My Photography Journey

Chew Jetty CNY 9th Day Celebration

2012-02-06T12:30:00.002+08:00

It was a massive celebration held at the Chew Jetty this year in conjunction with the 9th Day prayers to the God of Sky during the first month of Chinese New Year. We (Dream Wanderers) were invited and given an OP pass to shoot some photos during the celebration and we had fun! One of the most happening celebration i've ever attended.

What's better for a prayer rather than BBQ Roasted Pork? How bout the whole pig itself! Yum!!

All the giant joss sticks are amazing and colourful! A great form of art

Chinese origami

Beautiful CNY Lantern decoration

Name tag i presume? *i cant read mandarin :P

Dirty bokeh..must be the dust!

And what's CNY without fireworks? The Clan jetties held some massive fireworks show, a friendly competition and we got the best view of all! From a boat we hired from Chew jetty. At only Rm10 per person, it's cheap and u can avoid the crowds, and get the best view of all!

and the ferry at night! Ever get this close before? haha

when we back to the Chew Jetty, another round of fireworks just begin!

and not forgetting, our beloved CM Lim Guan Eng coming for a visit! Look at all the supporters!

Wonderful wonderful celebration on the 9th day.. it's my first time celebrating it outside of home and it's fantastic! Looking forward for the next one :P

Serenity and peace

2012-02-04T13:50:00.003+08:00

It was one of the evening here in Bukit Mertajam and the rain is so heavy! We got a mission there, to a place famously known for a jogging site, called Mengkuang Dam. We have to be there, to do something..but it's a secret. Haha.. Anyway, the rain makes the lake and the surrounding looks so.. mystical in a way.. nahh, just serene and peaceful ( minus the sound of water dropping.. XD ) Made some shot, trying to compose with my 50mm F/1.8 and this is what i got. What's your opinion?

Serene . Tranquil . Simplicity . Peace .

some vocabulary brainstorming.. i'm not that good in english.. so mind me :P

Old Fishes, New Photos

2012-01-11T19:21:00.005+08:00

Took some photos today prior to selling.. decided to clear up 75% of my fishes collection in this 2-3 months time, as i'm flying off to New Zealand soon for a long period of time.

Some of the old fishes, but new photos taken just this evening..
1. Ameca splenden, the Mexican livebearing goodeids RM30 each

2. Bumble Bee Platy RM25 a pair

3. Campoma guppy RM80/pair

4. Red Lace guppy RM80/pair

5. Vietnamese White Cloud, Tanichthys micagemmae RM15/pc

6. Manacapuru Angel/Wild Peruvian Angel RM50/pc

Travel and Transportation in New Zealand

2012-01-10T09:51:00.002+08:00

You'll be traveling by foot a lot in New Zealand! I've done the most walking ever in my life during my 3 months in New Zealand.. haha

Bus - Intercity - NakedBus

However, there's plenty of options! Public transport such as buses are very good and punctual. For those who wants to travel far, i suggest booking with Intercity NZ. They offers one of the most cheapest bus fare ever! Just book a day or two before and you'll get some amazing deals. Besides Intercity, you'll find NakedBus, Atomic Shuttles (south island) and few more companies i cant recall right now..

Oh ya, i travel by bus the most also in my life during the 3 months holiday.. 4 hours ride, 6 hours ride, 8 hours ride, 11 hours ride, u name it! This is what i do to save money.. bus is cheap! If you want cheaper, you can always try hitch hiking.. i heard it's quite easy to get (my sis does.. so do most girls.. just becareful and watch out for wary drivers.. ). Guys will be harder to hitch any rides, so... good luck!

Bicycle

This is a great mode of transportation.. although you must be fit seriously.. there's so many hilly roads at some places (almost died of exhaustion cycling up Queens Street in Auckland! hahaa.. sorry ler, my stamina is not that good... )

You can get a cheap one, probably under NZD100 or so..

Environmentally friendly, free, exercise and be fit.. highly recommended! It's safe to ride bicycle in NZ, drivers there are very wary and watch out for pedestrians and cyclist, and there's dedicated bicycle lanes in most places. It's not like in Malaysia where... drivers are crazy!

Motorbike

Some of us might think of getting motorcycles there.. i still dont have much information except that i heard there's some license to take.. i will update this part when im there.

Car

Car is dirt cheap in New Zealand! You can get car as cheap as NZD1000! The only thing is fuel, but it is good if you have few friends to share with.. car pooling.. if you have cars, you can travel far by yourself, dont need to worry about the weather (it can be 4 seasons in a day..) and it's heated so it'll be comfortable as well. The only thing is fuel... for those who are budget conscious!

Driving in New Zealand is pretty safe too, everyone follow law. Speed limit and speed traps are everywhere, so dont break the law. There's no bribery there..no duit kopi anymore..

You can use our Malaysian driving license there, as long as you get it translated to English by JPJ. It only cost RM10. Cheap. Just get it done, whether you going to drive there or not. You'll never know..

New Zealand Working Holiday Scheme 2012

2012-01-10T01:34:00.003+08:00

Oh yes, i've finally received the confirmation of the approval of New Zealand Working Holiday Scheme for year 2012! Cant wait to go there again soon!

To all the successful applicant, congratulations! It's time to prepare, physically and mentally before you head to NZ! I do have some guides and experience to share during my 3 months stay in New Zealand as a backpacker.

What to bring and wear?

Make sure you have at least a set or two, Long Johns for the cold weather
Hats, sweaters, wool shirts, although i do fine without those.. what i wore during the winter is just Long john, 2 t-shirt, and a jacket (make sure it's insulating and wind-breaker as well.. NZ is very windy!) and of course, jeans. However, wool attire are always better choices, especially when wet.
Good socks and very comfortable shoes (i suffer from bad walking/hiking shoes.. every step hurts, so it's better to buy a pair of good shoe now, test it few weeks before you go) Spend over RM250 on a waterproof hiking shoe and end up, pain, smelly feet sometimes, cant walk on icy roads.. gonna buy new pair soon :P

You don't need to bring a lot of clothings.. you don't sweat as much as in Malaysia anyway :P and washing machines are available at the backpackers (and of course, rental house) Pack lightly so you can travel happily and enjoy..

And that, i got a problem too, because i have to bring 2 backpacks, one for clothings and stuff, the other for laptops/cameras/gadgets... phewww.. thinking to get a rollerbag too! Imagine hiking and walking uphill with 10kg gadget bag and 20-30kg backpack. A bag with roller will be a great help! NZ roads are pretty hilly sometimes...

What to buy there first?

It's gonna be cold, so, get an electric blanket (from Warehouse, only NZD19 for single size) and sleeping bags (I bought at Warehouse too, NZD25) I suffer the first night at rental room, freezing cold, without pillow/blanket/heater/sleeping bag/electric blanket.. unforgettable night! SO better be prepare!
BBH card
Telephone card - i bought Zero Degree NZD5 for sim card and NZD20 for top-ups to call home and friends

For your first week or two, you can stay in backpackers while looking for room to rent. It cost about NZD18-25 per night, and usually it's pretty clean, safe and fun! So don't worry so much, make friends, open your mouth and talk, and you'll feel like home pretty soon :P

Will continue updating with some informations soon...

Information about Transportation HERE
Travel and Transportation in New Zealand

Doberman Pinscher puppy

2012-01-06T21:01:00.001+08:00

My Doberman pinscher puppies just enter 3rd week of life, and there they are, play fighting and show some aggressiveness and guard dog basic already.. barking when i walk in to the compound. Im amazed!

Here's of the male puppy, showing some dominance here..

And here's the best of the litter, the one and only red & tan female! She's so so huge!

Chowrasta Market

2011-12-29T11:28:00.000+08:00

It was a very long day.. woke up at 4.30am, heads to Penang island, and to the construction site of Penang 2nd Link just to catch the sunrise. It was not a good day, no visible sun that morning, just a moody emo day..

So we hurried to the next outing session at Chowrasta market which was schedule at 7.30am..! Gosh, we are late! Anyway, we reach there about 8am, have some talks and breakfast at a famous place,.. i forgot the name though.. and start shooting along the Chowrasta.

Freaky grouper, with weird things on it's mouth..

and then, there was this weird dog too, with its teeth poking out of it's mouth!

This is something that i cant make my mind.. colors or black & white? Both always appeals me..

Popiah skin.. to those who knows.. popiah skin are very very thin and i always wonder how they make it.. now i know! HAND MADE!

That was my morning.. and we head to E&O for the NASOM Photo Exhibition and some english tea* for the day... nice! Thats the way to spend the day!

Pre-wedding Photoshoot for Newly-Wed/Engaged couple

2011-12-27T20:42:00.001+08:00

Hey guys, got a short break from blogging due to numbers of photoshoots lately.. 2012 is just around the corner, and i have a great present for these particular category:

a) Engaged couple
b) Newly-wed

For those who saw this post, please contact me via harnsheng@gmail.com for more information. I'm currently having a project running related to pre-wedding photoshoot and i need 5-10 couples who can and want to have a pre-wedding photoshoot around Penang island/mainland Penang.

The FIRST 5 couples who emailed me will be rewarded* with a pre-wedding photoshoot package!! So hurry, book your place before the list filled up.
* terms and condition applies

Here's some of the pre-wedding shoots that i shot lately

Street Shooting

2011-12-05T21:53:00.001+08:00

Went to the heritage area last sunday for a street shooting session again.. good practice for me. Went there around noon with Yee Loon, and thankfully the weather isnt that bad.. it's partly cloudy, but still humid enough to make you uncomfortable. Anyway, i've got some shots..

This is my fav shots of the day.. 2 version, which one do you prefer?

Drying meat, or some sort of bacons..

A bunch of cigarettes VS a bunch of shits

Is this what you called leading line? :P

Some kind of dough?

Abstract? Composite? i have no idea bout all this..

Another fav shot.. poor little rabbits

DW 1st Wanderversary Photowalk winners announced!!

2011-12-01T10:19:00.001+08:00

The results are out!!
Here's the winner from each theme

Theme 1: Penang. Congratulation to Miss Elynn Cheah!

Theme 2: Street Food. Congratulation to Mr. Michael Sng!

Theme 3: Dream Wanderers. Congratulation to Mr. Rayner Tay

Still cant believe it! I won the Grand Champion prize for the Dream Wanderers 1st Wanderversary Photowalk Competition 2011! Received call last night.. it thought it was a prank or something.. didnt expect this at all! Thank you so much to the organizer, to Mr. Ng Yee Loon, committee members, judges: Jeymatt, John Liew and Kevin Chooi and all the participants and members of Dream Wanderers..

Here's my entries and comment from the judges:

Theme 1: Penang

Theme 2: Street Food

Theme 3: Dream Wanderers

Jeymatt:
1:Very strong relevance to the Theme for Shot 1!! Brings back old memories of olden days Penang!!
2: Composition is great!!! In the image exists the whole process of the production of the kuih.
3: This shot sows the passion of th
e members of DW who brought it all the way today! The moment was indeed captured!

John :
1: The feel of Old Penang is definitely here! The relation of the subjects in the image is superb( from trishaw to bicycle and pushcart!) in an environment of olden penning!
2: Composition is strong and there is a story told without much explaining to do.
3: THe first thing I saw in this image is the blue bermuda pants! The DW spirit is present!!!

