A couple of months ago, a client came across my nodding donkey picture and asked me for ideas to present the image on a 2m x 1.8m billboard for their corporate ad campaign. Cropping a vertical image to fit a horizontal aspect ratio template wouldn’t produce a convincing and dramatic corporate branding — client is in the business of maintaining these nodding donkeys (also called beam pumps) among other products and services in their oil and gas portfolio. So I took the image and mirrored it back to back, tweaked the colours to give it a dramatic flair to get this composite piece.

The big print is mounted, framed and I’m told makes its appearance at a location where it gets a lot of inbound/outbound traffic. It helps that I have a computer capable of rendering such large files — the final image size was 24,000 x 21,662 pixels at 300 DPI — without much effort.

: )

It’s 11.30pm and in less than six hours I will be getting up to catch a flight to Singapore for the weekend. Is there a relevance to what this post is about? Absolutely not other than I had just received an email from the Editorial Assistant of Butra Home Concept Magazine and he attached a sneak copy of my interview for their June edition so instead of going to bed   like I should,  I thought I would post this up before I say goodbye to May 2013. So, here’s me stepping out of my comfort zone to be in front of the lens for a change. See you all in June! :)

Click on image to view full size (JPEG 1.3MB)

The Samsung Galaxy S3 has incredible battery life — it’s ability to charge fast and lasts an entire day (well, at least for me) is unprecedented especially when everyone around you who uses an iPhone is charging theirs several times a day (to be fair, they use their phones a lot more than I do on a day to day basis, maybe even hourly to hourly). I have very few apps installed, namely Facebook, Facebook Messenger, Snapseed, Instagram, AirDroid, Google Keep, Whatsapp, and zero games. Along with those, I have a long list of bundled apps and services disabled (screenshots below).

Then came this piece of news about Facebook draining iPhone battery life I couldn’t help but suspect that the app is also doing the same on Android. So I did a test and monitored my phone’s battery over not 24 hour but 48 hour period to see just how far it would go on a single charge. Cutting a long story short, the screenshot below shows 8% battery life after 2 full days of normal use (emails, Whatsapp, camera, AirDroid to transfer pictures wirelessly to desktop PC). It should be noted that I’m not running any battery saving app nor is the phone set to Power Saving Mode.

Having concluded this test, it was time to have Facebook back on the phone but not the app. I now run Facebook via stock web browser with a launch shortcut added to the Home screen. There are upsides to running Facebook web, one of which is the ability to edit comments. If your S3 has miserable battery life, I hope this helps.

Caution: Take care when disabling apps or services. For instance, I have found when apps such as S-Voice is disabled and no lock screen is configured, pressing the Home button to wake the phone closes the last app window and returns to the Home screen. In the event that happens to you, see if this helps and and also this.

On the day I picked up my Canon EOS 5D Mark II body some years back, I had a Canon brand screen protector applied for the very same reason when I got my second 5D Mark II body — to protect the screen from scratches and damage like we all do with our prized smartphones. I never liked the idea of adhesive based screen protectors because removing them later would be difficult due to the residue they tend to leave behind. I had assumed these would have been safe because they’re made by Canon but I was wrong. Last week I tried to peel the protector off and to my horror the glossy layer came off leaving behind a hardened stubborn residue with a matte finish (as you see in the picture right below).

Hardened layer of adhesive residue leaving the screen unusable for critical viewing.

I immediately searched the web for safe solvents I can use that would not attack the plastic screen. The last thing you want is to use a corrosive solvent that attacks the screen leaving it permanently opaque. I found suggestions of WD40 to effectively remove sticker residue but it didn’t help at all. Next, there was mention of Eucalyptus oil (I was running out of household items to try that are intrinsically safe. Thankfully this works …

Apply generous amount of eucalyptus oil to cover the adhesive residue and leave it to soak for a few minutes. The idea here is to soften the layer to prepare for the next step — scrapping the adhesive off using a credit card (I used what was within reach at the time, my Canon CPS membership card).

Handy use for an expired Canon CPS membership card

Be prepared to do a lot of here before you begin to see encouraging results. I applied more eucalyptus oil to keep the screen lubed while I continued scrapping — you can only do so much with a plastic card. I finished the job by buffing the screen with a 3M Microfiber cloth soaked in eucalyptus oil until the entire screen is perfectly clean (I’ve had the same piece of blue cloth for many years and have used it to clean my desktop monitor and laptop LCD — amazing technology.

