Something to remember by...

Cheerss...

It's has been almost a month already that I 'parted ways' with my Canon 1000D to upgrade into a much better camera body, Canon 40D.

It all happened when my sister telling me that she's interested in getting a DSLR camera herself.I've been rambling about upgrading before and seeing this opportunity, I decided to sell mine for quite a nice bargain for her actually. Adik-beradik punya diskaunla ni kira-kira..Hahaha.

I remembered the last time I used it was during the trip to Kg. Luanti,Ranau and Tenom (kit lense only) back then. I should have at least taken a few good pictures of it as momento maybe before that but somehow I didn't. Anyway, I stumbled upon this picture in my archive recently of my friend holding it in a funny way. He's a funny guy most of the time and I'm not sure if he did this intentionally or not. I didn't realize it 1st time but there it is...A noob's way of holding beginner's DSLR camera..Hahaha.

Brother Dino...

Cheers...

Sometimes a nice background is all you need to make a simple shot looks special. So, I was really happy when I shot these pictures of Dino (my other brother) with the Mt. Kinabalu as the background in 'bokeh' while we were on the way back to Ranau during the recent school holidays. I guess we were just lucky that day because we chanced to see Mt. Kinabalu in its full glory and such rare opportunity is something worth taking pictures for.

Fishy Outing to Kg. Luanti, Ranau...

Cheerss..

Just to update on some of the pictures that I took while on a 'fishy outing' with friends to Kg. Luanti, Ranau during the recent Kaamatan holidays. Located just nearby the Sabah Tea Plantation, the place is well known as being tourists attraction for its currative fish massage.

Pelian... the 'friendly' local river fish protected by the 'tagal' practiced
by the villagers in Kg. Luanti.

Eating frenzy... the fishes all swarmed at my friend's hand after being
attracted to the smell of the food hidden inside his palm.

There you go... the lucky one which got the food at the end.

Something to remember by... the red mark left a big fish when it
sucked on my hand for the food.

Lok Kawi Wildlife Park Animal Pictures...

Cheerss...

Continuing from my previous post on my outing to the wild life park in Lok Kawi recently, here's the highlights of some of the animals that can be found there.

In deep slumber...Too bad all the tigers were sleeping like this one. Kalapik ba...Hahaha

Mama's calling...It's great to be able to get a close up picture as this one with the elephants.

Eagle's pride...Standing outside the eagle's cage, I took this picture while trying to blur the cage in front.

Head and tail... Just cropped it from the original picture to this composition.

The above are just the selected ones from several pictures that I snapped that day as I only had my 18-55mm IS standard kit lens on. Snapped only a few since nothing much I can do if taking pictures from afar. Frankly for this kind of photography, it's best to use a zoom lens. Too bad I already sold my 55-250mm IS zoom lens, so I had to make the best out of it. Got a chance to try my Canon friend's Tamron 55-200mm lens, but it's not as good as my old zoom lens. It's without VC (vibration control) feature, so my pictures were not really sharp with it. Not blaming the lens, I guess I'm simply so used to the IS (image stabilization) feature on all my lenses. One needs to have steady hands to hold the non IS/VC zoom lens due to its weight while in action. But still the outing was great. Sharing ideas and tips from friends were the best part of it.

I guess my other Nikon friends were enjoying their time more there with their zoom lenses, especially my friend who just bought his Nikon D5000. The outing was his idea to get us together to try out his brand new DLSR camera. The next week, he bought himself a new zoom lens. Once you are in, photography really can be addictive and that can only means more money starts pouring out...Hahaha. Matai la gila sudah ni dia bilang...Hahaha.

I'm also is getting excited all over again and looking forward to buying new gears soon for our next outing...or perhaps an upgrade?...mmm

The Journey So Far...

Buying the 1000D has been a good learning experience for me. Going from just plain point and shoot camera to DSLR camera has really opened up a new world to me. DSLR realm is really about unlimited possibilities with only the sky as the limit..Hahaha. Well, literally speaking, I can reach the moon through the zoom lens, so I think it still limitless when it comes to photography. If anything, it’s all depend on your creativity and imagination on using the tools at hand. As the saying goes, it’s the man behind the camera that matters.

