housingprojects

kicking it back old school with

2009-12-09T16:11:00.003+08:00

sleep through the static

2009-11-22T16:54:00.005+08:00

But who needs to see what we've done?

Who needs please when we've got guns?

Who needs keys when we've got clubs?

Who needs peace when we've gone above.

But beyond where we should have gone?

Beyond where we should have gone.

We went beyond where we should have gone,

Beyond where we should have gone.

Lýðveldið Ísland lovin'

2009-11-18T00:05:00.013+08:00

Thanks to my bunch of postrock connoisseurs friends, I've been listening to some spectacularly awesome music. I wouldn't call it life changing, but neither would I say that it didn't have an impact on me at all. Another two names added to the postrock staple diet today, courtesy of Wankaay, honorary citizen (almost) of Iceland.

For a Minor Reflection; sounds like Explosions, but with some electronic elements thrown into it.

Ólafur Arnalds; a peaceful mixture of classical + minimalist music.

And last but not least, some Sigur Rós thrown in for good measure. Fucking beautiful stuff, really.

qotd

2009-11-15T19:53:00.005+08:00

Work for free or work for full price, but never work for cheap. - the malay dude in china

王若琳

2009-11-10T12:06:00.006+08:00

what a voice, what a voice.

goodnight & travel well

2009-11-10T04:13:00.008+08:00

pay my respects to grace and virtue,

send my condolences to good

give my regards to soul and romance,

they always did the best they could.

and so long to devotion,

you taught me everything i know,

wave goodbye, wish me well.

belle & sebastian

2009-11-02T10:56:00.006+08:00

Elope with me Ms Private and we'll sail around the world,

I will be your Ferdinand and you, my wayward girl.

How many night of talking in hotel rooms can you take?

How many nights of limping around on pagan holidays?

Oh, elope with me in private and we'll set something ablaze,

A trail for the Devil to erase.

where the light is

2009-10-30T11:27:00.004+08:00

Always been a fan of John Mayer (though not during the 'Your Body is a Wonderland' craze)... but I've never heard this live album before. Just got it yesterday.. and it's bloody awesome. Beats the studio albums a few times over.

Todd Hido

2009-10-27T20:29:00.004+08:00

Todd Hido, emotionally charged and soulful. I like...

virus comix

2009-10-08T21:16:00.002+08:00

+ Songs for the Special Days II

2009-10-06T21:18:00.000+08:00

Just remembered that I've a particular soft spot for anyone playing Pachelbel's Canon (from Jeon Ji Hyun's piano version in My Sassy Girl, to Funtwo's electric guitar rendition, and most recently, the famous Pantene thai commercial). And so, I shall put this song into BOTH the wedding & the funeral list.

+ Songs for the Special Days

2009-10-05T00:14:00.015+08:00

And so, we had a random conversation about the songs to play during two of the most significant events in one's life - the wedding and the funeral. Let's start with the lighter side of things first? The funeral.

Nah, let's just go with the wedding first. From the start, I've to make this clear... even though I mentioned the word 'wedding', its not to be confused with the corny marching anthem that is currently in your mind right now. Not that conventional dum dum dum dumb, dum dum dum dumb. I'm just lacking the effort to think of a better word to use. In this case now, the 'wedding' song can be the sweet proposal song; it can be the soundtrack to your eternal misery and the signal that your life is over song... whichever tickles your fancy. Without further rubbish rambling, here's a few that tickled mine.

1. Death Cab for A Cutie - I Will Follow You Into The Dark

"Love of mine, someday you'll die. But I'll be close behind, I'll follow you into the dark..." With the first line of the lyrics like that, you know its definitely going to be through thick and thin, poverty and sickness.

2. Guns N Roses - Sweet Child of Mine

I was tempted to choose 'November Rain', because the mtv had an actual wedding in it, but its just too bad that the lyrics are a little too sad. So my next choice is 'Sweet Child of Mine'. Imagine playing this like Slash in his power stance and belting out the chorus "ohh ohh, sweet child of mine! ohh ohh ohhh sweet love of mine!"

3. Pleasing & Sweet Acoustic Numbers

Like Jack Johnson's 'Do You Remember', John Legend's 'Stay With You', Elton John's 'Your Song'. But honestly.. not enough drive. Songs for such occasions require more... boomz.

4. Beyond - 喜欢你
There's just something about canto songs...

5. Queen - I was Born to Love You

As chosen by my friend, not too bad a song actually.

6. Meat Loaf - I'd Do Anything (But I Won't Do That)

Finally, here we go. A no nonsense love song complete with motorbike sfx from the start, guitar solos and mushy yet intriguing lyrics. And the mtv (directed by Michael Bay no less) is wicked. The only downside? Everyone will come to you and ask, "so what is 'that'?"

7. Bon Jovi - Thank You For Loving Me

If you don't wish to mess around and piss off your in-laws and relatives, maybe this song is the safest bet.

