Lino print cards

Worked on some lino cuts to print out some greeting cards which I have put up for sale in my Etsy store. 

Bead it.

Ever felt like you just couldn't find any accessories that you liked, or were close to what you wanted but not quite the right color or design? I had been keeping an eye on some faceted bead necklaces on etsy, but the colors were always not to my liking. So I made my own necklaces with beads I had laying around. I'm so happy with my pigeon necklace. :)

I can never go to an art or craft store and NOT buy anything. It could be something small and to just have that power to purchase something, will always feel good. I also have a tendency to hoard supplies and materials but then, what's new, right? I have an old biscuit tin filled with beads that I've purchased when I was 15. At that age, I spent my allowance in bead bars and went through a hippie phase wearing those long hippie multi-colored beads which I guess I should revive and wear out again. 

Necklaces are still being made and  should be available in my Etsy store by end of July. :)

New panels shot at Istana Woodneuk

Off the beaten track - Istana Woodneuk/Tyersall

Old places always intrigue me, especially in a country like Singapore that is constantly changing and developing. The greens of nature quickly being replaced by the greys of urbanization. When time permits, I'd jump at any chance to explore the hidden gems of the city, and its usually gritty. 

Istana Woodneuk (I've been calling it the Tyersall house for ever, until recently I read that Istana Tyersall was situated near Woodneuk but torn down many years ago.) was once a beautiful grand palace (click to see how it looked like in its hey day) and it has over the years crumbled but has stubbornly stood its ground. I first visited the place in 2007 (and visited a second time a few months later) with my friends to conduct a photoshoot and by then the roof had already caved in and the broken tiles lay strewn all over the second floor, and the steps of the grand staircase had also caved but was haphazardly covered with planks for access to the second floor. 

So when I came across some photos on facebook that a friend of mine took of the place,  I felt compelled to visit again. Surprised yet glad though that it was still standing. The only bad thing was that the only way in was through the jungle(eeep!!!). Adventure time! 

Brush

They say practice makes perfect but I am nowhere near yet. I've always wanted to try brush painting, especially since I've been doing hand lettering. It's always a challenge to do something new. There's trying to learn the basics and there's also trying to break away from what you're comfortable with. I'm perfectly fine with a pencil and its easier to control, but that's only cos writing with a pen/pencil is one of the first basic skills you learn growing up. So to pick up a brush to write is an entirely different skill altogether. So a few days ago, I tried and today I decided to try again. Especially since I came across a relatively new hand lettering tutorials site. 

I reworked the above, scanned and traced and painted it on a panel for future works. 

Panel from Long Bien.

It seems I forgot to upload this previously. Shot this panel from Long Bien Bridge, Hanoi. I have to say I was very uneasy walking the bridge. Thousands of motorcycles cross this bridge everyday, and it wasn't the rumble beneath my feet that terrified me. It was more so the concrete slabs on which we walked on that had gaps between each slab, gaps that allowed you to see what was beneath the bridge, which was basically a far drop below. It's possible I have issues with heights but more so when the fear is of the ground giving way. So anyway, I was anxious and nervous and at first didn't want to walk far into the middle of the bridge which would be over the river. But inner arguments had me debating that I would never come back here again and so I should bloody do it and shoot a panel or two. 

The panel above was shot with the iphone. 

Marni's smile.

Hung out with Marni today. She's been pretty smiley lately cos she just got engaged. Top two photos shot with the Ricoh and last shot with the iPhone. 

Shidah in red.

Kinda overdue. I shot Shidah back in 2011. Didn't get round to uploading these. Even though, we've been friends a long time and sometimes, I feel that when I'm behind the camera I become a stranger and so it took awhile for her to get comfortable infront of it, but after she was more relaxed, it got easier. 

3 panels and a stencil project

Top image: shot in Singapore.
2nd & last image: shot in Halong Bay, Vietnam
3rd image: shot in Hanoi from Long Bien Bridge, Vietnam.

Ricoh.

A few days ago, I purchased a third hand Ricoh GRD III from a friend. I had been looking for a decent inexpensive compact camera for awhile now. And when I saw that he was selling his for a really good price, I just had to jump on it. My brother had a Ricoh GR few years ago but lost it and I really liked using it then and so I'm pretty glad I have one now. 

I'm not one to get excited every time a new camera model comes out. Someone once said "An expensive camera doesn't make you a good photographer." And neither does owning a DSLR make you a photographer. And for years, even when I had my photography blog (ten years or so ago : quietcore dot org) and shot shows and constantly photographed my friends, or even when I worked as a professional photographer at a studio for 3 years and freelanced for another 5 years, did I ever claim I was good. I shoot what I like and if I like what I see and have shot and post it online and if someone else likes it, then yay to me. I was not so much into the technicality of it. Once, when I had to give a  talk with my fellow photography peers about Music photography, I did say that how I shot sometimes depended on how I felt, it was more an emotional connection for me. When shooting shows, I lived off the energies of the bands. If it was a hardcore or punkrock band, then theres more action and adrenaline to it. Photography to me has always been an outlet of expression and most of all, a means of documenting my life and the people in it. It should be said though that I wouldn't mind a better DSLR, but I like something convenient and easy to carry around which is why I've had the D40 for awhile now, and even better now that I have the Ricoh. 

The picture above was shot last night (June 2, 2013). I was supposed to watching Polyester Embassy from Bandung, Indonesia and got distracted by the lightning.

Hanoi from the iPhone.

Hanoi from the Nikon

Hanoi was chaotic. Chaotic in the sense that there was so much going on. So much life and activity on every corner and every turn. Traffic in itself was entertaining in itself, just to watch the intersection from a high floor was filled with drama and suspense. I didn't enjoy it as much as I did Hong Kong or Bandung, but I guess that is due to the language barrier with reference to road signs and we got abit lost a few times. It's not a backward place, it still has its charm and you woulnd't see the french influenced architecture unless you looked up, cos ground level is just crazy. Free wi-fi is readily available at pretty much every cafe or restaurant. A side note though, if you're on the M1 network, it is best to check if they offer a data roaming plan. Cos once we got lost away trying to find a cat cafe(yeah, I know) from the main city and our map didn't cover the area, I got on my google map and did google searches to get our bearings and later got a text from M1 saying I had already amassed a $100 charge from data roaming. Their promo when I was in HK or KL, was usually capped at $18/day but I later found out that they did not have any telco partners in the area, so boohoo...

But anyway...

Needless to say, we walked a hell lot and it was hot and we did venture out of the city to Halong Bay which was beautiful but bearing in mind, there will be hundreds of other tour cruises around and so you  might have to bump your way to the front to get a perfect picture. We went on a Monday and it wasn't that bad. I can't imagine how a weekend would be like though.