:::

Some picked of my fav Xmas songs, maybe same songs by different Artist ... This year I think started abit late for Xmas songs ... anyway ... :

jingle Bells: A very nice Jazz Version

All I want for Xmas, is You : Mariah Carey




The Christmas Song: Nat King Cole




Michael Bublé - White Christmas




聖誕樹 : 麥兜





Merry Christmas ~~~~

Well ... been busy busy busy funding for my camera bag ... Share with you guys what I have be doing for the passed month ...


Andrew's Wedding, thanks to Lei for recommending me to Ivan then recommend to Andrew .. Thanks !

In between is Eric's wedding, thanks Sandy for recommendation ~~~

After so long of wishing, dreaming, working hard ...

Will out it in action next coming weekend for a wedding shoot for Alvin in Pahang. Let's see how's the result....

Huh .... Take some time off office work and get my blog updated, enuff of people bugging me already, I am serious ...

Last week has been a hectic and rushful week for me, so rush that I think it's more than a-month-of-workload compare to my Jun~Sept schedule ... Come, let's see how rush it is ...

05.12.08 - Friday
. Andrew's Wedding Day shoot - 6AM~ 4PM.
. Japanese Food Menu shoot - 4:45PM~5:30PM.
. Kenny's company dinner shoot - 630PM~11PM.
. Get packed for next day journey to Singapore.

06.12.08 - Saturday
. Bus took off at 10AM, take rest and filtering shoots on the bus, and sleep awhile.
. Reach Singapore at 4:15PM, buy a PrePaid SingTel, call everyone .
. Meet uncle for dinner till 8PM
. Meet Eric with Chris and Sandy for final briefing on Eric's wedding program.

07.12.08 - Sunday - Eric's Big Day
. Reach Hotel and start shooting ... - 6AM ~ 2:30PM.
. Short Break in Starbucks, prepare slideshow. - till 5PM.
. Get my clips transfer to a Windows XP Laptop - Almost forever, yes, I still have Windows.
. Cocktail till Dinner ends, then supper and a few cans with Eric till Midnight.
. Reach my Uncle's place around 1:30AM, fast fast sleep liao loh ... Tired almost dying ...

08.12.08 - Monday
. Woke up 7AM, get myself to CleMenTi to meet SeeFei.
. Breakfast with SeeFei and he kindly send me to Vivo City. - 8AM ~930AM
. 10AM. On the Bus, filter and edit pictures for Andrews wedding dinner, right after I reached KL.
. 4PM. Reached 1U and spend RM9 for Taxi, just less than 10mins ride.
. 630PM. Reached Federal Hotel and start shooting till 11PM.

I really Wish Santa Claus can give me a big present for Xmas ... I have been working hard ler, and I promise I will keep it that way ... : )

December 2008 Schedule:

5th:
: Andrew's Wedding in the Morning.
: Kenny's Company at Night.

6th:
: Reaching Singapore at 1PM.

7th:
: Eric's Wedding. Whole day.

8th:
: Andrew's Wedding Dinner.

13th:
: Photokaki 4th Anniversary gathering

21th:
: Alvin's Wedding. Whole Day.

25th:
: Xmas !!! Dinner With my Love one.

27th~28th:
: Maybe some Model shoots.

Busy .....

Shopping list:
. 1TB HDD, getting this afternoon.
. Ikea office Table and Chair, before December.
. Nikkor 70-200VR, right after collect pending payment.
. New phone, if I have left over from payment...

Maybe a Credit Card ... Maybe ... Those things of the shelf are just toooooo tempting ... kekekeke

Had a great chat with a friend over MSN days ago, about "Shooting what we want and shooting what the clients want".

Sometimes I get compliments on pictures, but at the same time the picture might not fit other's taste ... If can be very extreme such as .. " Wow !!! Great Job AhTak !!! I love the shoot !! " or " Hmm ... the picture not nice ler, just my 2cent " ....

But ofcoz all the comments means alot to me, coz from there I know what I should keep and what I should pay extra attention to. So guys, keep my comments area filled up ~~~ !!!

PS: Had a shoot last night, enjoy ~~~

Oh, so busy ...
Oh, so tired ...
Oh, so filled ...
Oh, so happy ...
Oh, so can't wait already ...

Been really bust for the passed since I last update, soon will be more busy in Dec, will be going around where and there for wedding jobs and some event jobs ... wish me luck on Xmas present for myself ~

Picture taken when I as on the way to Sepang last Sunday, 7AM. A fun job to take as I have the chance to look at so many 'Expensive' cars and have the opportunity to have a Lap in Sepang, with a Pro racer driving an E230 Avangrade.

