Photographer

The other day, I was waiting to shoot a concert for a K-Pop girl group performing in Singapore and started to have an interesting conversation with the Media Relations Officer in charge.

This conversation has left me feeling very uncomfortable and til today, 2 months later, I can't really swallow it well. 

I asked her if they hired freelance photographers to cover events like these and she mentioned yes.

Then I went on to ask her, because I truly am curious about market rates now... I being a photojournalist have totally lost touch with the outside world.... 

And this was the reply I got. 

"OH... we don't pay photographers. These photographers want to shoot for free. But in return we give them free tickets for the show." 

Immediately I start to justify this for the photographer. I don't know why I did , but it's in my nature to give people the benefit of the doubt. 

Maybe they are FANS. Maybe they really love to be part of the action and like most of us when we were young, we would "pay our dues" just so we can gain experience and get a portfolio together.....

Then she started to justify this out loud. Which made things worse. I started to feel a little insulted...

"These photographers are passionate... they are very passionate about what they do. So they don't ask for money...They just work for passion...."

This got me thinking...

Where does this leave us, us, who do shoot for a living. We definitely don't do this for the money. Photography is just too painful to reap monetary benefits from. It doesn't happen that way. Not in this line of work. 

I am a photographer and I take pictures for a living and I AM passionate about my craft.

But now everyone that owns a camera or a Digital SLR, is a "professional" photographer.

Being brilliant at Photoshop does NOT make you an amazing photographer. 

They want to do the job so they undercut everyone else by doing it for free. 

This spoils the market. 

And it spoils the companies out there who just want mediocre coverage without spending a cent.

I know I said this before, that we all were in that situation before where we would gladly intern for close to nothing (pay) just to gain experience.. but even that was to gain experience to then move on into doing this professionally. The problem with this is that clients would always expect these types of trade-offs. That's really sad. I'm not insecure about my works or my ability as a photographer but it does get frustrating when you meet people out there who hold little respect for the nature of this type of job. Hirers and photographers together. 

I had an interesting conversation with Stuart Franklin the other day at the launch of the Magnum exhibition and he was talking about how in Europe, Photography as Art was so niche that it was almost unseen by the commoner. Photographers are King in the European world. Advertisers, creative directors work around a photograph... Whereas here in Asia, where everyone owns a camera.... our craft has been widely accepted which is awesome, but at the same time, cheapened. Perhaps this is a problem arising from middle class societies where everyone has a camera, and photography has become so available that no one respects this form of visual communication anymore. On one hand its a good thing that visual literacy has spread so widely across our country but how do we strike a balance and educate people about the difference between a picture with soul and a snap shot?

It seems like we are shifting toward photographers becoming a service desk and worse still a free service. 

I really hope that non of the people I know do this...only because this will not help the industry and the good efforts of many photographers out there who are trying to save this trade from becoming just another shallow means of communication.

Nate's Swim Class

Many of you have been asking me or have been curious as to where Nate is having his swimming classes. 

He's been learning his swimming from David Lim aka Yellowfish who is great with kids.

Mind you, they start off with fun lessons, water play and water confidence - which the younger and newer swimmers will love - but the moment they improve and move on to a more intermediate stage, its a different thing altogether. It's great, don't get me wrong.. but the lessons focus more on strokes and laps, technique and mileage... everyone knows that the more you swim the more efficient a swimmer you become. 

It's great because he is tough and stern/firm with the kids, which is, I feel, altogether important because sports is a balance of fun and discipline. It's also an important trait for a coach to have when dealing with a group of children at the pool, potentially hazardous. 

Now nate swims in the Olympic sized pool, doing 50-meter laps at a go.

He struggled for a bit when he first moved on from baby pool to big pool but now he is enjoying it so much he gets really disappointed when classes are cancelled due to bad weather conditions.

The thing about kids is ... that they are survivors. Throw them in the deep end and soon they'll be threading water. (: no punn intended.

He is now water safe and well, needless to say fit.

So for those of you who are curious, his website is HERE

Happy Birthday Suri

One year old.

Suri was born just a couple of days ahead of Nelly.

