CLICK A BI-ANNUAL NEWSLETTER OF SAFRA PHOTOGRAPHIC CLUB Jun 2007 Dec 2007 Founded 1972
Club Opening Hours: Mon, - 9am to 6pm Wed & Fri Tues & Thur - 9am to 9pm Sat - 1pm to 6pm Sunday, - Closed Holidays eve & Public Holidays Club Contact Number: Andy - Tel: 6377 3681 or email: tandy@safra.sg www.safraphotoclub.com Editorial It s been two busy years for Photo Club at Mount Faber! SAFRA Photo Club was established in 1972, the same year its parent organization formed. We have come a long way. From a small darkroom in the Price Edward Road clubhouse to the then new Toa Payoh clubhouse, and finding home with the biggest non-commercial darkroom in Bukit Merah, and now at MF, we have not only captured the development of SAFRA with our cameras, we also grow with it. At our new home, we are proud to host the first major event at the grand lobby barely three months after moving in. We are now the only interest group that kept the lift busy going up to the 3 rd level in many evenings and weekends either for courses or activities. We are also the only interest group that brings members and guests together at the cozy roof-top garden just behind the darkroom! Editorial The first committee term after moving to MF is ending this June. A new committee will be taking over though not much change is expected. We need members and head counts to make every events and activities a success. So why not make an extra effort to be with the rest of the members at our activates? This year, we are celebrating our 35 th anniversary. Besides supporting SAFRA in every way we can, we are also planning a series of activities for members. In the pipeline is a pure black-and-white photo exhibition. The committee will also step up in organizing more outings, as request by some newer members. For details of these program as well as other information, log on to Photo Club s website at safraphotoclub.com; or go to our Forum at www.safraphotoclub.com/ forum. Happy 35 th anniversary! Cover Picture by Andrew Aw 28th SAFRA Photographic Club Committee Name Email Add Appointment Mr Desmond Teo Puay Chuan desmond.teo@rajahtann.com Chairman 1SG (NS) Andy Lau Chiang Hwee jubilee@pacific.net.sg Vice-Chairman CPL (NS) William Tan Wee Liang willtan1972@yahoo.com / willtan1972@gmail.com Vice-Chairman SSG (NS) Koh Beng Chye photo_kbc@yahoo.com.sg Vice-Chairman 2SG (NS) Guek Peng Siong guekps@gmail.com Secretary SSG Daniel Tang Mun Wai mwtang@pacific.net.sg Asst Secretary Mr Victor Chick Wing Hang victorid@starhub.net.sg Editor CPL (NS) Edmund Low Meng-Yu ledmund@hotmail.com Asst Editor Mr Tan Kay Hian takahi88@hotmail.com Member SSG Joseph Lew Yeow Koon stealth@starhub.net.sg Member CPL (NS) Robin Ng Teck Hua robin.ng@neratel.com.sg Member CPL (NS) Victor Yeo Thiam Huat victory@pacific.net.sg Member 3SG (NS)Then Chih Wey ceramic@hotmail.com Member Mr Bernard Teo Tiat How bteoth@starhub.net.sg Advisor Mr Raymond Chua Seng Chye scray@starhub.net.sg Advisor Mr Eric Goh Wee Seng (PBM) binsingm@singnet.com.sg Advisor CPT (NS) Dr Looi Hong Cheong hclooi@singnet.com.sg Advisor Mr Bernard Luey Kwong Yuen shereenteo@pacific.net.sg Member (Co-opt) 1SG (NS) Calvin Ng Weng Wah hangdog@gmail.com Member (Co-opt) CPL (NS) Kelvin Wee Chee Yee kelvin@paintingmoment.com Member (Co-opt) 2SG (NS) Felix Tan Thiam Kim photophilosophy@yahoo.com.sg Member (Co-opt) 03
Photo Club News 8 th SAFRA Photographer of the Year Winning entries in this year s SAFRA Photographer of the Year have one thing in common, strong colors. Among those short listed for the final selection, it was all bright, strong colors. Even the only set of monochrome prints that was awarded a consolation prize has a very strong tone. The panel of judges settled for a set of portrait format photos by Lester Koh Meng Hua. Text by Joseph Lew / Victor Chick; Photos by Guek Peng Siong A dancer, a painting framed by a viewer s profile, ruby players and Raffles statue looking at a mural drawing, Lester used the bold shape of human form as the common icon to depict the four themes he chosen for the set. Judges (from right) Patrick Ee, Foo Tee Jun, Eric Goh, Tan Cheng Hai and Wang Qing Gui. Relatively new to photography, Lester takes this winning as an encouragement and recognition for his commitment to this hobby. Joseph Lew, Organizing Chairman, said at the prize presentation and opening of the exhibition that the enthusiastic response received from the photographic community, especially from new participants, is definitely most encouraging. A record number of 302 sets of entries comprising four prints each were received from 119 participants. This shows the continued support from photographers here in this format of photo contest since its introduction in 1992. Photo Club advisor Dr Looi Hong Cheong who chaired the inaugural PTY observed that a group of regular participants actually accumulate photos over the years in order to get the best set for each season. Participants are excited during the final round of selection. Officials at work. An over view of the judging in progress. Concentration at the score board. Judges deciding the winners. The Photographer of the Year: Lester Koh 04
