= Stefan's Weekly Singapore City/Landscapes II =

[SomeFormOFhuman]

#343

The Land Of Potong Pasir

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2 Image HDR/DRI, 3x2 image multi-row panorama. Shot with the Sony A7 II + 16-35mm f4 Zeiss. Potong Pasir, Singapore.

It's the time of year the sunset is in its favourable position, I thought of continuing this photo project of Potong Pasir that I explored during my free time late last year.

It's been a long time since I last saw sun rays this awesome. It's a little bit faint and not entirely super epic, but will do. Love the hue of pink and purple when I was standing there. For some reason it was pretty windy at the top floor thus I had to stable my camera by gently holding on to it.

Previous shot of another part of Potong Pasir:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/_stefano_/16625239405/in/dateposted-public

 

[Mythmaker]

Love the depth of #343! I think the slanted rooftop added a different dimension to the photo.

 

[SomeFormOFhuman]

Love the depth of #343! I think the slanted rooftop added a different dimension to the photo.

Thanks man.

#344

Potong Pasir Twilight

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2 Image HDR/DRI, 4x3 12 image 180° multi-row panorama + 5 images stacked for vehicle light trails. Shot with the Sony A7 II + 16-35mm f4 Zeiss. Potong Pasir, Singapore.

Look beyond the spectacular rays and notice two bright dots in the twilight sky; Venus and Jupiter so highly visible to the naked eye. Wanted to clone them out but, decided to leave it to serve as a constant reminder of their rarely occurring presence.

I've more places of Potong Pasir scheduled to be shot sometime later this year. Till then, have to wait for the Earth's rotation to achieve the desired sun path.

I gotta say, I think I found the perfect use of the Sony A7 II; I realise this camera seem to perform exceptionally well at shooting cityscapes and night photos. Not sure what could that be but probably the way it handles shadows and tones.

 

[SomeFormOFhuman]

#345

Orchestra City

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2 Image HDR/DRI, 3 Image Vertorama, 2 Images stacked for boat light trails, single image stack for firework, single image stack for lightshow. South Bridge Road, Singapore. Shot with the Sony A7 II + 16-35mm f4 Zeiss @ 21mm.

My random and pathetic attempt at fireworks again mainly because I never really like the shot. I was free on a Saturday afternoon and seeing the fantastic weather and decided, why not. Fired up Google Earth, studied the map a little and found this place, thinking I *might* see fireworks from here. I admit the decision was arbitrary and I honestly didn't care if I see it or not, I just wasn't really interested. Moreover I just hate crowds, and knowing the Elgin bridge wouldn't have many because of its constrained walkway. Cooked my own dinner and packed it tight, charged the A7 batteries, made my way there and the waiting game begins.

Initial plans were to stack more fireworks to increase the intensity, but halfway through post-processing I was just lazy (you know how I feel about shooting cityscapes) and I said, screw this, one of each is just enough, coupled with the light show giving a sense of direction to it. Thank goodness so many bumboats came while I captured their trails using Bulb mode and only stacked two of them.

It's the first and probably the last attempt at fireworks.

 

[snowydust]

Hi Stefan, with regard to #339 and #340, i didn't know such place exists in yishun. May I know where is the location? Thanks!

 

[SomeFormOFhuman]

Hi Stefan, with regard to #339 and #340, i didn't know such place exists in yishun. May I know where is the location? Thanks!

Hi, it's somewhere between the fishing village of Yishun Dam and the bridge to Seletar North Link. Come at a correct tide level of around 1.1m.

#346

Beautiful Day

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2 Image Vertorama using GND 0.6 soft + Haida 12 sop filter for smoothed cloud and water effects. Shot with the Sony A7 II + 16-35mm f4 Zeiss. Pasir Ris Park, Singapore.

Initial plans were to convert it to B&W, but just isn't what I've envisioned the shot to be. B&W landscape photography is still one of the hardest art forms to master and I (still) barely scratch the surface of it.

