As usual more in slideshow and Facebook.

Makeup by thelittlebrush. More pictures in slideshow and facebook.

What else is new? A new vehicle (actually second-hand Kia Rio) gotten last week. A new job in two more weeks time. And a new project in the name of 365.

Well, Happy New Year Twenty Ten! (no, it’s not Two Thousand Ten)

Many favourite pictures to share. Even more on facebook and slideshow.

Cartier-Bresson
“For me the camera is a sketch book, an instrument of intuition and spontaneity, the master of the instant which, in visual terms, questions and decides simultaneously. In order to “give a meaning” to the world, one has to feel involved in what one frames through the viewfinder. This attitude requires concentration, discipline of mind, sensitivity, and a sense of geometry. It is by economy of means that one arrives at simplicity of expression.

To take a photograph is to hold one’s breath when all faculties converge in a face of fleeing reality. It is at that moment that mastering an image becomes a great physical and intellectual joy.

To take a photograph means to recognize – simultaneously and within a fraction of a second – both the fact itself and the rigorous organisation of visually perceived forms that give it meaning.

It is putting one’s head, one’s eye, and one’s heart on the same axis.”

Adams
“There is nothing more useless than a sharp photograph of a fuzzy concept.”

Weeks
“The fondlers can fight over that whilst looking at their photos of brick walls.”

Twain
“You cannot depend on your eyes if your imagination is out of focus.”

Avedon
“I hate cameras. They interfere, they’re always in the way. I wish: if I could just work with my eyes alone. To get a satisfactory print, one that contains all that you intended, is very often more difficult and dangerous than the sitting itself. When I’m photographing, I immediately know when I’ve got the image I really want. But to get the image out of the camera and into the open, is another matter.”

Einstein
“Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler”

Leibovitz
“I’m always perplexed when people say that a photograph has captured someone. A photography is just a tiny slice of a subject. A piece of them in a moment. It seems presumptuous to think you can get more than that.”

With the charming Mien Wee, both of them made a very lovely couple. The wedding was a simple yet fun affair. A lunch party with a small company of close friends and family in the Crystal Inn was filled with plenty of warmth and love. Less is more. His type of wedding.

A very Happy Birthday to Sze Yin whose birthday falls on tomorrow!

The usual drill. Highlights of the day below. Facebook. Slideshow.

Heartiest congratulations to Gordon and Jocelyn!

Bridal makeup by thelittlebrush.

Check out some highlights. More on facebook and slideshow.

Had a blast with the lovely couple, together with their equally fun friends. Some highlights to sum up the event. More in slideshow and facebook.

Not that he ever did anything like this before, but there’s always a first time.

Dropped an email and they immediately agreed. Exchanged some ideas and suggestions in between. Three months later, they were out on an adventure.

Roamed around Chinatown area. They were like a group of tourists exploring the place. To say the weather was hot is an understatement. But perhaps because of that, there was less people around. After a tea break at Pacific Coffee, they proceeded to the Punggol Beach, a place none of them have been to.

Some highlights of the day. More in facebook.

Before he forgets, a big credit goes to his wife for being both the makeup artist and photographer’s assistant!

No surprise, wifey was the makeup artist for Jocelyn.

While he’s not the official photographer this time (he will be, a week later though), it’s hard to keep him still when he brought a camera along. He was delighted to meet Alwin from LightedPixels, one of the photographers he admires.

Some snapshots to share. More in slideshow and facebook.

After checking in at Rosa Pasadena Hotel (3-star, RM128 for twin sharing per room per night) at Brinchang, he booked a local tour from the hotel lobby. At RM25 per person, the tour covered destinations including Rose Garden, Butterfly Farm, Boh Tea Plantation farm,  Honey Bee Farm, Strawberry Farm and a Chinese Temple. Departed at 1.30 pm from hotel lobby in a van with 6 other travelers (2 Filipinos, 1 Malaysian and 3 Dutch), the trip ended at around 7pm. Dinner was steamboat at the OK Tuck Restaurant which was highly recommended by the locals. Verdict: not bad lah.

The second day in Cameron Highlands was mostly spent walking around in Tanah Rata (RM8 taxi ride from Brinchang), a major hub whereas it seats several hotels, parks and comercial center. They had a fantastic lunch at T-Cafe (check out their Strawberry Fruity Scone and Mango Lassi!). Back in Brinchang, they discovered Strawberry Moment which sells all things strawberries! Besides dried strawberries, strawberry jam, strawberry chocolate and strawberry tea, Mum bought a whole piece of strawberry strudel for supper back in the hotel.

