Jam Learns to Snap

Are You Into Manual Shooting Too?

jam — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 04:04:44 +0000

We tend to use auto shooting most of the times. This is because auto shooting is by far the easiest and most convenient way of shooting. The camera automatically sets an optimum aperture and shutter speed for your shooting. I do sometimes employ aperture and shutter speed priority shooting though. Recently, I tried to be a little bit more creative with my shots by engaging in manual shooting. Below are 2 pictures of Chinese New Year decorations I took inside a local mall last night. The second picture below was shot using manual mode and it does look a little bit overexposure if compared to the first one which was shot using auto mode. Are you into manual shooting too? What it takes to produce a great manual shot?

Aperture = F3.5, Shutter Speed = 1/80 sec

Aperture = F3.5, Shutter Speed = 1/3 sec

First Ever Manual Shooting

jam — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 13:57:17 +0000

Have you ever tried manual shooting before? If you are a constant reader of this blog, it is not difficult to find out that I prefer aperture priority shooting and shutter priority shooting. Aperture priority shooting allows you to set the aperture manually while shutter priority shooting allows you to set the shutter speed manually. However, manual shooting is by far the most creative shooting mode as you can set both the aperture and shutter speed manually. The picture below is my first attempt of manual shooting. I tried to use a slower shutter speed to blur a moving motorcycle while selecting an appropriate aperture value so that optimum exposure could still be obtained. Not bad, huh? What do you think?

Aperture = F3.5, Shutter Speed = 1.3 sec

Street Begging

jam — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 07:34:43 +0000

Do you support street begging in the tourist area? Well, this was not exactly begging on the street. These 3 boys begged for money as soon as we got off the boat on Gaya Island. Gaya Island has become an illegal Filipino settlement since the mid 19th century. I was reluctant to give money to them in the beginning, but decided to give them RM10 afterwards only if they agreed to pose in front of my camera. A reward in exchange for a simple task, I guess this should no longer been considered as street begging, right?

3 cute Filipino boys

Photohunt: Spotted

jam — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 16:29:39 +0000

saturday photo scavenger hunt

Well, this week PhotoHunt theme is spotted. These are fishes with yellow spots on their bodies. I do not know which type of fish they are. Do you know?

Yellow spotted fish

Closer look

I am not that much into underwater photography. In fact, this was the first time I went underwater with my camera. I did this in one of my recent snorkeling trip. Not that my camera is waterproof, it is just that I used an underwater casing for my camera. The pictures turn out okay for me, although not as sharp and crispy as those taken on the land. Are you into underwater photography?

Dawn & Dusk at Kota Kinabalu Waterfront

jam — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 13:42:34 +0000

Kota Kinabalu Waterfront is an esplanade along the seafront of Kota Kinabalu. The esplanade is beautifully landscaped and has become a popular meeting place for people in Kota Kinabalu over the years. I knew if I do not take a stroll here, I would not have considered myself already visited Kota Kinabalu. There are high end restaurants, cafes, pubs and nightclubs at Kota Kinabalu Waterfront. None of them attracts me though. For me, the best times to take a stroll here are during early morning and early evening. These are the 2 pictures I took there, in the dawn and the dusk respectively.

Dawn at Kota Kinabalu Waterfront

Dusk at Kota Kinabalu Waterfront

Photohunt: Balanced

jam — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 04:25:31 +0000

saturday photo scavenger hunt

This is my PhotoHunt entry this week. I was on a fishing boat to Gaya Island, just off the coast of Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. Gaya Island is one of 5 islands that make up Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park. The island is home to a very large stilt village occupied by Filipino immigrants.

Approaching stilt village on Gaya Island

This was a photo I took while we approached the stilt village. It is not easy to take photos on a small boat. Balancing is a major challenge as waves hit your boat constantly. A tripod would not offer much help too.

Bamboo Leave

jam — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 23:43:04 +0000

What about this? A snap of a bamboo leave on the roadside! I like nature. And I love to take close up pictures of flowers, leaves and plants whenever and wherever I feel like to. Of course I will have to bring along my DSLR. The other day when I walked along a winding road leading to the top of a hill, I took this photo. In fact I am a bamboo lover too! I like the sharp crispy shot on the bamboo leave while leaving the background blur. Can you see the winding road in the background?

Aperture = F3.5, Shutter Speed = 1/125 sec

Fishing Boat

jam — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 06:27:29 +0000

This is a fishing boat I took a picture of at Kota Kinabalu Waterfront. The fishing boat is relatively small if compared to those big fellows in the background. I like fishing, but I have never fished in deep sea, let alone in sea. This is because my town is located inland, hence no sea. Perhaps I shall go for deep sea fishing the next time I visit a seaside town like Kota Kinabalu. It sure will be a big fun! Do you like fishing too?

Aperture = F5.2, Shutter Speed = 1/1000 sec

Photohunt: Jiggly

jam — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:23:14 +0000

saturday photo scavenger hunt

This week PhotoHunt theme is jiggly. No, I am so not going to show you jiggly butt or cleavage. Instead, I am going to share with you traditional dance of ethnic groups in Sabah, Malaysia.

Traditional dance of ethnic groups in Sabah

I do not know the name of this traditional dance. I took these pictures during my trip to Kota Kinabalu, Sabah at the end of last year. I hope you can notice from pictures above that the main characteristic of the dance is the large arm swings as well as to and fro movements of the dancers on the ground. So I guess the pictures fits in well on this week theme!

Skywatching in a Plane

jam — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 16:33:39 +0000

Have been absent from Skywatch Friday for ages! Here I come back again and this is my first Skywatch post for the year 2010! Tell me, what is a better way to watch the sky than watching it inside a plane? Especially when you are right above the clouds! I am a frequent flyer, but this is only the first time I take out my camera and snap some pictures inside the plane.

Skywatching in a Plane

My friend said these 2 resemble snowland and ocean in the artic, what do you think?

Resembles snowland and ocean in the Artic!