I have a dream

Of working from home. Of taking my photography to higher levels, a more profitable business.

I've been so inspired by Australian newborn photographer Kelly Brown, I found her baby randomly googling for newborn photography workshops. She is a mum of 3 kids 2 of them being a pair of twins. She has the lifestyle that I crave. Her studio is right in her home. In her workshop video, which I purchased from Creative Live, she explains her routine. She takes in one appointment each day which starts at 10am after her kids are in school. She'd be done with the shoot at around noon. Her kids comes home from school at 2pm and where she would then focus on her kids and give them her undivided attention. She'll then do her editing at 10pm at night when the kids are asleep.

Thats not a bad routine is it! She makes around AUD 100k per year. Not too bad at all for a "mum with a camera " as she calls herself.

Her studio at her homein Australia is so inspiring. Simple and comfortable inexpensive to set up.

Being so inspired her workshop and her life, I began shooting newborn babies. I bought the basic equipment and props tp start up. By some friends network and rezeki I got my first jobs at a confinement centre.

I even took a drive to a nearby SOHO (small office home office) near where I live to see if the space would be suitable for a studio.

Lots of fairy dust please! Make my dream come true

Here is what I shot over the weekend

An almost flare shot

In September 2011, I attended the Jenny Sun Workshop. One of the many things I learned is to get a flare shot.

To get a flare shot, the sun has to be really low, like late evening or when the sun is about to rise. Aperture must be as wide open as possible. If all goes well, you're meant to be a ring light in the shot.

Here's what I got:

No ring, but flare-ish

A truly 1Malaysia Wedding

OK I’ve managed to finish editing one of the many events I shot in the last few weeks.

It was the Solemnization of a dear friend which was done at a mosque in TTDI. It was a mixed marriage and truly a 1Malaysia Wedding. It was probably the largest Solemnization ceremony I have ever attended where almost 200 guests were present. It was my first time at Masjid At-Taqwa, TTDI. It was like any old mosque but I like it because the Solemnization was conducted outside the prayer area. It was a covered area but with skylight roof’s where natural lighting comes through. It was almost like a courtyard. Needless to say, the lighting conditions were fantastic that day.

I know my dear friend went through a lot in the preparation of his big day. It turned out to be a simple but beautiful event.

Here are some shots from that wonderful day

HOT HOT HOT

Shangri La's Rasa Sayang Resort and Spa, Penang, originally uploaded by Selinz.

Its been sweltering hot since CNY and does not look like the weather is getting any better. We've had the air conditioning on almost all day. Does not help that I am hotter than everyone else because of the pregnancy.

So whats good to have on a HOT day? Some nice cold citrus fruit.

Yam cake at Kopitime, Atria Damansara Jaya

Yam cake at Kopitime, Atria Damansara Jaya, originally uploaded by Selinz.

There is this really good kopitiam at The Atria, Damansara Jaya which serves traditional chinese tea time delicacies. This one is definitely an old school. My grandmother makes it all the time. It is made of yam and glutinous flour. It goes with hoi sin sauce. My old time favourite

Baby Rayyan

A photoshoot I did when I was 16 weeks pregnant. To be honest I have not done many new borns and it was very challenging. I did not think I would come up with some decent results. But in the end, I did get quite a few worth delivering :)

Inspector gadget on the prowl again!

Am looking for a compact camera to take lovely photos of our new baby. Yea sure I got a DLSR, but I don’t want to be lugging that around together with a diaper bag, stroller and of course my own fancy handbag :P A little bit too much baggage to carry around.

So what am I looking for in a compact camera? Simply good high ISO capabilities. What does this mean? It just means that I can take good, sharp, no noise (no grains) photo at low lighting conditions without firing the flash. Yes people, this is what you should be looking for if you don't want to use your flash. Don't fall for those non-shake marketing gimmicks. Chances are those will produce pictures that are very yellow. So what is a good high ISO capability? Your camera should be able to take sharp and low noise images at ISO 1600. This is a typical ISO for a good low indoor lighting shot. Canon is a champion with this feature and other makers are fast catching up.

I narrowed down my search to two cameras. The Lumix DMC TZ7 and the new Canon S90.

