Category Archives: Photography

Earth Hour 2011 Malaysia

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At 8:30 pm on Saturday 26th March 2011, lights were switched off around the globe for an hour. Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney when individuals and businesses turned off their lights to take a stand against climate change.

Since then, it has become a global movement with more than 50 million people from 35 countries taking part. Kuala Lumpur too stood in darkness just now, as a symbol of hope for a cause that grows more urgent by the hour…

7:30 pm: Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f3.5, 1/10 sec, handheld

7:30 pm: Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f3.5, 1/10 sec, handheld

A Quick Look at the city at dusk. On to its 5th year, there should be better awareness on the part of our building owners. Will the skyscrapers in the Golden Triangle of KL darken later?

8:29 pm: Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f8, 2.5 sec

8:29 pm: Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f8, 4 sec

A Minute To Go and it was all serious business for a 600mm lens. Camera was locked down on a solid Manfrotto tripod. IS (image stabilization) was disabled and manual exposure settings selected. Precise focus was achieved via the VF-2 finder and the camera’s 7x magnification focus assist. Shutter was triggered via the RM-UC1 remote release.

8:31 pm: Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f8, 2.5 sec

8:31 pm: Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f8, 8 sec

Earth Hour Proper (for Malaysia) began and it was time to put on the ‘night vision goggles’ (filter). Surprisingly, there appeared to be more buildings (people) in Kuala Lumpur supporting Earth Hour than previous years.

9:15 pm: Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f4, 1.3 sec

9:15 pm: Olympus E-PL2, ISO 400, f4, 1.3 sec

Art Filter Hour. It was fun spinning the various Olympus art filters under the darkened  Petronas Twin Towers. As always, Dramatic Tone filter seems to work best.

9:31 pm: Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f8, 4 sec

9:31 pm: Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f11, 4 sec

Magic Minute. This is a rarely seen sight as the lights are usually turned on when there is still light in the sky. The buildings glowed briefly in magical green when the lights were warming up.

9:33 pm: Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f4, 1/3 sec

9:33 pm: Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f4, 1/3 sec

Back to its usual glory. It’s time to go beyond the hour. Learn how you can take action to make our world a better place. Start here.

See also: Layang Layang | Raptor Watch | The Art Of Art Filters

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.

3rd Putrajaya International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta 2011

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Olympus E-PL2, ISO 640, f7.1, 1/4000 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 640, f7.1, 1/4000 sec

Rain and Haze dominated the sky over Putrajaya during the weekend. In spite of that, thousands of city folks flocked to Precinct 2, hoping to catch a rare glimpse of the giants in the air…

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 250, f4.8, 1/160 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 250, f4.8, 1/160 sec

Double Whammy. As though gloomy skies weren’t enough, a lift-off late into the evening (due to rain) compounded the difficult conditions for balloonists and photographers.

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f4.8, 1/160 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f4.8, 1/160 sec

Nervous Clown. An airborne balloon keeping a close eye on a paramotor flying around it.

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f9, 1/250 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f9, 1/250 sec

Vietnamese Cat. Participating balloonists from 24 countries, including Malaysia, thrilled the crowd on the ground.

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 3200, f8, 1/500 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 3200, f8, 1/500 sec

Into The Clouds. There is beauty in adversity, photographically…

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 2500, f6.7, 1/200 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 2500, f6.7, 1/200 sec

Maybe I Should Have. It was amazing to see so many cameras of all shapes and sizes pointed towards the sky. I am sure events like these help camera sales greatly.

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f5, 1/125 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f5, 1/125 sec

Every Cloud Has A Golden Lining. For those who didn’t flee the rain, the heavens rewarded them with a beautiful sunset over the Putrajaya Lake.

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 400, f4, 1/5 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 400, f4, 1/5 sec

Night Wait. The Night Glow event finally got underway at about 9 pm. When will organisers realise that such events should be conducted during the ‘magic hour’ when the sky is still bluish instead of pitch black? The Olympus IBIS (In-Body Image Stabilization) means no tripod was required. It was hand-holdable even with a very low shutter speed.

See also:
Driving An Ultra-Wide | Layang Layang | Raptor Watch | The Art Of Art Filters

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.

Raptor Watch 2011

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Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f10, 1/400 sec

Acara Pemerhatian Burung Helang 2011 - Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f10, 1/400 sec

Every year, around this time, thousands of migratory eagles, hawks and buzzards make a stopover at Tanjung Tuan in Port Dickson. The magnificent raptors are on a long and hazardous journey home from Pulau Rupat in Indonesia. With the end of winter, the birds are returning to their native habitat in Siberia, China, Mongolia, Korea, Japan, India and Indochina.

The Malaysian Nature Society (MNS) has been organising the Raptor Watch weekend to celebrate this spectacular phenomenon, to promote eco-tourism and to educate the public on the importance of conservation.

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f9, 1/640 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f9, 1/640 sec

Greatest Show Above Earth. It was already 5 pm on Saturday and I was about to leave for KL. I was at the PNB Ilham Resort since 11 am and didn’t spot a single raptor. Then, all of a sudden, hundreds of them appeared magically from across the the Straits of Malacca and put up this awesome aerial show.

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f10, 1/400 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f10, 1/400 sec

High Flyers. The birds utilise the hot air currents to give it lift and to glide; thereby saving energy for the long journey ahead. It’s an honour to greet these soaring visitors and every Malaysian should endevour to see it at least once in their lifetime. With the birds cruising so high up, a pair of binoculars may be useful. With the Olympus M.Zuiko 75-300mm lens, the magnification is approximately 15x.

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f11, 1/640 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f11, 1/640 sec

Cape Ricardo, Blue Lagoon and Tanjung Tuan are some of the names for this stretch of picturesque beach in PD. The migratory birds chose the spot for practical reasons. It is the shortest point between here and Indonesia and there is a forest (reserve) where they can rest for the night and feed.

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f7.1, 1/320 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f7.1, 1/320 sec

Eager Learner. There are a lot of things to see and learn on the ground. The pictures are of the Oriental Honey Buzzards. Other raptors spotted include the Greater Spotted Eagle, Japanese Sparrowhawk, Black Baza, Chinese Goshawk and Eurasian Kestrel (among some of the 25 species of visiting raptors).

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f6.3, 1/160 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f6.3, 1/160 sec

Come Together. Buy a T-shirt from the MNS or sign-up as a member to help their education and conservation efforts.

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f9, 1/400 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f9, 1/400 sec

No Dampener. Take guided mangrove walks under the lighthouse or seashore walks. The camera’s Dramatic Tone Art Filter was enabled for this view of the shore at low tide with rain clouds hovering above.

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f11, 1/3200 sec

Olympus E-PL2, ISO 200, f11, 1/3200 sec

Sunset over Straits of Malacca. For the adventurous, the Port Dickson-Melaka coastal road offers much to explore such as rustic kampung houses and lonely beaches around the Kuala Linggi and Pasir Panjang areas.

See also:
Angsty Ants | Layang Layang | The Bird Park | Stalking Storks | The Art Of Art Filters

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.