After spending close to 45 minutes scrapping and buffing, it’s good to have clean, usable LCD again.

If you’re looking to clean your Canon EOS 5D Mark II’s viewfinder or camera sensor you may be interested in the following posts: Cleaning the EOS 5D Mark II Viewfinder | Focus Screen and Sensor Cleaning

There are two favourite nature spots I’m likely to run in, one a lot more likely than the other. The Natural landscape of Sungai Liang forest and its uncertain terain are primarily the reason I prefer to run here than on a thread mill, or synthetic or concrete surfaces. You may remember this post in May, that’s captured in another location of the same forest — usually our starting point, the steep inclination helps warm up for the run later. I’ve been taking pictures of my time this great green escape with my S3 and I see no reason to leave it in the car anytime soon.

Commercial food photography is pretty much my bread and butter. I tether my EOS 5D Mark II to a Dell Studio laptop with a 17-inch HD display using a 5m long USB cable. The length gives me a great deal of freedom to move back and fourth between the table where food is prepared and presented, and a separate table for the laptop. Tethered shooting works exceptionally well where reliability and transfer speed matters but this setup isn’t without a downside. As long as a physical cable is connected to the camera’s USB port it’s only a matter of time before an accident happens. Once I unknowingly stepped on the cable (happens when your mind is preoccupied with other distractions) pulling the cable downwards causing the mini USB connector to bend but just short of damaging it entirely. This cable is presently on loan to an associate who has just started to experiment with tethered shooting.

Find out if there’s a LockPort USB or HDMI device that suits your needs

A LockPort USB port saver attached to my 5D Mark II. The L bracket is secured to the camera body using the tripod’s quick release plate.

One incident was enough to make me look for ways to prevent a costly recurrence. The USB port on the camera is an integrated component of the main PCB so the entire board needs to be replaced. According to a comment in this post, it costs an approximate SGD700 (Singapore dollars) to replace the motherboard. The LockPort USB adapter kit cost me SGD211 including FedEx door to door shipping.

This is not a review but a testimony that the Eye-Fi Pro X2 8GB wireless card just works!

In my last post I wrote about LockPort USB the perfect gear and port saver for photographers who tether a lot, like me. The trouble is not every assignment and situation makes sense to roll out the 5m USB cable and fire up the chunky 17-inch laptop. One such assignment was Muffins&Co at The Souq where I was moving in and out of the shop quite a bit; I was also forced into a corner, literally, where I could not even see the back of the camera LCD. This is when images magically appearing on my iPad is a huge welcome.

I looked at the possibility of CamRanger to make that happen. Everything looked good, reviews were extremely positive and I came so close to ordering one but I just couldn’t get past how awkward it would be having the CamRanger device take up the USB port and camera hot shoe — I need the hot shoe for a Phottix Odin transmitter. In addition to this, wireless transfer speed isn’t better than the throughput of the Eye-Fi after several Q&A emails with CamRanger’s Dave. The CamRanger is a very powerful and versatile solution for anyone who other than tethering also requires wireless control of their Canon or Nikon DSLR. I don’t.

Visit Eye-Fi for a list of cards that work in the EOS 5D Mark III. Pro supports RAW files.

It helped that an associate picked up an Eye-Fi Pro X2 days earlier and had great success tethering his EOS 5D Mark III to the HTC Smartphone. Previous Eye-Fi cards were a hit and miss for cameras that did not have a native SD slot.

“Canon has released a firmware update for the EOS 5D Mark III that resolves an issue where the camera may not function properly with an Eye-Fi card inserted. Please be sure that your camera is running firmware version 1.2.1 or later to avoid any problems. Do not use an Eye-Fi card when updating firmware on the camera. EOS 5D Mark III Firmware Update Version 1.2.1“

Eye-Fi Pro X2 8GB Card inserted into the SD slot of my EOS 5D Mark III. Eye-Fi wireless transferring is disabled by default. Inserting the card into the camera brings up an Eye-Fi settings menu.

I set mine up to capture RAW (Large) on Compact Flash and transfer JPEG (Large) from Eye-Fi to the iPad. I was very surprised that a large JPEG from the 5D Mark III took a reasonable 6 seconds to complete transfer. And that’s all I really need, an opportunity to critically review my images (double tap screen to view full resolution). I followed discussions on Eye-Fi forum to re-look the possibility of using the Pro X2 card in the EOS 5D Mark II. The good news is this CF adapter has been tested to work exceptionally well.

