Street photography at Petaling Street with Olympus OM-D E-M1 and 45mm (90mm equiv) lens

It was three years then when I had a street photography at Pudu Street for the first time with Robin Wong and friends. Robin is a passionate street photographer and his works have always inspired me.

Early this month on the eve of Hari Raya, Fred made an arrangement with Robin for another street photography session at Petaling Street which he so-called ‘shutter therapy’. Fred, Kenn Wai, Brendon and I was so excited for the gathering and outing.

We met up for yum cha a day before, and Robin who is working with Olympus Malaysia, introduced to us an amazing mirrorless micro four thirds digital camera, the Olympus OM-D E-M1. I was fascinated with its light speed touch-focus-shoot feature, making it a great travelling or photojournalist’s companion. Robin said he would let me play with it on the next day’s session.

Robin who does street photography almost every week planned the outing so well. We started early morning with a yummy breakfast – Hon Kee famous pork intestine porridge and Chee Cheong Fun at Petaling Street. It was a great start for the day. Less crowded in the morning compared to the night especially on the eve of Hari Raya when most people had balik kampung for holiday.

Robin then passed the E-M1 to me. While having my usual Canon 5D Mark II hanging on left shoulder, now I had an Olympus system on the other shoulder. I borrowed the prime 45mm (90mm equiv) lens to use on the E-M1 as I had a ultra-wide angle lens on the Canon system.

Having two different systems on a shooting was challenging. It was like learning to write with both hands. However, the E-M1 didn’t give me much of a problem. Instead it gave much a quicker way to shoot without looking at the viewfinder. Simply looked at the tilt screen, touched the point where I wished to focus and it snapped automatically.

We walked around Petaling Street. From stalls to market, to Chinese temple and Indian temple. I was using E-M1 system more than my own camera. Probably it’s lighter and allowed to quick touch-and-shoot.

Most of the shots in this post were out-of-camera color balance with minor adjustment of brightness, contrast and saturation. The image quality was impressive! I think in street photography or for traveling, the E-M1 is a great companion for the journey.

We spent 1-2 hours exploring Petaling Street and the surrounding area including back alleys and ended the session with coffee session at Lucy In The Sky Cafe. After the session, we had a Japanese lunch at Fahrenheit 88 and we spoke to Robin why not have a sharing talk in Melaka at our studio. Without hesitation, he agreed to come to Melaka.

Many thanks to Robin for taking us around for the street photography session and lending me the Olympus OM-D E-M1. It is a great mirrorless micro four thirds system with lots of awesome functions including its fast touch-and-shoot, live time feature which Robin showed me the day before, allowing real-time result viewing for long exposure shooting, with good image quality! It might be worth while to use it in wedding photography.

We are looking forward to have Robin here in Melaka for a sharing session in street photography or ‘shutter therapy’ soon. Stay tuned for more information.

Sharing some shots taken during the session with the Olympus O-MD E-M1 with the 45mm lens. May all bEE happy.

Robin Wong (left) had his subjects’ consent for a shot

An usie with (from left) Robin Wong, Kenn Wai, Fred Yap, me and Brendon

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Kombi on the street of Melaka town

While assisting my friend Kenn for a product shooting yesterday in the busy town of Melaka, I couldn’t resist capturing the beauty of the street of my own hometown even though I had only my iPad.

Kenn was shooting from morning with our clients Lily and Eunice. We started at the area close to the stage of Jonker Street, then headed to Jonker Street World Heritage Park, the place which has a huge copper-made statue of formal body builder from Melaka, Datuk Wira Gan Boon Leong. There are also a couple of statues of dragon, buffalo, and elephant. Kenn joked that these creatures represents Gan Boon Leong’s pets at his house.

We got a couple of product shots over here, and moved on to Voyage Travellers Lounge. We a break, enjoyed the cozy atmosphere of the cafe and had some refreshing fruit juice.

Kenn then continued his shooting around Lorong Hang Jebat. While taking care of our gears at the cafe for Kenn, I too walked around there and snap some street shots with iPad. I always love this part of the the town which covers Jalan Tukang Besi and Jalan Tukang Emas which we can find many nice guesthouses, cafes and pubs such as Voyage Travellers Lounge and Shantaram Bar, and souvenir shops like the unique Orangutan House. The streets never fail to surprise me for everytime I visit.

Since I came back from Vietnam in early August, I didn’t have time to do street photography. Hopefully after these few months of busy and peak weddings period, I can equip myself with DSLR and return to the street and capture my beautiful town and friendly people on the street.