Dinner was yet again steamboat, but in another recommended place called You Hoo Restaurant which was equally good if not better than the previous one. Anyway, in a cool place like Cameron Highlands, nothing really can beat a steamboat dinner, especially with family members.

Some pictures to share, as always.

Surprisingly, they have never been to any zoo together. Thanks to his uncle, the first attempt somehow landed them in Jurong Bird Park back when they first visited Singapore. The second attempt in Melaka strangely ended up in the Malacca Crocodile Farm instead of zoo because Dad couldn’t find his way.

So after 29 years, the son brought the parents to the zoo instead. His second trip there actually, but it’s free this time courtesy of company’s welfare.

Just Mum, Yun Xin and the late Ah Meng. Dad didn’t want any photos taken. Like father like son, they said.

A brief overview of the flickr sets revealed quite a collection, especially the travel trips. After all, that’s what the camera was for in the first place.

Been to Vietnam twice, almost covered the whole country from south to north. Perhaps the most unforgettable trip to date ever since they ditched guided tours. Sadly, also the furthest he has traveled since he got hold of the dude. Traveled to several cities in Malaysia too – Melaka, Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh and Penang – all in the name of sight-seeings and attending friends’ weddings. On the other hand,  jalan-jalan around Singapore sometimes were not as bad as some assumed.

Speaking of weddings, he had unexpectedly received more requests than what he had asked for. Taking this whole wedding photography stuff to the next level has not crossed his mind yet (lest his bosses reading this decided to invite him to chat over a cup of coffee).  But it’s good to have a side income (as opposed to, donation, if ya catch his drift) to fund the hobby, while knowing that there are people actually appreciating his works.

Kai Yu is one of the most important series of photos during this period and it’s still ongoing. It’s fascinating to watch your niece growing up day by day, not to mention, the ability to rewind and watch it over and over again!. Recently she has gotten a little brother, but her dad too has gotten a DSLR.

Missus switched her career path from being a teacher to a makeup artist early this year (insert tyre screeching sound here). Opened up plenty of options for him – fashion, portraits and off-camera flash lighting techniques (which means more toys/junks).  Perhaps it’s about time to start include more of these in the upcoming posts.

All in all, it has been a great ride as far as his photography journey is concerned. Who knows what the future holds? Que sera sera…

It’s been a pleasure covering the event. Congratulations to Andy and Siew Yuen.

As usual, will let the pictures do the talking. More at the slideshow page.

“Is your platform ready for the future?”

He rarely gave it a thought, until today.

If the answer is yes, he wouldn’t be there.

If the answer is no, he shouldn’t be there either.

To say that Shang Ping is one of the nicest person he has ever worked with does not seem to do much justice to the guy. Anyway, when Mr Nice Guy approached him to take some photos for his solemnization lunch, he accepted the task gladly.

The lunch took place in Peony Jade Restaurant in Clarke Quay. It was a casual and relaxing afternoon affair with close friends and relatives.

It was also probably the most fun photo shoot he has taken so far, because there were so many adorable kids around.

After the lunch, they proceeded to the nearby Fort Canning Park for some extra photo taking. The day ended with a tea-break in Park Mall’s Dome.

More pictures available in the slideshow.

His wife got to know Laura back in The Make Up Room while attending the same course last year. Towards the end of the course, Laura had to stopped her course prematurely as her delivery date was due soon.

Last month Laura called and invited both of them to her home over the weekend. Besides catching up, her baby was 100-day-old and she hope he could snap a few pictures for Baby Jerry. They agreed gladly without hesitation, of course.

Before holding his hand, Jerry has to start with holding his Dad’s finger.

Hee haw.

It’s a Boy!

Laura and Jerry.

Muacks!

All in all, it’s was a wonderful day spent with this couple and their newborn baby. More pictures available at the slideshow page.

Uncles. Newspapers.

And assorted dim sums. That pretty summed up their breakfast at Tho Yuen Restaurant (92 Lebuh Campbell). Like most of the other eateries they’ve been to, they found their way here through Lonely Planet Guide’s recommendation. No angmohs or youngsters seen. Probably just got into bed after a night of wild party.

Wife had just recovered from stomach upset. Porridge suited her better than those greasy oily (yummy) dim sums. As much as he missed the dim sums in Ipoh, this one was not too bad either.

