Runner
Nikon D80, 80-200mm f/2.8, available light

"Most men lead lives of quiet desperation
and go to the grave with the song still in them."
Henry David Thoreau

Many years ago I bought and listened to a teaching series by Florence Littauer. It was a special boxed set of two cassette tapes, with a green cover that had the bold title: DARE TO DREAM. Florence is so funny! One day she was driving home after a long day of shopping. As she looked into her rear view mirror, Florence was shocked. She saw wild-looking kids running hard after her car, shouting and screaming. Afraid for her own safety, she accelerated and managed to shake them off - much to her relief. Moments later, it finally dawned on Florence - those were her own kids! She brought them shopping and then completely forgotten about them.

Florence taught me one thing that would remain with me for the rest of my life: Dare to dream. As Ps. Kong Hee likes to say, "Dream big, because we serve a big God." Martin Luther King Junior's speech forever immortalized the words, "I have a dream..."

I have never forgotten Florence's words. Over the years, her message has inspired me to pursue the dreams that matter most. Many have I seen come to pass. And some I still hold on to, just waiting for the right time and season to pursue. I believe that life's true meaning hides behind the dreams that God puts into our hearts. To engage our dreams is to discover our true purpose in life. At 21 years of age, I saw a major dream fulfilled when I stepped into the full-time ministry. It has been almost 10 years now, and what a journey it has been!

One long-held dream is that I have always wanted to become a professional photographer. I guess this explains the passion I have for photography, and the sizable investment I have put into equipment! This dream is like a song in my head that just won't stop playing. When I was in college, my pastor in Shah Alam once said, "You know you own a great dream... when that dream owns you." This dream lives on... and I dare say it has 'owned' me. So you may ask, "But Mel, you are in the full-time ministry. How then are you going to pursue this dream?"

The answer to that question? It is printed on a poster that my sister Melissa gave me on my 21st birthday:

Trust in God
Believe in yourself
Dare to dream

Labels: life

Labels: life, photography

Self-Portraits

Labels: life

Citius, Altius, Fortius. These three Latin words mean "Swifter, Higher, Stronger," and is the motto of the Olympics. These three words also describe how much I have grown in the course of my training in Singapore.

The last two months mark a turning point in my station in life and career. All I can say is that the time will soon be ripe for me to break from the pack. Rock the boat if I have to. The last two years have been tough, and almost knocked me out of the race. I now know the true purpose of that tumultuous time; humbling, painful lessons that will later save my life. All of life has prepared me for this moment. My time in the sun will be coming very soon.

I have seen the future... and it's up for grabs! I am excited about the next six months. I am even more excited about the next three years, where 2008 t0 2010 will be defining years. The future has never looked so vast and open.

My current reading, "Undaunted Courage" by Stephen E. Ambrose, is also fueling my passion for the future. The book follows the journey of Lewis and Clark, the greatest of American explorers. In a sense, what I see is as far reaching as the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. Large tracts of unexplored ideas, huge expanses of possibilities, much territory to explore and claim. And of course, lots of Indians shooting at us along the way.

I am so glad to be alive.

Labels: life

Managed to squeeze some time to have dinner with my fellow Bible School team mates. Turned out to be a surprise party! It was a fun night at the Singapore Esplanade. To friends and family back home, thank you so much for prayer and support. Another 3 and a half months to go, and I'll be seeing you again! To my new friends, I am grateful for your being my family away from home. :o)

Team One gallery now online. Click here!

Labels: life, singapore

Home

Church

Labels: life, singapore

I can handle life in Singapore. The long bus and train rides. The brisk walks. The fast pace of city life. In fact I like it. Can't say much about home though. Home drains me. I can't handle 'here' and 'there' at the same time. I'm not Superman.

Labels: life

I just love the design concept. Sweet.

Clocking in our attendance is as simple as getting our student card scanned. Lateness in noted, and 30 minutes of accumulated late time earns a full day of janitorial work!

Jacquerene and Maggie taking a breather. They spent many mornings scanning student IDs.

Here's a familiar face to folks at home. Kenneth clocking in, with Fui Lee in the background.