Managed to take the kids out for an artsy party where the most challenging part was for nate and I to paint with Nelly on me, but we managed to come up with a pretty neat rendition of IronMan. 

Fun stuff, Fun idea for a party.

Thanks for the fun Hans and Ching.

Gardens by the Bay

Here's a fun little time-lapse I made a couple of weeks ago. 

It's a video of the changing of the Gardens by the Bay's flower bed in the Flower Dome. 

They change their theme every quarter of the year and this time round, it's themed "Autumn Harvest".

Everything in the flower bed is real.. the pumpkins, the cabbage, the wheat etc.. except for the chickens, rabbits and scare-crows naturally...

Enjoy.

Autumn Harvest at the Flower Dome

1 October - 27 November 2012

The Flower Dome welcomes a season of plenty as the Flower Field transforms with splashes of orange, yellow and red in the latest Autumn Harvest display. Catch this bountiful harvest of crops and visual feast of Sunflowers, Marigolds and Lavenders; spot the cute and cuddly rabbits as they tend this garden of abundance!

Gardens by the Bay website HERE

Hello!

Been a while since I had time to blog.

All is good, the children are growing and i am too... older.

We finally kinda got into a better routine and everything is going like clock-work.

Nate's struggling so much with the Chinese Language and even scoring full marks for most of his Chinese Spelling tests.

We have been working really hard and the results speak for themselves.

And now we are approaching the end of the year.

Nelly turns a year old in 6 days and Nate starts his formal school life in a couple of months.

Wow. Life is good.

Breathe.

Ahhhhh Feels So Good

Recently, i've been using the opportunity to squeeze in a swim while Nate has his own swim lessons.

If i'm hardworking, i'll clock at least 1.5km but today, I stopped after 1.2km because I could no longer ignore the multiple bandaids and mirky pool water... Alas.. School Holidays.

Felt good if you block all the info out anyways... 

Have you completed your work out?

Press on! (I say to myself as well)

Nate my Hero, the sweetheart

Thanks to Aunty Joyce who captured this moment of Nate..

Check out the way he looks at his sister... with that endearing look of love and approval and admiration.

That's Nate.

He's been the best big brother I could ever imaging. Always smelling her, kissing her on the cheek and looking for her the moment he wakes up. I couldn't have asked for a more beautiful spirit.

Photo Credit to Joyce Fang.

WoopeeDoo

Last week, I was walking along Marina Bay looking for pictures during lunch hour when I came across my ex-sailing team mates and my coach, then.

They were taking people who signed up with Audi out sailing as part of their new Audi car launch, the whole outdoor adventure experience.

I couldn't resists a sail around the Marina Bay, with my old pal Yurii whom grew up with me where we would sail in the Optimist dinghy when we were all of 8years old. Man.. I haven't sailed since the 2001 SEA Games and it sure gave me an adrenalin rush... albeit in the calm and shifty winds and waters of the bay.

It was nice to see the bay and the financial skyline from a different perspective and not to mention, I was doing this all while sailing around... Awesome way to end the week for me. 

The sunburnt nose and spliced finger which dripped blood all over the boat was all worth it.

Like a good friend of mine, Ilene said, I looked so happy like fish to water... 

Indeed (:

Couch Potatoes

We're following the Olympics..
And quite engrossed in it!

The Time Has Come

Remember long ago, when you hear parents talking about the worries and stresses leading up to the day where you Register your kid for Primary One?


I used to hear about it every year for almost my whole life because my mom was a Primary School teacher ...all my life. 
She would come home with stories about parents standing in line, balloting, crying because they missed the 1-KM radius by a wall separating their homes and their neighbor's home from the school of choice...
She would also come home with stories about parents begging and lying about their residential address.
Of course I would tell myself that this was a whole world away from me and I think because of this, I have become very detached from the idea.


I have basically blocked it out from my system. Eyeball rolling everytime I hear about it..
I also heard about how parents buy homes just to live close to a school so that they can have a better chance of enrolling their child in the school of their choice.


Phase, 2, Phase 3, Phase 2A, Phase 2B... shoot me now.
I used to brush it off and think...Pffttt! Buy a HOUSE? just to be near a school?

well well well... Guess what?