See comments and reactions on Facebook

The Eye-Fi Photo Gallery on my iPad 2. A Large JPEG from the 5D Mark III took 6 secs to download.

Ever since my daughter Jewel started running in school events slightly over a year ago, I have always made sure to be there for her not just for support but more importantly, I’m the guy who always had her spare inhaler in my pocket. Even as she packs one in her bag, I would still carry a spare in my pocket, for good reason. In the unlikely event of breathing difficulties, I would be her closest access to the device as I stood on the synthetic track, photographing her run. These images are from the July 7th 2013 Sukan Kebangsaan Brunei Darussalam meet at Belapan Sports Complex.

All dressed, packed and ready to hit the road — an hour’s drive to Belapan Sports Complex in BSB.

Quick S3 snap with Jewel after her 400m finals in the morning. Also on Facebook.

It is at events like this that my EOS 5D Mark III gets pushed to its limits — 6 fps, 41 cross-type AF sensors and everything else that matter. On the track, lens choice is pretty much the EF 70-200mm f/2.8 IS. This lens has been with me for 8 years or so and it still every bit as heavy as the day I started using it.

Runners gather for registration before their event. Here, Jewel acknowledges name call by race official for 4 x 400m event.

Jewel putting on her spikes for 400m run against 2012 Olympian Maziah for the second time along with other more seasoned, nimble runners several years her senior.

Setting up the starting block.

Warm up take offs — Maziah, Jewel (R)

Pictures with fellow sprinters after 400m event …

Jewel first ran against her at the 22nd Panaga Highland Games 2013 and finished with a silver medal. The day — June 22, 2013 — also marked Jewel’s one year anniversary of track training with the Belait Athletics Team.

Jewel and her team mates representing the Belait Athletics team finished third in the 4x400m Women’s Relay adding another medal tally to her growing collection of athletic achievements.

Jewel finishes 22nd Panaga Highland Games with a 400m Silver medal

Click on image to see large version (approximately 1MB)

As a professional photographer I’m completely at ease behind the camera, as do most of my peers as far as I know. On occasions when the roles reverse I can get pretty uncomfortable posing to have pictures taken. That’s probably why you don’t see great many ‘selfies’ from me or even pictures with my wife (the irony of my chosen profession). This recent couple photo is quite rare, taken at the spur of the moment just before my wife left for an overseas trip.

On the day my associate and I got together over a long festive holiday weekend, we dragged bags of camera gear which included some light stands, half a dozen Canon Speedlites along with off-camera triggers and so forth. I brought my share of equipment but they ended up staying in the bag since my colleagues Cyril and Gavin were doing a fine job of making me model for one jump shot after another … had a really good workout. This is one time I actually didn’t mind performing in front of the camera — doing what I love most —badminton. This photo is featured on SunriseClick Facebook Page.

About the only time I’m completely at ease in front of the camera modeling for this jump shot.

While photographing Excapade Sushi’s new Japanese cuisine menu, I saw an opportunity to get creative with something as mundane as squeezing lemon juice onto a serving of salmon sashimi. I have done a number of similar shots successfully before but this one raised the bar with the highest number of droplets in one squeeze. Other than a Levels adjustment to brighten the image and a dose of sharpening, the image is untouched — I love food photography.

Equipment used: Canon EOS 5D Mark II, EF 100mm f/2.8 L IS Macro lens, Speedlite 580EX strobes

The same picture up close and sensational — a bit of timely luck let me freeze these droplets in the most elegant way I can imagine.

It wasn’t until I signed up to climb Mount Kinabalu end of the year (December 17 to be exact)  that I began going to one of Brunei’s most popular hiking hotspot — the Bukit Shahbandar trails — to train. There’s simply no better platform to prepare than the natural outdoors faced with rocky, sometimes muddy terrains, including a number of challenging slopes to overcome, not forgetting the scorching heat and occasionally the surprising rain.

I Googled and noticed there are plenty of images of the Shahbandar trails shared by people who have hiked here previously but not technical data of the hikes such as distance and altitude which some may be also interested in. Using MapMyRun Android app at first I gathered data when I brought Thanis and Eric there on September 4, 2013 for the initial ‘4 Hills‘ hike (2.06 Kms) followed by the ‘9 Hills‘ (3.58 Kms) hike a week later (second image below). Click on the images to find an interactive map with distance and altitude details.

