I’m starting a new workshop for those interested to learn studio work. Learn how to use studio equipment and communicate with your subject. You’ll get to practice on location too, which is useful if you just have a simple setup. A flash, umbrella, light stand and a sync chord or remote trigger will be all you need. It’s not going to cost you as much studio lights and your photography will improve by leaps and bounds.
Today marks the end of a 3-day project with Yellow Octopus to produce the Annual Report for the Salvation Army. The shoot brought us around most part of Singapore and as I remarked, gave me a new appreciation for their work. Most of us associate Salvation Army with the Thrift Store but there are so many things that they have done for the community, ranging from nursing homes, rehab centers, prison support, etc. This is not unlike the shoots I’ve done for the Community Chest. What I find unique about the Salvation Army was the range of community services available within an organisation.
These were the behind the scenes images taken by Liz and of her as the lighting model as I make adjustments to my settings, together with some commentary and my thoughts on the shoot. Have fun reading!
The Crest
Salvation Army Crest at the lobby of The Changi Corps
And here’s the picture taken by Liz on her iPhone of me trying to get a vertical as possible shot of the crest. We tried to get images unique to each center and I was so taken back by this crest as we entered Peacehaven Nursing Home. I had this thought of blasting a light outside and have a nurse with an elderly walking and casting shadows across this crest. Unfortunately we could not find the time and this image may not fit our portrait series. Well, I’ll shelve the idea for another time.
On location Penang. After my DIY project, it was Allen and Celia’s turn to have their pre-wedding shoot done in Penang. We had this idea to shoot in Allen’s alma mater, the Penang Free School, which also happened to be mine too. I was then the photographer for the Editorial Board and that was about 20 years ago. The school looks pretty much the same, with the exception of the mind-numbing choice of green and orange on parts of the building. It looks like a polished gentleman in an amusement park now rather than the grand old dame it once was. Nevertheless we made the colours work for us and we were pleased at how things went.
That was the Sunday evening. On Monday the plan was to hit the Botanic Gardens early in the morning to catch that sunrise and the beautiful light streaming in the little ravine. And after that it was up the Penang Hill to David Brown’s restaurant. If you ever make the trip to Penang, don’t miss this. A late afternoon tea with scones in the cool weather is the way to go. It rained when we were there, minus the mist we had when I shot Chris and Zinee there. The original plan was to have a go at the beach but the balmy, overcast weather would make potentially eye-popping images dull. So we decided to postpone the shoot and head to town to see what we could get.
Amidst curious stares from the local bovine population indignant at our intrusion during breakfast, we waited for the sun to rise at the Botanic Gardens in Penang. I first saw the potential when I was scouting for Chris and Zinee’s shoot but unfortunately it rained that day. And I’ve been waiting for the chance to shoot here in the warm glow of the morning sun. Well, we got our break yesterday!
Before sunrise....boring
The variety if images we had were a bit limited coz it took time to setup each shot, instead of moving freely and working with the light. But we’re happy with what we got.
Ok, it’s really not as simple as it sounds in theory but it’s heck of a lot of fun. I like to entertain the couple I’m shooting normally, so I ended up entertaining ourselves. Today’s shoot lasted less than 20 minutes, in between shopping at Queensbay Mall and dinner at Hammer Bay (I kid you not, that’s the name). Dinner was grilled stingray or ikan pari bakar. If you ever come here, try the satay too. It’s from this nondescript stall just by the entrance. The ‘makcik’ is very generous with the chicken…chunks of well-marinated meat.
The light changes really fast after sunset and that explains the 20 min shoot. Interestingly, the lights from the makan place served as a giant light source and I was happily using it. The Penang Bridge is in the background but barely visible due to the large aperture I was using. f1.4 to f1.8 most of the time. But I wanted just the lights visible only so that worked out quite well.
Had a great shoot last Sat with a beautiful family. Dylan’s a 17-month old Elmo lover and loves to dance to Elmo’s songs too. Oh did I mention he loves ice? So Elmo and ice were his main companion throughout the shoot. With such a combination, he provided plenty of laughter for all. We did the shoot in the house and then proceeded to Botanic gardens in the evening. The house was very tastefully decorated and there were plenty of areas to shoot in. I just love the little courtyard in the middle of the house. A very nice touch indeed!
Botanic Gardens never fails to deliver when it comes to providing a backdrop of lush beautiful greenery. We were also blessed with good warm lighting which gave a golden touch to the pictures. It was a bit crowded but there were pockets of space to give the privacy and the backdrop.
Paris. City of Romance. Maybe cliched, but nevertheless a most beautiful place for your pre-wedding images.
After an amazing time there last year, we’re planning another trip there in September 2010. September should be a great time, not as crowded as summer, cooler weather and lighting should be great. Exact dates are still on the drawing board but we have kicked started our planning. So if you are considering this, let me know and lets discuss further. Places are limited so sound me out as soon as you can.