And then one day, I had no choice but to grow up and have a kid... maybe in the other order of things.
But just like that, with a blink of an eye, I became a parent and my kid is suddenly 6-years old.
When children turn 7, its compulsory to send your child to school (for those of you who don't live in Singapore and if you live within a 1KM radius of the school, you get priority... if it's over subscribed, you end up balloting for the slot).


So I ended up becoming one of those parents who bought a home, but only because we needed to move out at some point but the greatest consideration was where we wanted nate to school at, and well, everything worked in terms of location for work, lifestyle etc. (but still i found myself becoming one of those parents). I'm proud to say that I've been pretty realistic about my son's abilities and his strengths which made choosing a school pretty easy (at this point) - almost to the point where I wonder if i'd been lazy. I had just one major requirement. To enroll him in a mission catholic school or one which had the foundations of a Christian school.. Unlike some parents, they volunteer at schools to secure a place, they donate money to the school as insurance and they stalk forums and study the school history and results through the years. - not judging them in fact i admire their abilities to do their homework...I confess I haven't done any of that. In fact, i've been so detatched from this that I had to look up the opening hours on my mobile phone that same morning for registration. I hope this is not going to bite me in my behind.

Then, yesterday, I found myself in a Phase 2C category, going to a school and filling up a form.
Now, i'm just keeping my fingers crossed that I don't become a crying parent desparate because I haven't researched other schools. I'm also telling myself.. hey, everyone is going to that super duper high flying school down the other road, so hopefully we will have a space in this school of my choice.
 
The feeling was surreal as I sat in the chair in a classroom, with a flippy table thing, in an AVA room, trying to get the spelling of all our names right, as I felt like I was undergoing some sort of examination myself. It's been a long time since i've sat in a classroom.

Now i'm just going to have to wait for the results on Friday and hope that it all works out.

Biggest lesson learnt here from "school" is Never say Never because we can't avoid certain routes that life takes us down.


Whatever the outcome and whatever the school, I know that i'm still going to have to do my best to give nate a strong family life, help him with his studies to the best of his abilities and if he does really well in something, sure great! We will nurture it. If not, no drama, life goes on. Try another method...


Let's see what happens on Friday.
GULP!!!


 

Who's Your Hero?

On father's day a couple of weeks ago, our pastor talked about the importance of fathers in our lives, our children's lives.
He also mentioned that a good question and gauge would be to ask your child "Who is your hero?"


Fathers play a silent but strong role in the family unit.
I appreciate my husband and my father for their love even if its one that's not as physically evident because of the different roles mothers and fathers take on for most asian families, as a woman's.


So, who's your hero?

Busy June

This past month went by so quickly and yet at times it felt like forever. 

You get these months during the year where work just comes at you like a boulder down a mountain, gaining momentum as it makes it way down. The good thing about it is, you're kept on your toes and it makes you feel alive. The hard part is keeping everything in perspective while going with the flow.

I'm glad to say, things are looking up and about 7months post birth, i'm slowly but surely, getting back the momentum of life pre-pregnancy.

Last month was filled with events that needed to be covered every single weekend. And they were assignments which lasted over 4-5 days. Ranging from Sport to Ministerial Meetings and Bollywood stars.  Some experiences are new, while some are familiar to previous years...

The kids are great. They're growing really quickly. 

The hubby was promoted from the rank of Capt. to Maj. in the army. We're so proud of him.

It's already July and the first half of the year has gone by so quickly...

Thank God for his grace and mercies every single day.

I mean... seriously!

Ok. I know it's prolly my upbringing as a photojournalist to keep things are honest as possible, and I know there's no law that says you can't do stuff like that... but I couldn't help but feel quite unsettled about this software that I saw in a digital advert.


Don't you want to look like yourself as much as you can?
Isn't it weird to make your self portrait look different than you really are? Cause people really know what you look like right?

Technology is an amazing thing isn't it?
Anyway, i'm sure there are many people who would leap up from their seats over to their credit cards and purchase softwares like this, but not me. My hubby definitely knows what I look like especially in the mornings, and he's still around (:

Look What I Found

Sometimes you find things in your CF card you forgot you had shot.
This is from a couple of months ago and man, the baby has grown so much since then.


