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Gear

"Melvin is sold out to the Nikon system (sorry Canon shooters). He shoots with Nikon D80 and Finepix S2 Pro dslr bodies. Mel loves using the 50mm f/1.8, and 80-200mm f/2.8D most. He also has a Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8, and a Tamron SP 90mm f/2.8 Macro. For lights, he has two 500W/s studio strobes, but prefers to carry an SB800 Speedlight "because it's not as heavy". He packs all these equipment in a lovely Crumpler 'Karachi Outpost' backpack. He has other nice stuff too, but just doesn't want to tell you."

About

"A native of Borneo, Mel only recently traded his headhunter's machette for a digital SLR and a SCUBA tank."

Archives

Away from home Wednesday, March 28, 2007 |

Andy Warhol's Pen Collection
Nikon D80 with 90mm f/2.8 macro. Lit with misfired built-in speedlight.

I'm going to be away for a couple of months. Come April 13th I'll be in Singapore. For four and a half months. I'm going to miss home.

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Staff Photo Day Thursday, March 22, 2007 |

Last Monday was office staff photo day at Glory Christian Centre. I'm so happy and proud to be part of this team! Can't imagine it has been 9 years already. The above set is complete save for one, my Senior Pastor. Dr William is overseas at the moment so I will be scheduling a special shoot for him when he comes back. Check out the portraits on the staff photo page.

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Online Book Preview |

View the Online Version Here

I am working on Migin release 3.1, the latest version of my online presence. Or in plain English, I'm redesigning my web page. Did some homework and found ready made templates very attractive but a little pricey. I was pleasantly surprised to find a super cool plug-in for Picasa. It works beautifully and it's free! Will definitely be using this as a design element of my site's redesign.

I got the plug-in from futureofmemories.com. You can go to the download page here. It's a flash based web slide show thingy with a twist. You'll need to install Picassa 2 first, you can get that here. Happy experimenting, and if you do get a slide show up, do let me know ok?

Here's a treat: I have taken the liberty of uploading the digital version of my first photo book for you to see. You will need to install Adobe Flash Player to view. Get it here. Enjoy!

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iStockPhoto Exlusive Wednesday, March 21, 2007 |

"Nikonian" by Margaret Vun
Nikon D80, 80-200 f/2.8. Lighting: Two 1000ws studio strobes. Strobe #1 with large softbox, #2 lit the background with a honeycomb attached. SB800 on slave provided fill in light.

It finally happened! After many months of waiting, I have been accepted as an Exclusive Photographer with iStockPhoto.com. I'm ecstatic - that an international stock photo agency recognizes my work. *Mel grins ear to ear* :o)

Okay folks, you must be wondering what the big deal is all about. I joined the site back in May 2005 just for fun. It costs nothing to join. To submit stock photos, you do have to take a test and submit 3 photos for review. I was surprised I got accepted. That year my account accumulated a grand amount of US $1.80. Haha, peanuts.

Well, it's now 2007. 'Peanuts' $1.80 ... is how much I make per download. Well, it's more like how much I can make, with $1.80 being the royalty paid for a large image download. All in US dineros. Sweet.

The reason why I'm happy today is not so much of having coins jingling in my online piggy bank. It's the whole idea of selling my images. Two years ago, I would never have believed it would be possible for me to photograph anything of value. I always wanted to be a photographer since age 14, but never thought it would be possible. At least not a professional. It's funny how God puts seeds in your heart, and then it 'dies'. Wake up 16 years later and you find them not dead, but growing, and growing, and growing. If there is one thing I have learned here, it is this. Never give up on your dreams. Ever.

Okay, enough about my introspective ramblings. For you curious people out there, here's a link to my portfolio on iStock. Not pretty or impressive, but at least it's something lah. Here's the link.
'View

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Miracles Thursday, March 15, 2007 |

I am finally a published photographer, yay! The page above was taken from a forthcoming photo book I have been working on. "Love Faith Purity" will be on sale April 8th. Working on this project really S T R E T C H E D me creatively. Not only did I have to use my best shots, I also had to think as a print/layout designer. Working with type faces, text layouts, grids, graphic placement... phew. It's hard work I tell you! :o)

Photo Notes
How did I shoot the compass you say? I used my Nikon D80 mounted with a Tamron 90 mm macro. Set on manual, I shot it at f/8, 1/125s, ISO 100.

I like to use off-camera flash. I set an SB800 on "remote", my built in flash set on "commander" mode. Flash settings: D80 -3 ev (don't want on camera flash to contribute much light), SB 800 0 ev. Used a diffuser and angled it to the left of the compass. Background is a large piece of black sugar paper. Shot on RAW, post processed on Photoshop with the help of Alien Skin's Exposure plug-in.

Shooting tips:
1. Focus on the top part of the compass (in this case I focused on the needle)
2. Use medium distance. If you have a macro lens, the tendency is to go overkill and go in too close. Your camera is not a microscope, so step back a bit. I pushed my lens away so as to get better depth-of-field. Even at f/8, going in too near can all but blur the image's point of focus.
3. Have fun!

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