it starts later

ALL THE BEST TO THOSE TAKING THE EXAMINATIONS TOMORROW

buyer behaviour
here i come
totally unprepared

escaping reality

after an extensive reading of various chapters from the textbook
i just knew i've had enough
i just knew the brain needs a damn break

and that
was when i decided to escape from reality a little while
and i knew immediately i have to pick up the camera

sitting down back on the table with the textbook and notes spread all over
i've got so sick of it that even shooting them isn't appealing to me at all
see,
i'm someone who believes that anything can be artistic
it's just how u see them
everything can be beautiful
seriously,
i was thinking of shooting "the place you shit at" and make it beautiful
but i'm in no damn mood for something fun
or shall i say
for something that requires me to think carefully compositionally and set up the lights and all

and then it just struck me

i attached the 580ex to the camera
took my water container
and i made a little visit to the toilet

before that,
to make sure i don't lose myself with the camera
i set up the glass and the water for coffee
so all i've got was
the time till the water boils

quickly i fill up the container with water
adjusted the tap
observe for a while the time it takes the water to drop from the tap to the container
and off the shutter went
the flashes shining its way

30 wonderful shutter's music later
honestly
it was the best sound i've heard today man
the shutter going off

ok ok
30 shots later
everything just went back like
WOW !
i still got it !
it's amazing that i've only had to delete away 9 failed shots
after so long of not shooting water
i still got that feeling man
wohoo !

and the best sight i've seen today was from the small lcd of the 400D
water rising up
frozen in time forever


























thou the set up was crappy
lighting was not to the max
but these few shots definitely recharged me

























it brings back the energy inside me














btw, all shots were handheld wor










and suddenly i'm just refreshed !
btw,
previously
i've fired away some hundreds of shots on the water
killing off my boredom when i was in medan

and i shall say
that this pic
is my most loved picture of the water drop









shot back in april
don't you just love the moment ?
LOL




okay
let me go back to reality

i can't wait

i so blardy can't wait
i so blardy can't wait for the 9th november
i so blardy can't wait for MEDAN again !
I MISS HOME !
i so blardy can't wait till all these exams are over

i've got a BUNCH of plans for medan
a WHOLE LOT of them

and
i so blardy can't wait


but meanwhile
i gotta be stuck here lifeless all day all night with all these notes and textbooks
trying my best to mug away
and be a complete idiotically super pathetic nerd for at least another 2 weeks
and that
I HATE
god blardy damn it
but no choice haf to do :(













one of the few things i'm gonna be doing back home is to re-organize my folio
lots of the pictures at my multiply / deviantart and flickr were not processed properly
also, lots of shooting projects also :P
i foresee at least 4 of them
one of which will be an intensive macro study of the spiders and butterflies
I SO CAN'T WAIT LAH




but i know
i have to do well for these screwed cocked up idiotically superb wordly notes
so i can do my photo projects at ease













2 pics to share =D

1 textbook to go

have you ever woken up
and u just felt like shiat ?
like ur head damn giddy
but u can't sleep again ?

damn it

i fell like i kana punch inside the brain



anyway,
a couple of shots to share
was damn buay tahan already with the notes surrounding me
i decided to go to level 22
with the g9 to try out the sunset
but then the sunset was crappy
so i was like
shooting while walking
and eh..i kinda like it







































and....
my glow in the dark spider
shot back back then during the holiday when i was in medan
it was like in the middle of the night
and like usual
kana blackout
i was playing with the torch light
and not knowing what to do
and don't ask me how in total blackness i spotted this spidey
i just saw it
and there i set up my tripod and BANG !
the spidey kana shot








lighted up with 1 torch light nia
kinda cool eh ?

the cameras and lenses

i'm gonna do a little of escaping from the reality for a little while
and for the sake of documenting this in my blog,
here's a kinda short story of how it all began













after graduating the O's,
i were to move out of the old house i used to stay at katong
it was kinda a new beginning in my life too
while i kinda have been alone in singapore since secondary one
this time,
i will be literally alone
no more house mates
no more room mates

so with this new beginning
i asked dad for his digital camera
so as to record the new beginning of my life
dad, reluctantly gave me his very first digital camera then
he was reluctant coz he scared i cannot take care of it well

and that's when i started taking pictures
with this














CANON IXUS 400
a humble 4 MP camera





it tagged along with me till i saved up enough
to get myself my very first own savings digital camera
in the late 2006,
i bought this for myself