KevinChooi:
Win liao la, still want say meh??
( You have already won, why do you still want an explanation)

Thank you once again for all the supports. I will continue to work harder in photography. A big motivation for me.

Georgetown, Unesco World Heritage

2011-11-28T14:40:00.001+08:00

Dream Wanderers, a photo-based Facebook group based in Penang organized the first Photowalk as a celebration of their first anniversary. The event started at Old Town, Church Street and we were allowed to shoot around the heritage site.

There were 3 themes, and we have to submit photos by 12pm. Only minor editing are allowed. This is what i've submitted.

a) Only in Penang
I'm not quite sure whether it fits the theme but i like this photos. I feel it do portray the olden days in Penang where bicycles were the main mode of transportation and today, we still can find some around the heritage area. I love Penang, a mix of new and old.

b) Street Food
Cant really get the shots i imagine..but here a street food shot that i've chosen in a hurry

c) Dream Wanderers
This theme.. well... my entry are not worth mentioning.. :P

Anyway, after few days of selection and editing.. here's some of my favourite street photography shots taken in that morning.

HDR Temple

Street Foods - Penang Road Famous Cendol

C&C are very much appreciated!

Jinju, Elegante

2011-11-27T22:03:00.001+08:00

It was an unexpected photoshoot for me, as i was actually on the way back when i saw Geoffrey at the Church Street Pier. Thought what was he doing during such a heavy rain.. a call and i'm invited to join the portraiture shoot for Jinju, a beautiful model from Taiping, Perak. Thanks to Jinju, and Geoffrey and the geng for the invites and opportunity to shoot.

It's been a while i've not shoot any models, been pretty busy with weddings, traveling and backpacking. Anyway, here i am now, back to Penang, and continue to work harder to improve my modeling shoots in the near future.

here's some of the photos that i've shot during the evening, hope you guys like it :)

11.11.11 Su Jen & Jimmy Wedding

2011-11-20T22:25:00.001+08:00

Jimmy & Jen Pre-Wed @ Melbourne

2011-11-02T15:22:00.000+08:00

I was fortunate to be able to take the pre-wedding photos for a very nice couple, Jimmy & Jen in Melbourne, Australia. It was my first pre-wed, and wedding shoot too in overseas! Thank you so much for the golden opportunity to shoot oversea.

Here's some of the pre-wed photos we took around Melbourne city, a very nice city with interesting architecture, buildings and history.

Here's some of the pre-wed photos we took around Melbourne city, a very nice city with interesting architecture, buildings and history.

This is one of my fav,

all the church building here is so magnificent and grand! We were not allowed to shoot here actually..

This is the famous graffiti lane, somewhere in the city. Alot of couples come here for photos too!

Another fav spots for most couple and photographer, in front of the Old Treasury Building

and the Flitzroy Garden, another nice place.

Hope you guys like it! Do gives me some comments and suggestions :)

For enquiries on pre-wed and actual day photography services, do contact me at +6012-5674922 / harnsheng@gmail.com / harnsheng@hotmail.com / Skype: Khor Harn Sheng

New Zealand

2011-11-02T15:08:00.001+08:00

Hoho.. it feels like yesterday! Time pass so fast, that i've spent over 2 months in New Zealand already.. had some good and bad experiences, meet alot of backpackers from all around the world, sharing experiences and information along the way. It was an eye opening experience ever for me, as this is my first time traveling to overseas apart from Thailand & Singapore.

Been to quite a number of places, taking photos along the way and most importantly, meeting new friends ! Gotta miss some people here in NZ..

Here's the last shot of NZ, the Viaduct Harbour of Auckland city

Wellington's All Black Victory Parade

2011-10-26T12:32:00.000+08:00

It's here, the team is here in Wellington! Although i'm not really a fan of rugby before, it does feels good welcoming the All Blacks team together with all the peoples in Wellington. They are here to parade on their victory in the finals of World Rugby Cup 2011, where they won 8-7 against a tough and great competitor, France!!

The whole streets are literally filled with crowds dressing in All Blacks shirts, carrying NZ and All Blacks flags, drawing on the face and stuff. People of all ages come to welcome and support the All Blacks team here in Wellington, starting from the Civic Square at noon today.. Honestly, i dont even know they are coming until the receptionist in my backpackers told me! HA! So i hurried to the Civic Centre two hours earlier to get a nice spot and well, it's filled with peoples already! Cant get a nice spot but it was ok, since i can still reach them with 24-105 F/4 lenses borrowed from Mr. Chan! (THANK YOU!!)

Volunteers

I think those kids are avid supporters of All Blacks!

Look at the crowds! And it was raining!

Skipper Richie McCaw with the winning cup!

Piri Weepu and his lovely baby joining the parade

The All Blacks squad

Welcoming speech

Getting on the parade car

Richie McCaw and Piri Weepu doing interviews on the parade car, honestly, i only remember 2 of them, one because he is a captain, and one because he always miss the penalty shots! Lol.. just kidding..

Uuhh.. cant believe i won the world cup.. :'(

Errrr... your ball too small ler...

Hey YOU!

Yes YOU! Peace! We won the World Cup!

The Parades starts, from Civic Centre to the Parliament

everyone running, chasing the parade..

Decided not to join them as the weather is getting worst and i need to get back to the backpackers to had my lunch and head to the Railway Station for my next bus, the final and the longest one ever in New Zealand! It's gonna take me 11 hours from Wellington to Auckland, via Intercity @ 25NZD only! Hehe.. good deal right? :P

Wellington Waterfront

2011-10-25T14:50:00.002+08:00

Didnt get a good sunset shots for the whole week i'm here, and i'm leaving tomorrow. So i've decided to have a walk along the waterfront again, expecting some sunset. However, the weather is not good for the whole day already, been cloudy and extremely windy! Cant barely walk against the wind sometimes.

So, while chilling around the jetty.. i saw these dark clouds coming! Decided to shoot another HDR, which is my favourite type of shoots. This one were made by 9 shots as usual.

By the way, the photo is taken on Clyde Quay Wharf, just 5-10min walk from Te Papa Museum

Wellington, part 3

2011-10-25T04:50:00.000+08:00

It's time to visit somewhere again, take some photos and enjoy the nature.. As of what i've planned, Zealandia! After looking at the weather forecast, i've decided to visit Zealandia on Sunday morning.. However, i've no luck with the weather this round.. it was suppose to be sunny, not cloudy and rainy!! Ergghhh... Dont care, im going no matter what! So i've decided to walk to the i-Site located on Wakefield St earlier, just in case it does rain heavily later.. and yes, it did! Thank god! The free shuttle to Zealandia arrive alil late at i-Site, but it's ok.. it's free, nothing to complain about. We pick few peoples up before heading to Zealandia, roughly 15 min journey.

The entrance fee to the Sanctuary is NZD18.50 and if you decided to go to the exhibition too, it's another NZD10. So total, NZD28.50 combo! Nahh, i went straight into the sanctuary even though it looks cloudy and rains a little.. the place is beautiful! Very pristine condition with many tracks and trails to explore.

At the entrance, there were the elusive, rare, exotic, EXPENSIVE, green gecko from the genus Nautilus greeting us from two little enclosure. I think it's about 5-10 of them in each enclosure. What a magnificent creature that i really wish i could see them in the wild!

After a short walk along the lake side, two beautiful Takahe greet us happily.. they are not afraid of human, being one of the larger flightless bird in NZ, the size of a... young adult Turkey i presume. The female are a little skittish though.

Kinda reminds of of Dodo!

And there were these duck with many ducklings around the lake.. it is so cute! The little one taking shelter and warm on a cold morning.

I forgot the name of this bird.. some sort like a Stork..

Here's one of the most common bird in Zealandia, the Tui! Noisy and highly active.. it's like a crow, but more colorful and interesting. This one is still not fully awake yet after a cold rainy morning..haha

One visitor kindly direct me to a trail where i could see a very large pigeon called Kereru. It's a fruit eating pigeon, almost triple the size of the usual pigeon we can find almost everywhere!

And then this little black bird, another common one in NZ

Cute little North Island Robin

And finally, i saw it! The living fossil of NZ! The three eye Tuatara! What a sight! They are not afraid of human, just laying there basking sun.. I've waited for a little while to listen to a talk by Ann, the volunteer there. According to her, they breed once every 2 years with eggs incubation of up to 16 months! What's interesting was that the incubation can stop during cold season and resume when it's warm up! Sounds crazy! hahaa.. and of cos, as with some reptiles, different soil temperature will result in a diff ratio of male:female. Here's a female:

As i were talking to Ann, she mention she found an orchid in one of the trail and decided to show me! Cool! Here's the orchid:

And ferns of course,

One beautiful flowering shrubs,

Next, it was the old goldmine and Cave Weta. Didnt manage to see any in the wild as they were nocturnal, just like the Kiwi :( But i do see some in the cave,

and some glowworm too in the cave! Interesting creature..

i've found some outside too

Last but not least, the unique Kaka, an alpine parrots commonly found in NZ! A noisy one too!

So there you go, my full day visit to Zealandia which took me about 6 hours there! It's a great alternative to the wild where it's harder to see all these birds and reptiles due to the predators like Possum and Weasel. Here in Zealandia, it's protected by 2m fence that no predator can enter! Every birds and reptiles live happily ever after here XD

*all the shots were taken by D200 and Nikkor 24-105 F/4. Although it's not tele enough for birding, you guys should roughly know the range to be use here. Mine were shot at mostly 105mm.

Wellinton, part 2

2011-10-24T12:36:00.002+08:00

I think i've spent 2 days doing nothing in New Zealand... just plain walking around the shoreline looking at people's antic and common culture of westerners.. It was pretty fascinating sometimes, but sitting there doing nothing is kinda boring isnt it... Been to most of the places already, and was supposingly going to visit Zealandia. However, the weather is pretty unpredictable with heavy clouds and high wind :(

Never really see anyone washing windows and wall this way, but it's interesting job

This was taken on Hokitia, an old crane on a ship. Almost 90% of the workers here are old people. I wonder why? Is it because they are very skillful and experienced? Im sure they are.. but i also think, it's because the younger generations wouldnt want to work in this field anymore..

They are a numbers of poetry along the walkway.. meaningful stuff!

I think i saw this Red Bull car before in Auckland.. so here it is, in Wellington as well

In conjunction with the Rugby World Cup 2011, there's some good photos and information about the history in NZ rugby

and there's pretty much old rusty chains still hanging on the jetty

i think this type of bicycle is pretty fun for family outing, with dog as well.. good way to exercise them! Haha

and i saw this sculpture somewhere around Lambton Quay.. dont know what it means but, well.. good display

and the finale, something wrong with this boy here...

So there goes day doing nothing in Wellington city apart of shooting with my favourite lens, the Nikkor 50mm F/1.8D :)

Windy Wellington

2011-10-22T06:26:00.003+08:00

Hey guys, updates from Wellington city, where some say, the best little capital in the world!

