2015 Review

Well once again another year has gone so let's look back at the fond memories of this year with 12 key photos that encapsulate some of the best moments.

Photo 1

It was a poignant Chinese New Year celebration this year as the family gathered together in late february as my wife's mother sadly passed away a matter of 3 months after this photo was taken. This family photograph with everyone dressed in red will be forever a lasting memory for everyone.

Photo 2

In March we made a trip to Bangkok and Hua Hin in Thailand to visit our friends Rick and Bee. We had a memorable trip to the Hua Hin Hills Winery, arriving for lunch and staying on for dinner and jazz and taking time to make our own customised wine bottle label.

Photo 3

In April my wife's daughter Tsun Yee was celbrating her 30th Birthday so we managed to arrange a surprise "New York Style" party and invited all her friends to participate. A great evening was enjoyed by all.

Photo 4

In May we headed back to UK for a brief stop in London before flying to Copenhagen to catch our Baltic cruise. It was great to visit all the city centre sights early in the morning after we flew in to London as we recovered from our jetlag.

Photo 5

We did a 12 day Baltic cruise in May starting in Copenhagen and taking in Kiel, Tallin, St. Petersburg, Helsinki, Stockholm, Warnemunde and returning to Copenhagen. One of the highlights was seeing the magnificent buildings, art and architecture in St. Petersburg. This image is the inside of the incredible Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood.

Photo 6

We stayed over in Copenhagen after the cruise and managed to see many of the sites of this wonderful city. This image shows the Nyhavn waterfront area which had some great restaurants.

Photo 7

Following our Baltic Cruise we returned to UK and spent a few days in Devon at the seasdide town of Ilfracombe. This image shows the town taken from Hillsborough.

Photo 8
My son Christopher got married to Tamsin in Oxford in early June. The wedding was wonderful and held at the historic Rhodes House which is part of Oxford University with a reception after the event at the Cherwell Boathouse.

Photo 9
My son and his new wife Tamsin and son Ruben came out to Malaysia to visit directly after the wedding so it was great to have my grandson here. This photo of him sums up his charismatic character as he made friends with everyone he met, particularly the Asian ladies we noted!

Photo 10

Having thought my offshore days were over I had the opportunity to do a photo shoot for a friend who ran an oil company based here in Malaysia - so I had a nostalgic helicopter trip to two floating production platforms doing many aerial shots as well as photos taken on the platforms.

Photo 11

We escaped the haze that was engulfing Malaysia in November and sneaked away to Western Australia for a very relaxing stay in Dunsborough followed by a few days in Perth staying with friends. We had the opportunity for some great walks along the stunning coastline, this image shows the Sugar Loaf Rock on the Cape Naturaliste peninsula, as well as sampling some great local food and wine.

Photo 12

As a Christmas treat we headed off to Hong Kong and Macau for a few days. It was great to see this vibrant city after so many years and despite all the modern buildings which have mushroomed on Hong Kong island the classic old trams were still there as shown in this image.

Best of 2013

With 2013 almost at a close it is time to look back and reflect on some of the key photographic moments of the year. It was a busy year indeed on the travelling front with 4 major trips to Cambodia, Nepal, Europe and China.

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At the start of the year I was involved in an interesting photo assignment for a property development company who had major investments in Kuala Lumpur and in particular in the Mont' Kiara area. I prepared a portfolio of images of the Mont' Kiara area to highlight all the key facilities such as schools, shopping centres and sporting facilities as well as photographing the properties themselves. This image is a large panoramic view taken from the roof of a property in Mont' Kiara looking over the Kuala Lumpur skyline.

Kuala Lumpur skyline from Mont' Kiara

In February we headed back to Cambodia staying in Siem Reap and this time visiting some of the more remote temples. One of the temples I had always wanted to visit was Preah Vihear which sits right on the border with Thailand in the north and has been in a border disputed area for some time. This magnificent temple sits on top of a large cliff and has a commanding view over north Cambodia and Thailand. More pictures can be seen here.

Preah Vihear, Cambodia

Malaysia has always been known for tin mining and one of the last few tin dredges (TT5) sits close to Tanjong Tualang just south of Ipoh. I made a visit here to capture this incredible piece of machinery. More pictures can be seen here.

Tin Dredge TT5, Tanjong Tualang, Perak

As part of an online video series on photography called "Behind The Lens" by Peter Tan we did one of the video shoots at a favourite lookout point in Damansara Heights overlooking the city of Kuala Lumpur. This is one of the images I captured at this location.

Kuala Lumpur skyline from Damansara Heights

In March it was off to Nepal to trek up the Everest Base Camp Trail from Lukla to as far as Tengboche. After a hair-raising flight from Kathmandu to Lukla it was a 4 day trek up through incredible scenery to Tengboche and then a 3 day trek back down. The views of the Himalayan mountains including Mount Everest as pictured below were just breath taking and worth all the effort of the trek. More photos can be seen here.