Good thing I didn't format my card without checking its contents.

For Sale!

Hullo world.
I am selling my Evenflo Vented Snugli  Pink Frill carrier.
Its 95percent new (still looks and is like it was out of the box except I cut off the HUGE white label which is of no use to the fabric or carrier).
Nothing wrong with it. In fact I love the hot pink against the black.
Fierce punk rock feel to it! Just like Nelly is...
Nelly just grew a lot faster than I expected (she is a huge baby) and I've been using the stroller a lot more than I anticipated.
Retail price in Singapore department stores (which I bought from) for SGD$139
I'm selling it at SGD$90


Do send me a line through my comments and I will get back to you... don't forget to leave me your contact or email. The comments are private so i'll delete your information after reading it.


(:

Tony Stuck

Nate had the opportunity to Build-A-Bear yesterday while I was out at work thanks to a friend who offered to take him out.

I wasn't there to supervise and sometimes its better that way, letting him be out there on his own and facing life or whatever else there is without mommy by his side.

Anyway he's really REALLY into Iron Man right now and those of you who are Marvel fans know that the character that becomes Iron Man is also known as Tony Stark. 

So obviously the lady at the workshop wasn't a Marvel Comics fan and in the process of spelling the bear's name, she spelt it as "Tony STUCK". (Nate chose a bear with the Iron Man Costume)

I thought it was too funny and my first instinct was to go get it changed but I think this one's a keeper, for memory sake..for now, I'll Stick to it.

Just For The Fun Of It

Here are some stats. 
These illustration did not record EVERYTHING so there's supposed to be more.

I spent almost 300hrs expressing milk and I have produced over 200litres of milk.
Now. Where's my Olympic Gold Medal in Milk Production? And NO, I did not eat anything special or drink anything crazy. In fact I avoided fish and anything that would "help" increase the amount of milk produced.
And I also am allergic to Fresh Milk. 

Good Bye and Thank You

I'm Done.

And even though I can go on for another year (EASILY) expressing 1.5litres of milk a day like a champion cow, i'm tired. Expressing milk 4-5 times a day in that amount has drained me... pun intended.. it also pained me and caused a lot of distress and it's not from the lack of it.

Since Nelly was born, i've been doing this with my bare hands because pumps didn't work for me and it's sucked all the energy out from me my body started storing fats instead of burning fats contrary to what people say about how breast feeding helps you to loose weight. Mine was in panic mode it thought I was starving everyday _ so it stored.

Can't wait for the mental freedom and we still have enough milk to last another 1-2 months even if she just takes my milk exclusively.

Ladies and gentlemen, this cow has left the building.

(well sort off... i'm on some medication which seems to be working really slowly.. im still going at it.. I hope not for too long)

Chorus Line

It's a wonderfully choreographed theater production but I don't think it's for everyone.
There's a lot about the life of a struggling artist and unless you are in that line of work, you may feel that certain parts are draggy and may find it hard to relate to the monologues. 
It is however, a very detailed and entertaining way of telling the life stories of individuals in the theater scene. 


After the show, a couple of us photographers were joking about how if we did a spoof of the show, there would be a lot more grunting, snorting, swearing and less attractive cast that are toned deaf! The story line would really be the same though.. family histories and reasons for doing what we do _ that doesn't really pay well but we're doing what we love.. We just complain a lot more than dancers and look a lot more unglamorous along the way!!! haahah. (:

Passport Photos : Do's and Dont's

We recently renewed our passports and of course, being photographers, we take our own pictures.. Just give us a white wall and a camera.
Here are some tips we would like to share with you... 

There are certain standards to meet. Just some basics. 
I'm sure you can figure out the ones that our authorities would reject. 
And actually, these pictures should never see the light of day.
Let's learn to laugh at ourselves while enjoying the process.

Perks of the Job #3094658

Heh.. can't you tell i'm feeling a little goofy but happy but overly excited and trying to contain it???!!!

Yes because I am on the pilot's seat of the Qantas Airbus A380 Nancy Bird Walton!!!! Woman Driver!!!! on the plane named after one of Australia's most prominent female aviators!!!! Girl Power! And we're both doing a "man's" job!!!! (i know times have changed but yeah!)

photo credit: Alphonsus Chern (thanks alf for indulging me)

Super(DUPER)trees

One of the perks of my job is being able to visit places as they evolve.

