Batam in May

This is my fourth business trip to Singapore and Batam, Indonesia this year. It's the end of May and it's a lot warmer and definitely more humid this time.

The trip to Singapore was uneventful, one does get used to these long haul flights. On my way to the ferry though things changed a bit.

The taxi driver didn't feel I needed my head for the rest of the trip and he slammed his trunk shut while I was still pulling luggage out of it.

I ended up making the trip on the ferry with a bloodied head. Not a pretty sight. Starbucks napkins was all there was at hand to stop the bleeding a bit.

Once in Batam I had a nurse take a look at it ... my head that is, not the napkins. She glued the cut shut and counted 7 scars in total on my head ... 7 stories to tell.

Today I ended up in yet another thunderstorm on my way to Barelang bridge. Just trying to get some images from fishermen villages or what's left of it. It's quite a sight to see the locals making their way through treacherous terrain on their motorbikes and scooters. As usual, it's quite common to see 3-5 family members on one bike and a little thunderstorm is not going to stop at least some of them. There are shelters left and right for bikers to ride the rain out if they like so ... not sure what's worse though ... getting soaked at a "shelter" or continue driving.

Once on my way the drenching stopped close to my destination. Got some good shots but then I slipped big time on some concrete blocks covered with algae slurry down at the water's edge. My camera got wacked around breaking my fall a bit. My glasses ended up in the water. Some scrapes and a slightly bruised ego ... sure ... but I continued shooting ... of course. At least I didn't loose my Blackberry this time like in all my other "water" accidents.

The locals watching me providing the entertainment of their afternoon found it all "lucu" (funny) and I did get quite a few request to shoot their pictures ... lol ... I didn't get the orange red sunset shots I had hoped for but what I got was well worth the effort. Tomorrow is another day to take a stab at a perfect sunset.

Travel ...

My travel schedule is still hectic ... been in Singapore and Batam a second time in January/February and I'm ready for my next trip to Asia in March. In between there's the occasional domestic business travel ... Los Angeles, Boston, Orlando ...

All by all a great opportunity to discover new places, meet new people and get a deeper insight in local cultures and habits ... oh ... yes ... let's not forget the culinary aspects ... ;-) ... Indonesian food is a pure delight ;-)

I'm always on the go with a camera so I do have an opportunity to snap some travel images ... Above some shots from my first ferry ride between Singapore and Batam on December 23, 2009.

Whole families travel on a bike ... 4, 5 and even 6 people on a single bike ... dangerous ... yes ... but there seems to be some order in all the biker chaos ... all in all traffic moves smoothly ...

Holidays 2009

It has been a while since my last post ... as so often, the holidays are getting the best of us ... if we like it or not ...

First there's the never ending remodel of my studio that is taking a toll on my time ... there's still so much to do ... at least my subterranean termites are under control after removing my hardwood floor in the studio and kitchen ... trying to decide what my next floor covering will be ...

Then there's the travel ... both domestically and internationally ...

I'm writing this from Batam, Indonesia where I'm involved in a project launch for an exciting new product for a major consumer electronics OEM. I find myself shuttling between Singapore and Batam quite often ... it is only an hour ferry ride between these two vastly different worlds ... there's no way to describe this, you have to experience this to get the full space ...

Travel with its inevitable people watching is always a time to reflect for me ... there's so much distance in between locations giving me sufficient time to space out in appreciation for all I've got ...

My thoughts revolve around friends and those people around me that know how to live the unconditionality of true friendship ... true love ... total acceptance ... the no-need-to-change-you love ... the friends that are solely there for a no-expectation journey and know how to keep any destiny desire at bay ... The friends that only need a sentence to understand where you are in life and likewise know to express their space in 160 characters or less ... the friends that love to love ...

Thoughts and love also go out to those who only briefly touched my life but made a profound impression yielding immense growth regardless of the pain any perception imparted on our lives ... it is after all all about growth for the next connection, the next love, the next romance ...

Yes ... it is a season for thanks ... although I like to think that every day is a reason for thanks ...

I've been photographing a bit less the last couple of months because of travel and the need to catch up on editing and retouching images ...

The long evenings in business hotels have giving me some opportunity to retouch work for a couple of publications ... I've also laid out a few books I'm self publishing @ blurb.com in 2010 ...

Back to the grind with a smile on my face ... just having witnessed a colliding space and time continuum ...

* * *

Images from different photo opportunities ...

Thursday, August 28, 08

Working on shoot edits and posting them to the client section of my website at Amedeus Photo

Send some candid shots off to a friend ... lab prints are on their way ...

Enjoyed some great feedback on my latest shoots.  I'm a bit behind in the editing process but waiting is well worth it as I'm kind of meticulous in my retouches.

Worked on an image of Betcee May in a creek in my backyard ... this is the first image in a sequence of ten ... enjoy ... this is from a sequence in my "Flashback" story

Evening was filled with  phone calls with my team in Singapore ... late night calls with editing in between.  

Last call from N. ... priceless ...

Continued ...

Travel, August 8

Travel back home ... this visit to Singapore was short but successful ... mission achieved.

Departing from the new terminal ... what a difference ... there are a couple of nice flowery sculptures at the entrance of this terminal ... don't miss them ... great texture ... snapped a couple of images before going through security

Duty free shopping was calling ... looked around ... nothing affordable that caught my eye ... or maybe not ... lol ... La Senza had the most amazing new collection of lingerie I've seen in a long time ... think French black lace in an Asian style ... the manager allowed me to take pictures for personal use only ... not for publication ... she insisted and I oblige ...

Chilled in the SATS lounge ... checked emails and got back to my loved ones

7 hours later I'm in Narita ... different airport ... different lounge ... emails again ... updating this blog and charging the computer so I could continue working on the pictures from my last shoot

Flight to SFO bit bumpy ... got some zzzz's

Singapore August 2-3, 2008

I've made the trip to Singapore many times and I'm always looking forward spending time in this multi-cultural living city.

Yes, some have called the city "too clean" with "too many laws" but this city is living, hustling and bustling. there are a ton of things to see on this small well organized island. Language is not an issue as most speak English well. The beauties are the people ... friendly,helpfull regardless of origin, creed or religion

I always take the opportunity to photograph when I'm traveling and this trip is no exception. When I was making the layover in the Narita airport my eye caught this glimpse of detail and color of a kimono ...



The trip from SFO to Narita takes between 10-11 hours and the second leg from Narita to Singapore takes another 6-7 hours. Invariably, you arrive around midnight ... the immigration lines are short and there are plenty of taxies to take you to the city.

The airline lost my suitcase ... again ... lol ... no panic, usually arrives first thing in the morning.

I got to the Royal Plaza around 1:00am and the lobby display brought a big smile on my face ... Singapore advertising has a different feel than what we're used to in the States or Europe ... somewhat exaggerated, forced ... no holds barred ... but stimulating and challenging


Oh la la ... Chocolah ... yes, this F1 car is reportdly made of mostly chocolate ... I'll find out ... eventually as I'm staying till the 8th this time.

After a short night of trying to sleep I ended up deciding on an early breakfast and going for a walk on Orchard Road. The main shopping street with emphasis on luxurary goods. My favorite shopping complexes are the Paragon and Takashimaya. All major expensive brandnames are represented there. Got to Takashimaya and photographed some of the store displays. Security was shadowing me but didn't stop me. There's a strickt no-photography policy but I guess they don't care before opening hours.

I'm always looking for color, photography challenges and ideas for my own shoots. I love to do tight crops and often I recrop existing advertising collateral just for fun or to check if I can improve on the message.

Less is more.



To be continued ...