sai bat
in luang prabang, every morning without fail, the monks and novices walk the street to collect alms from the faithful. At daybreak , people lay down mats along the route where the monks pass by with their basket of warm sticky rice. With each monk or novice that will pass by, a small handful of rice is placed in the monk's bowl. At times we find children begging food from the monks.
Welcome the year of the Fire Dog 
I would like to send my friends in Hong Kong my wishes for prosperity and happiness during the year of the Fire Dog. The Lunar New Year starts this sunday. Our office is closed on Monday. However tomorrow, I will be leaving for Luang Prabang in the northern part of Laos. Hopefully, the air will be fresh and clear and I am looking forward to 10 days of bliss because all I will be doing is taking pictures. I am an earth dog myself. My chinese sign is referred to as dog going up the mountain. So that is exactly what I am doing. © 2006 daddywasabi, all rights reserved.
wat suthat 
If you have heard of Bangkok's giant swing then you would have heard of Wat Suthat. I like coming back to this temple because of the series of Buddha statues lining the inner wall surrounding the temple. Unlike the other temples, these statues are not enclosed with lucite. Also fascinating are the fresco paintings behind the Buddha images. Last Sunday turned out to be one of the holy days because some people dressed in white were in the temple fasting and spending some time meditating. A lot of the statues that I saw last year were now painted in black. Some were covered with saffron cloth.
It was a good time for me to try out my Rollei. It was also the first time I used Fuji acros. I am very pleased with the result. I was using F 8.0 in all of the shots and the I am impressed with the amount of detail captured by the photograph. I am still learning to use the tlr. There does not seem to be any problem with paralax if the camera is pointed straight to the subject. It is more of an issue if the camera is pointed upwards. I remember, I positioned the naga of the temple near the top of the frame. The print came out with the naga being further away from the top frame. It is perhaps in this situation that some anticipated compensation is required. © 2006 daddywasabi, all rights reserved.
oval
I am up to my old tricks again. I was taking some pictures of the architectural details of the train station then suddenly one of the guards told me to stop. These days are sensitive so I stopped. I converted the image into monochrome and then back to rgb. Lastly I manipulated each individual channel of the curve and this was the result. To me it looks like a mandala. What does it look like to you? © 2006 daddywasabi, all rights reserved.
holga and perseverance 
the holga arrived much earlier than the hasselblad, leica, canonet and rolleiflex. However, I have not devouted enough time to the use of this camera. I had managed to take slides of the palat klik shrine in Bangkok but I still have not figured out a way of having it scanned. Perhaps the mistake here was the fact that the pictures were taken in a shade and I foolishly tried to hand hold the camera. In addition, I could not figure out the correct setting of the camera so I was using B when I thought I was using the 1/100 shutter speed. It is far easier to estimate 2 sec than it is to do 1/60 sec. So I ended up either under-exposing or over exposing the pictures that I took. With the 12 exposures, the 3 pictures above are what I could photoshop into submission. The others are too blurred to be of much use. Perhaps the problem lie in the fact that I was using an iso 100 film. I am not giving up on this challenge. Next time I will try taking pictures using a tripod. Or else a different subject might be more suitable with the camera being supported by a monopod. Several options for improvement are available. all photos © 2006 daddywasabi, all rights reserved.
bangkok street photos 
I was on my last few frames when a man approached me admiring my Leica M6. I noticed that he was carrying with him a Rolleiflex 3.5. I told him that I also had a Rollei but it was still being cleaned. So for now I am finishing up a roll that I have not used up in my Leica.
One reason I spent good money in getting a Leica was because of its proven performance in street photography. Afterall it was the camera that Henri Cartier-Bresson used during his career as a photo journalist. I have no intention of becoming a professional photo journalist. I just like taking photographs. I hope the people in the street will not take offense when I point my camera to them. Looking at the photographs of Cartier-Bresson, I am taken back to the times past that is forever gone. I see, the fashion of those days, the hairstyle, the cars, how people behaved. Somehow, I feel that taking street photographs is a good way of recording our time for future generations. Pictures I am taking in 2006 may be of interest to those who will see it in 2056. Most of the time I ask my subjects' permission. However there are times I do not because the moment might be lost. A posed picture is just not the same. A lot of times the people I encounter are good natured about it. Sometimes, they do not even care one way or another. Other times, they cover their faces as I click my shutter. Just like the lady in the boat. On one of this occasion, I think the blind man knew I was taking his photograph because he moved as I took my photograph.
All photos © 2006 daddywasabi, all rights reserved.
on the chao phrya express 
When I was in Manila, I took some pictures using my Leica M6. Unfortunately most of the pictures did not turn out good. It was badly focused. I also stupidly took a picture of a high school friend and the result was disheartening to say the least. When I got back to Bangkok, the annual Photo Fair was still being held at the BITEC. The Leica booth was offering free check up of any Leica models. My M6 tested well. With the exception of a minor spots on the lens that the technician assured me will not affect my picture taking. Anyway, I gave it another spin when I got to Bangkok. This time since I am shooting using FP-4 at an EI-80, I decided not to take any photo below F/5.6 and a shutter speed no slower than 1/60 sec. I also paid meticulous attention to focusing the subject. My frustration was that I sometimes lost some moment. It did not help that the number of the film advance did not correspond to the film itself. Otherwise, I think this is a great camera. These photos were taken in the Chao Phrya Express Boat late in the afternoon when the light is interesting.
all photos © 2006 daddywasabi all rights reserved