The day was the turning point for the weather. Just before there was flooding and rain and now it’s just way too hot to do much. So we had a great weather that day and a great couple to top things off. We had a contingency wet weather programme that involved shooting in the museum but we decided to take the chance and spend the whole day outside. We started the day at Goodwood Park Hotel, and since Rita and Ray were holding their ceremony there next year, we were provided the opportunity to shoot there. Other places we visited were the Henderson Wave, Orchard, Botanic Gardens and Sentosa. Seemed like we had a packed schedule but in reality, with careful scheduling, we had a nice slow time to get the shots we wanted and had plenty of rest in between. We also got lost navigating the escalators in Ion and getting to the places we wanted…..goes to show how much time we spend there!
Took a walk around the Marina Bay Sands construction area scouting out a location for a personal project. Can’t help noticing the beautiful light we had today. Blue skies in one direction, warm light in the other. Amazing. Got even better towards the later part in the evening but I was already in the car, scouting for location. Mental note: Need to spend more time on foot with camera. Not in traffic jam.
This is new to me but probably not for the parents of little kids out there. Jacob Ballas is this huge children’s garden, kinda like a mini theme park for kids of all sizes. It’s Asia’s first children’s garden and a location to shoot Desiree and her family. I met Desiree in 2006 when she was a year old and my she’s grown since then, but she still has that killer smile that melts hearts.
Desiree in 2006
She took about 5 seconds to warm up to me and we walked hand in hand into the park, with her new brother Darius and mom, June and dad, Michael. It rained a bit before the shoot but stopped just before we started and the lighting was great for portraits.
One of my favourite theatre director, Glen Goei’s movie called the Blue Mansion is out in the cinemas now. Why am I so interested in this? Well, I shot Chris and Zinee’s pre-wedding shoot at the same venue, the Cheong Fatt Sze Mansion in Penang, in August 09. The most significant feature of the mansion is the blue walls, and of course the intricate peranakan/european decor and fittings.
I met Glen a couple of years back at a shoot for Silkwinds, the in-flight magazine of Silkair. It was over lunch at the IndoChine. A man with big dreams, that’s what I remembered about him and I’ve been a big fan of his work ever since Forever Fever. A few of the casts are also acting now, in addition to the big names in Singapore and Malaysia theater scene. I think it’s gonna be great.
Finally it’s my turn to be on tv. For those who caught my episode on Channel News Asia today, here are the images that I’ve taken. A few of them were featured in the show. I can count the number of times I shot in the jungle with one hand….most of the time, I’ll be with my trail running shoes and hydration pack, not camera and lenses.
I received a request to conduct a course on portrait photography so if anyone is interested to learn more about this, please let me know. I can start a class once there is a minimum of 4 participants. This will be a more advanced class and will encompass both studio and outdoor photography. Participants will also learn to use studio lights and light modifiers to get the desired effect.
Please contact eulee at:
Mobile: 97616405
Email: eulee@photographybyeulee.com
for more details
Yesterday was a sort of mini olympics for me. Shooting sports like track and field, football, swimming, tennis, basketball, boxing, taekwondo, badminton and table tennis. All in one day but thankfully, all around NUS sports center and the Table Tennis Association in Toa Payoh. The shoot was for Deloitte & Touche who is the official partner for the Youth Olympic Games 2010. The weather was extremely kind to us. The rain stopped just as were to get started and started just as we stopped. And the cloudy day was perfect for outdoor portraits which was what the shoot was about.
Joel helping with the reflector
One of the requirements were that the images selected will be printed as posters so that meant high Mpix and so I chose to shoot with the 5D Mk II. Of course nothing compared with the 1D Mk II in terms of speed but since it wasn’t really a competition and I could get them to repeat their action, that worked quite well. So firing at full 21 Mpix, I ended with nearly 40Gb of images at the end of the day. Some of the shots had to be posed and done in slow motion. The toughest was boxing where we needed to show the boxers sparring but we had only a pair of gloves. It was the most hilarious time to get the right expressions in slow motion, while hiding the fact that only one of them had gloves on! For the boxing and taekwondo shoot, it was in the hall. Well lit but even, a bit too even for my liking so I fired a flash into an umbrella just to add a bit of contrast to the image. It was positioned to accentuate the outdoor lighting into the hall.
Once awhile you come across a picture that puts a smile on your face. This is one of those. We wanted to poke fun at the very cliched couple running on the beach so I suggested they run from the huge waves in Penang, and Chris and Zinee were game. In fact I dare say they enjoyed the whole experience. Wait, maybe Zinee did but Chris? The look on his face….priceless!
Chris and Zinee Pre-Wedding Shoot
This is one whacky, quirky and funny pre-wedding image!
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