Mount Everest from the trail from Namche Bazaar to Tengboche

Kathmandu was a very interesting place to visit and after the trek up to Tengboche we had a few days there to explore. Boudhanath is one of the holiest Buddhist sites, full of interesting sights, sounds and smells as hundreds of worshippers visit and circle around the giant structure. More photos can be seen here.

Boudhanath, Kathmandu

In June we made our annual pilgrimage back to UK and took a visit to the historical city of York for a few days. Clifford's Tower as shown here is part of the York Castle complex. More photos can be seen here.

Clifford's Tower, York

Directly following the trip to UK we headed off to Italy and embarked on a 12 day Mediterranean cruise from Venice, covering Split and Dubrovnik (Croatia), Corfu (Greece), Naples, Civitavecchia, and Livorno (Italy), Monte Carlo (Monaco), Marseille (France)  and finishing in Barcelona (Spain). This was really a wonderful trip and the quality of the cruise could not be criticised. The view below is taken as we left Venice. More pictures can be seen here.

Venice taken from the deck of the ms Nieuw Amsterdam on the Grand Canal

Our good friends Paul and Lindsey left KL for Dubai in July so they hosted a great party with a Black & White theme. She asked me to do the photography so naturally this was done in black & white. 

Paul & Lindsey's "Black & White" Party

In August we returned to Ipoh for a weekend to stay at our favourite spot, Indulgence Restaurant & Living managed and run by the great chef, Julie Song. The food was as ever wonderful and the rooms in the small boutique hotel very comfortable. More photos can be seen here.

Indulgence Restaurant & Living, Ipoh

September was a time to celebrate my wife's birthday and as usual she likes to record this in a photograph taken at home as we toasted here a Happy Birthday.

Happy Birthday Suit Yoo

In October we went on a 12 day tour of China flying to Chengdu then on up to Juzhaigou for a few days. We then flew back to Chengdu and spent a few days in that area, flew to Guilin and completed the trip by taking a cruise from Guilin down to Hangshuo. The scenery, particularly in Juizhaigou was incredible with all the autumn colours of the trees and contrasted by the magnificent clear waters of the lakes. More photos can be seen here. 

Long Lake, Jiuzhaigou, China

12 of The Best from 2012

It's almost the end of the year and time to look back at some of the key events and best photographs captured during the year. It's always difficult to pick out a few photographs from the many hundreds (or possibly thousands) taken during 2012 but here is a selection of the 12 key images which inspired me.

Two To Tango

A tango evening in February was a great opportunity to try and capture this sensual dance. There were a number of professional tango dancers who had flown into KL for this Tango Festival and it was so inspiring to see this wonderful dance ... and of course the music was great too.

Bukit Nanas Heritage Mansions

My interest in old heritage buildings took me to the rundown row of old mansion houses on Jalan Tun Razak in KL. I used to look out over these buildings from an office many years ago and it's been in the back of my mind to capture these before they disappear for good. In their day these buildings probably represented the elite of down-town accommodation but sadly these buildings are now crumbling away and will probably disappear for good due to re-development.

Twin Towers

I have been in KL for over 20 years now and have seen the tremendous developments to the city. None more so than when the magnificent Petronas Twin Towers were built and the subsequent development of the central city area around this site. I wanted to capture a picture of the towers so early one Sunday morning in early April I headed to town and took a number of images using a tilt-shift lens which allowed me to merge multiple frames into a larger panorama without the usual sloping distortion you get when using a wide angle lens on a tall building.

Emperor Jade Pagoda

In May I was in Ho Chi Minh in Vietnam on business but managed to fit in a visit to the Emperor Jade Pagoda on the recommendation of Peter Stuckings a professional photographer who now lives in Ho Chi Minh. This pagoda is very traditional and if visiting when the light is right you can experience these wonderful rays of light coming in through the slatted wooden roof and creating long beams due to the incense smoke. I was luck to visit during a ceremony so there was also some atmospheric chanting and singing to augment the visual feast.

The Long and Winding Road to the Lakes

I usually return to UK once a year and this year took the opportunity to make a trip to the Lake District in Cumbria, North England. The scenery here is beautiful with rolling hills and many lakes providing were numerous photo opportunities in this region.

Bordeaux Châteaux

After the UK trip I had the opportunity to visit the Bordeaux area of south west France where there are many world acclaimed vineyards. This picture shows the famous Margaux vineyard. To be expected during a trip like this there was much eating and drinking to sample all the local delicacies.

Dinosaurs in Paris

No trip to France would be complete without a few days in the capital, Paris. I always enjoy this city with its magnificent architecture, museums and history as well of course as being able to eat some fantastic French food. This photo was taken inside the Museum of Natural History situated in the Jardin des Plantes.

