sade083

I went to a hipster cafe/restaurant in Bangkok, just to experience the hipster culture there, which to my surprise is not too dissimilar to Kuala Lumpur. According to my friend Jason who was with me for this trip to Bangkok, everything in Roast was awesome, so we ordered several dishes and stuffed ourselves silly. What is a great trip without overpriced, fancy-looking hipster food? Also, it was the perfect end to my shutter therapy session - a cup of overpriced coffee. I cannot wait to share my street photography images from my Bangkok trip! The articles are submitted to Ming Thein and are in queue to be published very soon at the end of this month. Do follow me on my Facebook Page for instant updates whenever new articles are being published here or on Ming Thein's site. All images were shot on Olympus PEN E-PL9 and M.Zuiko 25mm F1.8 lens. 

Last Sunday, I found this cool Ramen (dry, non-soup based style) place at Sri Petaling called Menya Hanabi. I went for their signature dish, the Nagoya Mazesoba, a dry Ramen served with toppings of minced meat, lettuce, seaweed, a raw egg yolk and chasu (braised pork). This was my first time eating a Ramen which was not a broth/soup based. You know what? It was fantastic! Image was shot with Olympus PEN E-P5 and M.Zuiko 17mm F1.8 I remember back in the days when I was working in Olympus, I had opportunities to travel to Japan for business trips. The common question which I have asked my then Japanese colleagues was - "what is your favourite Japanese food, being a Japanese yourself? Or, in other words, what is the Japanese food which you are most proud of?" The answers that I have received have always been consistent - Ramen. Bear in mind Japan has no shortage of awesome food and I particularly like their clean and subtle style of cooking and food preparation which is a total...

Have you ever wondered where I took my casual product shots and also some of the food shots I did during review of cameras and lenses? My usual haunt was the Espressolab at Nu Sentral which has been recently shut down, but I have a few other locations that I went to for my shooting needs. Of the these venues was Wizards at Tribeca situated in Imbi, downtown Kuala Lumpur, The main reason I love Wizards so, so much besides the incredibly amazing coffee they made there was the fact that the place is always extremely well lit. The ceiling high glass panels allow abundant natural sun light to illuminate the very plain and white themed cafe. I would usually ask to sit near the windows for better light, and the white table surface is just perfect to isolate whatever subject that I plan to shoot. Lighting and background management are everything in shooting good product shots, whether they are shot professionally, or just for a lifestyle casual experimentation like what I always do. I have not...

Following the revival of my Youtube channel, I am now creating more fresh contents, but more focused on lighter guides and tips when it comes to general photography. I am not trying to add to the abundance of widely available "how to" videos or tutorials, instead I shall be sharing my own workflow on how I get some of my shots done as shown here on this blog. While most of my photography heavy content will be published on Ming Thein's site, here I shall discuss topics that are more photography beginner/new-comer friendly. It does not matter if you are not using the latest iPhone or the best Samsung smartphone. Any mobile phone camera is sufficient for some quick food snapshots. I personally do not like the idea of spending almost RM6000 for that flagship smartphone, it is just absurd. Use what you have, make the best out of it, and here, some post-processing magic may just add the much needed impact to your shots. Straight out of camera shots from smartphones are usually ...

It is no secret that I am a pork lover and I eat all things pork. A few days ago, I was fortunate to be invited for an exclusive tasting session at ANTE , a highly acclaimed premium pork specialized restaurant in Kuala Lumpur. God knows where have I been all this time, missing out all the porky heavenly cuisines ANTE has to offer! The highlight dish was Pork Rendang Nasi Kerabu.  Pork Rendang Nasi Kerabu ANTE's Pork Rendang Nasi Kerabu   will be available as limited edition lunch feature from 11am to 3pm daily throughout 1st August to 31st August 2018 at RM23.90.  The combination of Pork Rendang with Nasi Kerabu was quite surreal and undoubtedly a great match. That was something I never saw coming. I have always been a fan of the traditional nasi kerabu, having vivid blue rice served with a plethora of accompanying condiments. Furthermore, rendang, both chicken and beef have been my comfort food and these dishes are unmistakably uniquely Malaysian. It is then fitting to...