Roaming around the small lanes in Georgetown appreciating dilapidated buildings on Christmas Day did not seem appealing. Instead they decided to take a public bus to Kek Lok Si Temple.

Reaching the largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia was no easy feat.  They had to snake through a maze of souvenir stalls, past turtle and fish ponds in order to reach the entrance.  Perhaps they might revisit this place again once the 16 bronze columns supporting a roof over the colossus 120-feet high bronze status of Kuan Yin (Goddess of Mercy) is completed.

A poor man’s wide angle scene at the hilltop area.

The workers taking break at the base of the giant statue.

Their next destination was supposed to be the Penang Hill, but the 30-minute funicular railway ride  ticket had sold out by the time they reached at 2pm. 7pm tickets were available, but obviously without much of a demand.

Returning to the city by bus, they proceeded to Komtar Tower, Penang’s tallest building, standing at 65 storeys, 232m tall. At the cost of RM15 per person (inclusive of drink, well..), they took the lift to reach the highest level of the building. Located in the heart of Georgetown, they were able to scrutinize the whole city lying bare naked, 360 degrees from that highest floor.

Wall-E? No thanks.

A multi exposure taken from the tower of the city with his Holga. Hardly an exaggeration of the cityscape. Busy is an understatement.

From there on, they repeated Day 1 routine. Back to Gurney Drive again for dinner (different food, minus the photography, because he was too hungry), did some shopping in Gurney Plaza (just her), caught Twilight in Golden Screen Cinema until midnight before they called it a day and got slapped with an additional RM10 for taxi fare.

Eastern and Oriental Hotel. It would not have caught his attention that much if not for the fact that the hotel was established by the Sarkies Brothers, Tigram and Martin in 1884, who later founded Raffles Hotel in Singapore. Undeniably Penang’s and, potentially Malaysia’s most grand hotel.

They made an entrance into the hotel and snapped several shots. None of the staff seemed to mind, which was great. No doubt they won’t attempt this gig in Raffles Hotel.

The next stop was  Cheong Fatt Tze’s Blue Mansion. Cheong was the Rockefeller of the East. The Last Mandarin. In other words, very rich, very powerful. At 11am, they were just in time for the tour around the house (RM10, but worth every sen and sense). Every single object in the house – the door, the chair, the table, floor tile, and their placement – seemed to echo the glorious moments of the past to every visitor who care to pause and feel them. Photography is not allowed inside, which made every instance in the building more memorable.

Who would have known Mr Cheong had such a fast vehicle back then?

Things didn’t go smoothly for them. First she realized she lost her sunglasses. Secondly, her stomach did not feel quite right. Something was wrong with the buffet breakfast, she felt. Feeling uncomfortable, they returned to the hotel for her to rest.

As she got better, they pursued their walking tour in the afternoon. Lunch proved to be difficult, again. They eventually settled for a newly opened restaurant with traditional Chinese tea art as the main theme. Nothing special worth mentioning, except for the long waiting period despite no other customers.

After lunch it was buildings and buildings and buildings. They covered the Cathedral of the Assumption, Penang Museum, St George’s Church, Supreme Court, Town Hall, City Hall, State Assembly Building and Victoria Memorial Clocktower. They passed by Fort Cornwallis, but did not went in.

On the way back, he spotted this Banksy-wannabe graffiti at the turning point of an overhead bridge.

Dinner. After all it was Christmas Eve. They decided to splurge a bit. The Opera at 93E Jalan Penang was the final decision. The environment was excellent and the food was relatively well-matched. Classy without stiff, as someone puts it.

However, wife stomach felt worse soon after (not because of the food in the Opera). They headed back to the hotel straight. He caught Blood Diamond partially on the hotel’s in-house TV channel. By 10pm they both turned in, only to be awakened slightly by the countdown and fireworks two hours later.  Oo, it’s Christmas.

Back to slumber.

Two days before Christmas, around afternoon, they set their feet in Penang after 3 hours of bus ride from Ipoh. Guided by their self-printed-self-bound Lonely Planet Malaysia Guide (Penang Chapter, purchased from LP’s very own website) in hand, they were ready to explore the island.