I've seen those trees before at Pasir Ris and always wanted to photograph them by the water but never had the chance to. I wish the tide would cover more foreground but this is the highest @ 2.9m during this month. So prior to executing this shot I moved the camera a little closer but found the trees would cover 1/4 of the frame which was a little too much... Oh well.

Nothing in life is better when you're free on a weekday during what you love alone. Testing out the new Haida 12 stop filter and loving it so far. Thanks photosphere.sg!

PS, Glad there was an ISO 50 option in the A7 II; no longer the need to stack filters to achieve longer exposures.

300715 UPDATE:
- Fixed gradient banding effect in sky.
- Dust spot clean up.

 

[SomeFormOFhuman]

#347

Toa Payoh Soul (Experimental)

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Single Image RAW, 2 Image Vertorama to achieve higher resolution using Haida 12 stop filter for smoothed cloud effects. Shot with the Sony A7 II + 24-70mm f4 Zeiss. Toa Payoh, Singapore.

I initially shot this with my OnePlus One and uploaded it to Instagram. After deep thought I've decided to do a proper shot of the same angle. (Anyone uses a OnePlus One? I love it, it's a beast of a phone for the price!)

It took me a while to post-process it because I initially corrected all the shadows and highlights but after looking at the final image it somehow, did not achieve the vision I desire. Nearly 20 hours I stared at nothing but my Photoshop workspace and came up with various prototypes.... And finally did something I've never done before: Overblow the foreground and background highlights and completely blacken everything that distracts, only keeping the key elements intact that creates the "melody" or the overall compositional form of the image. Not even sure I did it right, but it was worth a shot.

Anyway it's my long lost attempt at B&W photography which I find it extremely difficult to capture and not easy to come by. As a matter of fact I'm not even confident if this shot does it or even half as good.

 

[SomeFormOFhuman]

#348

Dark Novena

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Single Image RAW. United Square, Singapore.

I waited for the night to come as I love nothing else but spotlights on the building and that no one's in it. Moreover had relaxing coffee at Starbucks with my relatives.

Once again, I'm still not getting the hang of B&W photography.

PS, they could do some cleaning of the glass canopy as the stains on it are an eyesore.

 

[Mythmaker]

Loving 347!

 

[SomeFormOFhuman]

Thanks man!

#349

Novena Blade

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Single Image RAW, using Haida 12 stop filter for smoothed cloud effects. United Square, Singapore.

Clearing whatever I've shot of the same place during the course of the day. Frankly was there because my (newly-wed) relatives moved to their new apartment that's located really close to this place. A house-warming party is always neat.

This is the last boring B&W shot I swear.

 

[kitaro9202]

Just gotta keep a fine balance when doing it! Thanks man.

Gosh I wished I would've moved a little closer to rid that ugly pipe at the foreground... What was I thinking when I shot this.

#298

Heaven On Earth

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2 Image HDR/DRi using GND 0.6 hard + ND 0.9 for smoothed water effects. Pasir Ris Park, Singapore.

It has been a while since I stepped here. The sun was rising and the sunrays exploded. I gotta admit, it was a challenge to compose this scene, as the actual environment appears way much darker than this and the Cumulonimbus cloud created visual heaviness on the right. I overexposed it in hopes to lift away the illusion of visual heaviness and it seemed to work.

It was in fact, the actual visual narrative I had in mind when I stepped here and saw the sun rays - the feeling was heavenly. Hence it was essential that I should put my thoughts of this place in a photograph.

PS, was expecting the tide to be a tittle higher to cover those pipes at the foreground. Distracting if you'd ask me. Too bad, just gotta work with what I have in front of me... Would definitely come back here ASAP when the tide is just right.

hey may i know which part of pasir ris park you took?

i cycle there but did not saw this

 

[SomeFormOFhuman]

hey may i know which part of pasir ris park you took?

i cycle there but did not saw this

Hey man, it's actually at the most western side of Pasir Ris, somewhere near Pasir Ris Farmway (and near Pasir Ris Sports Club, if I recall). It's hard to exactly describe or pin-point the exact location on map but you could also take bus 408 that travels to Pasir Ris Heights (basically, a place full of private houses) should get you there. I shall admit, I haven't been there in a while.