It's pretty windy out here, and rainy, cloudy, basically, its 4 seasons in a day sometimes. I reach here at night, after 8 hours of bus ride from Rotorua. It was a tiring journey.. Im with Intercity NZ again @ only 35NZD! It's a pretty good deal..

had one of the most tiring walks ever to search for my accommodation, which i've prebooked with i-Site. I've decided to stay in Lodge in the City, located at Taranaki St. It's only 18NZD per night. Had to choose the cheapest one because i'm planning to stay here for a week before heading back to Auckland to catch my flight to Melbourne on the 28th.

The next morning, i head out to i-Site to meet up with Caroline and we went for walks around the town, botanical garden and Te Papa Museum. The museum is very interesting, with loads of information regarding NZ history, volcanic exhibits and such. It's was fun spending some times here.

There's a display of the colossal squid caught by some fisherman, and this one weights almost half a ton!

Traditional Maori boat

Maps of North and South Island of NZ on da floor

And we sign up for the Haka dance lesson too! It was a funny but interesting experience!

Ka Mate Ka Mate, Ka ora Ka ora

after the museum visit, we visited the shoreline of Wellington, such as along Jervois Quay. It was a beautiful place with beautiful view!

and we went for a Malaysian dinner, which was not a good experience for her as most of the foods were pretty spicy! Im sorry once again! There is Asam Laksa, Roti Canai and Nasi Lemak.. foods typically found in Msia. Not the best taste though.. It was prepared by a family from Seremban.

So, that's pretty much on the first day in Wellington.

* Caroline, wishes you an enjoyable travel and work on the South Island, hope to see you again next year :)

Rotorua

2011-10-21T13:34:00.005+08:00

Finally im back into travelling, and this time, i've decided to head to Rotorua to see some volcanic and thermal activities. Took the Intercity again, which only cost me NZD35 from Manukau City to Rotorua. This is the non-refundable tickets, hence, the price. It tooks about 4 hours to get here, and man, it does smells bad here. Rotten eggs smells of sulphur fills the air of Rotorua. It was kinda spectacular to see steams coming out from the ground and water surface as the water/mud is practically boiling!

Managed to get my accomodation in Cactus Jack Backpackers @ 20NZD per night.. Not a very good backpackers place, with things pretty old and i dont feel secure here with my stuffs. Although Dan, the owner's son was pretty helpful with stuff and getting good deals. Anyway, this was one of the cheapest one, so, you decide! :P

Here's the Rotorua Museum @ Government Garden.

Didnt do much on the first few days.. hanging around the lake and some short trails in the city.. it was not a beautiful sights along the trails i can say :( Decided to visit Wai-O-Tapu and Waimangu Thermal Valley as planned, but the transport there is pretty expensive!! Got a deal of 110NZD for the shutter bus and entry tickets to both places. Not cheap but, i'm here already.. and not coming to Rotorua AGAIN!

First of all, the 'largest' mud pool in NZ is pretty disappointing.. small, and lack to bubbling actions.

And then we went to watch the Lady Knox Geyser, which is another sad case where it's not a natural erupting geyser i should say.. at the beginning, everyone was wondering, how can it erupt at precisely 10.15am each day? Well.. soon after we find our place to sit, one old man came, talk about some history of the geyser and then,... he added something to trigger the Geyser eruption! DUHHH!!

and we move on to the main entrance of Wai-O-Tapu where we have quite a limited time to visit the whole area, which makes it pretty tiring and unpleasant..

This is the famous Champagne Pool of Wai-O-Tapu

same goes to Waimangu Volcanic Valley, and the rain just makes it worst! It's been raining almost everyday in Rotorua for the whole week im there.. it's just sad sad thing..

The room i've stayed in was also pretty boring, as there is nobody in it except for a french guy. However, on the third day, it was a good day.. the room is filled with new friends from all over the world. I met a French girl, Caroline and we explore Rotorua for the next few days, mainly walking and hiking along the beautiful Red Wood forest and Mount Ngongataha. It was free, so, it's good.. both of us are pretty much on a tight budget and all these places makes it possible for us to explore and spend the days. It was a nice walks through all the trails with her.. she's active in sports and pretty much travel all across the world.. I think im the oldest guy during this backpacking trip to NZ who travels the LEAST! Sobzz... Everyone i met and talk to have a great experiences backpacking trip while me, i'm just started :P

Anyway, here's some photos from the walks along the Red Wood Forest

Mt. Maunganui!

2011-08-27T16:34:00.002+08:00

Greetings from Mt Maunganui, Tauranga. After spending a night in Auckland, met Aunty Serena.. we went down to Tauranga, to my sis's house at Mt. Maunganui. It took 4 hours on a Intercity Bus from Sky City, Auckland to Tauranga town.

A view of Auckland city at night

Had my first Fish N Chip, from the most famous one of course. Fresh Fish Market @ Tauranga. They have loads of other seafood menus..but sadly..im so poor i cant even afford to buy one lemon for my fish n chip! LOL.. just kidding..just saving money and enjoy the natural taste and flavour of the fish itself..

I've done some walking around the town.. and took some shots.. so, here it is.. enjoy!

Now this is Mount Maunganui!

Look how clear is the water here! and how blue!!

There's so many sea shells on the shore!! And the famous one, were the Paua shells..for it's wonderful colors! Paua, or Abalone is a local delicacy here, but i havent got the chance to taste it yet..

There so many paua seeds along the shore.. look!

And i also tried the famous ice cream waffles, called Super Waffles @ 6.90NZD!

and more to come, as i've conquered Mount Maunganui in 30 min hikes.. so, stay tuned for more photos! :P

Franz Josef Glacier

2011-08-19T15:00:00.002+08:00

Franz Josef Glacier was one of the nicest place i've been so far.. (well, it's only my first week.. i expect more :P) The photo above was taken at Peters Pool.

We managed to get hitch ride in Greymouth (and it was difficult!) and we were lucky as one couple stops to pick us up and guess what? He owns few backpackers house all round NZ! He's Cedric, and we had an agreement to stay at one of his place if he give us a ride..yeah, why not! We went to quite a places along the way, visiting few lakes, do some shopping at Hoikitika, buying greenstones, and finally reach Franz Josef around 5pm. We stay at Chateau Franz, cost 21NZD a night and we do woofing, working 2.5hours a day for a night accommodation free! sounds great isnt it? my sister got to work as cleaner while me, as a photographer of his place. Sounds not worth it but well, i'm ok with that..

We stayed a night, and plan to go for a full day hike but it's full.. so we stayed another night and went for the hike the next morning. It cost 180NZD for a full day hike, and all the equips are provided, plus a complimentary hot pools entry.

We join the Franz Josef Glacier Guides company and it was one of the good ones there!

It took about 20min to reach this restricted area (from the parking lot)

And the guides brief us for a little bit and divided us to 3 different groups

and here we go, up up here we come..

long long way to go.. the duration to get up there is about 4-5 hours!

after 10-15min walks.. here's the ice!

Such a magnificent crevices!

What a glacier formations.. it changes all the time throughout the year

Look at what we walking on! Blue blue glacier!

And the stairs were made of that too!

What a view...simply breathtaking!

Look at the tiny guide in the centre!

and he is building some stairs for us..

Oh man... so blue!

walking through tight spaces..crawling under the ice.. it was quite fun and slippery!

and that was pretty much the highest point we can go.. :(

Such a nice hike..tiring for me though.. im OLD... :( and legs full of blisters from stupid Hi-Tec shoes and hiking boots.. pains in every steps. SHIT! It was a great experience though, who get's to climb glacier easily? You.. YOU can! just come over to Franz Josef or Fox Glacier in South Island, New Zealand! :P

New Zealand!!

2011-08-18T16:56:00.003+08:00

Oh man.. cant believe im in New Zealand already... today is the 3rd day, where i could relax a little bit.. Let me summarize my first 3 days in NZ yeah,

First day..

It was kinda scary at one point, when im at KLIA. Jetstar send me a sms saying my flight from Singapore to Auckland have been cancelled! I was like, What the heck am i gonna do now??? It's all blank and panic for a little while, and i met few of those who had the same situation like me.. so, it was like.. okay.. great.. so we took the flight to Singapore via Jetstar, and check with the counter over there. Each of us got different flight and route to Auckland.. and i got Singapore-Sydney-Auckland via Qantas!! Wohhoooo.. although i reach Auckland few hours late than schedule due to flight change and transit, it was all worth it.. Qantas Airlines is superb! Big seat and leg space.. free meals... entertainment.. man, it was good! best thing was.. i dont need to pay a cent for this upgrades!

After all the flights.. finally i enter Auckland airport and thankfully, the customs were pretty easy going on me.. not much questions asked, and he said, i'm good to go! Phewwwwww!!!

Met up with my sister in Queen Street before check-in at X Base Camp for backpackers.. NZD25 per night!

Den it was all walking around Auckland town before we head out to meet my sister's friend, Uncle Robert and Aunty Lilian from Singapore. We got a good dinner at chinese restaurant called Friendship Restaurant!

And there you go.. my first day in New Zealand! Wonderful!!

Second day..

We woke up early, getting ready for my next flight to Christchurch at 1.45pm.. had my first breakfast at McD Queen St, and guess what.. the Big Breakfast sucks!! Dont eat that.. the sausages are smelly due to the pork over there are not castrated!

There goes my morning..bad breakfast.. LOL! So we head to the airport, hang out a while before our flight.. It was a beautiful flight! And i've finally see snows! Guess what, it was the first snow in over 40 years in New Zealand!!! It is crazy! We land in Christchurch at around 3 smtg.. called Kiwi BaseCamp for pick ups and we stayed a night there.. the staff there were very friendly, a guy from UK and we meet few other friends, from Germany, Brazil, Nepal, Scotland, USA.. nice first backpacking experience!

We walk around the town and well, it was pretty damaged. The guy at the casino told us, there were no more city center of Christchurch! Sobzz... many shops are close.. it is raining, with snows everywhere on the roads.. we walk back to Kiwi Basecamp before my sis's friends pick us up for dinner at another chinese restaurant. Not a bad meals except for a crap fish dishes... totally inedible... Chit chat alot that night before we went back for sleep because we got to wake up early for pick up to TranzAlpine trains at 7am!

Third Day..

We woke up around 6am.. had our quick toast and chocolate before waiting at the gate for pick ups.. The driver pick us up and also few others from various backpackers and sent us to the train station where we check-in and get our seat numbers, hop on to the train and enjoy a marvelous, breathtaking, crazy, one hell of a ride from Christchurch to Greymouth. It cost us NZD55 one way.. but the train ride is amazing, the sceneries.. phewww... u got to see it to believe it! Look at some of the shots i've taken..

LOOK at those photos!! hahaa.. well, sorry cos i dont have the time to edit all yet.. so, stay tuned yeah..

We reach Greymouth at noon.. and trying to figure out roads to Franz Josef. We walk for almost an hour, gosh, it was crazy! it's damn heavy!! Finally, we managed to get a hitch hike with one of the best couple, Mr. Cedric and his wife, Vicky. We had a good tour along the routes to Franz Josef, and bought some nice Paua ornaments and greenstones! So, how great is Mr. Cedric? he opens few backpacking centres around New Zealand, and we are staying at one of his, called Chateau Franz! It was a very comfy place.. im loving it right now.. updates coming soon with photos!