Photo Club News 8 th PTY Exhibition @ Page One Sponsors: Nikon Singapore Pte Ltd EPSON Singapore Pte Ltd Imation Singapore Pte Ltd Ocean2u (S) Pte Ltd Page One The Bookshop Pte Ltd Accompanying Prof Koo Tsai Kee, President, SAFRA, taking a closer look at the Champion s work are club advisor Dr Looi Hong Cheong (left), Chairman Desmond Teo (right) and Organizing Chairman Joseph Lew. Guest-of-Honor, Prof Koo Tsai Kee, President, SAFRA, addressing the crowd during the prize presentation. An exhibition with a twist: among the shelves of books at Page One the Bookshop. Lester Koh with his rewards. Champion: (Prizes: S$1000 cash, Nikon D200 dslr camera, Epson Stylus Photo R1800 printer, return air tickets to Bangkok with 3D2N accommodation for two, Challenge Trophy) Lester Koh Meng Hua Organizing Chairman Joseph Lew presenting a token of appreciation to Guest of Honor, Prof Koo. Members and participants supporting the 8 th PTY at the exhibition opening and prize presentation. Merits: (Prizes: S$150 cash, $50 SAFRA Rewards Voucher, Epson Stylus Photo R800 printer, Nikon Coolpix S5 camera, Imation Lightscribe Internal DVD Burner, DVD+R 8x Lightscribe disk) Lawrence Yeo Kok Lip Danny Kwan Sai Hoe Low Soon Leong Tan Choon Wee Goh Koon Peng Consolation: (Prizes: S$100 cash, $50 SAFRA Rewards Voucher, Epson Stylus Photo R230 printer, Nikon Coolpix L3 camera, Imation White Inkjet Hub Printable DVD) Lee Hin Mun Tan Choon Lai Jason Ho Fook Sze Micheal Ee Choon Hock Royston Gerard Cordeiro 05
Gallery Selection of Photographe Champion: Lester Koh 06
Gallery r of Year winning entries Consolation Prizes Jason Ho Tan Choon Lai Lee Hin Mun Royston Gerand Cordeiro Merit Prizes Low Soon Leong Goh Koon Peng Danny Kwan Lawrence Yeo Tan Choon Wee 07
SAFRAPC Annual Members Competitions Top Prize Winners Monochrome: Joseph Lew Colour Slide : Toh Say Jen Digital Print : Ee Choon Hock Merit : Colour Slide Bernard Poh Robin Ng Lim Chai Meng Steven Tor Ng Chee Eng 08
Merit : Digital Print SAFRAPC Annual Members Competitions Danny Kwan Ng Wei Chean Gina Ng Chin Poh Kenny Chew Sim Kok Beng Merit : Monochrome Sim kok Beng Toh Say Jen koh Meng Hua Tay Kay Hian Robin Ng 09
Photo Gallery Best Students Works Showcase Editor s Note: Most of these images are scanned from original submitted works. While much care is taken to reproduce these works, some loss in details and color balance is unavoilable. Outdoor Portraiture Course by Andrew Aw Studio Portraiture Course by Andrew Aw Studio Portraiture Course by Winston by SY Loong 10
Associate Exam Nature Course by Ang Kee Thye Nature Course by Louis Chong Joon Yow 11
Member s Article Sri Lanka - Lost in Time A traveller s tales and photos by Felix Tan this opportunity to watch tea pickers go about their work. After a good Sri Lankan lunch, I continued with my journey up the mountains, past majestic waterfalls, finally reaching this charming town before dusk. Dotting the entire city are the remnants of old colonial styled buildings, which, once again, have been converted to guesthouses and hotels. Wanting to get a better view of the city, I stayed at the 4- level Greek-inspired Hellenic Guesthouse that boasts a spacious lawn and a fireplace. Besides the town centre, you can pay a visit to the lovely Victoria Park to snap a few pictures of flowers and insects. Stay a day or two there because Nuwara Eliya does provide one with a sense of being lost in time that harks back to the early days of colonialisation. It was one of those twice a year mustleave-singapore sojourns that I would usually embark on and I ve chosen Sri Lanka to be my destination of my little 12 days getaway. Arriving Sri Lanka s Bandaranaike Airport in the evening, I was soon quickly whisked away in a van my friends had rented, and thus begun my travelling experience. get a good view of the town centre and another famous landmark Kandy Lake, one should stay in the guesthouses that are stacked along the sides of the numerous hills surrounding this city. But if you want to indulge yourself, then the grand ole Queen s Hotel next to Lake is the choice. Amidst the torrential rain, we continued up to the mountainous region of Nuwara Eliya (pronounced as Nu-reliya). Do take a pit stop at one of the many tea plantations along the way for lunch and take a moment to just chill out in the cool mountain air, but more importantly, take Due to the bad weather in the last few days, most of the roads leading to places like Horton s