Every picture tells a story

[tengk]

A close encounter.

The park connectors sometimes run beneath the expressways. It provided a sanctuary for many of us.

That section beneath the underpass fascinates me. It is a space that is shared by man and mother nature, a place for close encounter .

Sharing spaces with fellow nature lovers...

One day, i stumbled upon this.

Since it was a no entry sign, it must be interesting... so i crept into the opening to investigate.

I noticed something interesting and...

I could smell burnt flesh! I won't want to be a part of this!

Had i stumbled upon the camp ground of cannibals? In modern day Singapore!!!

to be continued...

 

[tengk]

My instincts told me to retreat and i certainly would have if not for the exit route suddenly sealing off behind me!

I had this sense of forebodding...

I had no way to go but forward.
I seemed to be moving around in circles, like there was no end to this.

Then out of the blue i heard a loud clap of thunder and saw this streak of light striking the ground before me!

A portal opened up!
I looked in and saw "the other side".

Then something stirred,
rose from the cesspool and dragged me in...
"Argh...(gurgled) blurb, blurb..."

to be continued...

 

[tengk]

I woke up looking at the sky, just glad to be alive!

Looking around i realised that i was trapped inside a vessel.

Then i heard strange crunching and clanking sounds and they appeared before me.

They approached me and started inserting all kinds of probes into me.
I was helpless and was totally drained by the time they were done with me.

Drifting in and out of conciousness, i realised i was alone in this chamber and may soon fade into oblivion.

to be continued...

 

[Daoyin]

Great story !!

 

[tengk]

I slept like a log.
...

































I dreamt that a being appeared before me.

He mumbled something about rebirth.
And all i could dream of was Sandro Botticelli's painting "Birth of Venus"

And then i woke up! I felt like i had been given a new spark of life.

I felt this energy course through my veins and i emerged a new spirit.

I re-emerged earthside!

to be continued...

Hi Stephen,
Thanks for dropping by.
I am glad you are enjoying the story.
When this story ends, i.ll tell you how it came about.
tk

 

[wilsonwongjw]

I like taking pictures of anything interesting. Sometimes i have trouble interpreting a photograph whenever a caption is missing. I am also curious about the story behind the image. Knowing the story , how the image was set up and the various process helps me enjoy the image a bit more. Hence the title "every picture tells a story" and not " a picture is worth a thousand words".
We all have our favorite images from our own collection and many of them are quite personal (apart from the techincal aspect of composition, colour management which have a certain acceptable standards) but they all have a story to tell.
I am a newbie at this forum, sometimes i have an image which i like to post. But i am not sure where to post, apart from starting a thread and maintaining it. It can be a bit difficult especially if there are many other commitments. Some threads are exclusive to brands or style, while you can listen in you can't quite participate or feel it is not right to "butt in" .(even for someone with thick skin like me) Of course we can put it up at the C&C corner and be publicly flogged (which is of course good for the soul . It definitely puts you on your toes and possibly help set a higher standard for yourself) but then sometimes we just want to put up our images without C&C, for better or for worse. I hope that this thread will encourage any one who may have a few "picture with a story to tell" but not sure where to post to come forward.

I am just a hobbyist trying to have a bit more fun and hopefully posting some images on line will help me improve.

Some ground rules:
Image should have a story to tell, how long a story is up to you. But variety is the key.

Include your own copyright , releases, whatever if you are posting.

Every post should include an image eg. if i want to encourage the person and said nice picture , i would at the same time include a story of my own. But feel free to post an image even if you have no comment. I and i am sure many others would like to hear your story. So i'll start off with a nice picture and capitalise on her famous smile.

Poor Mona Lisa, seems like someone or something has snatched the attention from her. There was actually a queue snaking around to admire her, these people were in the queue to see her. I simply shot this from another angle to make it seem like Mona Lisa has been snubbed.

I also appreciate any C&C from the pros or senoir members who are willing to help me/ us improve. Image posting is optional for C&C (to encourage C&C) but are most welcome to illustrate the point. Thanks in advance.
eg. What a pretentious image!

This sapling was so out of place, Left to die on the concrete paved car park floor of an abandoned site. The place actually looked quite sad. It was like a john doe left on the concrete slab of a morgue. I did nothing except record its sad fate. Wait i did shift it a bit to get a better angle...food for thought. one of my favorites.

Most of all i just want to have fun with posting and hopefully make some on line khakis. Here is the one that got away.

Quick draw is a virtue for the photographer but i am not so fast.

That's it , i hope to hear many of your stories. Thanks in advance for sharing.

I am not sure if i am doing this thread correctly by having other people contribute to it. If it is wrong, moderators please let me know and i'll take it down.

Oh well, the Mona Lisa one maybe is those people photographed have already stared at it and felt bored then they went on to other exhibits? life goes on..

 

[tengk]

I crept away from the space craft.

I had been given the task to stand guard over Mother Earth.

And to reclaim her when humankind falls.

We are waiting...

Hi wilsonwonjw,
Thanks for dropping by.
They just looked bored, in fact they were feasting their eyes on the other paintings while waiting in line for a closer look at Mona Lisa.
In the presence of many other great art, even Mona Lisa can feel small.
And yes, life goes on regardless...
tk

I look forward to your stories. Thank you very much.

 

[tengk]

Life's fleeting moment, cherish it.
All that's left are memories.

 

[tengk]

So how did the above story came about?