Highlights:

• Suffice to say they were nearly ripped off by taxi driver once they reached. Or maybe they just saved few extra ringgits. The drivers had this chart on the wall that states the “official” taxi fare for different zones. Yet it can still be bargained. Why can’t they just stick to meter-reading?
• After checking into Hotel Malaysia (a balanced choice between price and comfort) at Upper Penang Road, settled their belongings, they embarked on a journey to hunt for lunch.
• First impression of Georgetown, which has recently been listed as World Heritage site on UNESCO – sick.
• Several recommended food joints (like the Ecco Cafe) seemed have closed down (LP writers, please update).
• It was 2.30pm. Lunch was overdue for way too long!
• In the end, they had their first meal at …*drumroll*… Secret Recipe in Prangin Mall. =(
• Weather was unbearably scorching hot outside. Definitely not the best time to walk around.
• Movie – Yes Man. How to say no?
• Getting dark by the time the show ended.
• Took cab to Gurney Drive, Penang’s most famous food area that was named after Sir Henry Gurney, a British High Commissioner who was assassinated by Malayan communist guerrillas in 1951.
• Food! Real food! Awesome food. It was the climax of the day. For a split second, they thought they had died and entered heaven.

The Legendary Penang Char Kuey Teow. Not that it’s the best or most well-known in Penang, but good enough for him. Plus the queue was freaking long, so it must be good.

Ah Chye Rojak. He was delighted by the inclusion of jambu (rose apple).

Deep fried chicken gizzards. Beats KFC anytime of the day.

Curry Mee. Notice the pig blood cubes?

And the night ended with a short window shopping in Gurney Plaza, before hailing a cab back to the hotel.

This was the second time they teamed up for a wedding (first time was for her colleague’s). Jin Yi is her cousin, and she had in fact just did her ROM makeup one week earlier. On the other hand, it was his first attempt with his new toy camera body to shoot for actual day wedding. He lugged two camera bodies simultaneously, and it was fun! It also marked the first time he shot a church wedding.

Jin Yi really looked marvelous as a bride with her tall figure, fair skin, and most importantly, her angelic sweet face. Of course the makeup artist deserves her credits too . Ming Yuan (aka Mr Principal) on the other hand appeared wonderfully cute and chubby for a bridegroom (yes, the hair helped a lot).

More pictures in the slideshow if you can’t get enough of the pictures below.

Makeup artist at work

Anticipations

Pump it

Louder!

After an 8-hour bus trip from Singapore’s Golden Mile Complex, Chern Ye, Poh Yen, his wife and him reached Ipoh at about 6 in the morning. He barely had a wink the whole journey with the stomach grumbling relentlessly. But already he knew what Ipoh had in store for him. Soon after the rendezvous with the rest of the gang at Jye Sheng’s home, they headed towards Foh San Restaurant for dim sum breakfast. It wasn’t exactly easy to get a table to fit nine people during the early morning rush hour, but they didn’t wait for too long either.

Rush Hour

Makan and minum.

All cleared.

Next item in the agenda? More food! And off they went. But just before they entered the next makan place, Yew Nam pointed out an alley that might arouse the interest of the only guy who was lugging his camera all the while. He was darn right.

Nostalgic Alley

Comfort Zone

Tiptoed shoes

The specialties of the next coffeeshop was their super-sweet “Dan Dan” (caramel custard dessert) and Chee Cheong Fun. The latter was so good that Wen Ho had 3 servings!

Considering the sin of gluttony they had committed in the morning, post-breakfast activity was surprisingly healthy – caves visiting. But it wasn’t the caves per se that were so interesting.

No animals allowed, but little did they know the zoo they were heading in.

Yew Nam posing with his new found friend.

He has to admit the photo was slightly tweak to boost the impact, but it isn’t too far off from the reality either.

Why did the chicken cross the road? Ask them.

What you get when you put together an a bunch of tortoises in an enclosed area, a group of football/wrestling fans and some apples.

Camel ride for Kenneth.

As for lunch, let’s just say he was too busy eating to be bother with taking pictures.

This was also the finale in the wedding marathon he had been running over the past half a year. A complete different settings, with super-duper early bride fetching (before 5am!), rumah papan, group photos in the narrow space of kitchen etc. Can’t say he wasn’t taken back, but he still tried his bestest best to grab the moments.

For more, click here for slideshow.

To Guo Loong and Shiau Chen, he wishes both of them a lifetime of everlasting love and happiness!

For more images, click here for slideshow.

The starting point was Melaka and Kenneth played the host. Subsequently, they proceeded to Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh, Penang and finally Langkawi.

9 years later, most of the usual suspects congregated yet again in the historic state for food and fun in the name of Kenneth’s customary wedding.