It's Friday, and I'm here for exactly a week. Just a short post though. The week went well. Shook off the flu bug. Settled in with my daily commuting routine (an hour per way). Made lots of friends. And have the whole Saturday free! Will be thinking of the DC crew, take care guys! :o)

Labels: city harvest church, life

I'm down with something that suspiciously resembles flu. One stuffed nostril, the other runny, fever on and off, and one really itchy (sometimes sore) throat. I've been taking cold medication which is both blessing and blight at the same time. One moment I'm feeling really good. Then sleepy. And then delirious. I try to rest but sleep eludes me. Oh man.

[Two hours later]
Feeling much better now (sniff). Decided to stay indoors and edit some pics I shot in class today. First time bringing my camera to school. Shot with the 80-200mm f/2.8. I'll be without a wide angle lens for a while, as the D70s' kit lens (18-70mm) is at the office back home.

Here's a sample of what I shot today, just to give you folks back home an idea of what the beautiful people here in Singapore look like. :o)

Ps. Derek - quite an imposing figure - is a soft spoken man and gifted in ministering during worship. I cried alot the last two days, truly anointed man. His voice even sounds like Ps. Kong Hee's!

Ps. Audrey on the right, man you should hear her teach. Very hip mom of 2, I really enjoyed her class. On the left is our Mandarin interpreter (haven't got her name yet). She's lightning fast with her English to Mandarin processing.

Lifen is one of the school's full time staff. She has the task of sorting out all our student visas, and a lot of other things.

This is Annabel (hope I got that right), lead vocal for our worship sessions before class. She has an amazing voice.

Some friends from Team 1 (L-R): Vivian, Esther and Joo. Got to know them during our orientation day games. Always smiling, these three sisters.

Michael, fellow Damien Rice fan and lighting maestro. He's working at the lighting console as I shot this. He's also a team mate.

Labels: city harvest church, life

Labels: city harvest church, life, singapore

Missing Home, Missing You

Labels: life

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.

Labels: life, singapore

"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.

Labels: life, photography

Diamond on Heliconias
Nikon D80, Tamron 90mm macro SP f/2.8 ~ available light

I'm almost done with the book! Shot A Mag's diamond ring as a final key photo for this project. Aside from her ring, Aunty Mag has been providing creative support along the way, something I really appreciate.

Well, it has been a tough assignment, really enjoyed the creative stretching it brought. And my heartfelt thanks to Ps William, a father and mentor who really knows how to bring the best out of you!

Labels: life, ministry, photography

Cynthia and Mel are back in KK for the holidays! Thought it would be nice to set up a family photo session since the whole gang was here. We were supposed to have the photo shoot done at Kinabalu Park, but last minute decisions changed all that. I couldn't think up of any new locations to do this, so I took the easy way out and went back to a familiar place. (Louis and Jasmine would definitely recognize the place!) It was a fun 1 hour shoot, after which we trooped to Little Italy for dinner. Sweet!

Nikon D70s & D80, 80-200mm f/2.8D, 50mm f/1.8D ~ Available Light

Labels: life, photography

Labels: life

The "Belly Button" Shot

Nikon D200, 12-24mm f/4 ~ SB800 speedlight triggered remotely

Hey guys, check out this post on Louis Pang's blog. It's got a familiar face in it, haha.

Proud to say that I had the awesome, awesome, awesome privilege of imaging one of the biggest names in the wedding photography scene. It was a tough assignment. Just how do you photograph someone who is so much more capable in that field? To be honest, I did have quite a few sleepless nights prior to the shoot. I quote Louis, "Nothing is easy. But then, nobody wants nothing."

Louis and Jasmine
Nikon D200, 50mm f/1.4 ~ Available light

So I just gave it my best shot. One thing I know about portrait photography is this: the subject must be relaxed. Forget lighting. Forget depth of field. Forget composition. To me, a forced smile is just as bad as an out-of-focus shot. (Hey Louis, not talking about you here ok? Lol!) I guess this is where I am in my element as I like to make people laugh.

Photographer : Louis Pang
Nikon D200, 80-200mm f/2.8 ~ Available light

I learned so many things on that one shoot alone. The three hours spent working with Louis and Jasmine felt like an equivalent of 4 to 6 months trying to figure things on my own. It's really cool to have a friend who really knows his stuff!

Jesselton Wharf
Nikon D200, 80-200mm f/2.8 ~ Available light

At the end of the day, we wrapped up the shoot and called it a day. And what a day it was, shooting the dynamic duo from Tawau. Thanks for your friendship, you two are really somebody special in my life. :o)

Labels: life, louis pang, photography