More pics from our recent 9 hills hike on Sept 22, 2013

Intense cardio session with Eric and Thanis at Bukit Shahbandar. Click on image to see distance and altitude details.

More pictures from our Sept 13 hike and my earlier check-in on Sept 6

Click on image to see distance and altitude details. On our more recent hike on Sept 22, 2013 App logged a longer distance of 3.8 Km that took 1:57 to complete. See MapMyHike and Facebook check-in for details  

The reward for completing our hikes … cold, refreshing coconut water

Pure coconut water is rich in vitamins, minerals, electrolytes, enzymes, amino acids and cytokine, making it the best natural energy drink. [See Facebook]

I had made plans with Eric and Thanis to have a quick lunch at Thien Thien before my Funshabu-Shi menu shoot in the afternoon. Last minute change of plans had us eating at Thanis’ regular haunt, Golden Coffee, so Eric and I agreed to meet there instead, breaking away from our rendezvous point for the first time in my history of lunching at Thien Thien in recent memory.

Golden Coffee’s extremely popular homemade spring roll. You’ll see this on many patron’s table until they run out.

Long story short, I’ve been back there twice, second time for a dish that Thanis ordered just a week earlier which I really wanted — beef kolomee with one half-boiled egg (I’ll have two eggs the next time I stop by for a meal). The general parking problem that plagues Bandar Seri Begawan can largely be avoided if I eat earlier than most people especially places with free but limited parking spaces.

Delicious beef noodles mixed with optional order ofone soft boiled egg. I ordered an hour before heading off to Bukit Shahbandar for a 9 Hills hike. More about the hike here …

Both images captured using Samsung Galaxy S3

I think I’m genetically predisposed to high cholesterol. No matter how much much effort I put into working out and eating right (friends and family know my dedication to eating right) and I have a very active lifestyle — when I’m not smashing my opponents at badminton, I’m out hiking at Bukit Shahbandar or running in the Sungai Liang forest. As a result of this ‘curse’, seafood indulgence is far and few in between. So last night, after umm I can’t even recall how long ago that I last had seafood, my cousin and I rekindled our seafood night at New Tanjung Seafood across the border.

Our collective leftovers restyled on a white plate for this art shot, wiping the plate clean to minimize post processing effort. Photographic rules don’t change just because you’re using a smartphone — light is the single most important ingredient to image quality.

On trips like this, photography is usually the very last thing on my mind but last night was an exception. We ordered 2 kilos of salted egg crab and the original idea was that we would ‘tapao’ what we couldn’t finish, have it chilled to eat the next day. One bite after another, this is all that remained. And instead of leaving a mess like we usually do, i decided to turn our collective crab rubble into an art piece. Long story short, we had 4 Samsung galaxy smartphones, 3 S3 and 1 S4 to be exact except only 3 were used — two to provide even lighting and one to capture the picture as you see above, an example adequately illustrated below back in 2011 when cousin Daniel and his wife were still iPhone users.

This 2011 photo was how we lit 2 kilos of crab except we used lights from two Samsung Galaxy smartphones to make sure lighting was even all round.

Photographing bottled beverages is not in the same league and complexity as photographing food. Bottled beverages in all their shapes, sizes and curves attract highly undesirable bright spots and reflections. When Bahagia Distributors contacted me about their photography requirement — I accepted the assignment, fully aware of the lighting challenges I had gotten myself into. In order to minimize eye straining efforts during post-processing I arranged with the client to scrutinize the sample selections I was to bring back to my studio. We went through a few boxes and picked the bottles that had near-perfect text, brand logo and shrink sleeves alignment. Fast forward a few days of work and several editing revisions the finished files were handed to their design team for the graphics layout and finishing touches that you see here.

We’ve lost count the number of times we had hiked up to this Pondok 4 guide pole, started at it for a moment and succumbed to defeat by mere threat of the distance, time and effort it would take for us to complete. Yet on the morning of October 27th the morning when we were only going to hike the usual 9 Hills trail we started at this pole again, the three of us briefly looked at each other — we’ve done this many times except on this day, none of us was going to back down. So here I am, on the eve of my second 14 Hills hike tomorrow, writing about my epic first attempt. Tomorrow’s hike is going to be our largest group hike yet — a total of 13 members.

More pictures from our first 14 Hills hike on Facebook

It took the three of us 4 hours to complete 7.39 kms burning 2000 calories along the way. It would have taken a slightly shorter time had Eric and I not stopped between Pondok 8 and 9 for a 15 minutes photography lesson using his Samsung Galaxy S4.

