GX GARNERINGS

A photography friend of mine went to the annual Hong Kong Flower Show and took tons of photos which are, pardon me, humdrum.  The photos are primarily mugshots of flowers after flowers in different angles with a blurred background, much the same as those taken by the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Government.  Such usual shots of flowers are good in their own right.  But we have seen too many of the same, haven’t we? Photographers can pan their cameras even when they take pictures of still plants, yes. Just remember that the shutter should be dragged to a slower speed like 1/4s in the following photos, depending on the exposure conditions.  Then be sure that you don’t pan the camera too much, but by just enough like half an inch. Another trick is that if you make a pan shot of trees, the photo may look more intriguing, or "Van Goghish" with the tree trucks included in it.

(Taken with GX200, edited in PhotoScape for the flare) Today is Good Friday, a day when the Christians remember the nailing of Jesus Christ on the cross some thousands of years ago.  Religion is something which cannot be seen or touched but trusted.  Where are we from and where are we going to after this life have been the eternal questions asked by believers and non-believers alike. So, where are we going to? (The road is leading to where? I thougt to mself when I took this photo on a hill at night) For a lot of times, we may think that things are under control in our hands.  But we just even don't know what is going to happen to us the next minute.  I have a friend who celebrated for his newborn one day but cried over the baby's loss of over 50% of the degestive system the other day for no apparent reason.  It happened some years ago.  He is still facing the consquences with an iron mind.  Another friend of mine in Australia lost her son ...

(When night falls on this fishing village, great scenes for photofraphy present themselves like this one.  While the other photographers were holding pounds of heavy gears, I seemed a bit superior with my tiny, trusty GX200) The photo was taken at Lei Yue Mun, known as Lyumun in the old days when the British navy stationed some garrison on the other side of the Lei Yue Mun strait to the east of the Victoria Harbour.  Lei Yue means carp, and Mun is gate. (It reads "Lei Yue Mun" on the doorhead plate of the archway) Today, Lei Yue Mun is still famous for the seafood restaurants housed in sort of shanty cottages along the bank in the background of the photo.  A visit to the other side of the Lei Yue Mun strait will give you the chance to see the Marital Defence Museum and the former Bristish navy barrack, which have lookouts overlooking the narrow strip of waters,

(On a rainy night, I leaned near a window with my camera.  People passed by, business people, working people, lovers.  I took some photos.  The grainy film-like character of the GX200’s high ISo image adds a romantic feel to the scene) Hong Kong has been misty and rainy for some weeks.  The rain is saying, "Come to dance in this season of love, in the rain!"   Love Won’t Leave You (Out in the Rain) ~Michael English Why so blue why do you start to break under a  misty moon under your skies of grey well, in this life, you know storms are bound to come but try not to worry about it Sun's gonna shine again love won't leave you out in the rain so walk that road remembering you're not alone you got someone to lean on something to call your own just have a little faith and then when the clouds roll In you won't have to worry about It love's gonna...

LNII stands for Lower Ngau Tau Kwok (II) Estate, the last resettlement estate to be redeveloped in Hong Kong. The first seven instalments of this series can be read 1 here , 2 here , 3 here , 4 here , 5 here , 6 here   and 7 here . The photos presented in this series were taken by me with my GX200 during my two visits to the estate. This last post of the series showcases photos of doors taken at the LNII.   (Looking through the ventilation holes inside a block) When I left the LNII on the second visit, there was a wistful sense of anti-climax. After walking through the history and seeing the ways of life frozen in time at the LNII, I thrilled with the illusionary feeling that they were actually mummied people and shops putting up a show for the photographers. Probably it was a show going on forever. However, I, being whisked away from the LNII in a car through the long Metro tunnel flickering with whitish lights, knew that this was the last time I visited a place wher...

LNII stands for Lower Ngau Tau Kwok (II) Estate, the last resettlement estate to be redeveloped in Hong Kong. The first six instalments of this series can be read here , here , here , here , here   and here . The photos presented in this series were taken by me with my GX200 during my two visits to the estate. Okay, it is about daipaidong this time. (This is a remaining daipaidong in LNII located right next to the ground floor lobby of this residential block) If there is one thing famous about LNII, it must be its daipaidongs. In their heydays, these daipaidongs sprawled into almost every corner on the ground floor between the residential blocks at night. It was quite a sight really. "But wait. What is a daipaidong for goodness sake?" you may wonder. Daipaidong is a quint-essentially old-Hong Kong style of eateries for cheap eats. The original daipaidong has two parts, namely, the open-air kitchen and the alfresco dining area. The kitchen is actually a makes...

A reader, Christopher Guy, sent me a photo which I consider excellent and wish to share with all of you today. It is taken with a LX3.  I like this photo a lot.  Well done, Chris. Regrettabely, Chris hasn't given me his blog or other addresses. The first sight of the photo reminded me of this song: Climb Every Mountain.  Good photo and a good song.  Have a great day!  :)     (The part after the song seems moving. Anyone speaking Dutch can enlighten us on what are being spoken after the song? I copied a gist translation for the Dutch part anyway: "At 2:36 he say's: Well done. Then he says: This is a moment for you, aw sweetheart! Well done. A song with a story. This is a very special moment for you.. it's a hard song. Should you do that song? She said yes, because: I can't talk.. she said. She sung the song for someone who isn't living anymore. The people on the blue chairs thought it was amazing and they had tears in their eyes!...