SONY DSC T30
a 7.2 MP camera



when i returned home during my holiday
i handed dad back his camera

and that was when it kinda get serious
when i started reading more about photography
its composition and etc etc

during my holiday last november,
i started working for dad's spare part stuff
where my place of work has this big "abandoned" field
and one fine day,
i brought my T30 there and started macro-ing all the grasshoppers and other strange insects
soon,
it become a daily habit to shoot a bit before work, after lunch and after work
in december,
dad got really curious on what the hell i had been shooting *instead of working* and asked me to go and print some of my "work"
i printed
showed him
no comment from dad

it was then suddenly

"eh, if i buy u a dslr camera u want ?"
*i JUMPED - was at work -
"OF COZ LAH"

so
i started all the researches
what is a dslr camera
how it works
and which one to choose

during my last holiday
i decided to leave my Sony T30 back home for sis who was leaving for bei jing
and took the ixus 400 with me
till now










canon EOS digital 400D
was my answer




long story short
more readings
more experiments

and soon














i got myself the magnificent brilliant 50mm
which currently is back home with f who is also using the 400D
my first lens from own pocket












then i wanted a walkabout lens
and not long after
i got this














canon ef 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5
from my own pocket also

and then the tripod come
a few filters

and then it was this
the most expensive lens i own
lol
coz from my own savings then can feel the pain
lol














the canon ef 100mm f/2.8



and soon the 580EX also come



again, 3 months of savings and in less than an hour finish

and this explains my constant financial crisis
whatever money i'm given
i save up
and finishes it off at one go
which usually is less than an hour
and saving it up takes months



and just recently,
from the canon photo marathon
where i brought home with me a new addition to my little canon family














the G9 !

















okay,
i really think i should head back to the notes !





back to reality !

ps. most of the pics above were taken using the G9 eh !
the resolution of the G9's lcd is beautiful
which then when i uploaded to my laptop the pic like become diff
which really means that i should re calibrate my monitor already
bleh ~

snapped this also just now so just post here alrite



the kit lens XD

from the room

okay
i'm still confused on which lens to get

while the 17-55mm is definitely out
it leaves me with two options

17-40mm L
and
10-22mm

the 17-55mm is out because of its quality
compared with the 17-40,
the 17-40 actually provides high image quality
probably because its an L lens
but anyway,
it's sharper in some way too

so now the 17-40 and 10-22

personally,
the 10-22 for me is much more of a "fun" lens
where u know,
u can shoot people like...funny funny those
like the 100% pervertism we did the other time with arifin's lens
but i wanna use this lens to shoot portrait too man
which means
i'd want a more general purpose lens
10-22 will be too wide for this
and at 22mm, it'll only give me a maximum aperture of f/4.5
and comparing the f/4.5 to the f/4 throughout with the 17-40mm
i think the 17-40 is a wiser choice
but then the 7mm wider difference is a big temptation too man

now,
abathingfish and rames both said 10-22
but why man ?
why do you think i should get the 10-22 and not the 17-40 ?
both these lenses have almost the same minimum focus distance
but one is f/4 throughout and is an L lens
and the other one is winner in the 7mm difference

from the reviews i've read
my heart is still at the 17-40mm thou
1 main reason is because
i know i won't stick with 400D all my life
i want an upgrade
and when i upgrade,
i'll definitely get a full frame dslr already
which is like the 5D or the 1d mark II
and the 7D that is replacing the 5D

and if i upgrade,
then the 10-22 no use already also ma













okay,
enough ramblings
2 pics to share for today :)
taken from my room

























and



























taken on a one hell of a windy morning
and was just playing with the colours XD













i really should be going back to the notes
but somehow
the motivation level is kinda low right now
damn it

i'm so unprepared for the exams man

i miss shooting !

just 4 days ago
i was out shooting the whole day
given 3 themes

passion
challenge
playtime

and now
i'm home staring at notes after notes
textbooks after textbooks
words after words


I WANNA SHOOOOOOT !!!!













anyway
some random pics to share :)











the rise of the 19th















and some mist















and yesterday's wonderful sky
darn !
if onli i can go shooting yesterday





























the last 2 shots were taken using the G9 !

