I have been photographing the Nine Emperor Gods Festival for a long time and this year is particularly challenging. With this new blog, I am displaying pictures captured in wide-screen (16:9) ratio. The newer format requires a liitle more effort when composing but when framed properly; the images are unique and tell the story differently.
Deep Devotion
Some subjects lend itself to the wide format. The extra space allows the inclusion of the peripheral activities while keeping the main subject tight.
Dragons Into The Sunset
Although traditionally it has always rained during the festival, the sun was very intense today. Dialing down the exposure created the silhouette effect of the dancing dragon.
A Warm Feeling
The dusk sky was a spectacular orange but I needed to get the colours into the faces as well. The solution was to swivel the external flash head and bounced it off a red cloth hanging behind me.
No Place Is Sacred Anymore
Earlier in the day, a scuffle broke out between rival lion dance troupes. Profanities and fists flew freely.
Babes Chimp, Too
Chimping is the act of lowering the camera from the eye and checking the LCD screen after every shot. Nothing wrong with this digital age habit. I come from the film days where I sometimes don’t see the results for days until the rolls are processed. Since old habits die hard, I seldom check and just fire away.
Backstage
Backstage at the opera, it was a bitter-sweet moment. The same opera has performed since I was a kid and many of the performers have retired or are retiring soon. The wide viewpoint was tricky behind the scenes but turned out to be visually effective and powerful.
See also: Nine Emeperor Gods Festival – Part 1
More Of My Pics & A Map: Mycen Map Of Nine Emperor Gods Temple in Ampang
