Beyond Photography

Migrated to WordPress

2009-05-16T11:26:00.002+08:00

I decided to migrate to Wordpress after some consideration.

Pls visit me at www.beyond69.wordpress.com

Hasselblad Xpan II

2009-05-09T17:03:00.001+08:00

Test shot Using Hasselbad Xpan II

Polaroid

2009-05-03T08:51:00.002+08:00

Francis had a polaroid back for the Hasselblad. So we decided to test it out. FYI, polaroid is akin to instant film. Only difference we have here is, the Hassey version is in BW. By the way, production of polaroid has been discontinued. First impression, the tone that came off the polaroid was very nice. All 3 of us loved it!~ Only setback is...It is really damn small lo. Look at the polaroid sheet above. That is the exact size we got. So small..Boohoo!~ :P But it was fun indeed.

DJ Dirty South Visits Mist Club

2009-04-19T11:35:00.003+08:00

It s been awhile since I last shot Clubbing scene. Yesterday I went to MISt Club to cover DJ Dirty South on behalf of Juice Magazine. Got there around 1130 pm and set up my gears for the nite. DJ DS arrived around half past midnite and the crowd was growing by the hour. By the time DJ DS made his apperance, the crowd has already warmed up and ready to party. I finished my work around 3 am and by the time I hit my bed it was already 4 am. I m in sleep mode now. CHeers.

Elvanna Raine

2009-04-18T14:35:00.002+08:00

Elvanna Raine

Elvanna (汪芷榆) was born and raised in London, UK. As a teenager she relocated to Taiwan with her family, and also studied in Singapore for a few years. She started her career in the entertainment industry when she was only 15, by winning the MTV Asia VJ Search in Taipei, and since then she has been hosting TV shows, modelling, acting, designing, and even writing.

Even with her hectic schedule, she still managed to find the time to focus on her studies, and graduated from King's College, London, UK, walking away with a degree in Psychology and Law. During the time she was studying, she also managed to put her studies to work, and was a legal representative and interpreter for the British Immigration & Home Office, also participating in various cross country debates and seminars for her Psychology degree. Amazingly, even after all that studying, she wanted more! She proceeded to further her studies in psychology, focusing on psychosis research,the impact of anti-psychotic medicines, and schizophrenia. After that, she took up fashion designing. And got her degree too. What a geek! ;)

Now, Elvanna has relocated to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and soon she will be dividing her time in Hong Kong as well. Since her arrival in KL, she has been the hot topic in town, her unique appearance and background, added to the contrast of her many artistic tattoos... It's bound to get attention!

And indeed she has :) Since her sudden arrival, she has been catching attention and curious glances, a girl like her is hard to miss! She is often invited to the most glamourous events, from fashion shows to product launches, performances and concerts, including the Miss World Malaysia 2008 Pageant, M-IFW, Stylo, etc. She has graced the runway, her face is seen regularly on the covers of magazines, she emcees various events and functions, and participates in charity events whenever she can. She was first featured in FHM September 2008, then after that, Men's Health November 2008, and since then, Nu You Magazine, Newtide, NewMan, Shape, CLIVE.... You name it! We will definitely see a lot more of Elvanna Raine, that's for sure!

Credit: Article is from Elvanna's official Artist Profile Homepage.

Talk to my Hand

2009-04-18T11:53:00.001+08:00

Talk to my Hand

Sunset

2009-04-12T09:47:00.002+08:00

Mistake ..It should be 2008

Caught this pic when we were returning from Tonle Sap by the boat. The sun was strong and in the distance I could see a fisherman on a bicycle. I can feel that he is looking forward to return home to the family after a long day at work. Coz..I would feel the same too after spending hours away at work. I guess shots like this is meaningful in a way or another. Do let me know. THanks.

Sekinchang in BW Mode

2009-04-11T17:07:00.001+08:00

Timeless Sekinchang

You must be wondering why I am updating the blog so many times today? Why? Coz I am free lo!!

How to Shoot Light Trail

2009-04-11T16:21:00.004+08:00

All self respecting photogs should have taken a pic like above. :P. Nite photography, Long exposure, Light trails; these photos are facinating to look at and not easy to capture. David and me went to the Lot 10 interjunction around midnite to try capture light trail. It was not easy. One thing, I didnt know that there will be still a traffic snarl at midnite. Jeez..I set up my tripod and tried to look for suitable location. It was the first time I was composing with the Hassy, I had trouble composing in square format * Yes..I know..I sucks* :D I had another problem as well. Although the road is Jammed, the junction that I was taking had not enuff of cars passing by..Hence a poor light trail. I suggest roads that have strong leadin lines and traffic. :D So basically these are the items that you need to shoot light trail:

A camera of course!
A tripod : THis is because you will be shooting at long exposure. You need to be steady.
A release cable: THis is to minimize camera shake when you release the shutter.
Cars with lights on. * wink Wink*
A light meter: If you are using a film camera

That s all from me. Have fun!