My morning fuel before the 14 hills hike — two eggs, 4 broccoli flowerets, smoked beef, smoked salmon and MrBaker’s delicious Muesli 80% wholemeal bread along with all the healthy grains. Not pictured is my usual shot of CBTL espresso

The trail between Pondok 4 and 5 poles normally takes no more than 5 minutes. The extended loop between them is a whole different story — distance itself measures longer than the usual 9 Hills.

Eric snapped this photo of my wife and I as we reached the first of a series of poles on the extended loop. 370M to head back to Pondok 4 and be on the way out or soldier on.

Once on the extended loop, a view from across the green landscape is the red soil vista from where we had taken numerous group photos, giving us a sense of scale and distance somewhat.

There are three wooden crossings like this on the extended loop unlike the bridges you’re accustomed to seeing on the 4 and 9 hills trail.

Eric had asked me many times since we first met more than a year, maybe 2, earlier to give him lessons to improve his photography. No better opportunity and timing to learn and have some fun right at Shahbandar. More on Facebook.

My lunch at MOD in Jerudong after 4 hours of intense hiking had left me with a significant increase in appetite — Thai cuisine (chicken basil rice and broccoli mixed vegetables).

Drone photography is all the rage these days and I can see the addition of a quadcopter to my inventory, when owning one becomes more affordable. Until then I’ll reminisce the aerial photographs I took on-board a Bell 212 helicopter during an assignment some years back. Instead of being strapped comfortably to the seats, I decided to make full use of my limited time in the air and took lots of terrain photographs. Looking through my archives a few days ago, I was extremely delighted to find one of Bukit Shahbandar where my wife and I go hiking. What began as a means to train for my Mount Kinabalu climb a month from today has escalated to what some friends describe as obsession with the hills.

Click on image to view larger version

Here’s a more recent photo and my current favourite (captured on Samsung Galaxy S3)  that gives you an idea of the trail we’re dealing with on a good day. On a stormy day it’s a whole different story and we’ve hiked in both extremes. Oh man, just looking at these pictures is enough to work up an itch to head out there.

Hiking Bukit Shahbandar: 9 Hills | 14 Hills

This wooden facade of a Starbucks outlet located at Resorts World Sentosa Singapore is both striking, alluring and inviting. So much so that I patronized the outlet five times during my short stay at nearby Hard Rock Hotel. It was also the first time our family had breakfast there one morning. Being an early riser meant I got to take pictures of the nice interior especially when lit by the morning sun. These pictures were taken using a Canon PowerShot G11.

This 15 Years Anniversary tumbler featuring traditional Sarawak music instrument Sape artwork is a gift from Starbucks Malaysia, the team that are setting up Brunei’s first Starbucks outlet. Click on image to visit Instagram.

Four months before my Mount Kinabalu climb on December 17, 2013 I trained almost exclusively at the hills of Bukit Shahbandar in the Brunei-Muara district, located a little over an hour’s drive from my residence. Coming from badminton, a sport that I’ve played since my secondary school days, hiking wasn’t an activity I was fond of in the beginning. We started with the popular ‘4 hills‘ route that took us 53 minutes to complete, and in just a few short weeks the group decided unanimously that it was time to venture farther — the ‘9 Hills‘ route that took our group 1 hour 46 mins to complete — this route I really liked and got hooked on. On days when other members of the group weren’t available to join me I hiked alone, logging my best times — as an indication of my fitness.

My first solo attempt began on October 22, 2013 when I logged 50 mins 54 secs

Second attempt on December 11, 2013 clocking best time of 44 mins 27 secs

Earlier this week I made my first attempt of 2014 and finished at 41 mins 21 secs.

Where do I go from here? I’m thinking 40 minutes would be a realistic target.

Property photography assignment from November 2013 for Armada Properties featured in February 2014 edition of Butra Home Concept magazine. It was a pleasure to have worked with MixMediaWorx to produce these images.

BHC Magazine February 2014 | “Conveniently located on Jalan Ong Sum Ping, Mahligai Apartments are just minutes away from Bandar Seri Begawan. These apartments have been designed to provide the ultimate in contemporary living. You will have easy access to the city and also a refuge from it.

And because Mahligai Apartments are all about enjoying a luxurious lifestyle you have access to a fully equipped gymnasium; a cafeteria; pool and children’s playground – all at your doorstep and ideal for either single persons or families.”