For the funeral song category, there are a few strong contenders as well. The common factor among all of the songs though, is that they are not awfully sad and weepy. I rather depart from this world bringing smiles and good memories than people wailing away. Sorry Clapton & Axl, I like 'Tears in Heaven' & 'Don't Cry' but they're just way too sad.

1. Beatles - Let it Be
Obvious choice really.

2. X Japan - Tears
"Dry your tears with love, dry your tears with love!"

3. Frank Sinatra - My Way
At the end of the road, I'll like to say that I've did it my way

4. Beyond - 光辉岁月 / 无悔这一生 / 海阔天空 /

The power-medley of 3 Beyond classics. Can never go wrong with Beyond.

5. Dream Theater - Spirit Carries On
A bit mellow, but this is the ultimate funeral song.

6. Bob Marley - Three Little Birds / Redemption Song / No Woman No Cry
Another three song medley, but this one is a lot lighter.

+ Ouch

2009-09-19T14:11:00.005+08:00

35,885 Journalism Jobs Lost in Last 12 Months

A new report confirms what everyone working in media could probably guess already: Journalism job losses are accelerating at a faster rate than job losses in the overall U.S. economy. Since the financial crisis started (September 15, 2008 to September 15, 2009), 35,885 jobs in the journalism industry have been cut in the U.S.

And this is just in the States...

+ Come on, Gunners!

2009-09-17T03:28:00.009+08:00

I'm falling sick and there's work tomorrow. I slept at 10pm just to wake up 5 hours later to watch Arsenal play Standard de Leige. First game of Champs League. Had to endure the shit quality and ever disconnecting streaming football because Singtel bought the rights and Starhub didn't even lower their rates for their football channel.

2nd minute, Arsenal conceded a corner. I got dropped out of the stream, came back on and its 1-0. I got dropped off again, penalty and its 2-0. What the fuck. And I'm still watching the match, hoping we get something out of it. Try as I might to convince myself that a supporter sticks to his team through thick and thin... but honestly, this is just heartbreaking stuff.

.... Come on, Gunners!

+ Cashback

2009-05-02T02:23:00.011+08:00

You know how it goes. You have insomnia, can't fall asleep and hence get yourself a night shift to fill the time. You give them your extra eight hours, and they give you money. Cashback.

We all had this grand idea before - if we sleep less, we can actually gain more time to do other stuff (be it work or play). Yes, just like the protagonist in 'Cashback'. But the show really fails to mention the consequences of not sleeping at night, screwing your biological clock and not getting the proper rest that a normal human being requires.

Today, I gained an extra 5 hours from the night, slept at 7am and I woke up at 2pm. Ate lunch, took a nap at 3pm and woke up later for dinner at 7pm. After dinner, I slept (again) till 10pm to get supper. It seems like for every hour I gained at night, I had to spend 2 hours resting in the day. It's definitely more Payback than Cashback.

+ The Secret

2009-04-13T21:49:00.005+08:00

Over breakfast, a friend casually mentioned about this book titled 'The Secret'. This wasn't exactly how the conversation went, but if I could have scripted it, it would have gone something like this.

"Do you know about the Secret?"
What secret?
"The Secret."
What exactly is this secret you're talking about?
"It's a secret."

Nonsensical, but I'll defend myself with the excuses of sleeping too little, having too much coffee and staring at my monitor for too many hours. Anyways, like I said, this 'Secret' is a self-help book that talks about these laws of attraction. After a little wikipedia, here's what I found.

'Supporters will hail this New Age self-help book on the law of attraction as a groundbreaking and life-changing work, finding validation in its thesis that one's positive thoughts are powerful magnets that attract wealth, health, happiness... and did we mention wealth? Detractors will be appalled by this as well as when the book argues that fleeting negative thoughts are powerful enough to create terminal illness, poverty and even widespread disasters.'

Sounds like a bunch of spirituality hogwash to me. And I thought it was about finding positivity and channeling that into real effort, real work - and of course with that, comes real success. Oh, wait a minute, that's how people succeed right?

+ Avedon

2009-04-05T00:55:00.010+08:00

If a day goes by without my doing something related to photography, it's as though I've neglected something essential to my existence, as though I had forgotten to wake up. - Richard Avedon

Trying to instill this thought into my mind right now. It helps that I've a project deadline for this workshop that I'm taking, and really need to shoot daily to meet it.

+ Hahahappy

2009-03-30T16:52:00.009+08:00

+ Commies

2009-03-29T17:23:00.004+08:00

Qingming's here and I went to 'sweep graves' of my ancestors in the morning. Not that there's any actual graves for us to sweep at all. In a land-deprived place like Singapore, we house the dead souls like how we house ourselves - in high rise, multi-story gray concrete buildings. I wonder if they've ludicrous 99-year rules. "Oops, sorry. Your soul's been bumming here for 99 years. You need to buy a new slot or get the hell out."