Ofcoz enjoyed myself while standing under the hot hot sun to document the event ... and some Panning Shoot.

>

Looks cool ~~~ Hasn't been 'using' anything other than Mac for years ... let's see ....

Was shooting for Elaine's Charity Concert in Genting last Sunday. First time shooting concert with a super heavy lens ( Thanks my friend for the lens, a AF-S 300mm f2.8 ), so .....

And her name is Elain Kang, not Kong as put in the picture, got the PS Action wrong and forgot to update ... Please forgive my stupid mistake.

Really enjoyed the show both shooting and the songs. I even almost forgot to take picture while she is singing '一樣的月光‘!

Good News for Sabahan !!!

Since both MAS and AirAsia are doing LowRate AirFare from KL <-> KK. I take the chance to do a GREAT Promotion only for Sabahan. Really feel like go back for some shoot and get to releks abit...

Click on the following for more info !

Still remember the first Wedding I ever documented after I have my D70 is my Friend's Sister's Wedding. Not too long after I got the SLR and Flash. Then my friend ask me if it's ok to be the Photographer for his sister's Wedding, ofcoz no problem lah ! Since I can be there and help out, also can practice a little bit of Wedding Photography. I have asked my friend to get some Pro to document the stuff, coz I dun want to ruin the Wedding by having lousy pictures for the couple's Memory, but ... :" Aiyah, you take good enuff lah, Photographer very Expensive lah ~~~" Well, what can I say ?

Anyway ...

I thought it was easy, but I swear, it's not as easy as you and I have thought. Just bring camera and shoot shot here and there ? No ..... Hell no ... Carrying all the Gears running around for nice angles, got to push all the other friends or relatives that also want to document the wedding with Point and Shoot Camera, got to think very hard about lighting, to flash or not to flash, got to always be around the couples to capture those face expressions, laughters, sweet smiles, and capture all the attendees as well. Oh Yah, not forgetting to gather and arrange everyone for that 'oh-so-boring' group picture. It's Not Easy ...

But I was enjoying the whole thing ~

Why don't ask your friends or relatives that have a SLR to Photograph? Why pay for Pro ? Let me tell you why...

Your Friend or Relatives also want to enjoy the Wedding Ceremony, if he is carrying his camera around, he/she won't be enjoying it AT ALL. As like me, I dun even have time to smoke during Morning session, and no chance to eat during Wedding dinner, let alone ' Enjoy ' the Wedding. You dun want your friend half way eating then you go and ask him stop, and go take picture for you and other friends, or half way eating then need to stop and prepare/wait for your March-In right? I guess you yourself won't be happy if someone else do that to you right ? Give RM200 to attend a Wedding, then have no time to eat the food and drink, also have to run Up and Down Here and There to take picture for everyone. He/She won't say no if you ask for favor, but have you thought about what Friend is all about ? Making use of his Passion and Talent ?

Picture Quality is another thing. I don't think Friend/Relatives will bring Full Gear to attend your wedding, or maybe his full gear cost lest than 1 piece of Pro lens that a Fulltime Photographer have. I saw some newbies even bring Entry Level Camera and Budget Lens for paid job, WTF ? Let me show you the difference...

Fulltime Photographer:
D300 or D700 or D3, staring from RM5500 .
Nikkor 17-55 or Nikkor 24-70 , around RM5500.
Nikkor 80-200 or 70-200, starting RM3500.
SB800 or SB900, starting from RM1500.

Cheapest Setup for Fulltime Photographer: RM12,500 worth of gear.


Newbies/Beginner/Friend/Relative:
D40/D80/D90 , starting from RM1899.
Kit Lens that comes with the camere. FOC.
Might not even have external Flash ...

So you might have a Photographer with RM1899 worth of gear.

I let you do the compare. RM12,500 VS RM1899 .


Some might say :" Camera Not Important mah, Skill more important ~ "
I must agree with the above statement. But how to shoot in Low Light condition ( indoor/dinner ) if the ISO control no good ? How to bounce Flash for softlight so Face Oil dun come out ? How to create shallow DOF for Creative/Mood Shoot ? WB not correct and everyone come out either Strawberry/Orange/Banana color on the face ? Ofcoz skills are more important than Gears. But you think Pro spend so much on Pro Gears coz they are loaded or Crazy ? It's for the Quality. It's like Driving Kancil and Driving BMW, you tell me skill more important lah ~

Anyone also can be photographer, just bring RM1899 to a camera store and RM50 to print name cards, done ~

Don't feel bad ok ? I don't mean to offense anyone. Let's go shooting !!! Yay !!!