In fact, it’s only barely a year ago since he took their solemnization lunch in Singapore. This time around, similar to Wen Ho’s wedding, he teamed up again with Guo Loong as the wedding photographers.

Hope that Kenneth and Lynn enjoy the pictures. More images available in the slideshow.

It was a simple, cosy and relaxing wedding engagement dinner. Allyson was as bubbly and friendly as he had imagined prior to the meeting. For a bride who donned glasses throughout the whole event while looking fabulous, she was a rare sight. Together with Scott, a suave gentleman, they make a perfect couple.

Upon the insistence of the bride, the camera man also enjoyed the sumptuous buffet with great delight. He shared the same table with the Junie, her fiance and many HCJC alumnus he didn’t know (including a lovely 93.3 FM DJ to whom he sat next to).

Click here for slideshow. Some of his favorites below.

It’s just too much, or rather, too little. Minuscule. Microscopic.

Most of the time, he really wanted to help. Not that he enjoyed spoiling the market or happy to be exploited. Ironically, he was on the other side of the fence once, though not as bad. Still…

Leon is right. Start from strangers. Then stranger’s friends. Not the other way round.

Just like last year, from 7am to 10pm, it was certainly a day well spent. For the four of them, taking the photography challenges while traveling between Suntec City, Chinatown, Vivocity and Esplanade area proved to be both a great physical and mental workout. No prizes were won, but that was almost already assumed.

Based on the results, there is certainly a change in the overall judging standard this time around. Unlike last year where there were much wow factors, there were instead more of wtf’s this time. He is not surprised that people are complaining, but he accepts that everyone has the freedom of what, where, who and how to shoot. Sweet dreams are made of this, who am I to disagree?

Change is coming, sooner or later. He took this picture that morning while leaving his home. He submitted it for the first theme despite fully aware of it violating the rules.

Incomprehensible Dreams. Don’t ask.

Update: For more information about the makeup artist, please visit http://www.thelittlebrush.com

• 11th Oct 2008 – Full day of photography for models of her final make-up exam. (checked √)
• 18th Oct 2008 – Canon PhotoMarathon Singapore. (checked √)
• 2nd Nov 2008 – Karen’s Wedding in Johor Bahru, Malaysia. (checked √)
• 15th Nov 2008 – Allie’s Dinner Party in Four Seasons Hotel, Singapore. (checked √)
• 7th Dec 2008 – Kenneth’s Wedding in Melaka, Malaysia. (checked √)
• 22th Dec 2008 – Guo Loong’s Wedding in Perak, Malaysia. (checked √)
• 23th-26th Dec 2008 – Holiday in Penang, Malaysia. (checked √)
• 3rd Jan 2009 – Shuang Shoei’s Wedding in Johor Bahru and Kluang, Malaysia. (checked √)

Jalan-jalan Singapura.

The performance was mesmerizing with a mixture of multiracial, traditional and modern dances and spectacular lighting. Instead of the usual 50mm 1.8, he experimented with his 55-250mm IS on ISO 800 this time.

The bubbly dancer to whom she performed makeup on. That mole was self added.

The Singa has been creatively adapted with a lion-dance. Even a cook sneaked out of kitchen to watch.

Sang Nila Utama and the gayish peacock he met.

Yellow.

“Check out my headdress!“

How much more can we take? How long more to be awakened?

He wonders, he wonders how, he wonders how he wonders…

Happy National Day.

Although slightly long overdue, the brand new Flickr slideshow feature is still very much welcomed. Embedding Flickr set to external sites has just become slightly more user-friendly, and the full screen feature is very much expected but appreciated.

One way to embed Flickr slideshow in blogs could be traced to Paul Stamatiou who investigated the API and showed how it could be done. Based on this idea, many sites like this and this offer auto generation of the HTML codes when the user inputs the name of the user and set. But the size of the slideshow was fixed at 500 pixels by 500 pixels.  When there are too many photos, thumbnails at the bottom carousel were scaled down too much to be useful for previewing when it goes beyond 2 rows. The new slideshow addresses many of these issues.

Currently, the new slideshow customization page can be accessed through these steps:

1. Go to any Flickr set
2. Click SlideShow on top right
3. Click Share on top right for a popup (of course, one can simply Grab the HTML at this step)
4. Click Customize this HTML

The faster way would be to postfix “show/?embed=1″ to the set’s hyperlink, e.g. http://www.flickr.com/photos/teoszelee/sets/72157605322795697/show/?embed=1.