Colours of India

2011-08-09T10:48:00.003+08:00

It's been a while i didnt update this blog isnt it? sorry guys.. pretty busy.. next month onwards, it will be filled with travelling photos, so stay tuned!

Last weekeed, we were invited by my ex-schoolmate, Raaj Ganesh to a photoshoot for Colours of India, a charity events by the Indian Society of Penang. Here's some shot of the beautiful models of all ages;

Rebecca

Hat Yai Bike Week 5 (8 July 2011)

2011-07-11T21:03:00.005+08:00

Finally, i've rode my stock Kawasaki KSR 110 (2010) to Thailand! Hat Yai specifically! Our main objective there was to attend the 5th Hat Yai Bike Week.. the event are held for 2 days, on the 8 and 9 July 2010 at Hat Yai Municipal Park.

We started out our journey very early in the morning at 4.45am.. it was a lil crazy, but we need to reach the immigration as early as possible to avoid the congestion and traffic. The ride from PG - Chang Lun was smooth, except for the slight rain and a delay at the first stop to have our breakfast and collect some paperworks. On our way, we stops at Gurun rest area for some petrols at 5.30am. After having breakfast and settled the paperworks, we head out for the next petrol station at Chang Lun, and reach there at about 7.15am. There, we have our group photo with the Penang KSR Team banner and Kawasaki banner and T-shirt.

Soon after, we head to the border, and sadly, it was a really long process due to the stupid immigration officers who work so slow.. the queue was damn long! By the time we finished, it's already almost 8.40am and there's still members who stuck there. While waiting, some of us had our breakfast at Kayu Hitam. The pork-leg rice isn't that good though.. Our next stop were at the old immigration centre, where we took another group photo at 9.30am.

Our next stop is going straight to our chalet, called Buddy Resort at Hat Yai. We reach there about 10.45am, sort out our bikes, had a short break, bath, before taking a taxi ride to Nakorn. It was another long long journey.. 3 hours ride to Nakorn, to visit 2 famous Siam temple. One of which, the monk is 106 years old, and the other one were sort of like mummy.

After our day trip, we back to the hotel and it was real late already. Everyone had their rest before we headed out for dinner in town and a short visit to the Municipal Park to check our the event! Alot of bikes were already there, and not to mention, crowds! After the visit, we take a tour round the town with our little bike. It was cool riding in the night, and we dont need to wear helmets too. It feels like a lawless country, a heaven for Mat Rempit i should say.. haha.. but everyone behaved on the roads. The only crazy thing i've observed riding in Thailand was the drivers.. they are crazy! Driving fast and dangerously on the road.. the Tut-tut too.. crazy!

It was a long long night.. after the town tour, we had another round of beer at the chalet, chit chatting until 5am!! Oh man.. it was a long long day..

TO BE CONTINUE.....

A Day in Gaya Street

2011-06-25T20:44:00.006+08:00

One of the main attraction in Sabah was the fame Pasar Tamu, where locals sells their harvest/products on a specific site. There are wide variety of items selling there.. ranging from local foods, biscuits, vegetables, fruits, flowers, pets, clothing, souvenirs, and many more!! It's a must visit place for tourist!

In Kota Kinabalu town, it is held at Gaya Street, every sunday morning to afternoon.. when i was in KK, i visit the tamu almost every sunday. There's almost something new, something interesting to see or buy there :P

See? Various tubers up for sale, sweet potato, tapioca, yam, and many more!

This is a famous cup cake i presume, they call it UFO

Look at the chicks and ducklings for sale!

They even sell puppies here..

Nice flower isnt it?

Oh.. this was a giant pineapple, made up of many tiny pineapples

My favourite Lokan

Look how they sell fishes here! Oh my..

and there's massage service by the blinds

Even ant nest are up for sale, as a traditional medicine!

Fancy local artist? here's a great artist's work.. you can even watch him/her draw on the spot!

And this is a ugly thing, a bag made up of real bullfrog skin!! ewwwwww....

So there you go.. tempted to go now? hehe.. do visit the tamu on Gaya Street every Sunday morning! I bet you'll find something interesting there!

Yummy Foods around Kota Kinabalu

2011-06-25T00:05:00.002+08:00

I went to Kota Kinabalu for a week, and i miss alot of things there! My friends, the beautiful scenery and not forgetting, the FOOD!! I've been going here and there, trying famous local foods available around Kota Kinabalu.. thanks to my friends who bringing me around and introduce me. I know.. i've been there for 3 years plus, and yet, i don't know much about nice tasty famous foods whereabouts. So this round, it's time to compensate! hehee..

Laksa @ Seng Hing Coffee Shop, somewhere behind Le Meridien

Seng Hing Coffee Shop

Beaufort Mee @ Gaya Street

Lokan Panggang ( a type of clams ) @ Tuaran

Cooking in process

Look how juicy it is!! YUM!

They also have mud crabs, but we didnt order that..

There are many small stores on the road side! The famous dishes here were the Lokan Panggang and Kelapa Pudding (coconut pudding)

And how can you miss this, glorious seafoods! CHEAP one too! Seafood is a must if you visit KK, it's cheap and it;s good. We had this wonderful dinner at Welcome Seafood, somewhere in Beverly, Penampang.

So many dishes, only RM150! We have Tilapias, Big prawns, Mantis Shrimps, Another type of shellfish (famous in Sabah), vegetables, soups and it's all RM150! How cheap?

Last but not least, another famous dish, Fish Head Mee Hoon (vermicelli). This fish is Giant grouper's head! Not that giant, but big enough for me! This shop is at Hilltop, Luyang.

Not so much on this short trip, i'll make sure to post more nice foods next round! Hehee.. so stay tuned and start drooling!

Favourites of the Competition

2011-06-19T22:30:00.001+08:00

Here's my personal favourite from the competition :)

2nd Malaysia International Betta and Guppy Competition 2011

2011-06-19T22:20:00.004+08:00

Here's the photos of the Champion guppy taken during the competition. Congratulation to all the winners! I only manage to get 3rd place, good enough as a start! Lovin my Moscow Black even more! hehehe..

Class 1 Swallow & Ribbon Champion

Class 2 Swordtail Champion

Class 3 Shorttail Champion

Class 4 Solid Blue Champion

2nd Runner up (My Moscow Black)

Class 5 Solid Red Champion - GRAND CHAMPION winner!

Class 6 Solid Albino Champion

Class 7 Pattern Albino Champion

Class 8 Platinum/metal/medusa Champion

Class 9 Mosaic Champion

Class 10 Grass Champion

Class 11 Snakeskin Champion

Class 12 Tuxedo Champion

Class 14 Open/New Strain

Class 15 Juvenile Champion

Insect macro

2011-06-19T22:15:00.004+08:00

Once again, struck by the poison of macro'ing'. Manage to DIY a good diffuser to shoot some close up - not close enough to call macro actually.. haha.. Here's some of my try :)

Gold Dust Weevil, Hypomeces squamosus

Milkweed Bug

Frog Legged Leaf Beetle

Tiger Beetle

Permatang Pauh sunset

2011-04-30T19:48:00.004+08:00

Paddy field greenery and the golden sun never failed to amazed me. Took some shots few days ago somewhere around Bukit Merah, near Permatang Pauh town. How was it?

My new girl! GR baby!

2011-04-17T00:25:00.004+08:00

Yeeeehhaaaaa! My Golden Retriever puppy finally arrived at my home! Abit too sudden as i was expecting her to come next month. Anyway, love her so much! She's so hyper, calm, and confident all the way.. not afraid of anyone and very very playful! Such an outgoing puppy! She's the only one in the litter, so the mom take good care of her. Now, it's my turn, and im gladly do :P

Itchy mouth..bites everything!

Look! How sweet is the smile! It makes me smile too :P

and she know's how to pose too.. isnt she pretty, elegant and cute?

KSR @ Genting Highland

2011-04-11T13:50:00.004+08:00

It was the longest ride on a bike to anywhere, and yea, it was a super fun ride! We started our journey on friday noon, about 3pm from Juru, Penang. All together, 14 members if im not mistaken, 2 big bikes, Yamaha R1 and Kawasaki Z1000 join the convoy to Genting. Real powerful bike! Envy! :P

There were few complication/incidents, where member's bikes broke down, car tyre punctures.. but it was all good, everyone is safe through out the journey.

One bike down @ Bukit Merah. It was den carried up the Ford Ranger.

We stops in few places along the North-South Highway, stops at Tanjung Malim for a good dinner before heading uphill to our apartment @ Genting View Resort.

Rest @ Tapah rest area - toilet break and some snacks - the karipap is nice, or im just too hungry? lol..

Car breakdown, tyre punctured and exploded. Thank god the PLUS Highway fella helped us.

We reach there about 11 smtg to 12 midnight, check in, get a good bath (it was a wet rides.. under heavy rains!! ) and riding up again to Genting Highland resorts and hotels for a good late night supper. All of us were damn hungry and we ate porridges and stuff at the casino. Some of the members gamble while some of us were hanging around till 6 smtg in the morning. It was a real cold ride downhill back to the resort!

Reached Maxim Hotel

I went back up around noon for lunch with friends and meet up with the members around 4 smtg.. Riding around Genting Highland seriously attracting hell lot of attention. Crowds were gathering, police were around, asking.. eh what bike is this? how much? how many cc? this and that! It was fun though! hehee..

Great parking spot @ P5, First World Hotel. Good security!

First World Hotel

On the third day, which is sunday, me, Kit and Nick hop on for last ride uphill to meet up with some of the members up there. We stops at one temple,

Didnt took much photos afterward,.. after gather up with the members up there, we took some photos, make a final ride around Genting Highland before coming downhill to the resort for another around of steamboat. At about 1.30pm, we made our journey back to Penang. Stops few places for fuel and makan, met some superbike geng.. It was a wonderful trip, thanks to everyone who are involved in this trip, sorry if im slowing you guys down.. hope to join you guys again for another trip!

Ending our trip @ Shell, Juru Toll @ 6.30pm.

Overall, my ori Kawasaki KSR;

Top speed, 110kmh

Fuel Consumption, i spend about Rm60-70 on Ron 97 (RM2.70/liter)

Distance travelled, almost 1000km

PG - Genting, 9 hours

Genting - PG, 5 hours

It was a smooth and good trip up, although a lil slow, and jerky on the way uphill, too cold?

But it was all good, everyone having good times up there and good rides all the way, and importantly, everyone's safe and sound throughout the journey!

THANKS guys!!

* photos are taken with Nokia N95. It was a raining season, so i dont dare to bring my dslr.. :P

Updates!

2011-04-07T00:09:00.003+08:00

Things been going pretty slow recently, from almost every aspect..

Let's tear it down to few diff section;

Business, Fish - Pretty slow, but business is still running. Moving everything (well, almost!) but importantly, the rack in my room is finally out! Yes, OUT! Most of the stuff now are in the backyard, a base for my small little business of fish breeding. Guppies numbers are blooming, with majorities are the Moscow Black strain, which i did see some potentials in it.. the reds, the blues.. the wildies, the tanganyikans, the amazonians, the shrimps.. pheww.. quite alot also ar.. hahaa.. thinking to slow down so that i can focus on other part of my life.