I know I have been blogging about Kuching food quite frequently since I have been returning home more often these days. However, I find myself loving the food shots I have taken each and every time I was home. There was just something about Kuching food that you cannot find elsewhere. And they are super photogenic too. All images were shot on Olympus PEN E-P5 and M.Zuiko 25mm F1.8 lens Sarawak Laksa Chong Choon Cafe, Padungan.  Kolo Mee Kim Joo Cafe, Ewe Hai Street Kolo Mee (red version) KY Cafe, Sekama Belacan Bee Hoon Song Kheng Hai Food Market, Padungan There were a lot more food that I feasted on when I was home recently but most of the time I was too hungry I ate the food upon serving. I find myself going back to these same places to get my Sarawakian food fix. I personally think the Laksa and Kolo Mee at the above recommended places are super awesome and among the best around in the city.  If you have not been to Kuching you should deifnitely make a short trip just to tr...

Featuring Six Feet Under, not listed in the regular menu and available upon request from myBurgerLab. Shot on Olympus 45mm F1.8 lens. Not only it does wonders on people shots, but it creates surprisingly handsome burger close up portraits as well. 

An excerpt from a recent conversation with a friend. "Whatever happens, will happen. At the meantime, we do the best we can. Some things are beyond our control. But... we can surely eat MORE BURGERS!" Chicken and Egg Confusion - Myburgerlab, Mytown Image shot with Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II and 12-40mm F2.8 PRO lens. 

Last weekend I was away to a photography trip at Sekinchan to shoot the Milky Way. Unfortunately the weather was not on our side, the weather forecast indicating 80% chance of thunderstorm throughout the night. While it did not rain at all, the sky was shrouded with heavy clouds, with not a single star visible in the sky. To me, it was not always about getting the shot. What truly matters was being out there, surrounding yourself with the right people, people with similar passion and love the things that you do and support each other in this crazy journey called photography. Indeed it was possibly the largest outing for Olympus users in Malaysia! Sekinchan is situated outside the city, about 2 hours drive away from Kuala Lumpur. Sekinchan is famous for their paddy field, the one nearest to KL. In the afternoon, I was invited by some of the participants to join in their coffee session in a nearby cafe. How could I say no to coffee? Little did I expect the cafe was actually a re-purposed...

Sometimes, I am adventurous enough to try unusual food just for the kicks of it. Sushi burger is not exactly something new, the fusion between Asian and Western food is quite common these days. However, not many places can get the fusion right and the mutated food usually ends up disastrous and nothing like the original counterparts. Nonetheless, the best part of living is being able to eat, and daring to try different food is part of the fun that keeps the game interesting. I found the Teriyaki Chicken Sushi Bueger at Nexus Bangsar South. The sushi rice replaced the usual burger buns, sandwiching the teriyaki chicken in between. The sushi burger came with generous serving of vegetable tempura at the side. I was there for lunch, and the combo set includes Iced Americano and pumpkin soup, for  RM25, which is not bad for what you are getting, essentially a heavy lunch with decent coffee. The above photographs were taken when I was shooting with the Olympus OM-D E-M5 (original 2012 ve...

So what happens when there is a newly opened cafe incidentally being smacked right in the middle of my usual hunting ground for street photography? We do some street shooting and we eat some good food there immediately after! CalleVerde is a Fillipino and Western fusion themed cafe that serves a variety of commonly available Fillipino food and also some western dishes. This is not exactly a food review blog entry, and I have no intention of doing food reviews here either. However, I am a photographer and my hand gets itchy whenever I see something interesting to shoot. It is no secret that I am a food lover (judging by the size of my physical appearance) and putting the two things that I am passionate about together, I do enjoy shooting food tremendously. Though I must admit that my food photography still need plenty of work, but it is work in progress nonetheless. What better reward for food photography than to be able to taste the subject that you have just photographed on the spot? ...