Indonesia and Philippines


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ardaan

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Barong is probably the most well known dance. It is also another story telling dance, narrating the fight between good and evil. This dance is the classic example of Balinese way of acting out mythology, resulting in myth and history being blended into one reality.

Note. This was taken with Nikon D90 with my 18-200 Nikon lens. It is a panning shot.


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It is said that the master of metal is not just skill alone but one has to be born in a Pande family.

According to Pak Gede (master blacksmith on the right) the tradition will pass down from father to son and son to grandson.

The Pande is a small, but very tightly knit clan group in Bali. Although the Pande clan did not exist, even in the earliest days the pande has considerable political power, including the right to seat representatives on the governing bodies of the desa (village). To maintain their position of prestige, the smiths kept their techniques secret and saw it in that marriage would take place only within their own professional group.

Pak Gede added that a great blacksmith need to have great strength, great endurance to resist heat and the unique instinct from their mind.

It is said that in the past, Pande sharpen their knives with only their teeth!

It took me some research to locate Pak Gede Mandia and his young son Nyoman Okasuwarna. They stay in a humble house some 40 mins away from Ubud.

I learned a lot from Pak Gede and spend 2 days doing nothing just listening to his amazing stories. And on Sunday morning Pak Gede and son demonstrated the traditional way of sword making. It was a very rare sight as the skill is almost a secret to the outside world. I was honored to observe this rare skill.

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Cakka and I went to Bedugul in the morning just to capture the sunrise. We reached Pura Ulun Danu at 620am. Along the way, we saw the biggest and brightest moon hanging beside Mount Batu. Spectacular sight indeed!

Here I boldly captured the Pura Ulun Danu with the sun in the frame. It is a no no to most photography school of thoughts. But who care, as I like it and I think it is unique. What do you guys think ? :)

;) More to come...
 

swee...:thumbsup:

got to tag along wif u the next time lor...:)
 

swee...:thumbsup:

got to tag along wif u the next time lor...:)

My next trip to Bali will be 22nd Oct to 26th Oct. It is the Balinese' new year..The Kuningan!

Then in November I will be in Tawau, Sabah to visit the Bajau community.

And Dec will be as in South Sulawesi, Flores, Timor, Sumba, Surabaya then Bali.
 

Thomas, unfortunately I cannot tag along with you guys on the 22nd cause I'll be using up my final leave for my Langkawi trip.
I'm so interested to go for the yearend trip once all is done. Send my regards to your sons.

Have to miss the Kuningan :(

And I saw the prices you referred to Bali , so cheap yes!

So sorry again and thanks for the offer. See you soon :)
 

Thomas, unfortunately I cannot tag along with you guys on the 22nd cause I'll be using up my final leave for my Langkawi trip.
I'm so interested to go for the yearend trip once all is done. Send my regards to your sons.

Have to miss the Kuningan :(

And I saw the prices you referred to Bali , so cheap yes!

So sorry again and thanks for the offer. See you soon :)

No problem, bro... we will meet up one day.:cry:
 

My next trip to Bali will be 22nd Oct to 26th Oct. It is the Balinese' new year..The Kuningan!

Then in November I will be in Tawau, Sabah to visit the Bajau community.

And Dec will be as in South Sulawesi, Flores, Timor, Sumba, Surabaya then Bali.

sigh... my army enlistment date..
 

By the way you should change the title of this thread to bali as bali is not Indonesia, definitely not Philiphines, and could be claimed by Malaysia (LOL).
Good photo by the way.

One thing to note is that photo about Barong dance does not show barong at all but showing a dancer potraying a bird character - may be garuda. Barong is the parallel of lion dance in chinese culture, but the bad spirit is depicted in the dance (unlike chinese culture that has no representation in the dance) which is a human form with long while hair, long tongue, and long nails (so need to go for Jean Yip treatment LOL).
 

Haha..I know what you mean... Indonesia claimed by Malaysia..heehee

The dancer photo is from a series of all my work...so akan datang .

By the way you should change the title of this thread to bali as bali is not Indonesia, definitely not Philiphines, and could be claimed by Malaysia (LOL).
Good photo by the way.

One thing to note is that photo about Barong dance does not show barong at all but showing a dancer potraying a bird character - may be garuda. Barong is the parallel of lion dance in chinese culture, but the bad spirit is depicted in the dance (unlike chinese culture that has no representation in the dance) which is a human form with long while hair, long tongue, and long nails (so need to go for Jean Yip treatment LOL).
 

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It is extremely rare to see children performing Kecak’s dance. I only saw it once on a documentary about the Mt. Agung’s volcano and it was in black and white.

