ROBIN WONG

One day, out of total randomness I decided to sign up for a Nikon Photowalk happening here in Kuala Lumpur. It was an official event, organized by Futuromic (caretaker and distributor of Nikon in Malaysia) and I did have some friends there which I met and caught up with. I brought along my Nikon D600 and 50mm F1.8 D and had some fun joining the group for a walk along the streets. The theme for the day was black and white, and I did submit my monochromatic images to the group. However, the day was just too colorful to stick strictly to black and white, and here in my own blog I can show whatever I want, so I am celebrating all the wonderful colors from that photowalk session. Also I made a video from that same images I took from this session, explaining why I love using 50mm for my street photography, you can find the video here (click). 

I have just dropped a new video, and it was fully presented in my own national language, Bahasa Malaysia. I have been actively making YouTube videos for more than 3 years now, all the videos have been fully spoken in English. I decided to try something different and experiment with Malay because I feel that it can be a way to connect better with the local audience. Of course, this is just a trial, my English speaking content will continue to come and there is no change to the way I share my content on YouTube, but I thought it would be fun to do something completely different, and pushed myself out of my own comfort zone. You can find the video which is live now here (click). 

I have been experimenting with minimalist setup for video and photo gear lately. I had the idea of fitting everything into a small carry bag, with easy access, and the setup should be versatile enough for my normal street photography shooting and recording POV video of that session simultaneously. I finally did it, after purchasing a cheap crossbody messenger bag from Decathlon that costs RM49(USD15) and I went out and did a full POV video which I published on my main channel here (click). Here, I am sharing the breakdown of stripped down, bare minimalist setup which I adopted to produce that particular video. 

I also made another video on my vlog channel to share this minimalist setup in the small bag - you can view the video here (click). 

Since I was getting serious in making more videos for YouTube, I find myself having to compromise when it comes to shooting high quality street photography images. I had to prioritize making videos as the YouTube platform is generating a significant chunk of my income. Having to juggle multiple devices all at once - the video camera to shoot a video, a photo camera to do street photography, a microphone to record video separately, my smartphone to refer to my video script as I forget what I have to say way too often, and sometimes, a HDMI capture device, or another separate camera for a different view or B-Rolls, you get the idea, multitasking takes some toll on my attention when I was trying to get somewhat decent images. I know that is no excuse, as I can just put everything aside and give my 100% in shooting good street images, but hey, those don't make me money, and my photography jobs (shoots) aren't recovering fast enough post-covid. 

I guess only a content creator could relate to my struggles and challenges. It also eats me up inside knowing that my images could have been better, and I was not performing at my best ability. 

These are the OK shots, not great shots, but good enough to be included in my latest video. All images were shot with Olympus PEN E-P1 and M.Zuiko 17mm F2.8 pancake lens. 

Pentax has been making the quirkiest cameras ever and I love them for that. From their super fun, colorful miniature Pentax Q system to the misunderstood K-01 with unconventional design, Pentax does not care about mainstream trends, and they have always done things their own way. I applaud them for staying true to their own style and not give in to market pressure. While everyone is chasing the latest technology, outdoing each other with AI Deep Learning AF tracking, and pushing the boundaries of megapixels and technical perfection, Pentax decided to just launch a fully black and while camera, the K-III Mark III Monochrome! I thought was move was bold and commendable. I discuss this and more over a POV shooting session at Sekinchan with friends. You can find the POV video here (click). 

All images shown here were taken with Pentax K-01 and 40mm F2.8 pancake lens. 

Olympus C-8080 was launched almost 20 years ago, but this camera shows that Olympus clearly knew what they were doing, it has some futuristic features that are commonplace in today's modern digital cameras. For example, the C-8080 features electronic viewfinder with live exposure simulation, basically the same what you see is what you get preview in modern EVF, and they already implemented this in 2004! The camera also has tilt LCD screen, which is convenient for low and high angle shooting, something a lot of modern cameras today also replicated. I explored these features and more during my recent shutter therapy session with the Olympus C-8080, it was such a fun camera to use! I did a video of course; you can find it here (click).