5 years flew by really quickly. Yes, it’s quite unbelievable but that’s how long ago I left ExxonMobil and how old FIFOTO is! It was good being back at Exxon and I was pleasantly surprised to see so many familiar faces, even in the hallways! A lot has changed since. GIS (Global Information Systems), the department I was in back then is not called EMIT (ExxonMobil Information Technology)… There’s a photography club now and soon, there will be a scuba diving club too! It was nice to know that the safety committees like KLOSHC and S&W are still around and still active, planning the same annual dinners and safety events as before! (which till today, I hold dear to me as I represented GIS in KLOSHC and was S&W chairperson during my Exxon days)

I am truly honored to be invited back to Exxon to talk about FIFOTO and our photography and I hope everyone who attended had as much fun as I did delivering the presentation! It was really nice to see some of my ex-colleagues again and I look forward to my next visit back there again!

Special thanks to Jason for these photos, for easing me in into the talk and breaking the ice with the CrazyBooth!

Lucky draw for a FIFOTO 108 Winner!

CRAZYBOOTH Photos!

After a nice long weekend in Bali shooting Emilia’s pre-wedding with half the FIFOTO crew, I’m nice and tan! But my fun ended just as I boarded the plane. Just like Steve who was feeling gassy from that morning, I felt it as we took off. I shall spare you the details but to sum it up, I had food poisoning. So the week had started out rough for me. I forced myself outta bed Monday afternoon to meet my delivery deadline for Beaubelle, a commercial shoot for their brand identity concepts which I’ve been working on for the past few weeks. Wed, I had to re-shoot the lotus, for Beaubelle. The dilemma I had was that the lotus plants you get from the stores come in a bud. And there’s no way it can bloom if it’s been removed from the stem. Here’s my dilemma – my client needed a really pretty and natural-looking lotus. The only way I got it to “bloom” was by opening its petals, one by one and by no means did it look natural. I stressed all of Wed to get the shot but didn’t manage to until 5pm, when I turned to my 2nd last resort – to photograph the petals individually and DI them into a perfect lotus. (I’m thankful that worked and I didn’t have to turn to my last resort of stealing a lotus from a pond!)

Although I’ve spent my entire day just DI-ing my lotus, it feels more like an accomplishment. I’ve learned that perseverance and determination pays off and in addition to that, I’ve gained an insight to commercial photography; that NOTHING is as PERFECT as it seems in ads… It’s all the wonders of Photoshop!

Two weeks ago, Jason & I ventured into the depths of Hulu Langat and after an adventure on trunks roads and graveled driveways, we found ourselves in a beautiful hideaway, Dusun Fairies, a place I found out about through Debra of the Olive Branch. Specially catered for wedding ceremonies and photography shoots, Dusun Fairies is a quaint garden, tucked away in the hills of Hulu Langat. I was glad Daniel & Sulin chose this venue, a place we’ve never shot before. It was also my first time ever meeting the lovely couple. Daniel is bashful and very quiet. Sulin is chirpy and sweet. PDA was definitely not their thing but after 30 minutes, it came naturally =) They are one of the most easy-going couples ever and were a breeze to work with! I was especially honored when Daniel told me they flew in from KK just to do their pre-wedding photos with us!

Here are my favorite shots!

Makeup & Hair by Emilia Marcelo

Gown by That Special Occasion

All these two wanted for their wedding registration were less formalities and less documents. So they decided to have it performed in the Norwegian Embassy; where it took all of 2 and a half minutes! Efficiency was definitely the order of the day, and with that start we managed to cover 3 locations for the pre-wedding shoot for this lovely couple.

First we hit a little hidden green clearing where we had to fight off mosquitoes as well as sweat! Then it was off to the Petronas Towers (what tourist can resist the lure?) where Marcus exhibited an amazing cool-headedness whilst Monica did enough sweating for both of them!

The final leg was to be held in Shangri-La where the couple was staying for the next 2 days before heading off on their honeymoon. Rejuvenated by the air-conditioning, we proceeded to take more shots offered under a cooler environment. Real troopers they were taking my directions with big smiles despite their great aversion to the heat under all that clothing and make-up. Great job, guys!