Speaking about the man, I’m still learning the curves with my entry level DSLR camera. It’s a mixture of satisfaction and frustration throughout the learning process and I still have a long way to go. Brought it along for several outings and the pictures have been mixture of sharp and blurry images here and there. I think it’s acceptable for any newbie, as it’s all about trial and error whenever handling one of these toys. By that time, I already bought the 55-250mm IS and 50mm f/1.8 II lens to add to my collection. The prime lens is sharp and I have no problem with it. The zoom lens is just an extension to my 18-55mm IS standard kit lens so the built and picture quality is more or less the same.

Earlier on, the basic manual book does come in handy as a starter to learn about the camera functions and settings. On paper, everything looks simple and easy with all the dedicated buttons and settings for whatever you wanted it to do. Reading magazines and surfing through the many photography community and forums online have given me more knowledge and confidence on what my beginner’s DSLR camera can do. Yet it felt so miserably agonizing at most of the times when getting some poor quality pictures when you expected otherwise with all the settings correctly done. Not satisfied with it, I was in dilemma as whether to keep it or moved on to a higher spec and different brand, the Nikon D90. At one time, convinced that it wasn’t good enough, I posted it for sale online.

Well, I actually got a buyer, but the deal turned sour when he backed off the last minute. The reason being he claimed due to the sudden drop in camera and lens prices, he could get a better camera and lens package with the same price that we agreed upon before. Just not meant to be I think. As bad as it sound, the guy did come back for the bargain again but only after I already sold my Canon 55-250mm IS to a lucky lady. Lucky her, pity him because my offer was really good for the entire three lens combo (after more discount la).

After that, someone did offer to buy the body only but the price was too low so I decided to keep it though I was thinking to buy the 40D body as an alternative after the sale. It’s an old model yet it’s a semi-pro model, better than the 1000D (on spec wise). But nothing materialized also and everything went slow motion for me with my photography quest until my other closest friends started getting interested in photography also. They are into Nikon D90 and D5000. It’s a great feeling having your closest friends also sharing the same interest as you and the recent outing has rekindled my old flame for photography. I’m getting excited again and I’m planning to endure this journey this time with a clearer mindset.

I know what I was lacking in the past and what I’ve been missing all this time fooling around about the small petty stuffs. Photography should be fun and unrestricted. It doesn’t really matter what brand or model that you have in taking the pictures, it’s what you are doing with your camera to get the desired pictures that counts. Again, it’s the man behind that matters. So, stop complaining, go out and start shooting la!...Hahaha.

I guess I’ll be keeping the 1000D for a while until I feel restricted by its limitations and move on to higher level once my need is there. One thing that I learned also is that buying an expensive camera body doesn’t always guarantee sharp pictures. It’s the lens that matters the most. An expensive Canon L lens on my 1000D body would be something interesting to behold with.. That would be the ultimate setting for it..For now, I guess I have to buy myself a new 55-250mm IS again … Matai start gila balik suda ni…Hahaha.

Vulcan...

Cheerss...



Though I don't own one yet, like most boys out there, I like big bikes especially the cruiser type. It's not that I'm a speed junkie but I just like the idea of cruising on a big bike while going through the winding road of KK-Ranau on my way back to kampung during the weekdays. On a perfect sunny day, with just me and my ride, added some more with the wind blowing as I cruises along the road, the feeling then would have been really great.... Hahaha. Angan-angan la dulu ni. But, yes one of these days, once everything settle down, I would surely buy one and among my favourites is vulcan... Vrooommm...See ya!

Contagious Hobby...

Cheerss...

Its funny but I think that photography can be contagious also macam tu virus..hehe. It seems everyone of my friends is eager to jump into the DSLR realm. About 2 months ago a friend of mine bought his D90 and just 1 week ago another friend just bought the Nikon 5000D...and here i am still with my beginner's 1000D..huhu. More news, in a couple of months, another friend is also expected to join in the club...Hahaha. Gila!!...

Well, I got attracted to photography in the first place due to my interest in blogging as well as I needed a new fresh hobby to escape from my hectic working life..or was it because i saw my friend owning one earlier before also?... Hahaha. Macam sia pun kena jangkitan juga ni mangkali...Hahaha.

Sleepy Head...

Just to sum up this whole week, I've been a lazy sleepy head with 'I don't know what blissful dreams' at night...Hahaha.

Not because of booze, but because of my big appetite lately. I don't know why but I've been eating quite a lot during dinner time since a few weeks ago and it's affecting my productivity at night.