I noticed something funny, not for the first time, but it's just that it amuses me everytime I notice them. Bank notes, comes in denominations of 1000,000,000,000. I guess Heaven and Hell must have pretty inflated economies.

Then we brought the offerings to this huge furnace and waited in line for attendants to collect our offerings and dump them in. If you've been to the crematorium at Bishan, you know how it looks like. Very impersonal. They take and throw, take and throw. If that's the way it is, all those 'money and treasures' we've burnt for our ancestors.. they must have gone to some sort of communal fund for there's no way in hell (or heaven) that they would be able to sort it out. They... must be Commies.

+ How We Fare?

2009-03-28T23:58:00.001+08:00

I'm sure a lot of us are feeling like little school children waiting for their exam grades. But in this instance, we're looking forward earnestly to hear about the good we've done for the Earth Hour movement. Some hard facts that will give us a pat in the back and say, 'Good work lads, we've done well!' Some hard facts to let the harder facts slide further into the recesses of our mind.

- In the past three decades, one-third of our planet's resources have been consumed.
- 75% of the global fisheries now are fished at or beyond capacity.
- 80% of the planet's original forests are gone.
- In the Amazon alone, we're losing 2000 trees a minute. That is 7 football fields a minute.
- You can find out more depressing information here.

Right guys, we're all going to die ;)

+ random notes

2009-03-26T18:32:00.005+08:00

I sat at mr tea just now and watched people fling frisbees around the SMU garden. I can never get the point of frisbee - be it super frisbee, ultra-hardcore frisbee, ultimate frisbee or whatever other names they use to glorify this 'sport'. Frisbee, only good for dogs bored from scratching their own balls.

Took a train home and eavesdropped on a conversation beside me. These two students were talking about their 'long term plans' and the subjects they enjoy.. chemistry, history etc. And I thought to myself that..

- subject grading and its whole system is terribly flawed. It focuses more on information retention and memory skills than understanding, problem solving and real knowledge. If I'm a teacher, I'll never praise my students to be smart or call them stupid. I'll simply say, "Wow, you can memorise quite a lot of shit."

- I would have paid more attention during Physics classes if I had watched Mythbusters and picked up photography back in secondary school.

- I should have never dropped AEP.
- Chemistry will still be boring for me now.
- And Maths would be a lot worse.

+ And there was...

2009-03-19T17:28:00.012+08:00

Left the book I was browsing on the bed, went to get a drink and came back to find this. The light streaming in was so delicate and beautiful, it actually compelled me to take a few photographs.

+ space macaques

2009-03-18T01:23:00.009+08:00

Lately, it feels as though I've lost that little ability I had for writing and the need to express myself that comes along with it. This niggling feeling, its like an invisible giant leech and it is slowly sapping away my energy. Honestly, I think I'm feeling lost. Lost like the rhesus macaques we sent into space.

Poor chap. I wonder who's worse off ? Someone with a rough idea of where he's heading, but not a clue on how to get there. Or one who has his final destination and all the 'getting there' figured out for him. I suppose both are equally bad, but I should at least be thankful that I won't be pissing in my pants this whole while.

+ they exist

2009-02-22T00:00:00.003+08:00

+ all you need is

2009-02-15T23:16:00.016+08:00

According to the heavenly chinese divination and fortune telling mambo jambo, I, along with millions of other Ox-year-borned people are suppose to suffer from pretty shitty luck for this entire year. I'm a firm non-believer of horoscopes, fortune telling and their likes, but honestly, all that negativity is just too good to not indulge in. And true enough, my luck had been pretty shitty since the nine replaced the eight. I guess to put it shortly, things are not working out the way I'll like them to.

But I had a strange run of good luck this week. An ex colleague passed on a few jobs to me, I worked a bit and met two photographers that gave me a little bit of encouragement. One told me to just go ahead, dive into the deep end, go overseas and shoot like mad, while the other taught me a simple lesson. She asked what I wanted to do, I told her my story and the thing is, I guess I made my goals sounded a lot more difficult to get to than it already is. So she said: "If things come so easily, no one will cherish them.

I type this out now and it may sound corny, but at that moment and premise, it sounded like a verse of lyrics lifted off from any of the many inspiring Beyond classics. At the end of it all, I can't help but to feel grateful for the little tiny bits of kindness shown to me by this friend and the two photographers that I hardly know.

Things aren't so bad, really. I'm pretty sure everyone of us will get through in due course, economic recession, ridiculous ERP taxes or what not. Like they always say, All You Need Is Love.

the goons so far

2009-01-20T16:46:00.004+08:00

My state of joblessness had enabled me to watch most of the gooners games on the weekend night, and then re-watch replays of those games on random weekday afternoons. As I watched the Hull City replays this afternoon, I was mentally giving individual appraisals to the entire team for the season so far.