One of these places is the amazing Gardens By The Bay where they are building some Supertrees which serve as vertical gardens.

I've been visiting the gardens everytime something is completed and have seen it being put together a few months at a time. Now i'm actually finding it very comforting everytime I have an assignment there. Maybe I have a special place in my heart for it, as it landed me my first double page spread in Time magazine but yea...that's personal reasons...

It's really starting to shape up and looks really magnificent. Everytime I go there, I feel that i'm entering a scene from the movie "Avatar". 

 

This time round, we got to witness the completion of the SKYWAY, its that skybridge linking a cluster of Supertrees... It is to me, way cooler than the Marina Bay Sands Skypark... you are high enough to enjoy the scenery but still low enough without glass barrier to be part of your surroundings.

It's a little bit "scary" for people who have the fear of heights and I admit it did take me a little while to get settled before I could start staring into my tiny view finder without feeling like I may fall over the edge...

It's really out of this world and the view is breath taking. 

I can't wait til it opens so everyone can enjoy it the way I do.

This is one of those places which grows on you - literally!

Come June 29, 2012. It will be open to the public.

Here are some OUT TAKES from my assignments. Sneak Preview.... 

Nelly Is Half A Year Old.

I can't believe half a year has gone by... Well, at least in Nelly-years.

Till now, sometimes I feel like i'm still recovering from childbirth.

I probably am because this pregnancy just took EVERYTHING out of me and post birth as well.

However, watching this button grow so quickly just never ceases to amaze me. 

Even the second time round... I still can't imagine how a small wriggler like thingamajig ended up a small human... 

She's been an easy baby so far, less the illnesses for the past couple of months..

Otherwise, she's always smiling and showing off her gummy smile ... almost all the time.

I love it!! 

Will blog more later.. am in between work/errands/running from one place to another.. 

Life thus far..

xx.

Later.

In Case You Missed It

This Globe Chair is for sale at Lorgan's The Retro Store @ 100E Pasir Panjang Rd  Century Warehouse #01-03, Singapore 118521 Open daily 10.30am - 6.30pm

** Baby not included**

My Husband Is a Better Photographer Than I

My husband and I are professional photographers. And well, most of you who know us have asked us "So who's the better photographer?"

And often I would reply, tongue-in-cheek, "On Monday, Wednesday and Friday, it's me, and on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday it's Terence".

Ok I take that all back. He is the better photographer.

Only Terence can make a still photo of nothing come alive with a pretty reflection that has "movement" in it make you stop and say... Wow.

I don't know about you, but I really like this image. And I haven't seen any of its kind from many many pictures of the bay area, that's been "shot to death".

(Sorry about the low quality.. it was a grab off my mobile phone from the screen of my mac)

This Has To Be The Newest Part of International Plaza

The rest of the building is ..... let's just say... a bit dated.

Some Things Don't Really Change

Yesterday, there was an Earthquake off the coast of Sumatra, close to Aceh.

I was in the office and my immediate reaction was to get the Satellite phone out and charge it.

Just in case we get activated, and have to go cover the aftermath. Man, that feeling of slight, very slight, panic came over me because it's been a while since I had to go into fireman mode. I spent all of last year being pregnant and giving birth and have been pretty domesticated of late... nursing, expressing and growing a baby.

But i guess some things never change and it's a little like riding a bicycle.

You never forget and there's some form of muscle memory. Mental and Physical. You automatically start to think : wet wipes, torch light, alcohol swabs, cameras, chargers and little clothing... oh and passport....

Felt nice to be able to almost be part of the team again but then again more importantly, not too many people were hurt by this event and we don't have to cover any "aftermath". Thank God most people are safe in Indonesia and i'm taking this as a warm up session...

Happy Easter

Here are some Easter Vanilla Cupcakes I made for family and friends over the weekend... just cause i'm feeling festive.

Short But Sweet Meeting again...