Plains Nationals Park and famous World s End have been made impassable. And so, we had to make a detour down treacherous improvised roads down the sides of the mountains. After facing an almost uphill battle to get the van through the makeshift roads, I soon figured out that it was much better to walk downhill and experience the fresh mountain air a little plus it never hurts to trek and explore the unexpected paths that occasionally pop up along the trail in any trip. Nonetheless, having had to make First stop, the former capital of Sri Lanka Kandy. This place is a rather quaint town filled with a mishmash of old British colonial buildings that has been converted into hotels or guesthouses as well as an array of gaudy decrepit post-independence shop-houses. At the town centre is where the famous Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, where one of Buddhas tooth is supposedly to have buried and which is also regarded as a national treasure. Another noteworthy place in Kandy is the National Museum, but do not expect too much from this place, which resembles more like a storeroom than a museum. To 12
Member s Article last minute changes to my plans, my next pit stop was Haputale, a largely Tamil town perched along a narrow mountain ridge. An unexpected stop as it was, it turned out to be my most enjoyable stop not only could I indulge myself snapping away at the life of the town, this place was surrealistic as it was mystical. Do make a short trip to the Adisham Monastery that is run by the order of the Benedictine fraternity. Take your time to walk leisurely around the beautifully maintained grounds of the monastery and experience the serenity that this place exudes. But do explore the insides of this stone-block monastery where most of the furniture and books have been well maintained. I stayed at the Sri Lak Holiday Inn, which was near the edge of a cliff overlooking the vast Sri Lankan plains across the horizon. Plus, this place could also served up a scrumptious Sri Lankan meal of curries and fried rice. No words could aptly describe the feelings as I walked through this town in the evening the day I arrive and the next morning. Filled with small shops selling trinkets and daily provisions to chickens and slabs of lamb; from providing laundry services to a small pub catering to the needs of workers going back home after a hard day s work this town centre really is underrated. Strong winds also did quite a nifty job in kicking up a small dust storm in the town, although most of the inhabitants were strangely oblivious to such happenings. A short walk and you will find the railway station surrounded by more shops and push carts selling hot pastries, string hoppers and assorted Sri Lankan delights. The beautiful thing about this place is that there is nothing too commercialised here and it sure provides a spectacular view of the Sri Lankan plains as well as a great moment to just get away from the hustle and bustle of the big cities. We soon made our way back to Colombo. After travelling through dense jungle forests and facing landslides on perilous mountain roads, I finally told myself I had to live it up for the remaining days of my trip in the capital and checked into the Ceylon Continental Hotel. Take a leisurely stroll along the beach at Galle Face Green and just enjoy the cool sea breeze sweeping inland from the vast Indian Ocean. Or pay a visit to the bazaar of Pettah for a good bargain, but avoid the place if you do not fancy yourself jostling for walking space among the throngs of people. For something less crowded, make your way down to the Independence Hall or the National Museum. However, the best part of Colombo wasn t the sights, but rather a drive around the city and get lost in the maze of turns that the Sri Lankan roads present. If you have the time, take a 3-hour drive up north, past the beach resort town of Negombo and to the ancient cities of Sigiriya and Dumbulla, where you will be enthralled with the Royal Rock Temple and experience the Buddhist influence in the Sinhalese culture. Whatever you decide to do in Sri Lanka, take the necessary precaution for this is not something for the faint-hearted or the impatient. Take the road less travel and do not plan too much, for this is one place where the unexpected is where beauty lies and a moment lost too soon. 13