Alumnia
Decent but never world class. He tends to get mixed up with defenders, lacks communication, command and handles crosses rather poorly. Alumnia has lovely silvery hair, but he ain't no David Seaman.

Fabianski
Excellent reflexes but still young, lacks experience and doesn't command his penalty box well. But this boy is definitely for the future.

Toure
Kolo had always been one of my favorite players in the squad. Unfortunately, he's having a poor season so far, coming on and off the bench. He could be miles better than what he is now.

Gallas
Prone to silly mistakes but have a knack for scoring in set pieces as well. Sucked when he was given captaincy, but played a lot better when stripped off it. This guy is a crying Jekyll and a whining Hyde.

Sagna
Solid like a rock. Runs down the flank well, strong on challenges and surprisingly decent in the air. I like everything about Sagna, except for his ridiculous hair.

Clichy
I like him, but he's always playing the last striker onside. Maybe its the lack of communication within the line, or just a plain lack of concentration. Whatever it is, watching him overlap and raid down the flanks is one of my favorite Arsenal moments.

Djourou
Young and inexperienced, just like half of the squad. In another words, prone to screw ups. Decent otherwise.

Song
I'll love to see a proper DM sitting in front of our line protecting our boys like how Viera used to do it, and Song is the closest player we have to that. I wish to see him start more often.

Denilson
I wouldn't believe for a second that he is Brazilian. Wait, actually I do. He's always giving the damn ball away.

Fabregas
Injured. And that stinks, just like the entire season so far.

Eboue
Falls down too easily, gives the ball away too much. Potential crybaby. But with the absence of Walcott and Rosicky, I do acknowledge the fact that he does provide some sort of width and (attacking) threat to the right flank. Problem is, he always gets pass the defender and then crosses the ball to the audience in the grandstand.

Diaby
Bambi on Ice. A bad copy of a Patrick Viera. A nightmare to my dreams. I wouldn't go any further.

Nasri
Pretty fast feet and good close dribbling skills. Thank god we bought him.

Van Persie
He's like the James Dean of the team. Rebellious, young and brash, but it seems like he's toning down. Always a potential match winner and has the ability to score from the weirdest of angles or strangest of turns. His performance against Hull was top notch and worthy of a Player of the Season for Arsenal for me.

Adebayor
Big guy, holds the ball well, good in the air and pretty quick too. I think he gets too much flak for not being able to live up to the high standards of his predecessor, Henry. But honestly, who can match up to him? Without Adebayor in the squad, our attack is blunt like hell.

Bendnter
Decent but I'm not convinced.

Walcott
I don' care if he's an one trick pony. He gets the job done down the flanks... Now if only he can improve on his crossing and finishing skills.

Eduardo
Give this poor guy a break.

Rosicky
Who's he?

4.35am

2009-01-16T04:21:00.005+08:00

These months of hiatus hasn't been all rosey. Well, it may sound that way and it certainly does seem like it, but honestly it isn't. When people ask me what am I up to, I can't exactly find the right words. Let's say that I'm not working, but neither am I doing nothing. Feels like I'm threading on a thin line in between, stuck in a limbo, crossing between zones of productivity and idleness. If it was in Facebook, my relationship with life, work and reality would fall under 'It's Complicated'.

I tell myself that I'm working towards a certain goal, that of a scholarship and overseas studies. But its such a bloody long shot, even the small optimistic part of me can't barely see it. Now, even the all dancing, all singing folks of MDA can't tell me exactly if documentary photography can be qualified as one of the media areas that they support. "It falls into the cracks, its up to the panelist. Why don't you send it and we'll see how?" Sounds like painful rejection masked delightfully under wrappings of uncertainty. But I'll still give that long shot my best shot. I don't want to settle on 'what ifs' anymore.

I've not regretted much about anything for a long time, but now I have. So kids listen up. If you've the resources and opportunities to do some things now, do it. Like the wise chinese man always said, "Mai Tu Liao". Now, I'm breaking my back trying to get things done simply because I didn't do it back then. Sure is a pricy lesson learnt.

Its 4.35am now and I feel like having a mega upsize sausage mcmuffin breakfast.

We Salute You

2009-01-13T14:13:00.017+08:00

Thanks to a fat bar of soap and his article I've read recently, I'm once again stoked and riled up over a particular slice of music history - when the tunes were much heavier and the band had longer hair then a whole bunch of high school cheerleaders. It was a time when grown men did not sing song about being dumped, hurt or sad, a part of history when bands like the Jonas brothers or the Click Five would get kicked in their nuts for trying to act like something they're obviously not.

Sorry to say this. As much as I appreciate Coldplay, Death Cab and the entire post rock/shoegazing wave, back then, I quote Mr Soapfat - "rock was ROCK and not pussy bands". Rock will never die out. It lives on forever, kicking ass and taking names.