Lost Legacy

My interest in heritage buildings came to fruition in September when I had the chance to display a set of photographs at the Guerrilla Photo Exhibition at Avenue K Shopping Centre in KL. My exhibition was titled "Lost Legacy" and highlighted the disappearance of many of the prime heritage buildings which exemplify the unique architectural style of Malaysia.

The Red Umbrella

An urbex outing in central KL uncovered this gem of an old house left abandoned right in the centre of the city. The old house was in ruins and inhabited by many bats and this old red umbrella left on the floor created a great shot - an HDR image converted to black and white then the colour restored to the red umbrella for effect.

Take Me To The River

This was a small project I did to focus on the two major rivers that flow through KL, the Klang River and the Gombak River. The two rivers are still polluted although somewhat better now than many years ago

Rice Bowl of Bali

In September we returned yet again to Bali, one of our favourite spots in S.E. Asia. We stayed in Ubud and took a nostalgic walk through the rice paddy fields which we had done 6 years before. There are always some great photo opportunities her and when I came across this old man working in the fields I couldn't resist a portrait highlighting his skinny but fit body against the wonderful rich colours of the rice fields in the background.

The Roof of Borneo

In October I finally achieved a long ambition to climb Mount Kinabalu in Sabah. It was a tough climb over two days but rewarded with some stunning photos. The above South Peak really stands out against the clouds in the background and in my view is a lot more impressive than Low's Peak which is the tallest peak.

SilverEfexPro 2 - Initial Review

I have been using SilverEfexPro now for some time and have been very impressed by it's capabilities and performance so when Nik Software announced they were releasing SilverEfexPro 2 I was on their pre-order waiting list immediately. It was released just a few days ago and I have done some initial tests of the new features which are summarised below:

1. Intuitive History Browser
2. Structure and Fine Structure
3. Soft Contrast
4. GPU Processing
5. Dynamic Brightness
6. Natural Image Borders
7. Specially Developed Algorithms
8. Amplify Black and Whites
9. Selective Colour

The above image, which is another early morning photo taken at Putrajaya, was really a quick test image where I tried out some of the new features including the very useful selective colour feature. I was pleased with the added control on tonality and structure and the border feature is a welcome addition for finishing your print. The interface seems a little quicker, probably due to the multi-threaded, 64 bit GPU processing. Check out all of SilverEfexPro 2 features here and you can always download a trial version for 15 days to test it out. It probably ranks as one of the best if not the best black & white processing software and one which is firmly embedded in my workflow. I use it as a plugin to Aperture so it really is very easy to export to the application and then save the finished black & white image without leaving Aperture.

For comparison the original image is below.

Best of 2010

Another year almost gone. Time just seems to go faster. Looking back over the year I have selected 12 special images highlighting some key events over 2010.

Realising that the infamous Pudu Jail in KL was about to be demolished for a new property development I took the opportunity to make a last visit before the bulldozers arrived and shot images of all the walls with painted murals and of course the intimidating front entrance.

The Kwong Tong Chinese Cemetery sits in a prime plot of land in central KL on a hill overlooking the city and offers some wonderful picture opportunities.

In February Joe McNally blew into town and conducted a lighting workshop and seminar. The Shangri-La Hotel ballroom was full on the one day seminar with hundreds of photographers who came to hear from the guru. They were not disappointed with a humorous and informative talk and a great opportunity to meet and talk with a world famous photographer.

The Red Hot Chilli Pipers from Scotland gave a blistering performance at the Hilton Sentral Hotel with a successful blend of traditional bagpipes and more modern guitars and drums in a new music genre termed bagrock.

I had the opportunity to visit Chiang Rai in northern Thailand staying at the Meridien Hotel on the banks of the Mae Kok River. This wonderful sunset was seen as I supped on a cocktail at the outside bar.

On the outskirts of Chiang Rai you can visit a village where you can see a number of different hill tribe people living including the famous Karen tribe with the elongated necks caused by wearing neck rings. This lady was from the Yao tribe and had such a wonderful warm smile.

The Masjid Wilayah Persekutuan, or Federal Territory Mosque, is a magnificent building and this image shows it with the background of the KL city skyline.

The Birch Road cemetery is an old Christian graveyard in the heart of downtown KL. It's rundown and overgrown which provides some atmospheric photo opportunities.

The medieval town of Brugge in Belgium with its canals and old buildings like the cottage above is a great getaway for a few days. The local food and beer are also excellent.

The interior of the luxurious Metropole Hotel in Brussels, Belgium is magnificent and I had the chance to stay there for two nights during a visit to belgium. Built in 1895 this is the only 19th century proper still open for business.

Patrick Low conducted a flash photography workshop in November and the lovely local model Evon Tan provided a very pleasing subject to capture.

Bangsar Shopping Centre in KL has gone through a very successful renovation with a number of new outlets including WIP restaurant/bar where I will be this evening to celebrate the arrival of the New Year. Happy 2011 to all!