City of Light

2009-04-11T14:50:00.003+08:00

I believe any budding photographer would have at least taken a pic from Lookout Point, Ampang. I heard about it first time last year from a friend. Had been itching to go there since God knows how many years ago. So I did when I got the Hassy. Loaded the Hassy and FM2n with Velvias 50, packed the tripod and headed up to the hills with David and my wife. THe journey up to LookOut Point is similar to goin up to Genting Highlands. Jockey service is available up there as parking is difficult to come by, pay RM3 and let the boys deal with it. Set up my gear in one of the restaurant there and snapped away. Pic above is taken with the setting of f16 and the shutter speed of 1 min 30 sec. Unfortunately, I couldnt bring out the details of the sky whereas David's Pano did an amazing job. I guess the ASA100 film is much more light sensitive after all.

David meets Mr M

2009-04-11T11:21:00.002+08:00

David and me went to YL camera last week after the trip to Sekinchang. Whilst lepaking there, Desmond whipped out a Black Leica M6 (no TTL) with a great looking motor drive to poison us. The price was fantastic too. But there is a catch. It was very tempting. I suggest those who are not collector but a USER get this M6. The price is unbeatable. THe problem is, there was a light leak in the shutter curtain and it had been patched up. ANd the price became 3k cheaper compared to market price. So what are you waiting for? GO there and check it out!!!

My First ever Velvia

2009-04-05T23:29:00.002+08:00

Nadia Homes Desa Parkcity

This is the first time ever I shot Velvia. I didnt dare to try last time because of a few factors:

Nabeh expensive; 35 format RM 25/roll and 120 format RM 14/roll
I was not confident enough

But here it is..My first ever Positives! Try it out guys. It s beautiful.

Part Time NUn

2009-03-30T22:21:00.001+08:00

Part time Nun

Siem Reap, Cambodia

2009-03-28T15:02:00.003+08:00

An Artist plying his trade

Headless Buddha

Reconstruction Work

Stone carvings in the Temple

Gigantic Root that Grown over the Years

Mode of Transport

I m now stucked at work. So what do you do when you are bored at work? Well..In my case, I dug at my archive and look for pictures for PP. Guess what I found, pictures from Siem Reap ( Crossing Bridges 5). I managed to processed a few, but since I m no Photochop King, my edits are minimal. The edits consist of mainly Leveling, Curves and Borders. So hope you guys like it.

Rampant Robberies

2009-03-21T10:16:00.002+08:00

Is KL safe nowadays?

Point to be taken:
- These f***ers work in group
- Look how organized they are. See how to they take up the location facing each end of the road.
- LOok at how long is the Parang? (Easily available at your nearest NG KAM TIM)
- Look at what motorcyle they are using. Yamaha 125 z ( A very fast motor)

Portrait of Mr Ng

2009-03-16T22:39:00.002+08:00

Rising cost of film

2009-03-16T21:51:00.002+08:00

I just received some of the film stuffs that I ordered via Maxby. The cost surpassed my estimation. I initially made a budget of purchasing 10 rolls of 120 Velvia 50 for around S$ 6-6.50. It somehow ended up to be S$8.20 after GST. THat is almost RM21.50 per roll after 2.45 conversion rate. Wait..That is not all. I also bought 5 rolls of Kodak Portra 160. THat s about RM17 per roll. And Maxby also got me 5 rolls of TRI X which was cheap, RM 11 per roll. MY god..I didnt know my latest MF purchase is actually burning a hole in my pocket. With the capability of shooting 12 frames per roll, it actually translate to about RM 1.80/frame (Velvia 50). And the bad news doenst end, I just got to know that slide E-6 processing is now RM 20/roll (without mounting)...SO ..Film + Dev = RM 3.5/frame. Hence..I think I really need to compose and think before I release the shutter.