If I still had my long mat rock hair, these would be the 4 songs I'll listen to.

Guns N Roses; November Rain
Slash. Guitar solos in desert. Helicopter shots. Classic.
This is embarrasing, but I air guitar to Slash's solos here.

Iron Maiden; Fear of the Dark
Rock in Rio. Fans singing along. Bruce Davidson.
This gig hits a tie with Muse @ Wembley for 'Concert I Most Wish I Had Attended'

ACDC; For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)
Title says it all.

Metallica; Master of Puppets (S&M Concert Live)
'Call of Ktulu' + 'Master of Puppets' = Extremely wicked

you know it

2009-01-09T15:20:00.004+08:00

You know you're bored when you think about stuff like this. And you can be sure you're nearing the brink of that boredom when you actually bother to write it down. So here we go...

I've a pet terrapin that bites cardboard boxes and follows people around when they clap their hands.
And it can kick most hamsters' asses. Maybe even small chihuahuas.
The Killers is pretty danceable, not in the normal club-dancing way of course.
AC/DC 's new album is quite decent. Sounds like the good ol times.
I get heartbroken every weekend supporting the Gooners.
I prefer Miyazaki to Burton.
Kurt Cobain was murdered by Love and Tupac is still alive.
I'm extremely random at random times.

- 26/12/08

I like to eat prawn noodles and drink teh-o at the circuit road market. Feels like Malaysia or Singapore in the 80s. Not that I'm making comparisons with the Malaysia-now and the Singapore-then.
Its funny to see people shout warnings cheerfully when they spot carpark attendants coming. Especially at circuit road market. Its like the kampong community spirit truimphing over the authorities. And that is always beautiful to watch.
I'll like Arshavin to join Arsenal (preferbly for a low transfer fee). Such similarities, both are Ars-es.
It took me almost a year to buy a plank of wood. The guy took 10mins to cut it for me.
It took me almost 3 years to replace a broken guitar string. The guy took 2mins to change it for me.
I don't understand why Israel doesn't get it hard for defying the UN. In fact, I don't understand the reasons for most of the modern conflicts. They always sound like little kids fighting in a sandbox.
Defoe is a mercenary.

- 9/01/09

恭喜你健康

2009-01-05T23:16:00.008+08:00

every race has their own stereotypical character traits, be it true or false.

indians are thought to be smelly, have a natural tolerance for alcohol and are ferocious wife beaters.
malays are thought to be lepak and always relaxing in one corner, waiting for their subsidies.
chinese? well the chinese are just a greedy greedy bunch of people.

every chinese new year, we greet each other 恭喜发财 (congratulations, hope you huat ah). the whole idea of chinese new year seems to revolve ridiculously around money. you ask the young punks what they like most, they'll say the hongbaos. woe to the relatives who give only $2, because they will forever be labeled as cheapskate and stingy.

well, i shall not participate in such a celebration of materialism and greed.
you say 恭喜发财, i say 恭喜你健康!

Unconcerned but not Indifferent

2009-01-05T00:32:00.005+08:00

Interesting essay on the changing face and roles of photojournalism.

Unconcerned but not Indifferent by Adam Broomberg
"Roland Barthes summed up the analgesic effect of looking at images of horror when he wrote “someone has shuddered for us; reflected for us, judged for us; the photographer has left us nothing - except a simple right of intellectual acquiescence”. Put another way, we look at events in photographs and feel relieved that they’re not happening anywhere near us."

babel

2008-12-28T15:38:00.004+08:00

The original 'Tower of Babel'.

Our 'Tower of Babel'.

magnum +

2008-12-19T02:48:00.005+08:00

i bought a new book, nice.

oh and also,
the new metallica album, not bad.
being unemployed during the holiday season, its downright sad.

whipped

2008-12-12T20:47:00.003+08:00

i can't believe i actually stayed up and watched 90 full minutes of arsenal getting whipped around by porto. what a steaming pile of bullshit...

annie & cross processes

2008-11-19T17:51:00.002+08:00

seems to me that everything looks better cross processed. the mundane looks ... less mundane and more grungy, edgy and flattering. it's like a quick-fix for any pictures that are neither here nor there.

the good stuff

2008-11-10T22:40:00.007+08:00

chanced upon some interesting images.

Elliot Erwitt

Rodney Smith

Unknown

Sally Mann; Candy Cigarette

back (in business)

2008-11-01T20:59:00.006+08:00

it certainly feels good to be back in business. it seems like there are so much that can be done, so much that needs doing and so little time for all of it. it's quite a long shot, but i need to give it a go.

on the trip, i've learnt that i do not enjoy taking photographs. i find that the photographs often turn out to be less meaningful than memories, and in the process of actively trying to snap a visual memory, i tend to lose more of the real ones. and to take landscapes, you need the right time of the day, the right light, the right scene (normally without tourists)... it is just too much of a hassle. and if somehow you got yourself, say a lovely picture of taj mahal, so what? its just a beautiful picture... might as well buy a postcard in the first place.

here's an funny excerpt from susan sontag. i must say it's quite a lovely coincidence; i've been wanting to get this book and i found it on my last day in india - on a shelf of a second hand bookstore. here's what she wrote.