I think we can give ourselves a pat on the back for making an effort to meet up every 2 years  or so, albeit short coffee meetings or fleeting meetings at the airport. This time round, the whole family managed to get together.. Well almost.. Terence had to work.. But the kids have grown and they are all pretty awesome.. yes, for now, it's still possible to fit all 4 kids on one chair. (:

There's Always Something Out There

No matter how dry it is out there with respect to the news, there's always something, some photograph, some shapes, some patterns that is waiting to be made. We just have to trust our instincts and get out there with the camera and keep our eyes open.

Even I have to convince myself (that there's something out there) on a daily basis.

Portrait

The more children you have, the more eye-bags and lines you earn. I like stripes and bags... err does that count?

Silent Type

I don't talk much about him but he's always been there the silent pillar of strength. My partner, my hubby, my love. He puts up with me... therefore he's stronger than I. Finally had a quick coffee together. LONG OVERDUE.

Batman and the Goddess

These are my children

Here's a Happy Picture

Here's to balance out all those morbid pictures below in that other post.

Darker Month and a Half

the nebulizer..

So part of the reason why i've been quiet with the blog entries is because we've been down with illnesses all month, and last.

I'm not writing this post to earn sympathy points or whine about how pathetic my life may seem but its merely a form of reflection. True, it has been really trying and many times, I feel like it can't really get any worse than it is and it does. I trust that we will get past this and I believe in the power of prayer, so I know that one day I will read this and look at how far we've come since then/now... for now. In Feb I was hospitalized for an asthma attack full blown brought about by a mycoplasma infection. Not Fun. Having your lungs cave in by the minute is quite a freaky account. You start to hyper-ventilate and you then try to remain calm... while starting to feel like you're trapped in a cave. But with the lungs closing in, you then start to hyper-ventilate even more which is ironic when you try to remain calm while on the way to the hospital. A month later, i'm down with a severe cough again only here's the catch. Nelly has the same bug as I and she deteriorates quicker and needs to go on the ventilator/nebulizer thingy. She has been on it 3x a day for the PAST MONTH. Thank God I own the nebulizing machine (from nate's time) otherwise it would cost me $10 bucks a day to rent.. more stress I don't need. She's also been on 2 different types of anti-biotics for the past 2 months. That's a lot for a kid that's not even half a year old. She's had stuff stuck up her nostrils, while wrapped up like a burrito and then later pricked in the finger for further blood tests. I on the other hand have been stretched to my limit. There's nothing worse than nursing a sick child to health while sick yourself.. You just get worse because you don't sleep more than 5 hours a night sometimes an hour at a time. And you just feel like dying. This is the worst part of my month.. being ill and having to be a mother to a sick infant and get sicker yourself. I swear post natal depression has kicked in full time. You feel tired, worn out, low in energy, lack of appitite, and guilty.... from ignoring or not having enough energy to care for your other kid who also fell sick along the way. As if things couldn't get worse. Anyways, Nelly is much better now and just ended her month of medications.. I have finished 2 courses of anti-biotics so far and am still suffering from a severe cough with green phlegm.

I'm sorry you have to see this but this has become a normal recurrance when my immunity is down and my allergies kick in.

We have no idea what this is and I have just seen the ENT specialist today. Am off for a CT scan tomorrow and hopefully we can figure out if this is all caused by some sinus infections. All this while I juggle my assignments in between. I'm kinda done with the whining and wallowing in self-pity but do excuse me if I seem a little less perky than I usually am. I'm just really really really tired. Again, i'm not out to score sympathy points or crave for any attention but i'm just penning this down because i know in my head and my heart that I have no right to really complain about life because I have life and I always tell myself that our older generation prolly had it much worse and they didn't even have a blog to rant it all out in. They must have had a lot of neighbours and health care must have been cheaper then Speaking of which i have already passed the $2000 mark for our medical bills just this month alone. How I'm gonna get by... HAHA I don't even wanna think about that. No shopping for me for a while. I don't have the energy for that anyway. The best thing i've done this past 5 months? Have a hair cut... that's how simple my life has been (: PRAISE GOD from whom all good things come. REALLY and i'm saying this to declare victory over any evil around me cause i'm done with all that...I need to get well.... sooner than later. (cough cough cough)