography appeal to me. In order to take good and sharp images of people's faces you'll have to go close to them. That is where the problem lies... once you turn up with a camera and focus on people's face... all the natural moments instantly becomes awkward. Your subjects notices you and shy away... moment lost! I always admire those street photographers who go around taking street photos with a 50mm... for me a 50mm is closer... but still not close enough.


The shots below are all taken with the 70-200mm Canon lens mainly at f2.8 or 3.5 (I prefer large aperture as it makes the subject pops). Still processing the rest... more to come later.



<This is my favorite photo of the day - love the boy's expression!>


(A grandpa with his grand-daughter>


<Two sisters>

Sometimes... you never know what you'll get!

I slept early last night (1030pm)... well, maybe not that early but this was the earliest I slept in weeks. The trouble with sleeping at 1030pm instead of the regular midnight is that you wake up very early as well... my body has a "ok that's enough sleep for you" mechanism. I could do a few snooze but it'll seldom last more than just a few.


Anyway, this morning... there was a different motivation for not snoozing and waking up early. I almost could not believe the beautiful sight that greeted me when I opened my eyes! Seeing is believing! After taking the photos... I immediately made myself a cuppa' (oh, the smell of coffee in the air plus the fresh cool breeze of the morning) ... a scene like this, don't waste it!

A picture speaks a thousand words... really?

Below is a shot of sunrise at the world famous Angkor Wat, Cambodia. I always laugh when photographers or bloggers write about how serene the place was... in fact the words "peaceful serenity" seems to be constantly associated with photos of Angkor Wat. See below... a shot that I took at Angkor Wat in 2011.






Sure looks "peaceful" and "serene" doesn't it? The photo below is what it actually looked like at the scene of the photo. There were hordes of people crowding next to the each other to catch a shot of the sunrise! Oh... and people weren't friendly either! The spot where I set up had 4 sets of tripods... got to  be really careful not to knock any camera over! Come on... anyone who thinks this is serene is out of their mind! Well, lesson learnt... a picture speaks a thousand words... but not the complete picture.

Looking back... life was simpler back then!

Looking back at old photographs have 2 very distinct benefits (a) it acts as a gauge to how my sense of photography has changed; and (b) it reminded me of why I picked up photography at the first place. 


I have been asking myself lately about how I have progress in photography. Sometimes, I like to revisit my earlier photos and see how my photo "eye" has changed over the years... While I feel that I am still not generating a high enough "hit" rate, I am now generating a higher hit rate than before. 


Do you sometimes worry too much about ISO, aperture, shuttle speed, post processing etc when you're shooting? Well, when I first started taking photos... I was completely oblivious to all these "technicalities". You know what? I just shoot whatever that interests me... it was much simpler back then, just point and shoot... sometimes in "Auto" mode. Re-visiting the photos I took when I first started photography allows me to trace back my steps and reaffirm why I started photography in the first place. It was less complicated back then... I take photos because I wanted to capture the memories, to keep the pieces that made up the life I now live.


<This is a photo I took in Melbourne, Australia when I bought my first DSLR>



<This photo was taken using a Panasonic Lumix Camera - before I bought my first DSLR>


<My first attempt at "Street Photography" - taken at the Chinese New Year Night Bazaar in Boxhill, Melbourne>