Learn a Trick What Do I See When I Travel? Text and Photos by Calvin Ng Word of advice to photographers, do not travel with nonphotographers, you should especially avoid group travel. Well, it worked both ways, depending on whom the advice is given to. For the non-photographers reading this, if you see your travelling companion carrying a heavy looking tripod, and the camera bag is bigger than the luggage, watch out! Just to name a few unique travelling habits of a serious photographer that will irritate the typical traveller:- 1) Start early. To catch a sunrise shot, one has to rise very much earlier then the sun to be at the correct place at the correct time. 2) Loitering at one location. The serious photographer will never hit the place, take a few shots and leave. He will walk all around, look at all the angles, and quite often visit the place repeatedly at different time of the day. 3) Waiting. The serious photographer spends a great deal of time waiting. Waiting for the clouds to pass, waiting for the sun to hit just the right spot, waiting for the desired pedestrian to enter the frame, waiting for the undesired pedestrian to exit the frame, and the list goes on. Muslim fishing community at Koh Pang Yee, an island near James Bond island While travelling with a photographer is trying, seeing the resulting images from a photographer s trip can hardly be described as a chore. Usually it is not so much that the images are unique, but that the photographer managed to capture ordinary things uniquely and beautifully. Karon Beach, Phuket Perhaps one of the most valuable assets a photographer could have is keen observation, the ability to see details beneath the familiar, to see beauty in the mundane. However, one does not have to travel to see different things, all we have to do is to see things differently. Case in point, have you hosted a foreign friend, only to have him or her point out things that we never notice before, things that we have taken for granted because we were numbed by it through everyday occurrences. 14 Long tail boat at Railay Beach, Krabi. Photographing landmarks is usually a very important event during travelling. It is the evidence that we have visited some foreign land. But a majority of travel photographs focused on culture, people, and the similarities and differences of our daily lives. These allow the Architecture of buildings at Karon Beach seen through a reflection. photographers to experience the culture, speak to the people, achieving a greater understanding of the places we travelled to than is possible when travelling in a tour group. Here are some parting tips on getting started with travel photography:- 1) Know your equipment well; 2) Attend a travel photography course or workshop; 3) Practice locally, try to see familiar places with a fresh eyes; 4) When travelling, seek out back roads as well as well-known places; 5) Interact with people.
Photo Essay Impression of a home for the disabled Text and Photos By Raymond Chua The Red Cross Home for the Disabled cares for severely disabled persons aged 5 to 58 years old. Both long-term residential services and short-term respite care are available. It is also the only home that provides residential care to the severely disabled population in Singapore. Residents may suffer from various disabilities such as Down Syndrome, muscular dystrophy, epilepsy and other deformities. The home takes care of the residents daily needs, as well as organizes beneficial activities for the residents, including physiotherapy sessions, befriending volunteers who organize social and recreational activities, outings, and art and craft sessions. Through his camera, Raymond Chua captured the daily activities and care given to these residents. 15
Learn a Trick Shooting With Available Lights Text and Photos by Koh Beng Chye Photography is about painting with light. Without lightings, there will be no photos. Therefore, the study of lighting behavior is as important as photographic techniques. A good practice is shooting in available lights. Picture 1 (left) An indoor shot with natural lights coming through the window creates a great picture. The frame of the window creates a depth between the outdoor and the window. Placing the face of the model sideways contour the model faces and creates a better depth. Picture 3 and 4 When shooting night scene, photographers usually uses long exposures to create long traffic trails from headlights of cars and the street decorations (left). Another way of shooting is to use short exposure with star filter to create a sparkling shot (right). Picture 2 (right) When the sun is high over head, lighting may be too harsh of many photographers. If you are observant enough, you can find lots of nice shadow on the ground and on buildings, etc. With green grass, the colour is smoothing with patterns of the palm tree. 16 Picture 5 and 6 Without blue sky, there are still opportunities to get great landscape photos. When the sun is low, you can get good warm toned photos from the setting sun. A little longer wait, the same scene transform into great silhouettes. Picture 7 With two LED torch lights, you can create a nice spot lights for small objects. It also gives a natural day-light tone.