anyway,
went to sally's bdae dinner last night
and was shooting away with the G9
i must say....

the quality AMAZED me !
fwah
really damn sui la













somehow it kinda seems like yesterday was an early birthday for me

dad : "go and read reviews of a new lens...MAY BE buy you, as a reward for your winning"

WOHOOO

mum : "how are u with the LG shine ? feel like getting new fone or not ? i wanna use that one"

OMG


the 2 things my parents SUPER RARELY offer me
lol








so
the 3 choices that i haven't thought of yet will be

17-40mm f/4 L
10-22mm f/3.5-4.5
and
17-55mm f/2.8

the last 2 are ef-s lenses thou

anyway,
since it's still a MAY BE
i'm not putting much hope in it

one thing for sure is
i'm sure to get a raynox before i go back medan !



okay..i shall go back to the books

ps. HAPPY BIRTHDAY HOMESICK !

canon photomarathon : playtime !

so..the final part of the canon photomarathon post
the winners' list are out
go check them out at

!CLICK!



so we got back to suntec
and while waiting for theme 3 to be announced
we were viewing the 10 shortlisted pictures for theme 1 and 2
several comments were made on the judges' decision
some were disappointed
and my reaction was just
"oh......................................................"
no comments
but honestly
deep inside i was too,
disappointed



"the theme for theme three..let's see...u gotta be a little bit more playful. the theme is PLAYTIME !"

and so it was announced !




2 things went straight to my head

the first one is definitely a jump shot !
and the second one was

get a calender, those organizer kind so can write things one
then go put the previous week,
like

15th then below put MR EXAM
16th put BF EXAM
17th put DC FINAL PROJECT SUBMISSION
18th put BB PROJECT PRESENTATION
19th put OB EXAM

then the 20th
circle big big round round and write big big bold bold

PLAYTIME!








but then of course i went to the first idea
everyone was tired already also
and then we began our move


and taking from the previous theme's idea
arifin said that he wanna shot me
wearing his cowboy head
at a trafic light again
but then he wants a busy traffic light

so i said let's go shoot at orchard
since like we no paiseh already ah
let's just take it to the max man !


























everyone agreed
and so we go !
take bus there

























and was walking walking
from orchard mrt station there
all the way to somerset mrt
and further
finding for the perfect traffic light
that have the best light




and finally we found it
the traffic light just in front of orchard emerald

i put on the cowboy hat
strike my pose
and this is the result of the the few mins of the most humiliating moment in my life, yet





















we shot like about 3 to 4 times can't remember coz he was not satisfied
but then
i really like it !
lol


after that
i asked him to jump also on my spot
shot it with his cam
and wasn't happy
so we decided to just go and find a wall

i wanted to do the jump shot
and st wanted me to do my handstand







we walk walk walk
fwah
then found a red wall
damn chio





i set the WB to cloudy so the red will be warmer, thus increasing its contrast
attached the 10-22mm lens i borrowed from arifin
put it to 15mm
set the camera to "M" mode with a shutter speed of 160 and aperture of f/4
and asked the 3 of us to jump while vivi shoot us
i pre-shot the wall
and showed vivi
told her to get the exact composition

and there it goes















my winning shot for theme 3 of the canon photomarathon

honestly
i was completely surprised it'd even won
thou i was pretty confident with that pic
i never expected it to win first
i was only hoping like 3rd lor if lucky
but then when the mc announced the third prize winner and it's not me
i was already :(
god damn it
no chance

just when all my hopes went to like -20%


"and the first prize winner for theme 3 which is playtime, who will be going home with a canon powershot G9 and an iPod nano is....."
"Herbert Johan"


FWAH
i tell you
that word arh
the
Herbert Johan
FWAH
really ah
the felling ah

AWESOMENESS !












anyway,
st also shot at the same wall

and this is his submission






and arifin also shot at the same wall !
with the three of us inside that box thing
but i dun haf the pic
can go check his devianart thou
at
http://noahphotography.deviantart.com/












on another note,



=D

canon photomarathon : challenge

challenge
the second theme for the canon photomarathon 2007

again,
i honestly don't know what to shot for this
and frankly,
till now i still can't figure what to shot
as in,
to be different from the rest


the first idea that rang in my head was
st and i jump the kicking style facing each other
but then,
i don't think it'll really fit into the challenge
and i think that pic like no quality