I am very curious about the photography that others do especially the artsy sort, the emo ones, the fuzzy ones, the surreal ones and the more serious documentary, social reports.
I decided it was a good time to explore this avenue, the "dark side" (i said it).

So i signed up for the Jan/15 IPA mentorship program conducted by Kevin Lee to have a glimpse of what others do.

I absolutely had no idea what to expect. I had no project at hand except for grabbing some images from the stories i posted and calling the project "Change".

I realised i was in trouble when i saw the works of my fellow participants!

"Rojak!", "out of focus" (literally as well), "expressing too many ideas", "inconsistent", "too literal", "no caption". These were the praises i received. 

No caption almost choked me since i enjoy putting in words!

Fortunately, i am thick skinned.

At the next meeting, i reworked my images and added more. 

Kenna semular again.(a malay phrase used commonly in the army for redo)

Luckily i had a backup plan at the second meeting, the underpasses which i passed by during my weekend walks had always fascinated me. With two more meetings to go, it became a project for me to dig into.

As i explored the underpasses, i became more n more intrigued by what went on in there. With Kevin's guidance and directions, images started to emerge and even context changed as one image led to another.

With it the completion of my program.

Looking at the images, I realised i could put together the above story. (The project is still ongoing)

Now i have twice the fun.

I thoroughly enjoyed the program, the discussions among ourselves, seeing how others see the world around them. How to go about persuing a project. And seeing images a bit differently from before.

Another plus point is getting links to interesting articles on photography.

If you are a self taught enthusiast like myself , you are curious about the works of others and wish to explore the language of photography, do consider signing up for the program.

Have one - No, two projects at hand.

You must first bend your knees...

I look forward to your stories. Thank you very much.

 

[tengk]

I was mesmerised by this scene from the living room of our rented apartment.

Clear blue sky, the far horizon, a beautiful race track. All i needed was a plane, a flock of birds and a tractor to complete the scene. Fortunately i was rewarded after a 20 min wait.

#Good morning Sydney!

Pitt street is a popular shopping belt. A good distraction since shopping is not my thing.

Pitt street encounters

#1

#2

#3

#4

to be continued...

 

[tengk]

I had a little errand to run.

That gave me a bit of time to explore Bondi beach, i lapped it up even though it was only about 15mins on the sand.
Time to get some sand between my toes.

Everyone wanted a selfie with the Pacific Ocean in the background (Tasman Sea?)

A photograph with the local birds as a back drop.

Before long it was time to go.

to be continued...

 

[tengk]

The coastal walk from Cogeee beach to Bondi was most refreshing and energising.
Going for walks here or anywhere always brings out the puppy in me.
"heh heh heh"

Which meant opportunities to shoot.

The hunter.

The stalker.

The strike.

The hunted.

to be continued...

 

[tengk]

Life's a beach.

Th sleeping, the living and the dead.
The dead here have one of the the best views of the heavens and far horizon, not that it matters.

Selamat Hari Raya Adilfitri to all our muslim friends.

to be continued.

 

[tengk]

In spite of the winter season, many were out there soaking up the sun.
Sun worshipper_1

Sun worshipper_2

Men in black and white.

Confrontation_1
Man vs nature.

Confrontation_2
Man vs Nature,
Man vs Woman.

If visiting Sydney, do take time out to enjoy the coastal walks , winter around June-August is a good time to visit,.

I am sure you will come across many interesting scenes.
My constant companion was my Sigma DP1M.

I look forward to your stories. Thank you very much.

 

[tengk]

They walk among us.

The National Day celebration at West Coast stadium was sort of the forerunner of the next event that gets all of us photogs excited.

The gates of Hell open and spirits drop by for a visit.

In the presence of these spirit nothing was what it seemed.
The camera saw differently from the eyes.
Encounters became strange and interesting. The familiar became unfamiliar.

#Forerunner of what is to come.

#touch wood (for good measure, just in case}.

#Visitors.

#Visitor.

#Audience.

to be continued...

 

[wolfton]

#Visitor.

Wahaha I too concentrated at the toilet, missed this one :cry:

This is very good man :thumbsup:

 

[tengk]

#Performers.

#Stage.

#Backstage.

to be continued...

Hi Chee Wei, it is more important to stay concentrated at the toilet, that way you won't miss.

 

[Nikonzen]

I finally have had a chance to look through the underpass series more thoroughly. When you first mentioned that you would talk about this and posted that one snap I thought what the heck is that and the best I could come up with in my mind was something to do with nu water...lol. I like the series sir and it helps with somethings I have been wondering about for quite some time concerning how water is managed there in Singapore. I understand you all have a gazillion creeks and such that catch water and I read that here recently you all are building reservoirs and stepping up park connections and maybe enhancing the environmental situation a little bit. Sounds interesting and they do indeed look like an interesting 'underworld' if you will. Great stuff sir!!!

An aside I have also been reading that Singapore is becoming one of the great centers of water technology. I was thinking wouldn't it be great if some engineer came up with some miracle tech with drinking water? That would change the world maybe even more than electricity did.

 

[tengk]

to be continued...

Hi Jeff,

Really appreciate your interest in our backyard, unlike your land with its natural creeks and water supply. Our's more like drains and sewage (newater aka nu water in your accent).

I dread the day we worry about our water supply, hopefully in future, membrane and desalination technology will mitigate that. Fresh water is definitely a global concern in the future.

Have a good weekend sir!

Coincidentally, this report was in today's Straits Times.
http://www.straitstimes.com/world/united-states/spore-most-at-risk-of-facing-high-water-stress
tk

 

[tengk]