SkyBlueSky

A portrait and an accidental self portrait

Find a spot and wait. That's what I often tell my fellow photo 'walkees'. I came across this shot from a walk back in January in KL's China Town. Yellow backdrop, purple doors, nice light so when I saw this guy and his granddaughter coming down the street I knew I needed to stop and ask them for a photo. They kindly obliged. It wasn't until I came across the image today that I noticed the shadowy figure caught in the shop's mirror. Captured on my Ricoh GRD III (1/800 at f5.0 ISO100).

My (other) KL

Since moving from Kuala Lumpur to Penang I have begun leading biweekly photo workshops for UN High Commission for Refugees in Malaysia. Apart from it being a fun and rewarding project in itself the project lets me explore KL, and a different part of KL (most of my time is in and around Pudu), in a way that I hadn't before. There's something about leading the workshop that has made me want to really get out and work to come up with something 'new' to me. Maybe it's that I am pushing others that makes me push myself a little harder? Possibly.

Here are some images I've gotten so far. Admittedly, they are random but over time (the workshops will go into early 2012) I'm hoping to bring some form into the equation, revisiting some of the people and locations with the hope of telling a more cohesive story (or stories).

Let's go shopping!

I'll admit it - I hate shopping. Push me into a mall and I go into a near catonic state. But pay me and that's a completely different story. Which is just what happened when Travel + Leisure SEA asked me to shoot the lastest and most happening shops in Kuala Lumpur.

 


My friends at Wonderful Machine were kind enough to post a PDF of the layout here. Or buy your own copy and read all about what's 'hot' in KL.
 

On Assignment for Oglivy Australia

I recently had a 5 day assignment for the promotions arm of Oglivy Australia. The brief was to tag along with Australia Masterchef Winner Adam Liaw as he leads a group 6 Australian / New Zealand food journalists and bloggers as they eat their way across Kuala Lumpur and Malacca.  Not completely unchartered territory for me but a challenge non the less.
Challenge one was that apart from shadowing the group I was to provide images for each of the journalists stories. So essentially I'm shooting 5 stories at once while the bus moves from location to location. Tough but like anything, relax and work it. A place like Raju's (above and below) makes it a little easier.

I knew going it that it would be kind of a 'run and gun' situation. Work fast, get as many shots of the dishes, scene and group as possible while checking in with the journalists to see what they might need image wise.

Gear wise I packed two Canon full frame dSLR's, 3 lenses (all Canon) : 24-70mm f2.8, 70-200mm ISM f2.8, 50mm f1.2 (my primary 'food' lens), a 580 EXII speedlight + Pocketwizard Plus II triggers, and a Manfrotto Mag Fiber tripod. All of which (surprisingly) fit neatly into my ThinkTank Shape Shifter backpack. (for safety's sake I also packed the Ricoh GRD III).

 (above Master Chef Adam Liaw, below the hard working ladies of Bayan Indah Culinary Retreat).

Over the course of the week I ended up shooting about 50gb of images. Not an extradinary amount but we covered a lot of ground between the two cities.

(above : Adam Liaw and Author / Chef Florence Tan at the Majestic Hotel, Malacca. below : Ayam pongteh).

And at the end of the week I was reminded that hey, this ain't such a bad way to make a living.You meet interesting people.

And you get to eat the props.

 

Get Prints - Give Prints! Just in time for the holidays!

Looking for the perfect gift or just tired of starring at your blank walls? Then I have just the solution for you. Head on over to my virtual gallery where I'm offering a limited time 20% discount on all prints and merchandise. To receive the discount simply insert the coupon code EATINGASIA in the discount code box when you check out. Photoshelter will take care of the rest.

Take a look around my galleries of images shot on travels and assignments around the world. To make it easier I've organized a 'Top Picks' gallery of top selling images as well as 'Your Kitchen Wall' which are suggested images that I think would look great in your kitchen or dining room.

US, Europe, Australia orders typically ship within 2 working days of order placement (although given the time of year give yourself a few days extra if you want it under the tree).

If you don't see what you are looking for drop me a line at dhagerman@davidhagermanphotography.com and I'll take a look through my archives.

Happy holidays!

KL rocks to its own beat.

(above singer / songwriter extraordinaire Azmyl Yunor)

We've lived in KL for a little over 5 years now. It's great city and we've certainly enjoyed our time here but if there was one thing I would change is the lack of live music. Or I should probably qualify that, interesting live music.

