Hello, common cold, my old friend.
I had runny nose the whole of yesterday at work, and it was a situation that was almost second nature to me as I have had such occurrences quite often since young. But after work, I got home and it felt quite terrible, so I decided to go to bed right after my bath.
9pm: I started sleeping.
7.30am: I woke up. I asked my body if I am fit for work. Body responded negative. I went back to sleep.
9.15am. I woke up. SMS my colleague that I'm going on MC. Went to see doc.
10am. Returned home. Had breakfast. Sleep.
2pm: Woke up. Had lunch. Sleep.
7pm. Woke up. Went to buy dinner.
8.30pm. Here I am, typing this post.
Hopefully I am well enough to start work tomorrow. Lots of projects waiting to be done. That's one of the reason why I decided to drop everything and rest. Because I know that once I am well, I can put in my full effort in the tasks.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Suddenly...
3 weeks back, my life was at a crossroad.
This week, the crossroad presented a traffic light direction, and I turned towards that and moved on.
Basically, my schedule for the next 3 months is already filled.
Well, it sounds like I have assignments every other day, or week. But no.
As a freelancer, I take pride in my work. I do not apply formula. I re-create ideas from scratch.
So, I need a lot of time to think through my ideas and thoughts, to let it grow and nurture into the final product.
In short, I have 5 shoots and 1 music project planned till June. Plus 2 ballet exams that I'm playing. Oh yes, I'm still looking for ballet pianists.
Once a while, I do get last minute requests that caught me off-guard, but nonetheless refreshing.
For instance, last Monday Madeleine requested for an outdoor bikini photoshoot. Madeleine chose me because she wanted a healthy relaxed theme and not those sleazy stuffs. Most importantly, she needed new portfolio for her castings.
The shoot took place 5 days later on the Saturday morning.
I only edited about 10 pics for her casting, and still got about 670 other images to review.
This week, the crossroad presented a traffic light direction, and I turned towards that and moved on.
Basically, my schedule for the next 3 months is already filled.
Well, it sounds like I have assignments every other day, or week. But no.
As a freelancer, I take pride in my work. I do not apply formula. I re-create ideas from scratch.
So, I need a lot of time to think through my ideas and thoughts, to let it grow and nurture into the final product.
In short, I have 5 shoots and 1 music project planned till June. Plus 2 ballet exams that I'm playing. Oh yes, I'm still looking for ballet pianists.
Once a while, I do get last minute requests that caught me off-guard, but nonetheless refreshing.
For instance, last Monday Madeleine requested for an outdoor bikini photoshoot. Madeleine chose me because she wanted a healthy relaxed theme and not those sleazy stuffs. Most importantly, she needed new portfolio for her castings.
The shoot took place 5 days later on the Saturday morning.
I only edited about 10 pics for her casting, and still got about 670 other images to review.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Modest
I came across Kelvin Koh, a professional wedding photographer's blog entry. In it, he humbled himself on how he dismissed positive comments from his fans on how impactful his photos have been.
Once a while I do receive positive comments about how they love my photos or my music. And sometimes I also doubt if they are merely patronising me.
But we have to realise that art is always subjective. So anything can be impactful to one person even if it is not to another. And there is no right or wrong, should or shouldn't.
Of course, when more and more people like the art that you do, it becomes "commercialised". There's nothing wrong being commercialised, but it's just being less "arty". And I think it's a journey that once you gone past, you wouldn't need to go back. If being artistic is about discovering your style, then being commercialised is the affirmation of your style.
From the art creator point of view, it is sad to be commercialised, because it simply means your works have become stagnant and similar to the previous one you have done. From the art receiver, it might be very much appreciated, because the creation is unique to him or her, for instance, a piece of photographic work.
In my recent experience, Nikki wanted me to do a photobook like Madeleine's. So my dilemma is: should I simply replicate, or should I innovate? In the end, I broke away and executed the shoot differently. The result: Nikki loved her photobook better. The risk that it didn't meet her expectation is very real, but for now, I prefer to be true to my artistic expression rather than succumb to commercial pressures.
You, as a reader of this blog post, is probably clicking on the above links to view the photobooks to compare and see really which, in your opinion, is better. But that opinion is entirely yours and yours alone. Respect others opinions, just like how others respect yours.