But some very rural and remote villages, boys performed along with the adult men. Also known as the Ramayana Monkey Chant, the piece, performed by a circle of 100 or more performers wearing checked cloth around their waists, percussively chanting "cak" and throwing up their arms, depicts a battle from the Ramayana where the monkey-like Vanara helped Prince Rama fight the evil King Ravana.
The Kecak is a spectacular dance, usually performed at night around a bonfire.
It is probably the best known of the many Balinese dances, where dancers move in unison, creating a spectacular choreographic performance. Either hands stretched out, pulled in, rested on the shoulder of the next person, or waists gyrating left and right.
The Kecak is also unusual in that, unlike all other Balinese dances, it does not have a gamelan accompaniment. Instead the background is provided by a chanting ‘choir’ who provide the “cak – cak – cak – cak” noise of the monkeys.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RkxuPxdsZ58&feature=channel_page

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Pura Ulun Danu, Bedugul, Bali

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It was a phenomena of Mt Batok and Bromo view indeed when light beams from the early evening sun shone through the overcast and foggy sky.

This is no HDR ! This is real with slight enhancement of contrast and clarity in Photoshop.

This picture was taken in December 2008 where many think it was the worst time to take photo of Bromo. Visibility is very poor and almost impossible to have a clear view. But I thank God for the phenomena. The rays have made the photo powerful.

And with this I wish all of you a nice day and may your future endeavor be a phenomena too!
 

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I have edited the 90 seconds Trailer. The new version is better and can be viewed in this link www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHJgBp2uNdM You can play in High Definition mode.

But, please view the full video slide show in High definition here at :

www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHT7ddakMRw


Probably I would not be able to upload all photos. However, I have compiled them in the form of video slide show. Please watch the full version.



The Kadayawan Festival is an annual festival in the city of Davao in the Philippines. Its name derives from the friendly greeting "Madayaw", from the Dabawenyo word "dayaw", meaning good, valuable, superior or beautiful. The festival is a celebration of life, a thanksgiving for the gifts of nature, the wealth of culture, the bounties of harvest and serenity of living.

Today, Kadayawan has transformed into a festival of festivals, with a number of spin-off festivals in the region. The festival honors Davao’s artistic, cultural and historical heritage, its past personified by the ancestral “lumads”, its people as they celebrate on the streets, and its floral industry as its representatives parade in full regalia in thanksgiving for the blessings granted on the city. A celebration that interfaces the three aspects: tribal; industrial and; arts and entertainment. The festivities are highlighted with floral floats, street-dancing competitions and exhibits that showcases the island's tourism products and services.
 

Awesome pictures you've got there. I actually saw some of your work on Flickr before seeing them here. I remember them vividly and really liked them, especially the metal worker ones.

Keep up the great work! :thumbsup::thumbsup:
 

Hi thank you sir for the encouragement. This is my first time posting in this forum but Flickr is still my main posting place :D

Awesome pictures you've got there. I actually saw some of your work on Flickr before seeing them here. I remember them vividly and really liked them, especially the metal worker ones.

Keep up the great work! :thumbsup::thumbsup:
 

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Davao, Mindanao - The Colours of Kadayawan 2009

This was my first time visiting Davao and capturing this colourful event of Kadayawan.

The challenge for me was to capture the mood and the fast action of the event. I just wanted to be different from others and I was quite happy with the result.

The security was very tight on the day of the parade. Without the Media pass, my friend Cakka and I were not able to get close to the centre of attraction. We have to improvise and capture the festival differently. We went in between performers, mingled with them and captured them while on the move.

I hope you like my style. This was panning shot of shutter speed set at 1/25

I have edited the 90 seconds Trailer. www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHJgBp2uNdM You can play in High Definition mode.

But, please view the full video slide show in High definition here at :

www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHT7ddakMRw
 

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damn...gd work..:thumbsup:

got time got to show me how to do panning...:embrass:
 

My next trip to Bali will be 22nd Oct to 26th Oct. It is the Balinese' new year..The Kuningan!

Then in November I will be in Tawau, Sabah to visit the Bajau community.

And Dec will be as in South Sulawesi, Flores, Timor, Sumba, Surabaya then Bali.

:eek:...no $$$ wor...:cry:
 

Haha, I can share lah, bro. You know I always share whatever I know but worry I share the wrong thing..haha... I am not a technical person :D

This one for you :

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Quiapo Church, Manila, Philippines - These street children really know how to entertain
themselves


Nothing could stop these street kids from playing. Not the crowd, not our camera and certainly not the rain.

At least they were happy and enjoying themselves.



damn...gd work..:thumbsup:

got time got to show me how to do panning...:embrass:
 

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