Author Archives: TV Smith

The Gods Have Landed In Ampang

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The annual Nine Emperor Gods Festival begins today. The deities arrived last night by boat and was escorted to the Ampang Temple with a street procession. Here’s a short photo essay with a few photography tips…

Young Worshippers

Young Worshippers

Kids, ultra-wide angle lens and the black & white filter always work well.  For the wide angle to be effective, get down and stick the camera close. Of course, ask the parent’s permission before you do that.

Guarding The Throne

Guarding The Throne

Unlike those Buckingham Palace Guards, these two young chaps get distracted easily. Who can blame them. See next pic

Divide And Drool

Divide And Drool

The standard attire for female worshippers, the hot pants, are getting shorter each year. Here, I used the pillar as a visual metaphor.

Smoke-Free Room

Smoke-Free Room

With so much smoke from the joss sticks, I was crying non-stop. Found this little refuge to wipe my tears but several photographers (who recognised me) came crying for a different reason.

They asked me why their pictures were full of raindrops even it wasn’t even raining! The answer is simple. Their flash captured those tiny ash particles floating in the air. Don’t use flash, young grasshoppers.

Reserved Parking

Kow Wong Yeh's Reserved Parking

To my embarrassment, I quickly found out I was sitting on the gods’ official parking bays. After the deities disembarked inside the temple, the chariots are parked here for the next nine days.

iPhone vs dSLR Shootout

iPhone vs dSLR Shootout

The Olympus camera’s white balance can be so accurate that a scene can become clinical white (cold). After stepping into the altar area, I did a manual white balance to add a bit of bias towards red. It helped retain the warm atmosphere within.

The Black Duckling

The Black Duckling

Black in a sea of white makes an interesting visual counter-point. To get better pics, you need to kneel too. Get down to the worshippers’ level for a more interesting POV.

See also: MyCen Map to Nine Emperor Gods Temple in Ampang

All pictures photographed with the Olympus Pen E-PL2 by & © TV Smith

Tip: You can view larger versions of the images here, gallery-style. When the page finishes loading, click on any picture. Navigate via the arrows on each side of the frame.

Make Haze While The Sun Shines

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If you enjoy outdoor photography, the current hazy spell is probably getting you down. Don’t despair. There are unique photographic opportunities hidden behind the haze. Better still, if you are the owner of an Olympus camera with built-in Art Filters, just turn the dial to Dramatic Tone Filter. It literally adds drama to any drab scenery…

Green Alagae Lake of Titiwangsa

Green Algae Lake of Titiwangsa

Sunshine, haze and the art filter combined to create a surreal atmosphere at this popular recreation park.

Romance of The Klang Gates Kingdom

Romance of The Klang Gates Kingdom

It certainly wasn’t romantic morning mist. The filter rendered the afternoon smog into layered textures that resemble an ancient Chinese landscape painting. I shot this with a long lens from the balcony.

Is This The Way To Amar Singh's Pillow?

Is This The Way To Amar Singh's Pillow?

The Petronas Twin Towers are like a beacon on a misty ocean. Strangely but wonderfully, the filter rendered all colours in monochrome except the traffic lights. It seems some  Malaysians misheard Tony Christie’s “Is This The Way To Amarillo?” when it first aired.

See also: The Art of Art Filters

All pictures photographed with the Olympus Pen E-PL2 by & © TV Smith

Tip: You can view larger versions of the images here, gallery-style. When the page finishes loading, click on any picture. Navigate via the arrows on each side of the frame.

3 A.M. At Masjid India

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The Ramadan festive bazaar at Jalan Masjid India winds down at around 3 in the morning. Traders prepare for a brief nap in their makeshift bedrooms, road sweepers emerge from nowhere while others converge at nearby tea stalls. I ventured there with the new Olympus Pen E-P3 paired with my favourite street lens, the new m.Zuiko 12mm (24 eq) f2.0 prime…

Olympus Pen E-P3, ISO 800, f2, 1/60 sec

Olympus Pen E-P3, ISO 800, f2, 1/60 sec

Wayang Kanvas. Around 3:00 am, the tarps are drawn down and the silhouettes  presented a fascinating shadow play.

Olympus Pen E-P3, ISO 1600, f2, 1/50 sec

Olympus Pen E-P3, ISO 1600, f2, 1/50 sec

Uncle Bob (right) kept reminding me his chicken is skinless, grease-free and therefore healthy. Quite tasty actually.

Olympus Pen E-P3, ISO 200, f2, 1/80 sec

Olympus Pen E-P3, ISO 200, f2, 1/80 sec

Long Time No Tea. I was touched that the famous tea makers came out to hug me. I was a regular there during the ’11 LA’ heydays. The party godown was across the river.

Olympus Pen E-P3, ISO 500, f2, 1/60 sec

Olympus Pen E-P3, ISO 500, f2, 1/60 sec

The Manny. The f 2.0 lens is great for subject isolation. Not overly shallow but still sufficiently bright for handheld night photography.

Olympus Pen E-P3, ISO 500, f2, 1/60 sec

Olympus Pen E-P3, ISO 500, f2, 1/60 sec

Ali’s Sticks. To prevent himself from keeling over, the steam-stick seller rely on a can of Tongkat Ali-spiked energy tea.

Olympus Pen E-P3, ISO 1600, f2, 1/50 sec

Olympus Pen E-P3, ISO 1600, f2, 1/50 sec

Back Street Boy. Some pulled down the tarps to sleep, others dance around the rubbish pile. I like this guy’s enthusiasm, even at 3 am.

Olympus Pen E-P3, ISO 1600, f2, 1/40 sec

Olympus Pen E-P3, ISO 1600, f2, 1/40 sec

Smooth As Lace. A pillar ad on the front of a lace shop befits the tranquillity of the hour.

All pictures photographed with the Olympus Pen E-P3 by & © TV Smith

Tip: You can view larger versions of the images here, gallery-style. When the page finishes loading, click on any picture. Navigate via the arrows on each side of the frame.