To all of you out there who loved my photographs and music compositions, a sincere thanks to your appreciation. I enjoy receiving your compliments and they are the sources of motivation for me to create better and more impactful works.
Once a while I do receive positive comments about how they love my photos or my music. And sometimes I also doubt if they are merely patronising me.
But we have to realise that art is always subjective. So anything can be impactful to one person even if it is not to another. And there is no right or wrong, should or shouldn't.
Of course, when more and more people like the art that you do, it becomes "commercialised". There's nothing wrong being commercialised, but it's just being less "arty". And I think it's a journey that once you gone past, you wouldn't need to go back. If being artistic is about discovering your style, then being commercialised is the affirmation of your style.
From the art creator point of view, it is sad to be commercialised, because it simply means your works have become stagnant and similar to the previous one you have done. From the art receiver, it might be very much appreciated, because the creation is unique to him or her, for instance, a piece of photographic work.
In my recent experience, Nikki wanted me to do a photobook like Madeleine's. So my dilemma is: should I simply replicate, or should I innovate? In the end, I broke away and executed the shoot differently. The result: Nikki loved her photobook better. The risk that it didn't meet her expectation is very real, but for now, I prefer to be true to my artistic expression rather than succumb to commercial pressures.
You, as a reader of this blog post, is probably clicking on the above links to view the photobooks to compare and see really which, in your opinion, is better. But that opinion is entirely yours and yours alone. Respect others opinions, just like how others respect yours.
To all of you out there who loved my photographs and music compositions, a sincere thanks to your appreciation. I enjoy receiving your compliments and they are the sources of motivation for me to create better and more impactful works.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Nikki's Photostory
Since the beginning of the Lunar New Year of the Rat, I have been sleeping very late every night, partly because I wanted to stay up for Mayenne's feed so that Mummy didn't have to wake up from her beauty sleep. Other reason is to rush out many projects.
See, the faster I finish one project, the more time I have for other things (including rest). There is no point putting aside tasks that you have to finish the next day anyway.
As my wife aptly put: I am overloaded. And I agreed instantly.
Still, I think I can still afford to rev my engine to my limits a little more. The most important thing is to know when to release the accelerator and cruise in life.
So, in yesterday's case, I stopped the engine and went to sleep at 10pm.
And the reason why I can (and want to) sleep earlier is because I have just completed one milestone project. My latest photostory with Nikki.
A little background: Nikki is a freelance model and pet groomer. She wanted me to create a photostory after she saw Madeleine's about 8 months back. After a few email exchanges of photo references, we got on to do the shoot one afternoon.
Just like any of my photoshoots, we are limited by budget, so that shoot has to take place at her house instead of some exotic residential location or hotel. I also cannot do wide angle shots since the house is not presentable.
The design of the photobook is also different from my previous ones. It's more 'fluid' and soft because I purchased a new software to aid in design layout.
Theme-wise, there wasn't much to play around because we are restricted to the boundaries of the house. So I picked the theme of her in bed, playing with her favourite toys, playing on her piano, and basking in the window light.
Click the image below to launch the photobook.
See, the faster I finish one project, the more time I have for other things (including rest). There is no point putting aside tasks that you have to finish the next day anyway.
As my wife aptly put: I am overloaded. And I agreed instantly.
Still, I think I can still afford to rev my engine to my limits a little more. The most important thing is to know when to release the accelerator and cruise in life.
So, in yesterday's case, I stopped the engine and went to sleep at 10pm.
And the reason why I can (and want to) sleep earlier is because I have just completed one milestone project. My latest photostory with Nikki.
A little background: Nikki is a freelance model and pet groomer. She wanted me to create a photostory after she saw Madeleine's about 8 months back. After a few email exchanges of photo references, we got on to do the shoot one afternoon.
Just like any of my photoshoots, we are limited by budget, so that shoot has to take place at her house instead of some exotic residential location or hotel. I also cannot do wide angle shots since the house is not presentable.
The design of the photobook is also different from my previous ones. It's more 'fluid' and soft because I purchased a new software to aid in design layout.
Theme-wise, there wasn't much to play around because we are restricted to the boundaries of the house. So I picked the theme of her in bed, playing with her favourite toys, playing on her piano, and basking in the window light.
Click the image below to launch the photobook.
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