There is nothing much really to customize in the page, except for the size of the slideshow (four preset sizes are provided). But a little digging into the HTML code generated can reveal some extra customizations. For example, setting name=”allowFullScreen” to false disable full screen mode, although the button is still visible (but this only works for IE, hmm…).

Some of the major differences are:

1. The old version autoplays the slideshow once the page is loaded. The new one begins in paused mode with an overlay of text – “<owner’s name>’s <set name> Slideshow on Flickr”. A play button is situated below the text to trigger the start of the slideshow.
2. The duration between slide changes can be set with a slider between 1 to 10 seconds in the old version. The new one reduces this to Slow, Medium and Fast radio button in Options popup.
3. Clicking on picture during the slideshow in the older version shrinks the picture and reveals the information and title.
   For the new version, there is no information shown for small and medium slideshow. Clicking on the image advances the slideshow to the next one.
   But for the large and supersize ones, clicking on any picture will show overlaying text information without image shrinking. Information can also toggled from the Info On/Off button at the top center of the image(only for large and supersize).
   Previous and next image button is also placed differently depending on the size chosen.
4. The carousel containing the thumbnails at the bottom panel of the embedded flash is now consistent with the default slideshow page in Flickr as well as the Organizr. It’s certainly more useful. Even the bigger thumbnail on mouse over is more slick with fade-in fade-out animation.

All in all, it is a big improvement.  But some suggestions won’t hurt:

1. Allow user to specify the default text on page load, or perhaps simply just show the name of the set.
2. The size for slideshow is currently set to 4:3 aspect ratio in the 4 preset sizes. For most DSLR users who shoot in 3:2 (landscape orientation), it creates unnecessary black bars on top and bottom. (No doubt, users can input the width and height of their desired aspect ratio to overcome this with some simple calculation).
3. One-click button from Flickr set to grab and customize the embedding HTML in blog.
4. Allow the slideshow to appear in Google Reader like the Flickr video. Update: the slideshow does appear in Google Reader now. Cool.

Of all the inspiring TED talks he has been listening these few weeks while doing next to nothing in the office, this is his favourite. Any attempt to explain why it is so fascinating would not do any justice to the talk itself.

More images here.

Last month, he received a phone call from the organizer to ask for permission to display his pictures in the gallery for visitors. He gladly accepted. Sadly, he was also informed that none of his submissions were shortlisted for the winning candidates. Anyway, he was still delighted to find more than one of his submissions being exhibited when he visited Hort Park last weekend.

A surprise came in the most unexpected form when they were browsing the bigger posters with frame just outside the gallery.

As he was telling Thang the butterfly poster looks “pretty similar” to the scene they both encountered last time, Thang noticed the name at the bottom of the description.

It’s his name. He has forgotten that he actually took and submitted the picture.

Instead it was more like a market for the locals to get their daily stuff like these.

As noon approached, they started to hunt for lunch, but with the blazing hot sun, they couldn’t traveled far. There were few visible hawkers nearby, but let’s just say, tourists were not their target customers.

Com= Rice, Ga= Chicken. Therefore Com Ga = Rice Chicken Chicken Rice.

She rejected the chicken rice shop. Ironically, they soon found themselves feasting on fried chicken in a nearby KFC. After the finger-lickin’ air-conditioned lunch, they braved the hot sun again for temples visit.

Love the color.

He already tried hard to get the horizon right, still…

While waiting for the ladies to shop, the world drifted, slowly but surely.

Bird’s nest extraction, Vietnam style.

The stars in Hoi An are not found in the sky, and they are mostly red.

Hot and sleepy afternoon. No business.

Everyone was resting.

Even the ladies.

But not her.

With some elderly around, they figured it’s not a wise move to stay in Pham Ngu Lao area, which is cheaper but much further away from the central of the city. Therefore, they eventually settled down in a rather affordable hotel in Mac Thi Buoi Street.

The traffic is still as busy, but the motorcyclists are now wearing helmet as demanded by the law. As well as retracing some familiar locations in Ho Chi Minh and Hoi An, they also explored a few new places like Cholon and Hue.

Time to let the pictures tell the stories.

He wondered how many of those colorful feather duster he could buy for the price of a iRobot Roomba.

Hawkers beside Ben Thanh Market on their way to setup their stalls.

It was only less than half a year since the compulsory helmet laws in Vietnam fully came into effect. Some were not hesitant to declare their fashion statements.