Please do not forget to help the super Typhoon Haiyan’s victims in Philippines by supporting with some donation to UNICEF, Red Crescent, or Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation. Details of donation to UNICEF can be found on my previous post. Please pray for the victims in Philippines and may the departed souls rest in peace.

Hope you like the shots of Melaka town taken with my iPad and have a good weekend. May all beings bEE happy.

a hot noon after a rainy morning

stranger in town, at Lorong Hang Jebat

Caring Pharmacy of heritage building

fierce regardless of size

unique lamps inside Voyage Travellers Lounge

Orangutan house in fisheyes view

hangover outside Shantaram Bar

a beautiful piece of artwork in Voyage Travellers Lounge

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message of spring

Congratulation to our town Melaka, being among the 45 ‘must-visit’ places in year 2012, as listed by The New York Times!

“With its lantern-lighted canals and silent, narrow streets lined with decades-old ornate temples and shop houses, few places in Southeast Asia conjure romantic images of the past as effectively as Malacca, Malaysia’s oldest city. A former Portuguese, Dutch and British colony, this Unesco World Heritage site is now attracting record numbers of tourists lured by its unusual architecture and cuisine, which reflect centuries of foreign influences.

More than seven million visitors are expected in 2011, so the town, about 90 miles southeast of the capital, Kuala Lumpur, is welcoming new hotels like the Casa del Rio, a Portuguese-inspired luxury boutique property with 66 rooms; and Courtyard@Heeren, a 100-year-old shop house converted into a 14-room hotel. When you’re not exploring places like the 17th-century former Dutch town hall or Jonker Street’s antiques shops, gorge on Malacca’s outstanding local specialties, like creamy, piquant nyonya laksa at the family-run Donald & Lily’s.”

by NAOMI LINDT

It’s a good news for all our dear friends. And we have to help to keep our town the clean, safe, friendly and happening place we all know and love.

Right, keeping the spring’s mood going! Sharing some shots of Melaka. While doing filming with Kenn-Wai and Fred these few weeks for our next coming video, I also collected a series of photos which I hope to deliver the atmosphere of Chinese New Year in town.

These shots were taken in a few location including Jalan Hang Kasturi, Jonker Street, Bemban and Jasin.

Happy Chinese New Year to all and may all beings be happy.

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morning reading at Pudu's street

Last Saturday, I had the pleasure to meet up with Robin Wong and Chun-Chow in Kuala Lumpur together with Fred and Kenn-Wai. It was drizzling early morning when we left Kelana Jaya where we stayed at the place of Kenn-Wai’s sister. However and it turned out to be clear and sunny sky when we arrived at Pudu LRT station. The weather was really unpredictable in KL.

Even though I always took bus from Pudu bus station back to Melaka when I studied in KL, I didn’t know the place well. Robin does so he became our guide that morning. He first brought us to have a delicious Hakka noodle breakfast. As soon as we were done, so called shutter therapy session by Robin had begun.

Robin got us in the alleys, to the dry and wet markets. We were amazed by how lively the area was, and it was full of locals and foreign workers. Though we hardly see tourist over there. Most of the people there were nice even though some might not seem to be. I guess that’s the reason why Robin loved the place so much for street photography. We just discovered the other face of KL. We got to learn from Robin how he approached the crowd and captured the people so close.

Robin and Chun-Chow are experienced street photographer and familiar with the place. They knew exactly when and where to press the shutter. It was just their instinct. Fred, Kenn-Wai and I also tried to get some nice shots of the street but we rather enjoyed our walk with jokes until we reached the wet market at about 11:00 am. We couldn’t stand the strong smell of the market place under the hot sun so we threaded our way through the market quickly.

The photography session was smooth and everyone had fun. we decided to go Bukit Bintang area to take some shots of the Christmas decoration and atmosphere. While making our way to Time Square, we stopped by Pudu Plaza to have a break and share our captures with each other. Everybody gained valuable experience and intuitive knowledge in street photography from others.

May all beings by happy. Share some shots of the Pudu area:

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fortune teller at Jonker Street for anyone

Jonker Walk night market, one of the must-go tourist attraction during the night of Friday, Saturday and Sunday in Melaka. During these nights, the street will be close for motor vehicles from 6:00 pm to midnight and traders will set up their stalls along the street and sell products associated with or reflect the cultural colors such as antique, arts and crafts, souvenirs, local and ethnic traditional food, and much more.

After getting my new gear last month, I’d decided to test the camera at Jonker Street and aimed to capture the life and essence of the street. That Sunday night I was set to Jonker Street alone after having a wonderful dinner with family nearby. On that drizzling Sunday, it was less crowded than usual.