The Lumix has super wide angle, high ISO capabilities and easy to use. Just put on auto, disable the flash, and it takes excellent pictures. It has no manual functions but plenty of scene modes. It has HD video quality! The LCD screen is huge but the camera as a whole is pretty large too. But the grip is nice. Price is RM1,599.

The Canon S90 is a new camera. Just out into the market maybe only a few weeks ago. It has excellent high ISO capabilities up to ISO 3200. It has manual functions and its aperture can go down to an impressive 2! That is impressive for a compact camera. Also, just set to auto, disable the flash and its good to go. The camera itself looks a bit boxy and not that stylish. Its very gadgety as it can do a ton of things. Sadly, its video is not HD. Price is RM1,799 at one shop but RM 1,599 at another! A tie with the Lumix!

Initially I thought the Lumix would be a whole lot cheaper than RM1,599 as it was launched in March 09. But since I can get the Canon at the same price, I might as well get the Canon!

Maybe I will wait a few more months and see if the price drops. Baby is due in March 2010 anyways.

Pitter Patter Images in the paper!

Pitter Patter Images was featured in the Star newspaper a few weeks ago. I was so chuffed to see one of my shots published. The actual article was actually on the Parenthots website (I can't seem to find the link anymore!), which I thought could be written better, but I guess thats the standard of our local journalists!

Heeren House, Melaka

During my stay at Melaka I had lunch at a very quaint little hotel on Jonker's Street, called Heeren House.

From the outside, the place does not look like much, but the moment you step in, you would have thought that it was a souvenir shop. It was interesting to browse as everything was laid out very uniquely, as with many shops on Jonkers Street. Then as you walk further to the back, its a small cosy cafe. Decorated tastefully Malaysia, with marble kopitiam tables, I could not resist deciding to have my lunch here.I was greeted by the not so friendly owner, a Mat Salleh lady. I asked if they were opened for lunch as there was patrons there at that time, she curtly said yes. She gave me the menu and I took my time to pour over it. Up on the walls were cute little chalk boards highlighting their specialty and noticed that Mediterranean Quiche was one of them. It was not what I was expecting to have in Melaka, but it sounded light. I decided to accompany it with a hot cappuccino. I usually have low fat milk with my coffee and pushed my luck with the not so friendly lady again, by which she replied with an equal curt, No.

While waiting for my meal I took the opportunity to glance around the room. It really was a tastefully decorated cafe cum souvenir shop.Upstairs I guessed, is where the accommodations were. While waiting also, several phone calls came in for room reservations. It was fully booked that night, and the nights after that.

Later when I came back to KL, I decided to google Hereen House and it turns out that it is listed on the Lonely Planet guide book, which explained its popularity and snooty owners. Online was also reviews on this hotel, which many were not so positive. One of it was that it had a problem with bed bugs, where a tourist was severely bitten and the owner refused to aknowledge the bed bugs or even give a refund.

Well shows the typicall business where when you are popular, no need to upkeep your services!

My quiche soon arrived and I dug in, as I was sooo hungry. It was delicious. The cappuccino was surprisingly good too.

Would I go back to Heeren House? I don't think so, though the food was not too bad.

Adeline & Khyrah

I posted this to this blog by mistake. It was meant to be for my Pitter Patter blog. But since its here, what the heck. Check it out.

Its a shoot that I did sometime last year. Its still one of my favourites.

Syahnaz Ethiya

This is really a super cool family. They were fun, funny and definitely great sports! The dad, Safwi definitely knows how to make his little girl smile.

Shikin saw my work on FB and wrote me an email requesting for a photoshoot. She came up with fantastic ideas for the shoot, and brought all the props we needed! I only needed to come with my camera! Usually I would plan the shoot, think of a concept, think of the props, bring the props, select the location... instead, Shikin did everything! And that is a person who believes in good photographs.

Shikin and Syahnaz presented the album I made for them to Safwi, the dad, as a Father's Day present and apparently he LOVED it :) Shikin sent me an sms to say how much they loved the album and the shots. I was sooooo happy! It is SOOO satisfying when a client love their pictures. 

I get a pittance for this job, compared to my day job, but this brings so much more satisfaction, than my so called professional corporate work.