In Singapore and Malaysia, it’s normal to see 2 people on 4 wheels. In Vietnam, it’s not uncommon to see 4 people on 2 wheels. Well, maybe we should ubah gaya hidup!

It was hot. A coconut would do the job. He squatted down and took this shot. Suddenly, he wasn’t thirsty anymore. Next time, maybe.

Just by staring at this picture, he felt depressed.

On the way. By the way. Anyway.

The last trip to Melaka was his first photo shooting trip with the 400D just bought. Returning after more than half a year, he felt more comfortable this time. The kit lens had been replaced by his 28-105mm USM and 50mm 1.8. Moreover, he also brought the Holga along!

His 400D favorites.

The following are from Holga with Fujichrome Provia 100F cross-processed.

Remaining photos are here and here.

Greeted by loud banners and posters everywhere, they felt fortunate to be able to participate in this event. Casting a vote seemed such a simple, almost insignificant act from one’s perspective. Little had they known the magnitude of things to come.

Earlier, weather forecast had predicted a heavy downpour in the afternoon. He only noticed a drizzle in the evening after dinner. But no one had seen expected to see a tsunami coming.

It was a Hari Ini Dalam Sejarah! The rakyat has spoken.

There is a way to be good again after all.

Could have done better. But then they say, don’t think just shoot.

Well, some of the better ones:

He wonders, if the Chinese is the only race these days who celebrate its most important annual event with most of the food, clothing, music, decorations, rituals, gifts and greetings centralized on the single theme of getting rich?

Huat ah!

He feels awkward, almost embarrassed.

He had high expectations, and he wasn’t disappointed. He left the cinema with a thousand thoughts. Of love, of parents, of friends, of war. Of redemption, of traditions, of nation, of ambitions.

The similar feeling when he woke up from nightmare occasionally, only more intense.

There is a way to be good again.

For you a thousand times over.

Silently, he whispers these words to his homeland.

To quote something he learned from a colleague (and attempt to sound intelligent at the same time), tempus fugit.

Let’s start. He spent the first 8 years studying stuff that would soon be proven obsolete. In between he met his first girlfriend that would soon be proven his last. Then, he got a job that would soon be proven to be… just a job. He later bought a house which would soon proven to be smaller compared to his peers, but cheaper as the property prices shot up like crazy. Finally, he got married to the same girl that would soon proven to be something that doesn’t need any proof.

It’s not terribly exciting, but it’s not much different from most of the people he knows anyway. In retrospect, any fools could have seen all these must have already been orchestrated carefully in the grander scheme of things at the very moment they arrived.

The next 10 years? Let’s just say they have already booked their new one-way tickets.

Similar to any other places in Vietnam, two-wheeled vehicles dominate the streets.

Threesome. How sweet.

From south to north, their daily breakfast consisted mainly of baguettes like these.

She has to agree that map-reading isn’t her forte.

A sleepy cyclo driver.

Cha Ca (grilled fish), the one and only dish from Cha Ca La Vong at the 14, Cha Ca Street.

The famous (and no doubt expensive) Bobby Chin Restaurant. Initially, they had planned to have a grand feast here on their last day in Vietnam.

However, convinced by another couple of fellow travelers from Singapore, they eventually indulged themselves in authentic Vietnamese buffet at Sen Ha Thanh, which was fantastic, and cheaper.

The rest of the photos.

The Red Dao women shaved their eyebrows and foreheads as a sign of beauty.

The distinctive headgear of the Red Dao women.

On the other hand, the Black Hmong women have quite a different taste of fashion.

Must have been quite a burden to the earlobes.

Many of the Black Hmong women carry their baby on their back to work, whether the child is awake,

or asleep,

or, in whatever state.

Of course, the Sapa experience would not be complete without the buffaloes,

the trekking and terraced fields.

The cutest baby they had seen throughout the Vietnam trip.

And as usual, more photos.

When he (and later his brother) wanted to gain entry to a certain primary school, the doctor readily and voluntarily helped his parents to write a letter to the headmaster, with no obligations.

When the doctor pursued a full time career in politics, he believed that the man was trying to do something for the rakyat.

And he did.

He still believe the doctor is a good man who has made a mistake, and he has certainly always taken the bull by the horn.

Unlike the remaining of the rotten eggs in the basket.

Hoi An is an exceptionally well-preserved example of a South-East Asian trading port dating from the 15th to the 19th century. It was declared World Heritage by the UNESCO in 1999.