I grew up with DIY / Indie bands in the US and have seen (or heard about) similar scenes popping up around Asia, but never KL. That changed when a young Indonesian friend begain waxing about the local KL scene. Hmm, better check this out...and we did..and you can read about it in this month's Travel + Leisure SEA .

(above Mathematix perform at Cafe 1).

Shooting bands is a little new to me..but it's starting to grow on me.  Every club has its' challenges to shoot in, but as I found out no where near the challenges that the musicians themselves have finding (and keeping) venues to play in.

(above Shh Diam! below Nao Band)

But the musicians we met are incredibly optimistic about the future and for a good reason.

There is just so much untapped talent in this city that it can't help but spill out into a wider audience. (below ThinkTadpoleThink)

The scene is still rather fragmented. Clubs are closed about as soon as they open so you'll need to track bands via their MySpace or Facebook pages. Every gig we went to seemed to point to yet another future gig so it's very much word of mouth, band / fan driven.

See ya at the next show!

 

 

 

Berjaya Times Square - Be there or Be..

 
Join me tomorrow October 23 at Berjaya Times Square for the Futuromic Imaging Fair. From 2pm to 3pm I will be presenting some of my work, walking through my approach to photography, and talking about my new friend the Ricoh GRD III.

 
(above lanterns in Penang. One of the images I will be showing shot with the GRD III).

 
The Futuromic Imaging Fair starts today and runs through Sunday. Plenty of photoshoot opportunities, and giveaways. You can even get your camera and lens cleaned for free!

 
If that doesn't make you smile -nothing will.

 
We'll be looking for you there. A quick note - the event will run in real time - not Malaysia time - so by 2pm October 23 we mean 2pm October 23 (got it?). Cool. See ya!

My KL (and possibly yours)

I have begun offering photography walks around KL. As a lead up I recently took a photographer around Kuala Lumpur's China Town area. Below are a couple of the shots I grabbed that morning.

 
 

If you are interested in learning more about the walks drop me a line at dhagerman@davidhagermanphotography.com. We can work out an itinerary that best suits your interests and goals. I hope to see you soon!

The Penchala Link

A few updated images on my personal project in Kuala Lumpur's Sungai Penchala neighborhood.

Yesterday was my fourth visit to the 'hood since I started the project. I'll be traveling outside Malaysia for the next three weeks so I wanted to make sure I dropped by before I took off.

I'm glad I did, too. It reconfirmed my enthusiasm for this project. People have been great and I am starting to get a sense from them just how unique they think this area is. Several have commented on the proposed redevelopment of Kampung Baru in KL as a sign that the neighborhood's quiet days may be coming to a close.

Let's hope not.

This time it's personal

  (above Mr. A, merchant and resident of Sungai Penchala).

When I travel I tend to be out all day with my camera. I'll gladly (OK, almost gladly) get out of bed before dawn and head out for first light. I'll shoot details, interiors, or in shade at the high points in the day and then continue on into twilight. Day after day. I come back from these trips charged up and vow to hit the streets of Kuala Lumpur (where I live) with the same fervor. But something happens.

 

I get back in the old routine. Walk the dogs, check email, process images, take care of business. Given the number of times I've said that I will 'head out tomorrow' I'm surprised my wife hasn't just chucked me out the window when the alarm goes off. Unless I have a specific assignment in KL the camera, for the most part, stays in the bag. Then I read this article by the fantastic photographer Gavin Gough and I thought - he's talking about me.

A few weeks back I did some editorial photography at Bayan Indah Culinary Resort . Bayan Indah is located in Sungai Penchala  a kampung which on a good traffic day is maybe 20 minutes from 'downtown' KL (and 5 minutes from my house). Given KL's rapid urbanization, Sungai Penchala is one of KL's last remaining kampungs. I wanted to explore the area more - but how? Well gee Einstein, you might just have to leave that cushy desk chair and break a sweat for a change.  And so I did.

Frankly, I was nervous when I got out of the car. Just how would people in a predominately (and conservative) Malay neighborhood react to a foreigner walking around with a camera?

And the reaction? A little cautious maybe, curious for sure, but overall very warm and welcoming. Of course people did ask me what I was doing but that part was a no brainer. This is such a unique area that you can't help but feel that it's a matter of time before urban sprawl swallows it up like the neighborhoods at it's borders. I definitely got some agreement on this point.

I am not sure where this project is going, or if it even needs to 'go' anywhere at all. I've made two visits in a week and plan to go back this week (with prints to give people). I know if I am going to tell a story about this community that I'll need to get a lot closer which means it will take some time to build trust. Let's see.