Photography - It's getting better, as i can see.. with photos coming out in local magazines, websites, and few more projects coming up, latest is shooting for CTY Aquarium in Penang, and next is a tutor for a workshop in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. So yes, i cant wait to go back there!! Was hoping to hook more jobs in the near future, hopefully i do have some skills to compete in this crazily competitive field where probably 6-7 guys (out of 10) owned a DSLR and calledthemselves 'Photographer'! How true is that? Not here to criticize but Ken Rockwell is right, professional photographer term is strictly for those who are making a living in this field, and the rest, are just amateurs..

and here's my latest achievement (sort of).. being interviewed by a local mag called Pets, where i supplied the photos for the articles of course.

Last, but not least; my life

Lotsa confusion going on.. especially on the path that i should choose and go deeper (the career part). Should i get a job and run the business side by side? I think it's a good choice but am not sure if im able to handle both nicely.. i'll shall try pretty soon!

Im actually thinking of leaving the country, going overseas and get some experiences while travelling. Still saving money for that though.. so, it's still on-going. Probably next year!

And yes, im sensing something bigger is about to change my life. Something that could bring a big effect to me, positively im sure.. i shall update you guys once it's ok. Just wish me luck! XD

Rainbow tetra - Nematobrycon lacortei

2011-04-01T10:13:00.003+08:00

Here's another uncommon species of rainbow tetras in Malaysia. One of the nicest tetra i feel :P

Porsche Centra Bukit Bintang

2011-03-31T19:51:00.003+08:00

I was invited by my friend, Shiang Horng to a special event, the grand opening of Porsche Centra Bukit Bintang (PCBB) and the launch of the new Porsche 911 Carrera GTS in Malaysia. It was an honour to attend such an event. My first time too!

We were there early, so decided to see the line up of Porsche cars on the main entrance of Pavillon, KL. The Porsche Enthusiast group were having a record breaking gathering of Porsche supercars.

Look at this one, special matte silver Porsche. Looks cool isnt it?

The new PCBB was a grand showroom! Simply stunning building, by Sime Darby.

Opening speech from emcee, and manager of the new PCBB

Ribbon-cutting ceremony to unveiled the main logo of the showroom, non other than the iconic red Porsche word.

After a lil break with superb dinner buffet served outside the showroom, with plenty of drinks and liquor for everyone! The main highlight of the event were also the launch of the new 911 Carrera GTS;

Such a nice event isnt it? Porsche were generous too with the goodie bags (although we couldnt get one on that day, finished... :( but, they promised to send it to our house instead! Thanks in advance! :P ) Anyway, we got alot of stuff too.. which include 4gb Pendrive and Porsche Design Global Grooves I. Look!

Thanks to Shiang Horng for the invites and the opportunity to attend such a glamour event (although i dont seems to fit in.. haha.. i dont even own a Porsche.. sobzz )

Oh ya, they also opening their order book for the new electric hybrids, Porsche 918! Only 918 units will be produced and Msia will get about 10-20 units. So hurry, place your order! *psst.. only RM3 Million. Hahahaa...

Moscow Black

2011-03-17T20:41:00.005+08:00

Finally, my F2 Moscow Black is turning up to be something much more solid and good shape, IMHO. The black also covers almost 100%, except a slight line on the belly.. It's a blue-based Moscow Black, not the typical green-based, but it turns out pretty good at 5 months old. Hope it stays strong for the next few months cause im planning to send this fella to the comps. :P

Both male and female have big and broad extended dorsal, and a huge caudal too.. Let see what comes out in F3! Finger's crossed XD

What do you think of this batch? Good?

Bulbophyllum lobbii & Dendrobium Stardust

2011-03-17T20:34:00.004+08:00

Bulbophyllum lobbii

This week blooms; the wonderful showy flower of Bulbophyllum lobbii from Sabah

and Dendrobium Stardust, one of the nice hybrids that does retain some wilderness in it. This time, the dendrobium rewarded me with not one (like usual) but 7 flowers! NICE!!

Dendrobium Stardust

BMW 6 Series Coupe, Audi, Porsche... yummy!

2011-03-08T17:10:00.003+08:00

I loves supercars!! Who doesnt? the sexy line, roaring engines, it's simply an engineering marvel!

It happens to be a mini car show in Gurney Plaza last sunday.. we went there for lunch after the hikes and stay a while to view some of the cars there.. nothing much really, a few nice one such as Bentley, Porsche, Aston Martin, Audi and of cos, my all time fav, the BMWs! There were 2, the 6 series coupe and the new Z4! NICE!!

After lunch, we went for shoot for some of the cars there.. here it is;

and of course, the Porsche. Only a shot though.. there's too many crowds around.. :(

Pantai Kerachut with Dream Wanderers

2011-03-08T16:38:00.003+08:00

Went to jungle trekking last sunday at Penang one and only national park, which have few interesting places such as MOnkey Beach, Muka Head and Pantai Kerachut.

We head straight to Pantai Kerachut, a beach famous with the Meromictic Lake and turtle laying eggs. It was wonderful! We have turtles in Penang!!

The entrance, now, everyone have to register themselves in the counter, in case something bad happen, such as lost in the jungle or smtg.. and u have to check out too! Quite troublesome, but it's for everyone's good.

Hanging bridge

Some floras along the trek..

After 2 hours of trekking, we finally reach the beach. The Meromictic lake was hideous, so, i've decided not to take photos of it.. after a lil rest, we went to the Turtle Hatchery were there's some informative boards over there, and few baby turtles :(

Look at the eggs clutches.. the officers there told us there will be 3-4 sightings of turtles coming up to lay eggs each week! That;s a good news!

There's a tsunami warning thing installed on the jetty too! Like!

and we took a boat home to the jetty at Teluk Bahang, cost us RM10 per person or RM100 per boat. He does bring us for a lil tour around, and look at this! Does it look like turtle?

Will definitely go again, when the lake is in pristine condition that is. :P

PlAsTeR FuN HoUsE

2011-03-07T22:06:00.001+08:00

It was owned by my friend, Kevin Chai. Located in Empire Gallery @ Subang Parade, it was a nice place to hang out with friends and have some fun coloring and have some great drinks! For those who have kids, you can bring them here to play! It's located on the third floor, so, come on guys, have a visit and have fun plastering! XD

Cute ladybug? haha..

Some oldie playing cards!

The menu! Food and drinks was great, and priced reasonably! Thumbs up!

FRagile plaster figurine.. ready to be colored according to your taste and imagination :P

Old time Pikachu is here too, with it's geng.. haha..

This is blue bird, not angry bird.. *but psst.. i heard the Real Angry Bird is coming to PLASTER FUN HOUSE!

Cute 101 Dalmation was here too..

so what you guys waiting for? Head to Empire Gallery now! Opens 10am-10pm daily.
* say my name, got 10% DISCOUNT! :P

KL KL.. my fav destination!

2011-03-03T15:45:00.005+08:00

My first ever trip to KL in 2011! It's been months i havent go to KL lo.. ups and downs here in PG, with bad financial record :(

Manage to get some time off to go down KL meet up with Gerry and Lam Lam from Sabah. My photography sifu and one of my best bros!

Bring Gerry and Lam Lam to Ikano Power Centre, Sunway Pyramid and KLCC and shoots some photos while shopping and sight-seeing. Here's some photos :)

Tea-time @ Sunway Pyramid

Canon 1D MK4 with 17-40 L lens oh! DOnt play play! hehehee...

Den we head to KLCC, saw a BMW F1 car on display! Such a beast! If im a billionaire, i'll own one of this! haha...

and of course, the MUST SHOOT thing in KL, the Petronas Twin Tower, KLCC! This time, testing with my new Nikkor 16-35 F4. How was it? :P

meet up with more friends, old and new.. it was wonderful! Cant wait for the next trip!

Mr. Yap's fishes

2011-03-02T22:50:00.003+08:00

Visited Mr. Yap Vui Soon few days ago to see his power collection of fishes, especially plecos and the success of breeding Nannacara adoketa, one of the rare and hard fish to breed in the dwarf cichlid world. Congrats for the spawning!

and here's the fries! Look at those cuties with big eyes!

He also bred L333 Plecos.. hundreds of them, from eggs, to fries, to juveniles..

And not forgetting, the Manacapuru Angel, Red-head Scalare.

Lastly, i've visited my friend's LFS in OUG, called Atlantis Aquarium. He is another specialist with rare fishes. Worth visiting! Here's an interesting 'fish' species, 'discovered' by the owner, and hence... Altolamprologus sp. pangcheemengsis! LOL.. just kidding! CReative sketches though! Thumbs up!

Crab Eating Water Snake, Fordonia leucobalia

2011-02-24T13:24:00.004+08:00

Just caught one in my pond few nights ago, been eating all my Zebra danios lately.

Ascocentrum miniatum

2011-02-22T11:41:00.003+08:00

My all time fav orchid finally blooms again! And this time, it rewarded me with 5 spikes!!!

Cherok To'kun hill

2011-02-16T16:47:00.005+08:00

Everyone in BM knows this hill.. if you dont, then it's gonna be a disaster! haha.. it's on Bukit Mertajam of course. It's a place for most BM'ers to exercise, jog or simply, have some tea on the hill side. 2 main trails for those who loves to hike, the jungle and the tar road. I always prefer the jungle trail.. more challenging and not so boring. Besides, it's much more cooling too..

I've decided to bring my Dslr there.. all this while, we never shoot it before.. Nothing much of the trails though, more to touch of nature in this series.

Almost got attacked by a pack of wild monkeys too.. i guess the big black thing on my hand is a threat to them. It's was a tense situation there, im all alone, monkeys giving warning and making loud noises.. better go fast but calmly.. kept my dslr straight away, just in case.. 10 minutes later, another pack of monkeys but this time, im no longer holding my dslr, so.. it's ok out there. Phewww.. imagine the situation there, and i can hear a group of dogs barking behind me.. so.. really scare at one point. I'll be dead if both attack me! haha..

Anyway, i manage to escape everything safely.. and back to shooting! I realized photoshooting while hiking is not as tiring, and it was more fun too.. managed to finished up the jungle trail quite easily :P phewww.. at least my stamina is still there (a little.. )

Get some rest at the Tea Club rest area up there, where the jungle trails meet the tar road. Glad there's toilet now, unlike last time.. have to either tahan till u reach the bottom or do it somewhere in the bushes for those who is in emergency d.. LOL.. There's an exercising equipments there too! Well done, im loving Cherok Tokun more!

Only one thing i hate, it's VANDALISM! and even worst, some it's from my secondary school! How ashamed is this!

BM High the great school? LOL..

More nature shots..

We are going fast downhill, watch out!!

On the way downhill, saw another pack of monkeys, this is a larger version, hairier version with 2 white round patch on it's eye. Cute though.. caught some action shots of them when i look up the skies. Time wait for no-one, i click shutter all the way while pointing at 2 or 3 of them jumping to the next tree. Neck-ache, but it was all worthy.. got some shots here..

*just found out their name, it's called Spectacled Leaf Monkey, Trachypithecus obscurus

Cute indeed! hahaa with the Spec

Now this look like a scene from Kung Fu Panda?

So there you go, a photoshoot + hiking trip in Cherok To'kun for today, thanks for viewing! I'll go again for sure to take more shots! Next round, got to bring my macro and flash diffuser :)

American Bullies!