First encounter – a herd of cow dominating the street.

It was a scorching hot afternoon when they arrived.

The clothes should have dried up already.

The Japanese Covered Bridge was built in the middle of the 16th century by Japanese merchants. The construction of the bridge was supposed to pierce the heart of an enormous monster whose head was in India, tail in Japan and body in Vietnam. =)

The magic hours. Fishing kid. Perfect backdrop. And he had finally got his catch of the day.

More photos.

Living by the river, he wonders how different their lives are.

First encounter with the snake wines. Like every other bizarre and exotic stuff, these are supposed to make men stronger. Later they found more of these all over Vietnam.

A cute little girl from Korea accompanying her grandparents.

Vinh Long Market, not too different from the pasar back in Malaysia.

As she headed home after finished shopping, so are they.

More photos.

From bicycles to motor scooters and motorcycles, the Viets must have traveled more on two wheels than their two feet.

Maybe it’s time to replace the ubiquitous conical hat. The compulsory helmet laws in Vietnam fully come into effect on 15 December 2007.

First meal in Vietnam – beef noodle from Pho 24

Making a living.

Reminded him of the goreng pisang back home.

More photos.

First time shooting important event for a friend. Below are his favorites.

More photos.

After her school’s Family Day held in SAFRA in the morning, followed by hours of reluctant shopping in Vivocity, he finally crawled back. Without further delay, he edited, exported and uploaded the morning’s photos. Judging by the results, it was more like the Children’s Day. Context salah… blame the photographer if you want.

“I checked it very thoroughly,” said the computer, “and that quite definitely is the answer. I think the problem, to be quite honest with you, is that you’ve never actually known what the question is.”

“But it was the Great Question! The Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe and Everything!” howled Loonquawl.

“Yes,” said Deep Thought with the air of one, who suffers fools gladly, “but what actually is it?”

“The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” by Douglas Adams

“…So take the photographs, and still frames in your mind
Hang it on a shelf in good health and good time
Tattoos of memories and dead skin on trial
For what it’s worth it was worth all the while

It’s something unpredictable, but in the end it’s right.
I hope you had the time of your life…”

- Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life) by Green Day

Not that he is too keen on publicizing for this Japanese clothing retail chain but the UNIQLOCK is certainly an eye-catching advertisement campaign that worth mentioning. In fact it didn’t make much sense to him initally. He thought it was unique lock, the numbers some secret codes. Maybe they should rename it to UNI<insert any punctuation here>QLOCK.

Still he can forgive all that for the lovely long-haired Japanese babes and their kawaii movements and gestures that seem to have been acquired from other planet. The creative, colourful and clean presentation of the clock, clothings and chicks is very eye-pleasing, to say the least.

He got the basics – 2 stopwatches, 5 alarm clocks, world time of 48 cities and dozens of useless stuff that he wouldn’t bother to use were easily configurable. But he couldn’t get the damn Auto EL backlight to work. What the hell is DST? How to mute the irritating beep?

Like any other netizens of the 21st century, he googled. No luck on the official website. He found the Casio’s ftp where all the manuals are stored. Easy, except that they are not named according to the model number. Weird. A forum thread actually suggested to download all the (1000+) files and check one by one afterwards. Very funny. Shortly he spotted another thread that traced to yet another resource which “lists all the Japanese release G-shocks from 1983-2007″ in spreadsheet and text file (Update: Previous link is broken, try this link instead.).  There was a corresponding module number for each model number. The dots were connected. The module number 3031 for his G-9000MC-8JF led him to the correct manual qw3031.pdf. It was like breaking the Da Vinci’s code for beginners.

Operation Guide 3031. Three and a half monochrome pages, with diagrams and tables. He found what he wanted.

Besides being the photo marathon with the most number of participants to date, he guessed it was also a mass parade of photo gears (he could see L everywhere) of the grandest scale yet. If anything, the guy with enough of equipment to dislocate his right shoulder and the other 3-4 kids below 10 playing with 1Ds like Lego bricks truly deserved some special awards.

So, after wasted some money and sleeping time, the new cyber abode is ready. Not much to show really, but he owns it! Just like his 3-room HDB flat.

Lao-tzu said, “千里之行，始于足下”. This blogger renews his blogging journey with his niece’s little foot that has yet to learn how to walk. The destination is unknown, the purpose undecided and the luggage unprepared.

“Hello world,” the little foot is waving.