"A way of certifying experience, taking photographs is also a way of refusing it - by limiting experience to a search for the photogenic, by converting experience into an image, a souvenir. Travel becomes a strategy for accumulating photographs. The very activity of taking pictures is soothing, and assuages general feelings of disorientation that are likely to be exacerbated by travel. Most tourists feel compelled to put the camera between themselves and whatever is remarkable that they encounter. Unsure of other responses, they take a picture. This gives shape to experience: stop, take a photography, and move on. The method especially appeals to people handicapped by a ruthless work ethnic - Germans, Japanese and Americans. Using a camera appeases the anxiety which the work-driven feel about not working when they are on vacation and supposed to be having fun."

bloody funny and i can't stop laughing when i read this. maybe it's just the way we travel that makes no sense to engage in meaningful photography; we rarely have time to develop a proper understanding that is necessary for all good pictures. next time, i think i'll cover less ground. i'll choose somewhere that has something that interests me a great deal, go and take pictures.

team hoyt

2008-07-28T00:21:00.008+08:00

sometimes in life, you just happen to get into a rare occurrence; the type that holds your attention for as long as it takes to unfold itself, it leaves you speechless and humbled at the end of it all.

i just watched a video of team hoyt, and it was beautiful beyond words. it was the sort of beauty that i cannot possibly comprehend. and it has left me humbled and embarrassed. for a moment, i thought about Rick and how he feels during the races. and i can't help but to wonder - what if all this is a stunt by Dick Hoyt? a scam, a gimmick, a money driven tug at our hearts. after all, we've been seeing a lot of these in recent times.

i won't know the truth behind it all, but i choose to believe in such examples of indescribable human beauty.

the ninth floor

2008-07-16T16:23:00.012+08:00

Jessica Dimmock;The Ninth Floor

In 2004, anywhere from 20 to 30 young addicts lived on the ninth floor of an elegant narrow building overlooking Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. The squatters had turned the sprawling apartment into a dark, desperate and chaotic place. People hustled, scored, shot and smoked wherever they could. Friends conned each other for their next hit. They slept on piles of clothes on the floor. The power was shut off; the bathroom unusable; the kitchen filled with garbage. Anything of value was sold off...
(excerpt from Mediastorm.com)

I am not too familiar with the current trends of documentary photography (I think I got lost somewhere in the magnum era) Perhaps that's why the 'Ninth Floor' comes to me as jarring and unorthodox. The moody photographs are often dull and grainy, out of focus or blurred by motion; they defied all the capabilities of what technology brings to photography nowadays.

Some might dislike the 'Ninth Floor' series, call it technically incompetent, manipulative and all sorts of other names. But I like it. In fact, I like the entire series quite a bit. I find the approach work extremely well for such an intense story, and the use of such a raw edginess is fully justified.

I wonder if one would consider Dimmock's method to be manipulative and overly romanticised, like pictoralism? Where does one draw the line between a representation of truth and manipulation?

wasted potential

2008-07-09T00:26:00.004+08:00

i was talking to a friend, and our strange conversation ended up somewhere along the lines of wasted potential. she asked if i felt i was wasting a bit of mine, in giving up an entire realm of photography for another.

and i thought. "nothing could count more as a waste in life's potential, than the failure to try to live a life that you chose for yourself."

06/07

2008-07-06T23:04:00.001+08:00

20/06

2008-06-20T02:55:00.013+08:00

Some older photographs that I've only manage to pick out now.

The crew from pogo mad tv.

10/06

2008-06-11T23:33:00.006+08:00

08/06

2008-06-08T12:04:00.008+08:00

"I am an idealist. I often feel that I would like to be an artist in an ivory tower. Yet it is imperative that I speak to people, so I must desert the ivory tower. To do this I am a journalist - a photojournalist. But I am always torn between the attitude of the journalist, who is a recorder of the facts, and the artist who is often necessarily at odds with the facts. My principle concern is for honesty with myself." - W. Eugene Smith

Well said indeed, for this rings through for so many others, including me. Personally, I believe that there should be a delicate balance of respect for both subject matter, and visual aesthetics. Both go together hand in hand, never one before the other, and only then, a remarkable photograph comes to birth.