HAppy Birthday Bro!~

2009-03-15T11:42:00.003+08:00

Today is my brother's 34th birthday. 34 years ago he was born and diagnosed with celebral palsy. Nevertheless, my parents gave up life's luxuries and time to care for him. Happy birthday bro!~~

Sex Drive

2009-03-10T19:55:00.004+08:00

Yee woon and me spent some quality time on Monday by catching a movie after having Dim Sum for breakfast. Jeez, everyday is a working day for us, so the public holiday was truly appreciated. Sex Drive..Hmm. Yes, the title sounds cheezy. But in reality, it is actually a typical growing teenage movie. It is pretty predictable, yet we still enjoyed it very much. Oh yeah, this is the first time I watched a movie with only 3 couples in the cinema. Imagine...We had the whole cinema to ourselves. Okok. Back to to the movie, the movie is about a young guy who is still a virgin and attempting to bed Miss Tasty (from Knoxville). So he embarked on a trip on his bro's car all the way to Knoxville. All the way??? Just to break his virginity. Rating:7/10

We are legally Man and Wife

2009-03-08T21:11:00.006+08:00

Pre ROM Shot

On the 28/02/2009, we took another step in our relationship, Yee Woon and I got registered!~~ Woohoo!!~~ We are now legally married. But the traditional ceremony will only be held next year. Most likely it will be before the Chinese New Year. So family and friends, we look forward to celebrate next year with a Bang!! Dont worry. No babies before that..Kekekek * Grins* :P

Movies for CNY

2009-02-07T09:57:00.004+08:00

Chinese New Year will not be complete without CNY movies. I remember Jackie Chan and Chow Sing Chi aka Sing Yeh always have movies released somewhere around CNY. However, I think , for 2009, this was the only CNY themed movie. All Well Ends Well is the third installment of the highly rated 'siao' CNY movie. I remember the first movie very well. WIth big stars such as Sing Yeh, Maggie CHeung, UNcle Roy, Raymond Wong, Sandra Ng and etc, the movie was a success! For the 2009 edition, they cant afford to hire the original cast (Sing Yeh is expensive and the other old timers have already passed on), they roped in Ronald Cheng and Louis Koo. However, I still find the movie lacking somehow. THe jokes are somehow not really good. Haih..DUnno how to explain. But still, it is enjoyable. I ll rate it 6/10.

I have been waiting for part 2 for quite some time. Highly rated it was for the First Movie. Even my gf who said she didnt like the first movie changed her view after watching the second part. JOhsua was right. I dont understand why they have to talk so closely to each other. THe thought "yeee...SO gay" crossed my mind so many times when I watched the movie. LOL.. RAting: 9/10!!

Xmas Group Shot

2009-01-11T21:35:00.004+08:00

Xmas Group Shot

I shot this picture using 2 SB 800 at the power of 1/4. Unfortunately, I m not really happy with the output. Points to be taken:

THe picture seem to be washout
THe picture is underexposed
I think I need to ask TEd how he does the group shot :D

Lydia

2009-01-24T23:06:00.005+08:00

I shot Lydia sometime in last year. It was a workshop organized by Jin aka Baddogz from Photokaki. This is his concept of shadow. Lydia was game for a gothic makeup. Credits to Jin's girlfren Winnie for the amazing makeup. Jin's homemade studio is pretty neat. All he used was the hall of his small apartment, a flood light (the one you see in stadium), a Panasonic fan and an ikea desk light ( I think ) to create the lighting effect. Lydia was very professional with her work. Jin made her posed in a same pose for about 15-20 minutes. The fan was blowing and she had this prop which was made from used VCR cassete. FYI, all the pictures posted above are taken with Ilford HP5 BW film. I did took some pics with the digital camera, but I guess I am much more happy with the results from the film. And yes, the photos were PPed slightly. I am no Pro hence the pictures are not perfect. But now, I kinda fancy medium format if u noticed from the last picture. It was cropped to mimic medium format film. Maybe in the near future I ll purchase a 503 Has-blad :D

My Mugshot

2009-02-24T14:48:00.003+08:00

Self Portrait of myself. Taken with D3, Sigma 24 mm f1.8

How many times have you seen in the Digital Camera, Magazine mugshots of photogs? *grins
I have always wanted to have my mugshot taken like the picture above. Gaya mar *winks. Thanks to Joehan, I now have one. ANd did I mentioned that the Sigma lens is awsome?!! At the price of RM 1500, I think that lens is fanstastic!

CNY Pictures

2009-02-06T21:20:00.001+08:00

Group Pic at Siew's Place after Lion Dance

PS: Post one for now. More to come. Keep tab!