In my line of work, I usually have to continue doing my design work at home during night time. But ever since I'm always over full almost every night, I cannot help myself from falling into deep slumber on the sofa even with the TV in front of me...causing me to miss watching CSI and my other favourite TV series the whole week...Hahaha. Worse, It seems some of my planned works also have to be dragged to next week since I couldn't commit to them in time.. :(

Anyway, I know it's bad for my working routine but I could not help myself to at least continue this blissful feeling only for this weekend with my few cans of beers ( 1 crate actually) waiting for me in my room since Wednesday... Aramai Tiee..Hahaha

Doing my part ...

Cheerss..

This post is long overdue but anyway here goes,...I was on a short trip back to Ranau last Saturday actually. It’ s not the end of month yet but I just couldn't postpone it till early next month, since its regarding a meeting with the church committee members about this new church building that they wanted to build. It’s not the 1st time I’ve done similar jobs before, only this time it’s a bit special since its for the community in which we lived in.

The weather was good, all bright and shiny when I started my journey back to Ranau from Tamparuli around 8.00am after having my breakfast. I had my usual mee sup sasau at my favorite Chinese shop there...Sadap Orr... Hahaha. On my way up, I stopped for a while to take some shots of a nearby church building just after the big roundabout. It's rather a small building as compared to others I've seen, compact but beautifully designed. It has nice proportion to its overall design with interesting small detailing that makes it pleasing to the eyes. If I’m not mistaken it was designed by one of my ex bosses when I first started working at Chan & Shahriman Architect firm years ago. Sadly, he passed away a few years back due to brain tumor I think. Anyway, it’s just about the same size as the one I’m working on so it will be a good reference to me.

my inspiration

Made another stop along the way, just to enjoy the good scenery under the good weather and with camera at hands I just took some shots of whatever I found interesting while I was at halfway of this massive retaining wall. Panat & bergagar jugala kaki sia naik tu tangga naik atas or... Hahaha. I found out that I'm gayat juga rupanya whenever it comes to high places. I had very unforgettable experience about this place as when the 1st landslide happened, me and my friend had to sleep in my car the whole night there. We were supposed to be back in Ranau to attend a friend's birthday party but ended up stucked with the rest of other cars around us. We couldn't even drive back to KK, so we had no choice but to endure the cold night with only my towel as my blanket... Hahaha. Besok pagi terus balik KK. So, when the 2nd landslide happened again, I just returned back to KK. Jarah suda ba pasal tunggu-tunggu ni.... Hahaha.

notice all the pointing pipes.. macam tu fortress pula with guns blazing...Hehehe

The staircase to the heaven ka ni?... Hehehe

Being at this position.. Feels like I believe I can fly...Hehehe

I arrived in Ranau around 10.30am and waited at my friend’s cyber station before joining in the committee meeting after the church service has ended. It was a brief meeting just to update the latest status on the proposal and land as well as some design amendment to my draft proposal. Looks like it’s a green light to proceed with the actual final design and I’m expected to come out with the final design soon for proper council submission and approval. Maybe, I’ll be posting the final design here once it’s done…:)

We spent some time looking around the actual site before heading back to the town for lunch together and finally returning home. Before going back to KK, I spent some time at home looking into another small project. Recently all the drainage system within our housing area are being upgraded to concrete drain. So taking this opportunity we asked the contractor to shift our access road to a new location, in order for me and my father to implement our plan to do some extension to the existing car porch as well as building a proper fence around the house. By doing so, it will help to keep people from taking 'short cuts' through our compounds and allowing more cars to be parked properly inside under the shed. Hope this one goes well too...

P/S : Inda la buntut my vi sia asyik terkeluar ja dari car porch every time sia balik Ranau…Hahaha.

Helping Out ...

Cheers...

It's the month of March and it's harvesting time for the folk back in kampung and as usual my parent is among the few who still carry out the rice planting & harvesting tradition every year. I missed helping out last year due to my busy working schedule, so this time around when my mum asked for help, I promised them that I would help out during this weekend.

Supposedly, I planned to drive straight back to kampung on Friday night but due to the heavy rain and 'banjir kilat' somewhere along the Telipok area (which I only knew when I got stucked in traffic jam when I visited my friends at Putrajaya), I decided to make my journey early morning on the next day.

Somehow, maybe due to sleeping quite late last night after the gathering with friends, I woke up quite late and only started to move from home around 8:30am and I managed to reach Ranau around 10.30am. It's not as early as I wanted, but at least I'm back in kampung. By the way, my dad has been calling me twice while I was still on the road asking when I'll be reaching home since they wanted to wait for me. As not to waste time, I told them to go ahead since I'll be arriving quite late. So, after dumping all my stuffs at home, I quickly got into my 'working suit' ( baju & seluar khas untuk kerja sawah la ni) and drove down to the Kg. Marakau to join them.