We live today for only today. Tomorrow is another day. Our children really grows by the minute. Photographs is all what is left of their cuteness today, where we save it for tomorrow... in pictures  :)

Seafood Platter - Great Ocean Road, Melbourne

We had this whopper of a size seafood platter at one of the fish and chips shop at one of the little towns along Great Ocean Road.  No, its not for one person, its for two. Its got two of everything, fish, crab stick, prawns, scallops and a whole lot of chips and salad. We thought it was waaaay too much even for the both of us. But believe it or not, it went down smoothly :)

 

There's hubby digging in!

Beef Tortellini @ Melbourne, Australia

I had this at a cafe in a shopping mall that is right next to the river. It was a gorgeous afternoon. It was so nice having lunch and watch the world go by. I could do this everyday! And of course this pasta was also very very gorgeous. It has mince beef filling and I sprinkled some parmesan on it. The portion was so large, I could hardly finish a quarter of the plate! I had to pack the rest and finish it at the hotel. 

The Mebourne Story - The City of Melbourne and Brighton Beach, Melbourne Zoo and Melbourne Aquarium

Ok here is another series of pictures from Melbourne. I do try and write as much as I can about the places I see, rather than just leave it to the pictures to tell their own story :)

This is the St. Paul's Cathedral. It is a popular tourist destination and it is located right at the heart of Melbourne City, near the Findel Street train station. I love any kind of places of worship. They usually have a very peaceful and serene atmosphere. Outside the cathedral, people love to sit on the grass in the sun and have their lunch. On weekends, even during my short stay, I noticed the cathedral is usually busy with weddings.

Flinders Street station. It is a big yellow building and very busy. It reminds me of Kings Cross station in London. I did not get to go into the station to have a look as you a ticket to get inside. But on the outside of the station there are lots of stalls where you can get a quick bite to eat. Amongst those who caught my attention was that they had sushi ( not bad and quite yummy!) and bon bons (my first time having these. It had a hard pastry type shell with chocolate or custard filling. The shell is also dipped in chocolate. YUMMY! Sorry no picture of this, was busy eating it!)

On the Yarra River. I spent quite a bit of time walking along this river. I just LOVED it so much. Even during the day, there are people jogging, walking their dogs, rowing in the river, and basically just chilling having lunch or reading a book. After I've walked long enough, one evening I decided to do just what the Aussies do. Get a book, oh and also ice - cream, and I sat on the grass and just relaxed. Such BLISS! Also, I did grab the chance to go on their river cruise. Its about an hour and a half ride along the river. They served tea and biscuits onboard and there was a commentary, conducted by a very whitty guy. 

Another picture of the city from the river.

And here's another. 

I just LOVE Brighton Beach and these colourful sandboxes. Apparently each box is privately owned and its like a store room for their "junk". Hopefully they are beach things :) I've also been told that people are not allowed to build anymore of these boxes, the ones here are kinda like a heritage thing. 

I also paid a visit to the Melbourne Aquarium. Its quite like our Aquaria at KLCC. The Emperor Penguins are a latest edition at the aquarium. They are very tall, half the height of an adult and very majestic. Its coat is very shiny and almost waxy. 

They had sea horses that looked like a seaweed.

Guess what this is! Give up? Its a shark's egg!! Looks like a torpedo doesn't it. It looks sharp and brittle, but it really is very soft. Kinda like a membrane, almost like jelly. I've never seen anything like it. 

They also had a huge aquarium where the fishes swim around and above us. They had sharks, turtles, stingrays and a whole lot of fish!

It was beautiful. We get to sit and just watch the fishes swim all around us. It was like a being in the water, but without getting wet. 

A giant stingray! You can see his smiley face and a pair of eyes. They really were huge. Looked like at least one meter wide! There was a note on the aquarium saying that what we see is 1/3 of the actual size due to the distortion from the glass. The stingray must be a whole lot bigger then!

I also went to the Melbourne Zoo. And what do we see? .... Kangaroos of course!

They also had lions. It was a HUGE enclosure, with a canopy walk where visitors walk above the enclosure. 

They had this interesting flower called the Blood Lilies. They grow right out of the grown. 

Geeruf! 

More in the next post, Great Oceon Road! Stay tuned!