lighted darkroom 2010 package extended

With arms wide open, extending my love I am happy to say tat Lighted Darkroom Photography will maintain the 2010 photography package rates for couples that booked LDP for 2011 weddings. However the booking shall be within this month until January 2011.

I am working out with my counterparts to get a better wedding album therefore raising up the quality of Lighted Darkroom Photography. I am so excited with all the year end craze weddings lining up plus a wedding on the new year day itself. Rest asured, Lighted Darkroom is better than ever! Not being corky, but i'm just really being energized!

It's Friday People!

Garden wedding is definately a the fav theme among photographers. Especially here in Sarawak rarely we had a garden wedding. Last year I had covered one while this year 2009 base on my bookings I only have one garden wedding.
However it is a bit tricky. When it is around 9am, the sun starts to shine termendously and one thing i hate the most during outdoor shooting is shadows. There's definately shadows at that time. To overcome that I'll use fill in flash. I know the flash will tick off the couple but i'll brief them in advance for that =). After all, we want good photos right. Always that is the priority. By the way, LIGHTED DARKROOM PHOTOGRAPHY (that is us k if you still don't know) have venture for better quality wedding albums. We manage to hooked up a deal with a local supplier from KL for compressed-magazine style album. yeaaa.. compressed album is much much better quality compare to the stick on album. printing will be done in KL too; So with all said,=) I'll maintain my price for stick on album whereby add on RM 200 (while the oil price is still $61.99 per barrel)for the compressed album. So the newly wed couple that is waiting for their album do contact me if you opt for the compressed album k. Ok that's that. Move on..

A few coming soon shots of the garden wedding of Tina & Herman. Just to keep you guys occupied for the weekend. Take care and have a peaceful week end!

walk in the park

It is a low peak season for weddings this month and last month.. After February, after CNY, that's how it is. Does it got sumthing to do with the global economic? maybe.. and it also does sumthing to do with the school holidays. A friend of mine told me it's the new year. Come new year, the couple normally evaluate their relationship, where are they heading to. they will be thinking of their age, and ask each other and even challange each other to get married. So that will kick start the whole process.. the meet the parents, do the budget planning, start to scout for bridal house, start listing the wedding commitee, emcee, band, bridemaid, flower girl, bestman(normally last cos guys potrays coolness when do things last minute)etc. during this time, the internet is like is like a big bro/sis and you started to bookmarked or your favorite box list is filled up!
yeah, been there done that.. the whole none yard!after all, normally our community does not use any wedding planner service..

So, since this month is a bit free, and i don't want to start slacking, i started a small project. I started to fill up my stock photo. Online stock photos are where you can publish your photos and someone around the world might buy it. Some site in the net is free sign up. Below are some photos i got last weekend while waiting for Asia's mama make porridge (AirAsia label it Congee, to sound more mysterious maybe..)btw, my next wedding assignment is next mth, 2 weddings in a row for three days. So stay tune for more object, flora & landscape view ..






I was trying my best to get a sharp macro look using my kit lens. And using manual focus to ensure the photos not soft looking. but i still have to shoot all wide open to ensure a short depth of field to isolate the focus from the surrounding.

the sun will eventually starts to shine again

I have to admit being a first hand father, planner during the day and moonlighting as a wedding photographer is not easy. Asia was down with flu during the weekend. All job or planning was put on hold. Pity her she have to breath with her mouth. Then it leads to windy stomach. That leads to loose stool (cirit bah). And feeding her with the medicine was not easy task as well . She will shut her mouth shut and gag her self with her hand whenever she saw the non- needle syringe (they should figure this during my childhood time!) She don't even want to cry to make sure she don't open hear mouth. So, i don't even have time to wash my car and my lawn looks like a hutan skunder too!
I was very happy when my uncle popped up at my gate with a bush cutter and offer to cut my lawn since he have done his. And then my father drop by nad refill my fire wood stock too! Hey, looks like then sun starts to shine again.

This week we'll have our Festival of Praise concert and our kugiran will play the opening night. And i'm playing the guitar. So before all the madness with the rehersal and practice, I'll post my recent work in a bit. Tomorrow to be precise. In the mean time, i post these photos, as a 'coming soon to a theater near you '



Note : Any one interested for the concert? (we'll playing heavy stuff folks!hehe) Dewan Suarah Miri @ 630pm @ 18 March 09. Entrance Fee is RM 10, for the cause!

tribute to the ladies

I take my hat's off to all brides. As most of us, our culture still have not adapt to the wedding planner concept, ALL if not most of the preparation are done by the bride them self. running here and there; surfing termendeously on the internet like months before, shopping for stuff; design invitation cards.. and the to do list is like forever stays until the last minute only can be crossed off. to top it further most of them will have to stay awake til the wee hours to adjust the table seatings, rearrange the slide show or montage, even sew the labucci on their wedding gown at the night before. Then have to wake up at 5am to get ready for make up and all. So i salutes you guys err ladies.

I had a malay wedding last weekend. it was an early weekend for me.. so i post this teaser for a while.. and my post is sooo just around the chicane.. stay tune..

modern photography

Sometimes an image with to many distraction needs extra editing to make it become the top of the crop picture.
Like i said in my eariler post, i am spending more time on my editing to set a high benchmark on my work.

2008 in remembrance

At the end of the year 08, i was counting my blessing. In deed the Lord had bless me with bundles of joy in 2008. Beside having my two (2) wisdom tooth pulled out, i can't remember any thing that more worst or depressing that that.
Start new family with my lovely wife, we got a beautiful baby, I move in to my new house, started photography and jump start wedding journalism/photography.

