2009 A YEAR OF RESOLUTION

Resolution 1. the quality of being resolute (determined, unwavering) 2. a firm decision 3. the degree of detail visible in a photographic image.

This is my first post of 2009  and after a year’s hiatus from the wedding scene and having turned down over a dozen enquiries, I’m delighted to announce that I’ve made a conditional come back to the wedding market. Visit my wedding page for updates (when I get round to updating it). I had spent a great part of 2008 in search of inspiration  so the wheels are in motion (pardon the pun) even as I usher in the new year with this post. Congratulations to newlyweds cousin Daniel and his lovely wife Santi for their wedding on January 4th 2009.

I sold my EOS 5D to a friend right after I returned from KK and on the morning I picked up my 5D Mark II, I also picked up a 50mm f/1.4 lens on his behalf and invited him to this shoot. The first three images and the last one (the one that Nick made an exception) were taken by G. and considering this is first ever wedding shoot using his first ever DSLR, he’s discovered a learning curve and there’s no event that pushes all boundaries than shooting a real wedding—for the first time! I like the third picture in the hotel room when Daniel reaches in his pocket for the ring!

↓ This is not part of the bride-sisters torture routine. I came in this car and we had actual car trouble and needed the assistance of the groom’s entourage to get it running again. During this time, I had taken off in the main wedding car, the Honda Odyssey.

G. sighed that he had forgotten to turn on his flash. I think otherwise. Had the flash fired, the shot might not have conveyed the mood of this picture that I like. A bit of retouching and all is well and I particularly like how the bride’s father is observing at a distance as his son-in-law reaches in for the symbol of their unity—no drama—he had the ring!

I thought an ultra-wide angle shot of this worked rather well. Holding the 5DII and 17-40 @ 17mm up against the ceiling to minimize shake.

From the groom’s home to the lunch reception at the Soon Lee Ayamku Seafood Restaurant in Kuala Belait. This is a shot of the red napkin on the main table with an inverted image of it through the salt and pepper shaker holder.

I’ve seen many “street style” shots like this in Singapore weddings and really the chance of a scene like this in Brunei is pretty rare to impossible. It’s not cultural to drag a wedding gown through town. You can imagine how delighted I was as, even for a fleeting moment, Daniel and Santi made their grand entrance they chose this path. This may be the closest opportunity I’ll ever get for a long time unless I drag the next couple through our hawker stalls 🙂

The 5D II’s low light high ISO performance is truly amazing. The venue isn’t particularly bright and the location where the wedding cake is placed and subsequently the champagne opening routine is at least one stop of light dimmer than the far end. On my favourite lens, the EF70-200 f/2.8, I was able to get 1/200 sec at f/2.8 at ISO 3200.

Here is the first shot of my 5D II taken by G. (you know how it is when you’re ecstatic  with the newly acquired  gadget) as I was getting ready for the family group photo. If you’re in the market for a full frame body, the 5D II is competitively priced and as far as I know, is in a class of its own with its HD 1080 video capability. For a very thorough review of the 5D II, check out Roland Lim’s blog. I did say 2009 is a year of resolution—a lot more of it !