For years, I'm not exactly sure how long already, but as far as I can remember, my parent, especially my mum has been working on the field ever since that our whole family moved back to Ranau. It's a family land on my father's side, shared between siblings and my parent has been planting padi on our own lot to supplement our source for rice every year.

I was told that my other aunties also joined in the week before, but there were only three of us this time around. Thankfully, the weather was good during the whole day yesterday and though the sun was quite hot (jarang berjemur bah ni..hehehe), it was cooled down by the occasional breeze of wind. I even managed to take a nap at our recently extended 'sulap' after having our lunch before finishing off the left over work at the padi field. I left earlier with my dad since he got something to do elsewhere. My mum continued with the remaining work before she came back home later that day. I admired her for her spirit and determination working on the field to support our family all this time. Thanks to my parent, I can enjoy having free rice supply whenever I came back to kampung. Thanks mum and dad... Hehehe. It's not that we couldn't afford to buy rice, it's more to do with continuing the family tradition that has been going on ever since we were young. Furthermore, it's a waste to leave the land undeveloped.

Sometimes I do wonder, who would continue carrying the torch for this seemingly dying tradition as I and my other siblings, nowadays rarely have the luxury of time being at kampung to help out start from the beginning until the end. We are all pretty much scattered all over the place with my brothers being in Peninsular Malaysia and only me and my sisters are in Sabah. Mmm... It's tough but somebody has to do it someday.

All in all, though it was quite a tiring day, (panat bah melalapos padi & angkat 4 karung padi balik ke sulap), I'm glad that I made the trip back home and had a good day helping out my parent in the field. If nothing urgent, I hope I'll be coming back home to help them out again next weekend.

While I was there, I took the opportunity to take some pictures during my 'break' time. Enjoy!!!...

Green among the golden ones...

'Golden' rice...our must have food...

Dragonfly... A coincidence encounter with this fella
while I was squatting on the ground for shots...

The recently extended 'sulap'... peaceful resting place...

Scooter Airbrush Artwork

For those bikers or scooter fans out there, do you fancy some airbrush artwork on your beloved ride? For inspiration, these are just pictures of some airbrush artwork done on scooters that I've managed to snap during a recent car & scooter showcase at Tanjung Aru Plaza open space (the area where all the food stalls are) about a month ago. I like the Transformer artwork the most...Great colors and detailing there...

Something to get me thru this weekend

Today it's the end of my 1 week 'compulsory leaves' since the office is closed for
1 week for the CNY celebration and heck I'm still stuck with these fellas...


I bought 2 cartoons for the celebration, finished 1 with gf uncles last monday
at kampung and brought back 1 for other ocassion. I had good time knowing
my 'bakal-bakal' ipar over 4 cartoons of beers that day. It never fails to
amaze me how aramai tie can bring strangers so close together. I think that's
show just how good we are sabahan at 'ice breaking'...



Well, I actually wanted to simpan for my coming birthday but heck...just
couldn't resist my urge while lepaking at home and yess..I'm drinking alone
and at the moment I'm down to 12 more cans to go. Just buy again la next
time when to celebrate and right now just enjoy it...


Why am I drinking alone?,..Well, It's one of my new things nowadays...
Layan diri sendiri... It helps me to 'think' over things. Recognise the
fake handphone? I purposely put it there to 'think'. It's the latest Nokia
5800 Xpress Music handphone and I'm considering replacing my old SE
handphone with it. It's so cool, a smartphone with touch screen almost similar
to the Apple 3G iphone. Fell in love with it when I saw my friend using it the
other day and until now I'm still bugged of owning one. To buy or not
to buy? To buy or not to buy? To buy or not to buy?...



Heck, hard decision huh?... Maybe once I'm finished with the last can,
I'll make my decision or maybe I just go...



and ponder about it again until my birthday comes... my birthday present
anyone please?...Hehehe

'Scary' Kampung Path

Took the original picture above during bright daytime somewhere in kampung
area and thought it's a good material for an 'evil' project that I've in mind.


So,I played around with it in Photoshop to get the effects that I wanted.
A dark, scary path macam waktu petang di kampung time kecik-kecik dulu.




Anyway, maybe I just overdone it with this image (1st try)..what you think?