2011-02-15T16:00:00.003+08:00

Just bought 2 new American bullies from my friend last night.. he cannot keep up with the works and care, so decided to let go.. Bring home both mother and daughter home, Nita and Jerry.

Nita is from a Razor's Edge line, and mated with Mayday of Razor's Edge. The result? Chubby and cute Jerry! haha.. She looks bigger than her mom, thanks to Mayday's gene i guess. Her brother are even bigger, residing at KL now..

This is Nita,

And this is Jerry, isnt she cute?

and my Doberman, Lassie and Prado at the back, act cool..

One 'happy' family.. although Nita is abit grumpy! She's 2 years old plus already, oldest among all..

Open burning @ paddy field

2011-02-09T23:34:00.002+08:00

A common practice among farmer after harvesting their paddy.. open burning causes air pollution and hazy condition everywhere in the vicinity. Bad for everyone and bikers like me, eyes go watery and dry. But well, it's been practiced for years and believed to be able to fertilized the soil for the next season.

Bonding with Dobes

2011-02-09T16:28:00.002+08:00

Been with this 2 Dobes for few weeks now, and i believed we are much closer now at heart. Prado seems to be recognizing me as Alpha already (maybe! :P) and Lassie, always as naughty as she is.. This photos were taken few weeks back actually, forgotten to post. Sorry!

Here's the male, Prado, at 29 inch tall (shoulder)

And the female, Lassie, at 26 inch tall (shoulder) with a funny pose like this! haha..

Will take more photos soon as im training them now to listen and obey to me. "Sit" mastered, next is "Down".. haha

Sunrise @ Permatang Pauh

2011-02-08T13:02:00.003+08:00

There's chinese saying that starting work on the 6th day of New Year will lead to a successful work/career.. I actually dont know that, but well, i started off my day with an early morning sunrise shooting with my friend, Chan Peng Lee in Permatang Pauh paddy field at 6.30am.

It was quite hazy due to the open burning of the paddy field, as some part already harvested.

Here's the first photo coming up after my quick editing.. more coming later of the day!

As promised, here's few more shots from the morning :)

Silhouette

Kinda like the cracks on the earth, but cant seems to get a nice angle yet. Will probably try that again soon :)

Our shadows on da field. haha.. just for fun!

And lastly, some part of the field which are already harvested were burned, which it's believed helps fertilized the soil for next growing season.

Wild orchids of Malaysia, B.limbatum and C.corolliferum

2011-02-07T13:09:00.004+08:00

One of the bulbophyllum i kept for years finally blooms for the first time in my garden! Saw some tiny flies attracted to it, so i tried to smell it.. and guess what, it's unpleasant! haha.. anyway, it's interesting species i have here. Look!

It looks like a tiny monster with big tongue aint it? haha.. it moves when there's vibration or air. kinda eery somehow, thank god it's tiny! :P

Here's the pollination in action, by some tiny flies.. look at the pollen attached to it! nice!

According to my friend, a big time orchid collector, she identified it as Bulbophyllum limbatum. Thanks for the ID yeah!

And here's a old time bloomer at my place, Cirrhopetalum corolliferum

But this one havent bloom yet, but it looks unique :P

New Year Resolution

2011-02-01T23:46:00.002+08:00

New year is approaching, and here i am, suddenly think of some new resolution to be achieved in 2011!

1. Get out from miserable Malaysia

2. New life experience - something new perhaps, new field, new culture, etc etc

3. Good health - Need more exercises la... living an unhealthy life for few years already :(

4. Backpacking dream - that never come true yet - Euro trip!

5. Someone rich to buy all my stuff here in Penang that holding me back, all the tiny investments that i cant seems to let go that easily.. all my fishes, my pets,.. everything! (except my Mac and Dslr of course! Haha..)

Light trails

2011-01-26T22:35:00.002+08:00

We decided to go for light trail shooting after we couldnt find a nice spot for night landscape yesterday. Went up to a flyover to shoot the traffic coming from the bridge to Jelutong Expressway, but well, let just say.. the photos didnt come out to have the WOW effect.. so, that's it..

While im in the car, with the tripod attached, i use the newly bought wireless remote and set bulb shooting and let it open for few minutes. It captures road lights, CNY lanterns and displays, road signs, anything that lit up.. here's 2 results that i like :P although it's shaky for sure..

Here's another one with more lights as we approaching the town :)

Prado & Lassie, the Doberman Pinscher

2011-01-25T00:19:00.003+08:00

Cant believe it myself too, owning two huge Doberman Pinscher now. The male (rust & tan) have MKA certs while the female (black & tan) dont have. Her parents have though. Nvm.. i love them with or without certs. It doesnt matter, they are my newest best friends! Got them from a guy called Ivan, who post the ads in mudah.com. He is going overseas, so selling this pair of Dobes. Got it for Rm1.5K.. sounds reasonable isnt it? hehe.. i bring them back using the Toyota Unser, and covered the cushions and floor with lotsa plastics and papers.. lots of saliva during the trip! Ewwww.w... Must bath them soon d.. very doggy smell!

The male is pretty tall though, and quite intimidating. I hope i can establish myself as an ALPHA and correct his behaviors while he is still young. I don't think i can overpower this dog if it gets uncontrollable and overly aggressive. Must get him through all the obedience and training asap! hehe.. The female is ok, although abit noisy.. real noisy and playful too!

Just bought them new collar and leash today, and it cost me Rm120! So expensive nowadays. Tmr going to get 20kg dog food, ceramic bowls.. and waiting for the Clicker to arrive so i can start training and correcting their behavior fast! hehe.. im alittle scared actually.. :(

Sunrise @ 4 Pillar, beside Lebuhraya Lim Chong Eu

2011-01-23T11:05:00.002+08:00

OK, another early wake and attempts to nailed some sunrise shots. Woke up at 5am, had McD Big Breakfast before getting to the site for a wonderful sunrise! Alot of friends came, which it was fun! Here's what i managed to capture that morning :P

Dim Sum~Food photography

2011-01-12T12:03:00.002+08:00

Never really did alot of food photography before,just a few, but well, i'm back! Will try to shoot some nice foods from all over Penang, and hopefully, the world in the future.

We had this Dim Sum somewhere near UMNO Building in Penang. The place are famous for Steamboat at night though. Here's a shot of Xiao Long Bao that we ate. Hehehe..

The Clan Jetties, part 2

2011-01-12T11:58:00.002+08:00

Woke up at 5am to go to the jetties and wait for sunrise. How dissapointing it is when u see this!

But well, it doesnt rain.. so we stayed and tried some shots using Cokin ND filters (thanks to Chuppy)

So here's 2 version of what i got that morning;

Will definitely go again and try to nail some shots of the beautiful sunrise! :P

Nikkor 16-35mm F/4 Nano - First Day Test Review

2011-01-09T17:33:00.004+08:00

Another dream comes true when finally, i bought AFS Nikkor 16-35mm F/4G ED VRII N lens! Cost me close to RM4K, but believe me, it's worth every cent! The sharpness of this lens is superb, with Nano coating and Vibration Reduction, it claims it's place and replace my kit lens, the cheap and cheerful 18-55mm which i bought for only Rm400. 10 TIMES DIFFERENCES in price, let see if it could deliver 10 times better photos in the future XD (ok it's not fair to the kit, it's all up to me, the person behind the DSLR isn't it :P)

It looks good on my big and trusty Nikon D200 plus grip. Handles very well, and it's pretty long too. Doesn't look like a ultra-wide angle lens to me. Hehe... Anyway, it just feels good! Finally found a good replacement for my kit lens which serves me for over 2 years and will continue to serves me well in macro photography in particular (all the shots you've seen in this blog, 90% comes from the kit lens!)

Minutes after purchases, i went around Penang for some testing. Visited the famous Penang Clan Jetties for a short while as it is getting dark. Manage to get some shots, particularly with the HDRs attempt. Love's the range of 16-35. Very useful as a walk-around lens. The VR works pretty good under low light condition.

Here's some shots from the Tan Jetty:

and here's Chew Jetty;

needed some directions?

Stay tune for more photos to come in the near future! Nikkor 16-35 F/4 rocks!

Kalimantan Samurai, the Sphaerichthys vaillanti

2011-01-07T22:16:00.002+08:00

One of my favourite fish ever! Got them few months back and finally, they grew up and colored up just like what i saw online! Simply amazing and unbelievable at first. I've left with 7 pcs out of 10pcs, with 2 confirmed pair right now, and some misc unknown :S

They've been courting since last week but no results in brooding yet :( Hope for the best!

Here's some photos:

The magnificient female Samurai! Look at the coloration!

And here's the male, with his breeding dance, showing how big his mouth can be to brood eggs.

The pair, female are alittle shy though..

Wish me luck in breeding this amazing labyrinth! :P

Breeding Parosphromenus nagyi

2011-01-03T21:13:00.002+08:00

Finally succeeded breeding my 2nd species of Parosphromenus, the P.nagyi from Kuantan, Pahang.

The breeding pair is housed in 1ft tank, ph 5 (tap water mix with rain water) and peat granules added. Temperature were constant at 28C. The pair are fed with mosquitoes larvae, daphnia, and artemia twice daily and finally, i was rewarded with few batches of eggs and fries in 2 weeks period! Cant believe it!

Here's some photos of the fries and pair, albeit blurry ones.. :(

Hope i can manage to raise all to maturity and continue to conserve this species in captivity. The type locality and natural habitats of all Parosphromenus are threatened by development and forest clearing. Such a sad sad issues..

CTY Betta Fish Competition 2010

2011-01-03T12:57:00.002+08:00

December is full of events isnt it? CTY organized another Betta competition, and this round, it manage to pull an enormous entry of over 500 fishes! That is such a good sign for the hobby in Penang. I've manage to take some photos of the winning fishes, but, sorry guys, am not so good in capturing the betta.. still learning :P

We have this Grand Champion, Orange Crowntail! Nice!

And here's some winning fishes..

And here's a shot of my friends, from the left, Q Betta Team, Rosdi (BSM President), Niwit (Judge of the day, from Thailand) and Ming Yuen (qualified judge and SuHo.. LOL)

Penang Flora Fest 2010

2011-01-03T12:46:00.003+08:00

Again, here i am, visiting the famous flora festival held occasionally in Penang Botanical Garden. All the floras, especially orchids and adenium, and bonsai, are attracting thousands of peoples from all over the country. I'm there almost every show to see what's new, to photography some flowers and not forgetting, buying some home :)

Look at this Nepenthes, unique isnt it?

I bought this home, only cost Rm20.

Lovely orchid! Kinda expensive though :(

My cousin and lil brother, 2 fatty in da show.. haha..

Mum bought Hoya, RM35 per plant - actually it's a mix of 4-5 different colored Hoya. Nice isnt it? hehe..

And look at this giant adenium! Stunning!

And more orchids!

It was a nice show nevertheless, with some location shifting to the new part of botanical garden. Oh ya, the Giant Water Lily (Victoria amazonica) pond is almost ready! Cant wait for it, the largest water lily in the world is coming to Penang! hehe..

Flowerhorn - Photo of the Week

2010-12-31T15:47:00.001+08:00

Won another Photo Of The Week organized by Aquatic Photography website.