Anyway, don't mind if I share something taken on my recent trip to Langkawi (don't see a need to make a new thread for just this one and another upcoming shot. The weather was bad and I didn't shoot much):

#350

Island Paradise​

Single Image RAW, using 0.6 Reversed GND + Haida 12 stop filter for smoothed cloud and water effects. Langkawi, Malaysia.

Remember in the previous shot where I said it will be my last B&W image? I lied.

Though it may be a short trip to Malaysia, I've never been here before - the beaches are pristine, but of all days, the weather was bad and it rained throughout after this was taken.

 

[edutilos-]

hey may i know which part of pasir ris park you took?

i cycle there but did not saw this

It's beyond the part that you can cycle to, right at the end and more.

 

[kitaro9202]

It's beyond the part that you can cycle to, right at the end and more.

So is near the home team ns side?

Sent from my D6503 using Tapatalk

 

[SomeFormOFhuman]

So is near the home team ns side?

Sent from my D6503 using Tapatalk

Yep as per in my previous post, it's relatively near Home Team NS side. When you get down to the shore, there's still a 5 minute walk to the exact place.

 

[SomeFormOFhuman]

After this, it'll be back to photos of Singapore again. Stay tuned.

#351

The Only Good Day Was Yesterday

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...Because it rained, subsequently.

2 Image HDR/DRI, 2 Image Vertorama using GND 0.6 Reverse GND + Haida 6 stop filter for smoothed water and cloud effects. Langkawi, Malaysia.

Initial plans were to get nearer to shore but the waves were strong and repeatedly splashed onto my filter. Thankfully not the camera (because it isn't mine!) and it also seem pretty rocky and unstable to stand on those rocks. Safety first!

Even though this was shot a day before and could've uploaded it first, it was the only way to create a sense of finality. If there's any consolation, two good shots are better than none.

Till we meet again, Langkawi.

 

[IceColdBeer]

Hi,
Great sunrise shot. May i know where you shoot this photo from ?

#12

Melancholia Blue​

7 Image HDR/DRI using GND 0.9 soft + ND 0.9 for smoothed cloud effects. Bishan HDB Estates, Singapore.

The blue hours of the morning really tints the entire atmosphere and its environment really blue at this time of the year. Which really helps to bring the melancholia I love to hypnotize with my viewers...

Love coming back here again and again, and again for the Bishan sunrise. With different angles, cloud, weather conditions and different motives of mine, you'll never know what you'll get each time!

 

[SomeFormOFhuman]

Hi,
Great sunrise shot. May i know where you shoot this photo from ?

That's somewhere in Bishan St. 13, one of the blocks if I recall.

 

[SomeFormOFhuman]

#352

City 17

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Single image RAW, 3x2 image multi row panorama using GND 0.6 soft. Marina Bay South, Singapore.

Shot this sometime in August but never really got around to process or upload it.

Since the day we're born we're made to be machines - We don't see it because time has made us adapt to the system. No longer the identity we've created from scratch, no longer who we are.

Society hates it when someone else is different or breaks societal compliance. For a long time now, it's something I can't quite put my finger on. I can't quite fit in with the culture, I can't quite fit in with the people and I can't quite fit in with its (crumbling) society.

Here's what helps a lot to get through the day of this dead town - and it works because people seem to like this cloak I put on. No one knows, nobody cares where you've been; might as well not be born.

City 17 - If you've played Half Life 2 during the early parts of the game, you'll know why I titled it City 17. Post-processing was based on the subdued primary colour tones and atmosphere of the game:
https://goo.gl/CniKXB

 

[Mythmaker]

352 is amazing! Dem feels.