Let's see ... here will the Jobs Booked so far,

2008:-
7~9 Nov : Mercedes Event in Sepang.
15 Nov : Joe's Wedding in Kampar.
7 Dec : Eric's Wedding in Singapore
20 Dec : Alvin's Wedding in Pahang

2009:-
11 Jan : Xiao Min's Wedding in Singapore, but hasn't confirmed. :(
16 Jan : Anne's Wedding in KL.
XX Mar : Carmen's Brother's Wedding in KL

Thanks to everyone who have recommended me to their friend's, relatives, colleagues as Wedding Photographer and am so Glad that most of them do like my pictures. Just incase you all forgot or dunno yet, I DO Shoot for Wedding, at very reasonable pricing ~ Please let more of your friends or relatives or colleagues know about me ok ?



Pictures are updated in my site from time to time, job to job, will really appreciate all the recommendation.

Also ah, am thinking about giving out Personal Portraits Photography Services. What do you guys think ah ? About market, pricing, what should be in the package or stuff, coz I really no idea how to do it.

Well ... Time for some wishlist/To-Buy list ...

1. WD MyBook Essential.
Only complain I have for the new camera I just got is the filesize of the RAW files. Used to be merely 5MB per files for now 14MB per RAW. Simple calculation.

D70s :
5MB x 2500 = 12,500 = 12.5GB

D300 :
14MB X 2500 = 35,000 = 35GB

*roughly 2500 pictures per wedding, can be more sometimes*

I only shoot RAW for all the wedding jobs. Why ? Coz RAW have more flexibility on post- processing, which can be done in batch like, WB tuning, color toning, noise reduction. Mistakes are not avoidable and that's why I shoot in RAW, just in case any mistake done. All the RAW files will be organized in Folders and saved in HDD or DVD depends on how long the Wedding have pasted. 6 months will still be in HDD, coz I might need the files for website. After that will be in DVD, just in case I have clumsy client that might misplace the DVD or CD with ALL their sweet memories inside.


2. Lacie d2 DVD±RW with LightScribe.

After 6 months or so, the RAW files will be transfered to DVD. Organized by Folder and Names. But using my MBP's DVD burner is not a good choice, as if I spoiled the DVD ROM, that will RM899 just to replace the ROM, and it's alot slower than External Burner anyway. That's where Lacie join the Team. 20X Double Layer bla bla bla .... I just want to use it to burn DVD, with a bit faster speed than my MBP, and it definitely looks better than Low Yat self assemble type.

3. Nikkor AF-S VR 70-200mm f/2.8G IF-ED .

Tada ~~~ Mid range zoom lens that will be replacing the Tamron 70-300 that I've been using for years, and why ? Becoz the range is just nice for some candid shoots during wedding, walking around and snap from far. I always want to do that with Tamrom 70-300, but by the time it get in Focus, the 'target' dunno go where already, trust me, the focusing is THAT slow. also the constant f2.8 and VR will help alot while I am indoor or low light condition, or sometimes when Flash is not an option. Another Plus will be, Razor Sharp thru out the zoom range from 70mm ~ 200mm, should be nice for some Portraits as well.


4. Nikon D700.
This is the Mid Range Pro FX SLR that Nikon have just announced not too long ago. You may ask " Why ? Your D300 not good enuff ? ". But seriously guys, Kancil also good enuff for getting your from Point A to Point B, why want want a BWM ??
Read more about DX vs FX .
My reason/excuse for a D700 will be FX Bokeh, ISO performance, more accurate WB and it looks more PRO.

5. Nikkor AF 85mm f/1.4D IF .
This is the Oh-So-Famous portrait lens for Nikon users. Why ? Coz it's Razor Sharp and the bokeh for f1.4 @ 85mm is no joke, once you tired, I'm sure you'll dream about it everynight. Getting this only when I have the D700 coz 85mm is too long to use with D300, where it's 85 x 1.5 ( DX crop factor ) = 127mm, just too damm long for my shooting style. Well, got to wait abit then ~



List is too long and soooooo expensive ... I even scared myself by looking at it. It would be nice if your guys can help abit on my Buying list, not by giving me cash ofcoz, just recommend me to your friends that are getting Married soon and that's a really big help to me. You know where to find me if you have jobs for me right ? kekekek.

Since few months ago I have been receiving stupid MSG like these thru MSN every 2~3 minutes ...

. If you are promoting CHEAP INTERNET SEX, go somewhere else ...
. If you are using Virus infected Windowx, please clean it or Trash it ...
. If you dunno what I am talking bout, try install some MSN Virus to your computer ( not valid for Mac users ).

