A huge chunk of my street photos are those taken in the rain. So I was pretty excited when I eventually got to do an ad shoot for a rain wear brand called Totes.
Last week, I was contacted by Kenneth from Lomography Gallery Store and invited me to shoot with a La Sardina. The photos would then be displayed for a mini-exhibition to be held in conjunction with the launch party for a new design of that same camera. They would lend me the camera, give me 3 rolls of b&w film, and I would shoot street with it for the weekend. I always wondered how it would be like to shoot street with a lomo, so I said ‘count me in’.
Last month, I was commissioned to do an editorial for Mia, a female weekly magazine in Spain. They were working on a feature about the best educational systems in the world, and Singapore seems to be at the top along with Quebec and Helsinki. They interviewed a Spanish family from each of these places to talk about the advantages of the education system compared to that of Spain. I was assigned to photograph here in Singapore.
I was interviewed last weekend by Silver for Sync-Up.TV, a weekly online IT channel geared towards gadgets and technology. It’s my first time to be interviewed on video, so I think you’ll see a little awkwardness on my part. I’m never comfortable in front of the lens… always prefer to be on the other side. But it’s a quick and painless watch, so please do check it out :)
Big thanks to Alexa, Nick, Shaiful, and the very cool Silver… you guys are awesome!
Lately, I was looking through my archive of street photos taken from the past 3 months. As I browsed among the sea of non-keeper shots, I occasionally came across photos where the subject was looking straight at me with a certain disconcerted look. I thought maybe it would be interesting to put these together into an album that shows my share of startled looks and nasty stares when shooting street.
I love shooting in the rain. If it’s a weekend and it’s raining, you’ll probably see me with an umbrella on one hand, and my camera on the other, walking (sometimes running) around Orchard Road taking photos of strangers as they run from one mall to another. Often times, it’s an adrenaline rush for me. As it turns out, the same can be said to the ones on the other side of the lens.
I was emailed by Margery a few weeks ago, saying “My husband and I need a Christmas photo, but are not the type to pose in matching sweaters in a studio. All we really need is one good shot of us in the midst of the chaos that is Orchard Road. We are after a photo that is casual and captures us in the heart of Singapore.” I was instantly interested and took the job.
One of my dream projects when I started my interest in portrait photography was to shoot different people in different parts of Singapore. It was one of those ideas that I had at the back of my mind that I wanted to eventually pursue as a personal project. Fortunately, I got to do exactly that on a commissioned shoot.
A few months ago, I got a message from Kelly, a project manager of a design agency in San Francisco – Tolleson Design. They were interested in buying a couple of photographs from my Portraits of Strangers set to use for a project they’re doing. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any release forms for any of the portraits, so using it for commercial purposes wasn’t possible. So instead, they commissioned me to create a new set of portraits with the same aesthetic.
Just recently, I had the opportunity to experience a 3-day intensive photo essay workshop organized by Leica, conducted by famed Magnum photographer, Abbas. I’ve learned about it on short notice, but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to meet and learn from a master who’s been doing it for 45 years.