Relatively, i am new in wedding photography but the drive within push me to strive to get better photos. Having a entry level dslr camera does not impaired my images as i strive on the best angle shots and later i can post process the image courtesy of Adobe Photoshop off course. Do i sound boasting? Well, duhh...
My main objective when i started was simple:

1. Giving an alternative to the wed couple.

Glance through my blog here, that is my standard. At year 2008
my rates for full package was range from RM 800.00 to
RM 1050.00. The package includes a 22 pages - 8R Album.
Visit any bridal house and ask for their package for actual day,
and compare their photos and album quality.
Like I said, i am giving the wed couple an alternative.

So i guess it is not too late to thank you the Couples of Lighted Darkroom 2008:

1. Garry+Josephyne
2. Larry+Oli
3. Edwin+Mary
4. James+Jacqualine
5. Padesen+Melissa Sue
6. Leslie+Jasmine
7. Han+Selina
8. Labo+Klainarie
9. Melvyn+Angeline
10. Vernon+Jill
11. Namazi&Ranizah
12. Kelvin+Cindy
13. Restena+Herman
14. Wyneer+Adrina
15. Mering Joy+Rachel
16. August+Kalentina

Thank you guys for the trust and opportunity to be part of your important event in life.

p/s: do come back for your 1st anniversary portrait! =)

Indeed this year i am striving for quality in my work. I will work differently this year. I will change my working style and my package.
FQA that i was asked the most was " will you edit the whole photos?" My answer here is- shooting in RAW format need a conversion software. so while on the software, it does need some tweaking here and there, so the answer is yes. but there is a further more editing after the conversion of RAW files to JPEG. that is using photoshop. This will further enhance and boost the images. Normally for a full day wedding i'll end up with around 300 images. So it is quite impossible to enhance all this images within a short period. Due to this, wedding photographer normally select all the important momement or event of the wedding plus the promising shots. So i will do just that. I will do full editing on to at least 100 images, but i'll pass ALL the images to client. So if I got 300 images, i will edit using the conversion software, and then 100 images will be given full editing.

So within the next few days, i will launch my new package for 2009. But for those that that booked me for their wedding in 2009 within year 2008, i will maintain the 2008 rates.And I might extended a grace period for the 2008 rates within January 2009 for the 2008 rates.

So hurry up! I open for bookings! I had 3 already. Two in Miri, One in Kuching. Last month I've just turn down a couple that clash with my earlier bookings. So, better be fast..
A 50 ringgit is consider a booking too!

Blessed Christmas everyone!

Wishing everyone a Blessed Christmas! All post production is moving like snail... ;) i am only human.I got 2 wedding album in production, 1 soft copy editing work, any another 2 wedding coming up-27th & 28th.. Luput leh..

blog layout

For some reason my photos have the wide angle lens effect when i switch the backgroud colour to white.



so, "let the darkroom be lighten!"



It is kind of interesting when i seat back & think back of what makes me plunges into photography. When i was preparing for my own wedding back in Dec, i always surf though the weddding photographer's website. Especially the Singapore bound photographers-here.Day by day i got hook by looking at the images their produced. I started to angan angan & saying to myself i can do this leh.. So after doing some research for the right dslr that tailored for me (in term of budget that is as i just got my bonus at that time)In February 2008 i decided to go for nikon d40x with a standard lens 18-55mm f.3.5-5.6 AFS. Back then i was strugling to get the right exposure. at that time most of the time my photos was either blur, shaking or full of noise effect. nothing like what was in the website that i always visit. Not even close.. then, being cute i bought a SB400 speed light and stick using Auto Mode all the way and thought as long as i have enough light, the camera know what composition to use. DSLR being cost a few thousands of ringgit it is smart enough to dail the right exposure for you. hahaha.. well that what i thought so.. so now after a few stint of event i started to get the right exposure composition and even bring my little blue note book to read my notes. hehe..

I just got an all in one (standard & telephoto) lens an 18mm-200mm f-3.5-5.6 AFS lens. and i enjoy taking candid photos during wedding or other function by using the zoom. It does help to be more versatile during photoshoot.

but then again, i can't get the crisp sharp that i was looking for until recently i came across a few article about the sharp lens. for entry level dlsr owner, instead of pursuing for a telephoto lens like my 18mm-200mm lens with slow f stop, i suggest go for a faster lens. faster lens meaning you can tweak the aperture to the widest(lower f stops). you don't really need telephoto lens because if you are the official photographer for that day, you should the authority to roam about the hall.. but then again, different people have their different opinion on this. but if only i have known earlier, i'll go for a 17mm-55mm f-2.8. to fits my DX camera. Full frame FX maybe not yet lah.. =)

cyberspace silence

cyberspace silence.. I haven't given up on my blog yet nor did my wife had give birth. just a bit busy doing some album of the last photoshoot. been a while , guess i was lost in the cyberspace..

Read a poster of the Signature Photographer last roadshow. I was taken a back when i read one of the talk topic was "Why pro photographer instead of a weekenders." It did hit me on my sensitive side i guess. The topic alone a bit provocative to the freelance or less glamour title "part time photographer"- "A WEEKENDERS" somehow doesn't ring melodically to my ears. it is not even a word.. try type it on a word file document, right click, synomyms ? i told u so.. not even a word.. A bit frustrated some well known pro photographer whom you look up to but choose to go beyond the extreme to promote their service. Anyway, business is business i guess. No doubt their service is top notch, but calling us the weekenders, oo come on.. our existence is simple, just an option. Just an option to the couples.. if our samples up to the client satisfaction, and our rates is half of the other can offer, why not..
p/s - heh, i told u it hit my sensitive nerve..