hobi ii

1. i used to take photos during my college days. my first slr camera was yashica with sigma lens. it was a secondhand slr camera which my father bought for me from my uncle. it costs me rm280. deducted from my ptptn allowance. my uncle is a freelance photographer. during those days, i used to buy rolls of films using my limited allowance.

2. during my college days, we have to take photocom paper as one of the requirement. everybody must have his own slr camera. i still remember the day i received the old yashica. it was one of the must thing to bring every time i went out.

3. in order to fully utilised the camera, i used to go out for outing around the town with a closed friend. whom now is my soul mate. we used to carry the tripod along as during shooting, we were the main subject. huh..it was fun to capture portrait of yourself in different locations. we used to go for outing almost everyday, every weekends. exploring the available locations.

4. there is no right or wrong rules. there is no composition rules to follow, just mainly for fun. but one thing that i remembered most was, the outcome of the developed film. the excitement to see the outcome. whether the photos taken, was fine or not.

5. then, the first assignment for this paper was to create story using photos. i took black and white photos. a bunch of keys. car tyre at the roadside. a pair of shoes in front of the door. and the road. 4 photos in black and white. which were developed in the dark room.

6. i got good grade for that paper. after i finished my degree, i took photography class with my uncle's friend. he is a good teacher. i learnt a lot from him. my sisters and i joined his class and followed him every weekend for outing. just 4 of us. no one else. we were closed like a small happy family. during those days.

7. that was in 1999. and now 2009 i met another teacher and he taught me a different perspective of photography. there are a lot of new things to learn. the composition. the rules of third. the minimalism concept which is new for me. the editing. today you have to edit yourself the raw pictures. you are allow to edit the picture in order to make it your picture.. before you go to any kodak shop for printing purpose.

8. if you asked me which stage are you in now? my answer is the first stage. i need to start over. from zero. i learnt everything about the composition,the rules of third, the minimalism concept. plus with the ethics and communication in photography.

9. one thing that i noticed, they are all male photographers. those days, i dont even bother about gender but today when i am surrounded with male photographers i feel little bit urm...scared sometimes...cold most of the time..it makes me uncomfortable sometimes but what the heck...if you want to learn, you have to put aside those feelings..it was just a feeling anyway.

10. sometimes it feels like i am in a stiff competition..because there is no fun element like those days. i dont have to prove to anyone about my pictures. it was different feelings. you have to commit yourself when you are involved in this world seriously. my present teacher is an established photographer and he is very serious in his business. it was like being monitored and you have to bring output for every outing held.

11. 1999 was the best year. it was the end of good time. 2009 is the new beginning. something is ending. something is beginning.