GX GARNERINGS

(Leica X1) Two very co-operative subjects. I had been staying at the spot to do a few shots very time the butcher went by carrying the carcass on his shoulder. And I did a few more after this.

(Sony A55) Remember an old post about a photography talk in Hong Kong by a UK photographer on his Don't Call Me Urban project? As I wrote the talk was sort of a kickoff event for the big thing to come: the first annual WYNG Masters Award for Photography. Now the 2012 contest is on (actually submission can be made starting from yesterday)! If you have taken part in enough number of photo contests and wish to do something meaningful, read on. Supported by WYNG FOUNDATION (locally incorporated in law), the WYNG MASTERS AWARD for Photography is a non-profit project initiated to spark public awareness and support interest in socially relevant subjects. The intention is to stimulate discussion and encourage social responsibility on important issues in Hong Kong through the medium of PHOTOGRAPHY. The WYNG Masters Award theme for the 2012 inaugural contest is POVERTY. The reasons I am recommending this to you are (1) this is a meaningful endeavour; (2) the cash prize is hefty; and (...

(Leica D-Lux 5) It is not age alone which turns old memories about something much more endearing to a person, but the chemical action of friendship and of many kinds of tears and laughter carried with it. I stumbled upon this street-side barbershop around a corner in uphill Sheung Wan, an old area quieter than most parts of the urban area in Hong Kong. A few of such can be found tucked among the back lanes between Central and the districts to the west, and other old districts on the Kowloon peninsula as well. What is so striking about this one is that I have never come across any as sizable and well equipped. Equally striking are the two special reclining chairs which are not commonly seen in such street-side barbershops. As told during a visit to this , these chairs are worth thousands of Hong Kong dollars each. And they are not available just anywhere now. These street-side barbershops sprang throughout the territories in last century until maybe the late 1980s to provide a...

(Leica D-Lux 5) Between the father and son was a charming picture wanting to be taken for the sweet ways they smiled to and interacted with one another. It was such a magnetic moment that I was simply allured to stop, walk up to them and snapped some shots. I had a few words with the dad and couldn't help heaping praises on his cute boy.  

(Leica D-Lux5) Nowadays, it is among the communters taking the underground, friends getting together in a cafe, co-workers sitting on a meeting or even lovers hugging one another in the street that the i-short-sightness epidemic shows its astounding intensity. Time will tell if the smartphone is one of those cool things which should not have been invented in the first place. Today's photo reminds me of a personal experience that speaks volumes for the ludicrous nature of being obsessed with digital communication. It took place over a dinner among members of an executive committee of some sort. While chatting with the members around me, I noticed a young member (well, he is old enough to just get married last month) sitting across the table engrossed in his iPad. He could be playing a game or something and he had barely looked up even when replying his neighbours. Some 45 minutes later, he was still on it. At this juncture, my phone chimed to alert me to an email. I spared it un...

(Ricoh GX200) Welcome back to the reality!

I just got so creativity last night after the weekly drawing class, which themed on Moon last night, that I spent a bit time setting up for fictional scenes with the Moon background, snapping shots with the D-Lux5 (coz it afforded the scene an extensive DOF I needed for it) and post-processing it for extra intriguing effects. Not brilliantly brilliant works but just hope to share them on this relaxing rest day. At the drawing class, we were asked to not just draw the moon as was but blend the reality with fictional ideas. The drawing class is a steady source to me for a growing sense of colour and creativity. I have the impression that it helps me mature more with a photographer's eye. The above images was done by showing the super moon shot I snapped on the TV and placing the objects in front of it. The raged-edge hole and the biting in the first and last images were by superimposing the moon image with paper cutting. Next, snapped with the camera and post-processed to colo...