It's all about luck, being in the right circle, right place and meet the right people.
Then you can get as many contacts and jobs as you want ...
Not just Pricing, Service, Quality ... Luck, which I'm really lack off lately ...

Did a simple shoot for CarCar when she had a weekend back in KL last week.

Please go to her blog to see more pictures ~~ kekekeke

Apple have just announced some new ' Look ' on the Laptop line up ... 2 words: Ugly, Stupid .

1.Glossy Display, that sucks for Photographer.
How to editing picture with a reflection on the screen, and constantly changing of contrast when you move the laptop or move yourself ... Glossy Display, sucks big time ...

2. Share Display Memory on MacBook Pro.
They say there's 2 GPU on the new display, so what ? If were to run Photoshop or Final Cut Pro at full speed, where to get RAM to Share ? Ofcoz there's an option if you are willing to pay more for a Dedicated Display Card on the Top End Macbook Pro. I think that also means Dedicated Display Card are still the best choice for performance too.

3. I thought it was a Sony !?
Don't you just have the same thought like me ? Why the design so Sony one ? What happened to the Minimalist ? What is that Black Frame ? What is that Black Keyboard ? Steve, you think it's funny ?

4. No more FW400.
So, what am I doing to do with all those FW400 HDD lying around on my table ? Use USB Port on the casing ? You must be kidding me .....


But good thing also the Macbook Pro are so ugly, so I won't have the thought of getting a New Designed Macbook Pro that's not very much faster than the one I am using now, which also looks ALOT MORE UGLY than the older models. I can spend more time looking at lens and camera, ofcoz Wedding Ring.

First I got to congrats myself, for a Brand New D300 in my camera bag ... YAY !!!!!

So got new cam ofcoz need to test drive abit ...

Taken at ISO800, no NR




Taken at ISO1600, no NR

Really amazed to the High ISO performance of the D300, ofcoz you can get even better results with a D700 or D3, but considering the Price of that 2 Cameras, I'm not worthy, at least I have 3~4 jobs per month, then I may consider. Now have to really work harder with my new partner for better pictures, and ofcoz to get more jobs.

And for the Mah Latt Lous ...














Any new camera also must test drive with leng lui pictures .... kekekeke

Been shooting abit lately for both jobs and personal shootings ler. Here and there, bit by bit learning some new things from time to time ... comes lets share abit with you guys ...

Pauline ...

Renee ...





Marina ...





Kelly.C




There's more in my Flickr site, please go there for more pictures.



I'm thinking ... Am I reaching my limit, or issit my camera ...

How's your weeekend ? Mine has been packed with shootings. But Feels great, can do what I love to do and get paid for that. What else can I ask for ?

Will post some pictures up when finish editing them ~

Share share with you all my FAV 3 shoots from Wendy's wedding ..... All the Best to Dennis and Wendy, also inviting me to document her wedding ~

Last weekend was packed with shootings, both Wedding jobs and model shoot too. Very tiring ...

But photography is fun, isn't ?

Haven't been updating since ... dunno when already, how's days ? Mine been really busy shooting around.

Shooting for Onsen Japanese Restaurant in Kota Damansara,

and eat up all the food after shooting ... kekekeke.

Raymond & Irene's ROM ( Register on Marriage ), Crown Plaza KL ...








My SB600 decided to die on me. Have sound indicating charge and firing, but no light come out. Sent in for warranty and the shop told me dunno how long it would take. And from my previous experience , at least 2~3 weeks which I can't afford to wait coz I have a wedding job coming this weekend. No choice other than getting a new flash, but since I dun want to have the same old SB600 than can be spoiled so easily, and abit of cash in hand. I got a SB900. The latest most advanced Flash unit on earth !!! Wah kakakakaka. And after my SB600 come back from warranty I will have 2 Flashes to play with, Yay !!!

Well. Got new toys also means I need more jobs to cover up the hole in my wallet loh. Got another last minute job...















For a Beauty Center and a Food Court that belongs to the same owner of the Onsen Japanese Restaurant. Neat ~ Just in time to fill up the big hole in my wallet...

Also ... been shooting some small stuffs and editing some old pictures ( finally ) ... Such as:

Alicia and Chris.







Also Toy shooting in MidNight... kekekeke








Coming weekend also packed with jobs ler. 13~14th will be Wedding Day for Wendy, 14th afternoon a model shoot with Lydia after Wendy's wedding, 20th shooting for Onsen again, 21st Kenny's ROM .... Fhew ..... I need more jobs. I need new camera and new lens, I need more money, seriously .....