03/06

2008-06-03T23:04:00.001+08:00

02/06

2008-06-02T23:01:00.004+08:00

01/06

2008-06-01T23:49:00.006+08:00

31/05

2008-05-31T22:43:00.003+08:00

sharpness overrated

2008-05-29T00:51:00.009+08:00

Here's a dirty little jab to what I do on a daily basis =)

What use having a great depth of field,
if there is not an adequate depth of feeling?
- W.Eugene Smith

random notes

2008-05-25T01:50:00.004+08:00

Excerpt from 'On Being A Photographer' by David Hurn & Bill Jay

Bill Jay: When we were discussing some definitions, you remarked that photography's core characteristic was to show what something looked like. I think this is an important point because many photographers seem fascinated with the medium yet have no idea what to photograph.

David Hurn: That's true. The fundamental issue is one of emphasis; you are not a photographer because you are interested in photography.

Many people are interested in photography in some nebulous way; they might be interested in the seemingly glamorous lives of top fashion or war photographers; or in the acquisition and admiration of beautiful, functional machines, the cameras, or in the arcane ritual of darkroom processes or in the persona which they could adopt if only they took pictures like... whoever. But these interests, no matter how personally enjoyable they might be, never lead to the person becoming a photographer. The reason is that photography is only a tool, a vehicle, for expressing or transmitting a passion in something else. It is not the end result. An analogy would be to buy a car for its status appeal, for the idea that it will improve your sex life, for the smell of the new upholstery, for the fascination of its beautiful engineering, and so on. But it is useless, unless it actually takes you somewhere.

recce

2008-05-24T22:14:00.005+08:00

Went scouting for locations on a blazing Saturday.

18/05

2008-05-18T19:34:00.011+08:00

concerned photography

2008-05-16T00:05:00.016+08:00

"For me, photography has become a way of attempting to make sense of the very strange world that I see around me. I don't ever expect to achieve that understanding, but the fact that I am trying comforts me"
- Mikhael Subotzky

Besides, photographing for others' sakes, I enjoy the fact that photography brings an understanding to issues around me, and sometimes, just sometimes, allow me to accept certain things better. For this and that, I think I've found what I've been looking for.

It does sound like huge words with high moral standings, but it isn't. I believe we are just curious people concerned with things happening around us, and with photography, we wish to understand, inform and hopefully bring a change to our present world.

sachin & bulu

2008-05-14T00:13:00.009+08:00

Sachin holds on to the sungun & reflector while Bulu rolls the camera.

the meaning of

2008-05-11T20:57:00.010+08:00

"The world today has been conditioned, overwhelmingly, to visualize. The picture has almost replaced the word as a means of communication. Tabloids, educational and documentary films, popular movies, magazines, and television surround us. It almost seems that the existence of the world is threatened. The picture is one of the principal mediums of interpretation, and its importance is thus growing ever vaster.

Today the challenge to photographers is great, because we are living in a momentous period. History is pushing us to the brink of a realistic age as never before. I believe there is no more creative medium than photography to recreate the living world of our time.

Photography gladly accepts the challenge because it is at home and in its element: namely, realism - real life - the now. In fact, the photographic medium is standing at its own crossroads of history, possibly at the end of its first major cycle. A decision as to which direction it shall take is necessary, and a new chapter in photographer is being made - as indeed many chapters are now taking the place of many older ones." - Berenice Abbott, 1951.

The momentous period is all but over, and the photographic medium has already taken a new direction, that of big-dollar advertisements and marketing. Nevertheless, I'm not completely convinced, and I find a need to question my own purpose for photography and the meaning it generates.

whimsically amusing

2008-05-11T02:01:00.009+08:00

I like the sweaty shirt and the way she peeks into the camera over the his shoulder.
And I notice I shoot in dutch angles way too often, its starting to get boring.

depth charge

2008-05-06T00:35:00.015+08:00

I was browsing through old issues of Communication Arts when I came across this wonderful article by Carol McCusker. Sadly, I can no longer find an online version of the entire length of writing, but I've provided excerpts below.

Carol McCusker - Depth Charge

"Like other art forms, photography can help us make sense of the world. I recently read a passage by author Rebecca Solnit that made me think of the power of photography. Addressing English majors at their graduation ceremony, Solnit asserted that studying English Literature (and here I substitute with photography) can "enable you to analyze, to see patterns, to acquire a personal philosophy rather than a jumble of unexamined hand-me-down notions, that enable you not to make a living but maybe to live. This least utilitarian of educations prepares you to make sense of the world and maybe make meaning... to become a producer of meanings rather than a consumer of them in an age when meaning as advertising and marketing is daily forced down our throats."'