I spent one hour on the street walking and shooting from one end to the other, enjoying a slow walk, assimilating myself into the crowd and behaving like a tourist. It was fun though, everything was like a new discovery. Having visited the street so many times, I still think that the street is full of surprises each time I go.

Sharing the shots I captured. May all beings be happy.

Malacca Teo Chew Association

goat milk and Chinese pastries

Kok Kok candy stall

uncle using a hammer and a wedge to break Kok Kok candy into small pieces

sale

beautiful lighting

hot and spicy

handmade mochi

handicrafts that glow in dark

making selection of the classics

oldies

Chinese traditional cream, to relieve itching

wooden handicafts

dolls

Chinese fans

making Tanghulu, Chinese traditional snack

Jonker Walk, spot for locals and tourists

talking to the monk

fruits flavor tea

trio

street of vibrance

shopping for ladies

"i see you"

teach

Malacca Hokkien Association

little advertisement

"one more song"

T

"1...2...say cheese"

no-sign

leaving the street, thanks to Hock-Hwee for the lift

The post Essence of Jonker night appeared first on juesatta (CJ Photography).

moody evening of Jonker Street

Looking back of old photos sometimes gives us some clue of our development in photography. And early this week, I flashed back the old albums in juesatta and realised that the style of my photography has changed throughout the years. Something I’ve gained and that something is also missing.

I wanted to looking for something that missing…

Two days ago Dylan and I decided to do street photography again. Besides favoring the nostalgic street, we chose Jonker Street again where we did street photography a few times, so that we could know how far we could go when shooting at the same location.

That afternoon when we arrived, I told Dylan, “Let’s forget about what we’ve learnt of photography: composition, exposure, and quality. Put those lesson 101 aside and shoot only what we feel like shooting.”

And Dylan said to me, “Right! Rules are made to be broken.”

Like a wise person once said: if you intend to break a rule you should always learn it first to make sure you’re breaking of it is all the more effective! Then we’d decided to give a go.

Without relying on the decent performance DSLR camera I have, I grabbed my sister’s Panasonic compact camera and we were off searching for the ‘feel’ of street.

Thanks to Dylan for the company and we had so much fun learning together. May all beings be happy.

Outcome of the shooting session:

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junction of Jalan Tokong

Parellel to the famous Jonker Street, there is a street which has three coexisting places of worship: Kampung Kling Mosque, Cheng Hoon Teng Chinese Temple, and Sri Poyyatha Vinayagar Moorthi Hindu Temple. It is Jalan Tokong (tokong means temple in Malay) and also known as the “Street of Harmony” by the locals, showing the harmony amongst the people in Malaysia.

While having a free time this Monday, Kenn-Wai and I decided to do a casual street shooting in the old town of Melaka. We just wanted to shoot for leisure and snap whatever we like on that day, even though we shoot photos always for actual events. We met in Jonker Street and setup our gear before Kenn-Wai suggested to go to Jalan Tokong.

It was drizzling in the afternoon when we started our journey in Jalan Tokong. Most of the shops were about to close then street was getting quiet and occupied with only a few tourists and locals. We spent first half of the session at the junction of Jalan Tokong and Jalan Hang Lekiu waiting for the right subject such as senior citizens and tourists to pass this intersection.

From the junction we could see the three of the places of worship. This was one of the reasons we chose to go Jalan Tokong. Not to mention that the three places of worship, Kampung Kling Mosque, Cheng Hoon Teng Chinese Temple, and Sri Poyyatha Vinayagar Moorthi Hindu Temple are one of the oldest temples and mosque in our country, they are also built along the same street and near to one another.

The area is now predominantly occupied by Chinese though, the presence of the mosque and the Indian temple suggests that this area was once lived by a multi ethnic community that was able to live harmoniously together. Besides, Jalan Tokong is made more thrilling by the Chinese traditional trades. We discovered some Chinese effigy makers and shops that sell red and gold lanterns, paper money and Chinese funerary necessities along the street.

We continued along the street and  took a few shots outside the Kampung Kling Mosque, went into the Cheng Hoon Teng Temple to pay respect and photo-taking, and finally went to the Sri Poyyatha Vinayagar Moorthi Temple which were close for visiting during that time. After an hour of relaxing photo-taking, Kenn Wai had an appointment and had called off the shooting session.