2nd idea was
taken from arifin and homesick's pic
the camera vs camera thing
then buy a paper and wrote a
VS big big in the middle
den ask 1 of us to hold it like that
since we got a tripod
can put 30sec on that also

3rd idea was this














and i'll definitely submit this if we can edit the pic















but then,
like u've seen
arifin is so small there like cannot see anything also
so,
i asked him to pose again
and submitted this in the end






arifin, st and i were discussing of what to shoot
then arifin started saying things like
if i dare to lie in the middle of the street during the red light
so i just replied
"okay, i'd lie in the middle of the streets BUT u'll have to submit that pic no matter what"
he said ok
but we never did that shot
from that conversation
i started thinking of what to do on the street
then, we happened to come across a traffic light
and it just came
running stance
with cars
:)











2 random shots during the process of shotting "challenge"











#late ?













and arifin posing
lol









---------------------

i am still kinda in a disbelief mode that i had won
and i seriously don't know what the hell am i feeling inside
sorry, f

canon photo marathon : passion

so...yeah
i joined the canon photo marathon 2007
together with arifin and st
vivi was suppose to follow us too
but she somehow got down with this unclear sickness : stomach flu
now i wanna know how does it sounds like when the stomach sneeze !

okay
so anyway,
the mc said
we made history today
for having the largest number of photographers gathered together for a contest
they recorded a number
1086 photographers !


























we were given 3 themes
and i'm dividing the blog entries for the 3 different themes also
since i shot diff thing also ma
















okay,
so theme one was


















yeah
passion
what would u should at the streets for passion ?


i was totally clueless man

walked around with arifin and st at bugis street
and these are the 3 pics i came out with

these 3 pics are unedited, no sharpening, no leveling, no curving, no whatsoever
straight out of the cam :)















pic #1













pic #2












pic #3



i don't know why but somehow the 3 of us kinda interpreted passion as
passion for work














meanwhile,
of coz got shoot abstracts and other things also lah















and this one damn cute














i was first shouted off by this unka














hermmmm
wad else
oh yeah
in the end i submitted the pic #3
honestly i don't think got much passion there also
but then arifin say nice here nice there
and from the 3
i think that one the most abstract also
so just sent that one in




i'll make no comment here about the judges
john c was one of them









after 9hours plus of shooting
i'm glad i walked away with









=D







me pic for theme 3 kana chosen


"playtime"



okay,
i won the third theme open category
first prize
:)

special thanks to
arifin for lending me his ultra wide lens, 10mm
vivi for firing the shutter
( i set the settings, was my idea, i shot the composition of how i wanted it to be and showed it to her, she was just mainly firing it, thus, i believe it's still my work, else, i could haf done it with a tripod also wad )

and arifin and st for jumping with me =D

ps. the ipod nano is for sale
the apple shop is selling for $348
it's the 8gb blue one
price is negotiable :)

-------------------------

i don't understand what's wrong with me
but i somehow feel terribly disturbed inside
having won an open category, first prize, out of so many people
why am i not happy ?
girl, u sure affect me a lot

the dendam

okay..like i said right
halloween coming
so scary creepy manipulation is the topic

then yesterday i was chatting wif pOp
then showed him a link which i thought was cool
some horror poster link
then we agreed to do something "horror"ish













so then i was taking my own pics and browsing tru stock pictures
and was utterly disgusted at wad i saw
damn
then
i screw up
i was playing wif fire so much
i forgotten all about horror
LOL

then i made this

"fire and earth"














go here for higher resolution
CLICK












then i went to sleep coz today i joining the canon photo marathon thing
but then again
i was damn unsatisfied wif that pic
coz i was suppose to do something horrorish
i woke up at 4a.m. this morning
and decided to do something horrorish
then i googled

"the grudge"

and immediately i decided to do something like that
with 1 hour left before i gotta start preparing
i began shooting myself again
2 shots
and i know i got it




bla bla bla bla bla

i'm late to meet st already

so




here is




THE DENDAM

=P
lol
















go here for e bigger pixel
CLICK






was kinda done in a rush
but thought it was okay =D


okay
gotta go
wish me luck !