Thank you so much, guys!

Aquafair Guppy Competition 2010

2010-12-31T15:41:00.001+08:00

Here's some shots of the champion winner guppies during the competition held during Aquafair @ KLCC.

Class 1 Champion - Solid Color - Albino Full Red

Class 3 Champion - Bi-color - Sky Blue which also happens to be the overall GRAND CHAMPION

Class 4 Champion - Blue Mosaic

Class 5 Champion - Red Lace

Class 6 Champion - Vienna Emerald Doublesword

Class 7 Champion - Short tail

The REAL Betta gladiator!

2010-12-31T15:28:00.003+08:00

Presenting, the REAL Betta gladiator from Maliau Basin itself! It is caught by Mr. LC Chan of ADA Malaysia and was showcase during Aquafair held few weeks back at KLCC, Malaysia.

I was lucky to get some shots of the real gladiator pair, enjoy!

For anyone who is interested to use this photos, please contact me via email harnsheng@gmail.com. Thanks!

Diskus Discus

2010-11-08T22:07:00.002+08:00

Visited a discus farm few days ago.. and i saw this stunning pair, simply stunning! The dots, the colorations.. love it! Im not really a fancy discus fans but it does makes me go 'wahh' sometimes :P here's 2 shots of the couple!

Mpimbwe yo!

2010-10-31T21:41:00.002+08:00

Had them since a year ago, they are now getting bigger and nicer. 2 days ago, i've decided to transfer them to new tank on my newest rack and today, managed to get some decent shots of them.

Alpha Male

Altolamprologus compressiseps Sumbu Shell

2010-10-28T00:01:00.001+08:00

They are finally here! Took some shots just now, they are still a little skittish though.. have to kinda stalk them, sit in front of the tank, waiting for them to come out before i could shoot them.. here's what i got today, pardon the photo quality..kinda bad :(

Here's the full tank shot

Macro Insects

2010-09-23T14:10:00.002+08:00

Uhh... recently got poisoned back into macros.. thanks to Lalat King, Chan and the rest! hahaha..

So, i borrowed a Tamron Sp90, coupled with Raynox and my Sb600 with DIY softbox, im off to go.. this is the result of shooting this morning, my first attempt on macro shooting XD 'insects'

Common house fly

Wasps

and some unknown moth

and duno wat is this.. haha

thats all for today, will continue to shoot in this few days and uploaded to my album. Thanks for viewing!

Wild Betta of Malaysia

2010-09-19T15:35:00.002+08:00

Recently i had the opportunity to see myself the real Betta kuehnei, one of the newest species described. According to my friend, the collector, he caught it some one north Malaysia to South Thailand, Saton area if im not mistaken. It does look pretty similar to the pugnax group members, but one differences were the blue mask on the face and some throat marking, which until today, im still blurred and confused. haha..

Here's some close up photos of the newest betta, the Betta kuehnei!

Besides kuehnei, he also have a colony of wild Betta stigmosa, from Terenganu.

Finally, an updates!

2010-08-07T22:32:00.005+08:00

Im so so sorry guys over the late updates in my blog.. been pretty busy for the last few months, but dont worry, im back! haha.. There's quite a number of events and shoots that i've done, will definitely upload it up one by one ya!

Here's a recent one, errmmm... maybe not that recent.. a month or 2 ago... ops.. anyway, it's a short cycling trip to somewhere near my house, and i decided to use my Nokia N95 camera and see how it performs. Comments are very very much appreciated! Thank you so much

Our beloved senior, Aazif's wedding day

2010-06-27T00:41:00.003+08:00

First of all, congratulation to Aazif and his wife, and also his brother for the double wedding! May both of you blessed with endless happiness and smiles, and live happily ever after :D

Thanks for inviting all of us for the wedding, and preparing a VIP table for us! Really appreciated it! Here's some photos of the wedding to share,

Lucky Lucky Smokey the Monkey

2010-06-22T14:51:00.002+08:00

Woah... now this is sooooo unbelievable!! I won another RM50 from TheStar thumbnails!! Yeaa haaa... Twice in a row on the paper is crazy! I like it! Thank you so much TheStar and everyone!

TheStar thumbnails!

2010-06-21T17:05:00.002+08:00

Yeah.. i won RM50 from TheStar thumbnails!! Im so happy!

The photo was taken last week, somewhere Citytel Hotel area during a traffic jam. Saw the dog sitting happily on a trishaw. Took my N95 and take a shot, and submit to TheStar Thumbnails and voila, today, it is published! Im so happy.. hehehehe...

Balik Kampung trip

2010-06-21T16:45:00.002+08:00

Last saturday, i joined 2 uncle for a short trip to Ulu Tawar, Sg.Sedim area.. a place where it is really kampung! We went to visit his hunting geng, all the pakcik pakcik there but sadly, we dont have the chance to meet all of them... only 3 pakcik left, out of 10 plus.. alll already left the world. Sad isnt it, but it's reality.. we all age with time..

Let's get back to the trip, the first pakcik, called Din have a monkey pet. He is really cute, but very naughty.. even learned how to smokes.. Look at his face, so high already..

Smoking with style!

and we interview the monkey, how many cigarettes he have taken? Monkey: i lost count at 40 sticks.. =.= jus kidding...

Next, we visit to Pak Usob's house.

along the kampung road, there were the footsteps of wild boars, nickname Jungle Tractor, digging for worms and scavenge for food around the villages..

his ceiling were lined with egg crates.. a efficient and cheap insulation

he live alone now.. his wife pass away 2 years ago and left him alone. How sad is it.. Anyway, he is very friendly, sharing with us all the experiences that they lived during the hunting days.. about how they hunt Mawas (Howler monkey if im not mistaken), Wild Boar or wild encounter with tigers.. very interesting!

Look at the streams around Pak Usob's house.. crystal clear water! I wish i have a house surrounded by such streams! The pebbles are unique too!

Such a nice environment isnt it? I envy them.. hope to visit them again soon!

1st Malaysia International Guppy & Betta Charity Competition

2010-06-13T23:10:00.003+08:00

This event were held on the 11th to 13th June 2010 at Gurney Plaza, Penang. The event were very successful with big crowds turn out and lots of entries from both guppy and betta side, where combined entries of over 700 tanks! One of the biggest so far!

Thanks to Guppy Society of Malaysia and Betta Society of Malaysia, as well as all the judges from Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and Taiwan and of course, the sponsors and media!

Here's the list of the guppy competition winners:

CLASS 1: Swallow and Ribbon(Trio)
1st：洪文獻-Taiwan
2nd：吳文娟-Taiwan
3rd：Wong Swee Weng-Malaysia

CLASS 2） Swordtail
1st：Peter Chong-Malaysia
2nd：C.S.Lai-Malaysia
3rd：吳文娟-Taiwan

CLASS 3） Short tail
1st：Peter Chong-Malaysia
2nd：Peter Chong-Malaysia
3rd：Peter Chong-Malaysia

CLASS 4） Solid Blue
1st：Darren Lee-Malaysia
2nd：Digichris-Spore
3rd：Darren Lee-Malaysia

CLASS 5） Solid Red
1st：洪文獻-Taiwan
2nd：Eric Chong-Malaysia
3rd：Peter Chong-Malaysia

CLASS 6） Solid Albino
1st：Goh Ben Yin-Malaysia
2nd：C.S.Lai-Malaysia
3rd：C.S.Lai-Malaysia

CLASS 7） Pattern Albino
1st：DigiChris-Spore
2nd：David Chong-Malaysia
3rd：Peter Chong-Malaysia

CLASS 8） Platinum/Metal/Medusa
1st：Renaldy Santoso-Indo
2nd：Darren Chong-Malaysia
3rd：Peter Chong-Malaysia

CLASS 9） Mosaic
1st：游仁傑-Taiwan
2nd：Peter Chong-Malaysia
3rd：游仁傑-Taiwan

CLASS 10） Grass
1st：Peter Chong-Malaysia
2nd：Tan Hoong Keat-Malaysia
3rd：Wang Li-China

CLASS 11） Snakeskin
1st：呂安仕-Taiwan
2nd：Lynn- Malaysia
3rd：Mr.Yap(GC)-Spore

CLASS 12） Tuxedo
1st：Peter Chong-Malaysia
2nd：呂安仕-Taiwan
3rd：Tan Lai Fong-Malaysia

CLASS 13: Female(All participated female guppies are automatically qualified)
1st：DigiChris-Spore
2nd：吳文娟-Taiwan
3rd：洪文獻-Taiwan

Class 14：AOC/New Strain
1st：Mr Yap(GC)-Spore
2nd：How Tuersin-Spore
3rd：Mr.Yap(GC)-Spore

Class 15：Student Group
1st：Lai Shim Tee-日新獨中
2nd：Lai Jin Xiang-日新獨中
3rd：Tan Guan Yuan-三德小學

Class 16：Juvenile(veil)
1st：CPS Guppy Farm-Malaysia
2nd：How Twee Sin-Spore
3rd：Yeoh Can Pin-Malaysia

Congratulation to all winners!!

Here's some photos of the events as well as winning fishes. For more photos, please visit http://www.flickr.com/photos/harnsheng

Competition area

Organizer and Committee

Opening ceremony - Ribbon cutting

Judging..

Grand Champion winner

Micropoecilia parae

2010-06-10T16:48:00.002+08:00

One of my favourite fish of all time, from the genus Micropoecilia. I used to have 2 pairs, bought from SLS, for a short period, giving birth to 1 and 8 fries respectively and both pairs died.. :( Thankfully, from the 9 fries, i've managed to get 2 red males and 7 females! And now, they have all grown up and started producing fries.. i've collected over 17 fries so far! YES!

Last week, i obtained 4 males from my friend, the only original 4 males left from the shipment. There were 2 yellow, 1 red and 1 blue! I've decided to buy all 4 and make a cross back to my females and hopefully, there's some other melanzoma will pop up instead of red only.. wish me luck! :)

Micropoecilia parae melanzoma red

Micropoecilia parae melanzoma yellow

Micropoecilia parae melanzoma blue

iPhone 4

2010-06-08T13:42:00.004+08:00

I received an email from Apple this morning.. with the newly launch iPhone 4! What can i say, after few leaked 'iphone 4g' surfaced, finally Steve Jobs officially announced the killer iPhone 4!

isnt this tempting? with such a thinner and sleeker design, high resolution screen - Retina display, glass cover, 5mpx LED flash, HD video, 1gb CPU, and the new iOS4, it's crazy! Oh ya, video call is also finally available with the new iphone, but limited to iphone 4 users over wifi. Anyway, i dont use video call that much though.. :D

Apple always create something that poisoned me.. with my first Apple purchases, the Macbook Pro 13 (2009), i'm deeply poisoned! Then the iPad came.. and now, iPhone 4! I was about to purchases the iPod nano too..bad Apple..bad bad Apple.. emptying my pockets... haha

Let's wait for the announcement from our local telcos.. Maxis to sell it here in Malaysia and hopefully, i can afford one.. it's time for my Nokia N95 to retired and go for full range Apple!

Head over to http://www.apple.com/iphone for more information and start drooling!!! hehehe...

