Hello World!

Says my new 5D Mark 2.

There is a whole stock of shots from Hong Kong and Macau that is waiting to be processed. But I chose this for my 5D2 to say Hello World!

It is a view of the Central Business District – the financial Hub of Singapore overlooking the Marina Bay. Also visible, if you manage to see the High Resolution are the iconic Fullerton Hotel and the Merlion.

This is one frame that I wanted to get ever since I moved to Singapore. I must have gone to this place a zillion times now but I didn’t manage to get this shot. In fact, I once went there specifically on purpose – a photowalk if you will to shoot night shots - but I forgot the quick release plate on my tripod and promptly got home after a eating somewhere close by.

But at a different level, posting this shot now gives it a totally different meaning – I will now be able to get what I wouldn’t have been able to get away with my previous gear. With an awesome sensor that provides nearly perfect, super clean shots even at high ISOs and HUGE files good enough to make A2 (or larger) prints, I hope to take my photography to a whole new level in the days to come. The transition will be smooth – so don’t expect a drastic change. I’m still struggling to find the controls without seeing them, something that is now a reflex action on my Rebel XSi.

This shot also incorporates a new Post Processing work-flow introduced to me by my friend Manu Murthy. I have various techniques so far for dodging and burning my shots – starting with graduated filters and brushes in Lightroom to very crude masking in Lightroom. But this new workflow involves Luminosity Painting, a technique perfected by Tony Kuyper. It produces tremendous outputs with marked improvement over what I’ve been doing so far in Photoshop. This is the reason why the purples in the sky (yes, it was purple this day) stands out amidst the bright buildings. My eyes saw them and I’m glad that I was able to reproduce it. Now that I know how awesome Tony’s techniques are, I hope to understand how they work and master them.

Hopefully, Let’s kick some ass.