The outing was splendid and allowed both Kenn-Wai and I to realise how far we could go comparing our currents shots with the photos from the last few street shooting in that area. Again, Kenn-Wai taught me a lot of things humbly and benefited me even more.

Thanks to Kenn-Wai for inviting me for the shooting and sharing the experience with him. I am looking for the next outing for street shooting in the near future. May all beings be happy. Share some shots which I took:

Nan-Tong Paper Model Shop

senior citizens relaxing at the temple Cheng Hoon Teng

Guardian Lion of Chinese Temple

a shop for stone sculptures

Street of Harmony

one of the oldest mosques in Malaysia, Kampung Kling Mosque

riding bike on the street

inside one of the oldest Hindu temples in Malaysia, Sri Poyyatha Vinayagar Moorthi Temple

an old shop in Jalan Tokong

rusty ring

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Yih-Shyang (left) and the sunset of Melaka

I received a surprise phone call weeks ago from an old friend, Yih-Shyang from Ipoh. Being my ex-college mate and also my long lost friend, Yih-Shyang got my contact number from my friend, then called me and wished I could be his guide in Melaka.

Since the day we knew each other in college, he always wanted to visit Melaka and promised to come. Nine years of hearing that, finally he came alone from Kuala Lumpur all the way down to Melaka town to meet me and to spend the rest of the day touring around Melaka. I just got to know he is into photography.

Yih-Shyang was getting an angle of a stair in Limau-limau Cafe

It was Monday, the next day after the 50mm shooting with photonians, I was a little bit too sick to do another shooting in Jonker Street again, rather I became a photographer’s photograper, which I took the photos of Yih-Shyang’s most of the time, and helped him to snap his photos with his Nikon D90.

We spent the whole day around Melaka town and enjoyed the local cuisine such as Chaozhou porridge, Chendol, Nyonya zongzi, Nyonya dinner, and others. It was a feeding frenzy with a guy with big appetite like Yih-Shyang. Too, we went to some famous tourist spots  such as Cheng Hoon Teng temple, Clock Tower and The Stadhuys of the Dutch Square Area, Melaka River, and Eye of Malaysia to do our shooting.

That evening before we went for a dinner of delicious Nyonya cuisine, I brought Yih-Shyang to the Eye of Malaysia and did some shooting of Melaka’s amazing sunset. Unfortunately, there was where the battery of my camera went flat before the sun touched the horizon. We however continued to shoot with Yih-Shyang’s camera of the sunset and night views of Melaka. There I learned something of a Nikon’s camera.

After the night shooting, we waved goodbye to each other and Yih-Shyang headed back to Kuala Lumpur. It was a wonderful day to catch up with an old friend, and toured around Melaka which made me feel like a tourist myself in my hometown. Thanks to Yih-Shyang for contacting me and inviting me.

Below are some of the shots I took:

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"Hi there. May I take your order please?"

It had been a while since I had an outing with photonian. Two weeks ago on a Sunday, Max invited me to join a street photography outing at the Jonker Street of Melaka. There were 15 of us taking part in this event and each was required to shoot with only 50mm lens which was a challenge to shoot with a fixed range lens.

Angel Wee (left) and Angela Gan - street photography outing

We started at 4pm, a hot afternoon and spent about 3 hours at Jonker Street and the other streets near to it, such as Tukang Besi Street, Heeren Street, Tokong Street and others. It was amazing and interesting to see how fellow friends could use a variety of different angles of a subject and created unique and creative pictures. Everyone could be a teacher for me.

This photography outing was a great fun experience seeing that we had spent a precious time together and could share our photography experience with each other. Some of the shots I took of the photonians:

Angela Gan in a library at Jonker Street

"Dude, look! Someone's here! Hide!"

the two angels: Angel Wee (left) and Angela Gan

chopsticks with chinese horoscopes

handicraft wooden masks

a window

a cool girl stood at the street

"Caught you stalking, Chau-Kian!"

~dazzling

marriage = handicapped?

little lanterns

a dummy of the Orangutan House at Tukang Besi Street

"Jom! Let's go shooting" (Hanne Lim)

Hanne Lim was shooting traffic signs

Andrew Gan was sharing the shots he took with Hanne Lim

an uncle staying at the Tukang Besi Street was reading a Chinese newspaper

Fred in the bush

after squabble: Angel Wee (left) and Angela Gan

Chinese offerings in a shop at Tokong Street

Paper-man, a decoration of paper offerings

souvenir magnets of traditional Chinese clogs

souvenir magnets of Chinese opera masks

picture of a flower of clogs which Angel Wee took

white beard friendly uncle sitting at Jonker Street

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