"Instead of perpetuating today's climate where the main photo trends are choked with irony or superficial references to pop culture, photography should better the world, not hinder it. I want to affirm what is inherently valuable in life. I am sticking my neck out here asking that photography be "life affirming," opening myself to accusation of being old-fashioned or close minded. But for me, photography (as with all art making) has a moral dimension. It is not a trivial act, and comes with responsibility. It is nothing less than a privilege to make art, and responsibility goes with privilege."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
One can easily notice that the author questions the shifting roles of photography with a heavy hand. I too, can't help but to occasionally wonder about the direction of photography's evolution in the future. I will not be judgmental and question the other forms of photographic practices, but personally, I believe I have already found my own brand of "life-affirming" photography.

random passerbys

2008-05-04T23:46:00.009+08:00

lost & found II

2008-05-03T21:11:00.016+08:00

Barangay Payatas is one of the largest open dumpsites in Philippines. Everyday, 3000 tonnes of garbage collected from all parts of Metro Manila arrive by truck and are permanently deposited here. A majority of the community in Payatas depend on this daily shipment of garbage for survival. With their faces covered in t-shirts, guerrilla style, they rummage through the daily garbage to find scraps of recyclable metal, plastics and occasionally, food.

3 years ago, I went to Payatas to work on a documentary for my final thesis paper. I left 3 weeks later, with experiences that I'll never forget for the rest of my life. Below are some of the offtakes, shot in 35mm film.

Daisuke, an aspiring photojournalist from Japan revisits Payatas. He came here years ago on
a community service program, but now he wishes to bring a greater change for Payatas.

My project wouldn't be possible without the help of Paaralang Pantao, a NGO-funded
school in Payatas. Here are some of the kids who study in the school.

lost & found

2008-05-03T01:49:00.007+08:00

thanks to a friend, i managed to retrieve a couple of old pictures that i had lost in the recent
damaged hard disk saga. these were taken from a dance event that i 'covered'.

savepolaroid.com

2008-05-02T00:48:00.027+08:00

Another fine example of something beautiful that has to succumb
to our blinding charge towards the blazing future. Nice work, guys.

Goodbye Polaroid, and thank you for all the quirky nostalgia.
I do hope film will never have to go... at least not before i die.

mean kitty

2008-05-01T00:00:00.002+08:00

21/04

2008-04-21T21:02:00.006+08:00

links to share

2008-04-19T23:14:00.013+08:00

BBC Culture Show w/ Christopher Doyle
- What happens in western cinema is, "Look at this. You're so stupid, you don't know
what we are trying to tell you. Let me tell you something." And we say "Hey, discover this."

Michael Kenna
An interesting insight to how Kenna works

production stills: wrapped pt II

2008-04-17T01:48:00.008+08:00

Photographs for Kelvin, our resident tech-geek.

production stills 10/14

2008-04-09T22:04:00.015+08:00

production stills 07/14

2008-04-07T22:55:00.007+08:00

and something from the streets on sunday.

production stills 06/14

2008-04-05T23:04:00.009+08:00

production stills 05/14

2008-04-05T01:37:00.003+08:00

production stills 03/14

2008-04-04T01:14:00.014+08:00

production stills 01/14

2008-03-31T22:56:00.016+08:00

lottery numbers

2008-03-28T23:59:00.014+08:00

A group of men looks hopefully at the week's set of winning lottery numbers.

grandma

2008-03-26T23:40:00.016+08:00

Photos

2008-03-01T23:54:00.001+08:00

Links

2008-03-01T13:57:00.006+08:00

blogs + agencies
2point8
aphotoeditor
avisualsociety
design observer
fabrica forma fotografia
foto8
flakphoto
itsnicethat
magnum photos
mediastorm
nutopiaforum
paranaiv
picturestoryblog
proof:media for social justice
socialdocumentary
thedailynice
vii photo

photographers
ami vitale
donald weber
emmanuel smague
espen rasmussen
jehad nga
junku newcleus
kenji toma
matt eich
melvin sokolsky
michael christopher brown
michael kenna
michael subotzky
steve mccurry

Quotes

2008-03-01T00:00:00.056+08:00

"To take photographs means to recognize - simultaneously and within a fraction of a second - both the fact itself and the rigorous organization of visually perceived forms that give it meaning. It is putting one's head, one's eye and one's heart on the same axis." - Henri Cartier-Bresson

"Chim picked up his camera the way a doctor takes his stethoscope out of his bag, applying his diagnosis to the condition of the heart." - Henri Cartier-Bresson on David 'Chim' Seymour

"In a world that is buckling under the weight of profit-making, that is overrun by the destructive sirens of techno-science and the power-hunger of globalization - that new brand of slavery - beyond all that, Friendship exists, Freedom exists, Love exists.” - Henri Cartier-Bresson

"For me, photography has become a way of attempting to make sense of the very strange world that I see around me. I don't ever expect to achieve that understanding, but the fact that I am trying comforts me" - Mikhael Subotzky

"Photo is a small voice, at best, but sometimes - just sometimes - one photograph or a group of them can lure our senses into awareness. Much depends upon the viewer; in some, photographs can summon enough emotion to be a catalyst to thought." - W. Eugene Smith

about;

2008-03-01T00:00:00.049+08:00