Photographing Snow and other high key subjects Photographing high key subjects like snow scene needs extra attention in exposure. First thing to remember is that your camera s metering measures everything as middle grey (18% reflectance). When you frame your view with white, the camera gives you a middle grey, thus your photo turns out a dirty grey snow (as in picture 1 Below). There are details on the snow, but it lacks the brightness you experienced in the actual scene. Learn a Trick Photos by Guek Peng Siong, Text by Victor Chick With editing softwares, it is easy to correct the fault simply by using auto level or brightness/contrast adjustment. However, without correct exposure, auto level may cause a slight color shift. With a +1/3 stop exposure compensation, the snow will look brighter. Just like shooting in color slides (positive film), an over-exposure of about 1/3 to 1/2 stop should overcome the problem (top right). It will also give a correct exposure to other elements in the picture, especially the face of any human subject. Snow does not look as bright as it should be when the camera metered it at 18% grey. For compact camera users, there are two options. In Scene mode, select the Beach/Snow mode. This mode will favor some overexposure. But be careful. Check the histogram to ensure that there is no excess washout highlights. (Too much over-exposure causes the brightest area in the scene to be recorded as pure white, without any details.) If this happen, you may want to consider using the second option, if available on your compacts: exposure compensation. You are free to select how much over-expose you want, normally in 1/3 stop increments. You will need to check the exposure on the display if the exposure if just right. However, you A normal exposure in the Landscape mode gives an average exposure with details in the highlight area. must take note that the LCD display screen on the camera may not give you the most accurate display. Some comparison between actual print-out and result against screen display must be done beforehand. You can now have better controls on the exposure. This feature is more helpful if the scene is split 50/50 with high key and low key subjects (right). If the scene framed is 50/50, a normal exposure is good enough. (on left and right) 17
User Review OUTLOOK A nice handy entry level camera, this is an upgraded version of the D40, which was released just a few months earlier. Putting the two side-by-sides, it seems to have no physical difference. The major change inside the new body is a 10 mega-pixels CCD sensor, replacing the 6 mega-pixels. ISO rating can now go to a low of 100; and in continuous drive mode, the camera fires off at 3 frames per sec (fps), slightly faster than the 2.5 fps in the predecessor. A quick look at the new D40X Text and Photos by Victor Chick The rest of the review of D40X should be appreciable to the D40.. The large 2.5" LCD monitor not only used to playback images, but also doubles as information display panel which is usually another panel on top of the camera, one way of making the camera body smaller. FOR BEGINNERS So user friendly is this camera, you can leave the manuals at home and yet you have the instructor with you all the time. The built-in Help menu is literary at your finger tip: press the? button. Most of the key functions are explained in brief anytime anywhere. As many of my course students had mentioned they do not know how and when to use many of the features on their cameras, this help button will sure help those who want to explore their equipment. Forever confused with big aperture number means small aperture opening? No more confusion on the D40X. The camera information displayed in graphics on the LCD monitor will show clearly the size of the aperture as you turn the dials. Amazing! If you are sick of going through all the folders in the Menu to find a setting to change, this camera saves you the trouble. Press the i button brings you to all shooting related settings which you can select and change. There are 8 Digital Vari-Program modes, similar to those compact cameras function, for different shooting situation. The Child and Auto (flash off) modes are new features worth trying out. Child mode pays attention to color balance to ensure natural skin tones against vividly rendered clothing and background details. In Auto (Flash off) mode, as the name implied, the builtin flash will be switch off for available-light photography or when use of flash is prohibited. The other modes are auto, sports, portrait, close-up, landscape and night portrait. FOR THE MORE SERIOUS Amateur photographers who want more control of the shooting experience can opt to use the P/S/ A/M, or Program, Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority and Manual, selections. In these modes, you also have controls over white balance, ISO, shooting mode and exposure compensation. Other features and controls are 3 focus areas with 3 different focusing modes, 3 frames per second in continuous shooting, and TTL exposure metering in 3 modes, all that are found on any professional dslrs. Add more fun to your regular photography, the D40X allows incamera image editing in the Retouch Menu. Seven effects for various purposes are available. D-lighting is used for correcting exposure errors especially back-lighted subjects. Red-eye correction for correcting the red-eye effect caused by flash. Filter effects allows adjustment to color balance and cast. You can also convert your photos to monochromatic effects like blackand-white or sepia tones. You can crop your pictures or downsize them for web use. If you shoot in RAW format, there is a Image Overly option to create a double-exposed image. All the new images created are saved separately in the memory card, leaving the original intact. IN A NUTSHELL A truly small, compact, portable camera designed to enhance the entire camera experience, with every feature, button and menu working together for a smooth, seamless performance entry level camera for beginners. Easy to use, with built-in help guide, full dslr features and purpose made variprogram. 18