* photos are taken from Apple website

Elise Choo & Tanya Teh

2010-05-24T16:07:00.005+08:00

Last sunday, we had the opportunity to shoot 2 gorgeous girl, Elise Choo and Tanya Teh.. Our location were somewhere around the jetty of Pulau Jerejak and the weather seems to be on our side, as we were lucky to have the after-rain skies, nice and clear.. no haze at all!

In this shoot, we does some experimenting with video lights, thanks to Geoffry and Shone, and yeah, we learned something new. Had fun as usual and the models are friendly and sweet, easy to work with. Here's some photos of the lovely Elise Choo;

and here's Tanya Teh, with the effects of video light.. something new, and needs more practice and shoot for this technique :P

Thank you very much to Elise and Tanya for coming, and thanks to all photographers for having so much fun, laughters and learning at the same time! Hope to see you guys again!

For more photos, please feel free to view and comment at www.flickr.com/photos/harnsheng. Thanks!

Alor Setar short trip... one word, HOT!

2010-05-21T23:50:00.002+08:00

Wow.. cant believe Alor Setar can be that hot and humid! It's been quite some time i didnt visit the town, the town where my great grandparents stay, a place where my grandparents grows before moved to a small little town called Penanti :) It was a mixed feeling, going back there.. and im eager to explore the town again.

Reached there pretty early, at around 5.30am for a delivery work, and had my breakfast with Pang, at the mamak nearby chatting fish stuff.. Was actually preparing to drive to Kuala Kedah jetty for sunrise shooting but well, the chats were simply too long and by the time we finished, it was already 7.15am.. gone, plan B next!

So, i called up my coursemate, to be my tour guide for the day. We went to a temple-turned-dimsum/restaurant and had our dimsum breakfast (yeah, 2nd round.. getting fatter and fatter since the day i've graduated, came back from Sabah, and then KL, and now, finally settled in Penang.. fat Khor...)

After that, i parked my car at his place, and we went sight seeing, started with Gunung Keriang. Another nostalgic memories.. especially with granma. We used to collect crystals here, just for fun.. oh btw, it became a hit too, where crystal stores growing like mushrooms after the rain. The remaining were still there, although the park, sadly, was filled with rubbish! Thanks to the you-know-who.. truly Malaysian. It was a sad sight.. :( Anyway, took some shots of the Gunung Keriang..here's a pano, from 6 shots merged into one.. This is the other side of the hill, where active mining of crystals situated.. it was now, safe and sound..

Next, we ride around town, shooting some scenes, ate ais kacang, laksa.. and had Nasi Lemak Ong for lunch. IMO, it was just a so-so dish, overated i could say..

and of course, the famous Telekom Tower, at different perspective :p looks like the alien from Tom Cruise's movie

After that, there's actually nothing much to do and we head to Chang Lun, to the Lye Huat Garden. Im amazed by the collections of antiques and art stuff over there, as well as a vast collection of animals.. a nice place to visit, IF the weather were better..

Some ancient music instrument

Terra cotta warrior

and lotsa animals shots..

so, thats basically sumps up my short trip to Alor Setar, which also partially affected by the hot weather.. and i still havent ate that famous fish dishes! Next time..next time... oh, before signing off, THANKS! to Zi Yang for being my tour guide for the day, taking off from work.. thanks alot!

Orchids @ Michael Ooi Nursery

2010-05-12T21:11:00.002+08:00

I visited his nursery again, taking my friend, Elsa and her family for some orchid shopping at Michael Ooi's nursery, one of the best orchid nursery in Malaysia. Recent addition were a new greenhouse, air-conditioned for the highland and cold temperate orchids. I saw some Paph. rothchildianum blooming inside.. Took some photos of the orchids blooming there, here's some to share;

Beside orchids, he also keep parrots, fantail pigeons, iguanas, hill mynahs, and 2 huge Giant Guoramy. Both are real grumpy and aggressive!

KL KL again! hehe..

2010-04-29T21:43:00.002+08:00

Last weekend was fantastic, able to take a few days off to visit KL again, my favourite place for meet up, and shopping! Stayed in my boss place at Subang Jaya, and very thankful to be able to borrow his wife's car for 2 days! THANKS JOE!

Went to watch "Kick Ass" with Jit, Chong and Tommy at Tropicana City Mall, a nice mall with less crowds, unlike 1U or Midvalley. Next was having a visit to Ikano and The Curve, with Dylan, GGming and his HM. We had a drink at the Theobroma Chocolate Lounge @ The Curve. Another nice place to enjoy great drink and snacks while chit-chatting :P

Here's what we ordered:

Snow White Frappe

Strawberry Waffles

Here's an interesting unique ideas from Ggming, the original strawberry waffles were... less strawberries., something like this: drab, dull and lifeless.. so far away from the photos in the menu.

Haha.. so, my friend went out to get a boxes of strawberry to add the oomphh.. Here's what happen? Isnt it look much more delicious?

* Sorry about the white balance though.. i got problem getting the one i like, tweaking also failed me :(

Campoma guppy

2010-04-22T11:55:00.002+08:00

latest fish in my collection, the Campoma guppy!

Another uncommon fish in the hobby, which share similarities with endlers, for it's bright metallic color and less variation. Very active and somehow, slight jumpy and shy. The males are finally sexually active and i hope can get some fries soon! :)

Sexy Office Lady

2010-04-20T10:25:00.002+08:00

It was a themed outing organized by DSLR Penang group from Facebook. There were 3 models, Jesslynn, Wan Diana and Punitha. The location was at Standard Chartered Bank @ Lebuh Pantai, Penang. The building and architecture were unique and im quite impress, and ashamed, being a Penangnites not having a shoot here before.. haha..

We started out at 4pm, waiting for everyone to come before the real photoshoot starts at 4.30pm and there's about 20++ photographers, divided into 3 groups. It was a fun session, lots of learning and laughters.. Thanks to the organizer and models for all the hard works, and hope to see you guys again! :)

Here's some shot taken:

Wan Diana

Jesslynn

Punitha

For more photos, please feel free to visit my Flickr album, www.flickr.com/photos/harnsheng

Thanks for viewing! :p

HDR Lebuh Pantai, Penang island

2010-04-19T22:03:00.003+08:00

The buildings along Lebuh Pantai has a distinct look and feel. I dont really noticed the amazing structures until yesterday, and managed to capture some HDR shots.

Now this looks like in Egypt.. haha..

Mating scenes

2010-04-09T21:55:00.002+08:00

My male Starlet fish is finally sexually active and now, trying hard to mate with the females. This gives me a good opportunity to shoot fish in action. Here's some action shot of one of my favourite fish in the collection! Enjoy!

The male's color is really so intense and bright.. never seen such a nicely colored Poecilid fish before, the orange covered over 75% of the body and even reaching out to the tip of it's caudal fin. Superb coloration, totally contrasted with the females, drab looking fish similar to the endlers or wild guppies..

U-Sheng Arowana Farm visit

2010-03-31T20:41:00.002+08:00

I had the opportunity to visit an arowana farm in Bukit Merah, with my friend, Kok Yong. It was a wonderful experience, to see arowana swimming in the ponds, the harvesting process, anticipating fries.. never ending excitement. Im amazed by the natural color of the arowanas under natural condition. It's so much nicer than those kept in tanks and have to rely on artificial lights and the whole tanning process to bring up the colors.. natures still the winner!

Thanks to Dave Goh, the person in charge in the farm, to introduce and bring us for a tour around his aro farm. Thousands thanks to him and my friend for the ride there.

Here's some shot that i manage to shoot, although have to pump up the ISO to 800, and thus, noisy shots.. For more photos, visit www.flickr.com/photos/harnsheng

Look at that! Amazing color of the Chilli Red/Super Red arowanas!

Jumping aro! and landing.. ouch...

And see... how clear the water and how tame the fishes were.. thanks to the weather, rainy day, and feeding time, the fishes decided to gave us some nice nice treat to our eyes! What a sight to behold!

Stunning isnt it.. i hope i can afford one someday.. again, thanks for the chances to visit and take photos of your farm, Dave! Thanks!

Frogs again... =.=

2010-03-30T21:46:00.002+08:00

This one were at my house, looks quite similar to the Four-Lined Tree Frog, but i dont see the lines, and the color were bright, peach/light brown color..

My fav shot

Macro Outing with SA

2010-03-23T21:09:00.002+08:00

I had the chance to join ShutterAsia geng again, this time, macro outing! One of my favorite, but i do not have any macro lens :( We went to Penang Botanical Garden, at around 8am and the outing was organized by Untung. Around 10 members joined us for shooting with their real macro gear and creative DIY.

So, what do i use? Erm... 50mm 1.8 with Raynox DCR250! The result? More like a close-up.. here's some of my favorite shots of the day :D

Micropoecilia sp. or Poecilia wingei?

2010-03-18T23:06:00.002+08:00

Got some of this fishes recently from a friend. It has a very striking color, but i have no idea what species is this. Most probably a variant of something.. it is code-named Scarlet on the bag, but no other information. Have a look, and for those who knows.. pls do let me know. Thanks!

Bidor famous foods

2010-03-15T17:28:00.002+08:00

During my trip back to Penang, i had my breakfast in Bidor, and had the chance to taste the famous foods in the small town.

The famous dish, which is the Duck Drumstick in Herbs, are prepared and served in Restoran Pun Chun, right in the middle of Bidor town. The nice rich aroma and meaty drumsticks is definitely a must-eat dish when you visited Bidor.

Besides that, there's also biscuits which are famous it's "kai chai peng" and few others.. here's Fried yam filled with meat, very tasty snacks

To summarise, yeah, it's worth visiting Bidor for it's foods, and i recommend Restoran Pun Chun for it's good food and acceptable price :D

Shihlin Taiwan Street Snack

2010-03-15T17:19:00.002+08:00

During my short trip to KL recently, i went to Shihlin Taiwan Street Snack, located at Subang Parade ground floor for dinner. It was a fairly new experience with taiwanese foods and flavor, and it's a good one. Something interesting and tasty, although it felt a little less flavor to me. Perhaps we Msian are used to take dishes with heavy flavors, spices and strong taste :p

Anyway, it's tasty and i'll probably visit this shop again for other dishes :)

XXL Crispy Chicken

Homemade Oyster Mee Sua

Four-Lined Tree Frog (Polypedates leucomystax)

2010-03-05T16:34:00.003+08:00

Found these frogs around my ponds, where it uses the water bodies as a breeding ground. Lots of tadpoles can be found in my ponds, numbering up to thousands at one point. Decided to take some shots for identification and here it is:

Albino Full Red Guppy

2010-02-10T21:49:00.002+08:00

My latest fishes prior to CNY, some really RED guppies! Hope it brings more luck to me! haha...

Micropoecilia parae

2010-02-08T20:27:00.002+08:00

FInally obtained 2 pairs of long awaited Micropoecilia parae!!! I got myself melanzoma orange and blue, about few months ago, but havent took photos.. Melanzoma orange give birth to A fry :(, while melanzoma blue give birth to 8 fries in total, both give birth after i've drop the tank temperature to 24 degree celcius, is it a coincidence? hmmm.... i had them for months without a single fry, and after a week of temp drop, fries emerging... hmm...

3 of this belongs to my friend, Lim,

Hope the fries can grow up nicely and establish a population in my ponds :D