A Cup of Hope

A Cup of Hope, originally uploaded by rickirick.

Chinese say: Where there is tea, there is hope :)
.. and when there is hope, there is life, wish you a happy life! cheers

I have been wondering how to make a bokeh photograph with big light rounds in the background, while the main focus (object) remains well exposed.

Through some readings and photos in flickr, tonight I start experimenting with my standard equipment (d90 body + afd 80-200 lens + tripod). I open the curtain at my room, hoping the distant light at the street make something different on the bokeh, and the last one, have myself as the model :) i'm alone, nobody else here, self timer + tripod + manual focus are the keys then.

I have learned important variables to determine the size of light round: long focal length (here i go with 120mm), bigger aperture (here is f/2.8), and distant light in background (here about 10m).

Well, not bad for first attempt, isn't it? :) The lighting setting is surely the apparent weakness, there is annoying shadow in my face. I am now considering to learn flash photography and buy necessary stuff, such as nikon SB to improve my experiment, as the bulb light is the only source of light at this picture.

ricki @ wuxi 2009

Yuyuan Garden

Yuyuan Garden, originally uploaded by rickirick.

I think this is the nicest garden in central China, where people can also enjoy the lightings of old chinese style architecture. The location is also very easy to reach, it's right in the center of of Shanghai downtown, you can use bus going toward old city, or take rickshaw from the nearest subway station, Nanjing East Road.

ricki @ shanghai

Three Kingdoms

Three Kingdoms, originally uploaded by rickirick.

This is another picture taken at horse ride show of Three Kingdoms City, a friend of mine requested me to put the original color version as the previous one has been retouched to give sephia effect. How do you find its color? The picture is taken through my newest lens :) - Nikkor AF 80-200 ED (N) so far I'm satisfied with the performance.

A little bit flashback, Three Kingdoms City is located at southwest suburb of Wuxi, China. The studio is used as background for historical television series in China, The Romance of Three Kingdoms.

ricki @ wuxi 2009

Esplanade at night

Esplanade at night, originally uploaded by rickirick.

This is the eye view from merilion park, where you can see "The Durian" esplanade building and its lighting. I confess there is nothing special with the photograph composition, except the lighting reflection on the blurred water.
I was too lazy that time to not bring tripod, hence my angle was very limited, I could only take picture wherever there is something sturdy surface, and used the self timer to avoid camera shake when pressing the shutter button.
By the way, increasing ISO can be another solution if you dont bring tripod when taking photo on low light situation, but you will find the noise will be more apparent.

ricki @ singapore 2009

A Timeless Friendship

A Timeless Friendship, originally uploaded by rickirick.

Having a good friendship until their ages is interesting, isn't it?

When I was having lunch with my friend at a restaurant in Xintiandi area, these two grandpas pulled our attention, they were sitting in front of fountain, right in the middle of people crowd. The waitress helped me to translate my words into mandarin, I asked if I could take picture of them.

This picture was taken at Xintiandi, an entertainment district in Shanghai. When I have nothing to do in Shanghai, this place always comes first in my mind. Nothing special about this place, but i find the place give different atmosphere when having lunch or just afternoon coffee.

ricki @ shanghai 2009

Never too late to learn

Never too late to learn, originally uploaded by rickirick.

Enough said :)

You wanted me, here I am

You wanted me, here I am, originally uploaded by rickirick.

This is one of the horse knights in a duel between three heroes and their enemy at Three Kingdoms City, which is located at southwest suburb of Wuxi, China. The studio is used as background for historical television series in China, The Romance of Three Kingdoms.

Talking about this photograph, it was very difficult to achieve the expected effect through photography technique only, such as freezing or panning, at least for now, with my limited capability. Digital post processing took an important role to make the original picture more dramatic. For those who interested to learn, just drop me a comment and later I will be happy to elaborate the tricks for you :)

ricki @ wuxi 2009

Everything will be fine, baby

Everything will be fine, baby, originally uploaded by rickirick.

It was a clear day just after the rain stopped. On my way to to Jade Buddha Temple, i came across a girl starring outside from her window. My luck to get this moment because I was still inside a moving taxi and hadn't even opened the window yet :)

I didn't have clue what she was thinking at the moment, but one thing for sure, her house got interesting view as its window facing the beautiful street of Nanjing Lu.

ricki @ shanghai 2009

Under the lights

Under the lights, originally uploaded by rickirick.

I came across this interesting scene when visited Singapore for weekend gateaway, a rickshaw man waiting for passenger at Boat quay, where many tourist came over to amaze the city lighting by the river. Rows of cafe at Boat Quay are also a little more laid back and good spot for coffee and having chit chat.

ricki @ singapore 2009

Ni Hao!

Ni Hao!, originally uploaded by rickirick.

A warm welcome for me in China! :) hehe actually this was taken at old market in Nanjing. I got a nice great wall painting with only 30 RMB there.

ricki @ nanjing 2009

Venice of the east

Venice of the east, originally uploaded by rickirick.

This is Tongli, a famous river located at Suzhou, it can be reached by 1 hour driving from Shanghai. Its long history (1000 years), well preserved culture, and ancient village around the river are the main interests for many tourist to come, and some people say if this place reminds them to Venice in Italy. Ok, start from the identical place at east, hopefully i can have opportunity to visit the real Venice someday :)

ricki @ suzhou 2009

Hindu baby's first hair cut

Hindu baby's first hair cut, originally uploaded by rickirick.

After bidding a farewell to Tokyo, I went back to Kuala Lumpur. I spent the weekend to visit Batu Caves, a popular Hindu shrine outside India.
This lady seems very keen to let others see how her grand daughter just got shaved for the first hair time life. In Hindu tradition, the hair from birth is associated as undesirable traits from past lives, here this babyl is freshly shaven to signify freedom from the past and moving into her future.

ricki @ batu 2009