I’d been reading about the Photo Hunt for a while now, but never participated because I did not have a proper camera. I thought it might be fun to participate, to practice my photo taking skills, so here’s my virgin entry for this week’s theme which is “Bright”.

“Bright” here refers to the brightly coloured trishaws that ply the streets of Melaka or Malacca. They used to be a common mode of public transportation but is now mostly a tourist attraction. A 1 hour ride costs RM40 (US$12.26) which is pricey but its one of those things I guess a tourist must do in Melaka!

You know the good thing about these trishaws? They are run on man power and thus are not affected by the fuel hike…

Have you ever played this game called Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?

Well let’s play Where in the World is Paris Beaverbanks?

Go on then, take a guess….

Happy weekend everyone!

Not “sex” and the “city” lah… Sex and the City - the hit tv series and now, the Movie. “Sex” and the “city” will be another story altogether won’t it?!

All beauty blogs and fashion blogs and girly girly blogs were all a buzz in the middle of the month about the premiere of the Sex and the City movie.

All except this one you would have noticed.

This site and all my other related sites have been bereft of all mention of Sex and the City whether in movie or tv series form. The answer is simple.

I’ve never watched Sex and the City.

And I have no desire to.

I read the book - I have it in my book shelf - and I wasn’t all that taken by it. I read it and promptly forgot what its about. Was there sex in the city? Don’t ask me! I have no idea!

I’d actually rather go and watch Kungfu Panda.

Now, what does that say about me?

Its been a while since I got my Asus EeePC and no, I did not forget to write about it. You know how it is about techy gadgets? As soon as you get one, a new better improved version will appear in the market. Damn geram I tell you!

My EeeePC was the early 7″ screen one with 4GB of space. In non-geek speak, that’s barely enough space to swing a cat in (not that I will in case I get lambasted by animal rights activists!) So, I don’t store anything on my PC at all. That’s what 4GB and 8GB thumbdrives are for right?

The new version is the EeePC 900 which boasts a larger 9″ or 10″ screen and 20GB of space. Sure, it also boasts a bigger price tag, but still….

Anyway, green-eyed bitching aside, what do I think of the EeePC? I won’t go into specifications and techy talk - that’s what geek review sites are for. This is a fluff site right? So, I’ll tell you instead 7 ways an EeePC is a useful tool. Continue reading →

Its been an exhausting week.

Ever tried cheerleading for 7 days in a row? Over the telephone?

Shake your pom poms! Rah! Rah! Rah!

Cheerleading during my time in school was really tame compared to the acrobatics that I see these days. I was never a cheerleader though and being optimistic in order to lift others out of the doldrums is just so taxing when you don’t exactly quite feel that way!

But all that cheerleading may yet pay off because I’m seeing some results. The clouds might yet lift for the sun to shine through!

Whew!

Since everything’s been dark and gloomy and silent here last week, let me showcase some pictures I’ve been taking:-

I have been playing around with my new Canon Ixus 860 in the past weeks. Its a nifty little thing and I’m really loving it. Dare I say my picture taking skills seem to be improving? I hope so!

I’m still taking mostly pictures of food (for Pink Parisian) and learning every day how to take a better food photo for the food blog. I spent the weekend reading loads of sites that offer tips on taking good food photography and am trying to put theory into practice. Its not easy and I’m so pleased that my whole family has accepted me as a food blogger!

We went out for dinner and when I whipped out my camera, my dear ol’ Dad actually stopped halfway to putting his chopsticks into his ramen, just so I could snap a picture of it! What would I do without the support of my family! Unfortunately for me, all the pictures turned out too dark and now that I have a proper camera, I am getting pickier about the pictures I put up online of my food.

There is no more excuse for me to put up mediocre or crappy dark, out of focus pictures online when I know that with a bit of practice and patience I can actually have some proper drool-worthy photos. Yes, I’m turning into a perfectionist. My Canon might be a simple little point and shoot, but it is good enough for me (I’m not yet in the league of the food bloggers with SLR cameras) for now. Its also rekindled my interest in photography so yay! Something new to learn!

Anyway, here are some stuff I learnt about food photography over the weekend that I’m sure will help those of you who are also into writing about food:-

• The Macro setting on the camera is your best friend. It allows you to get right up close to your food and still keep it in focus.
• Natural lighting is best. Not direct sunlight though, just enough sunlight to cast some natural light on the food.
• No Flash at any cost. Using the flash washes out the colours and texture of the food and makes it look too stark and unappetizing.

Not much to my surprise, these tips work well if you are taking photos of beauty products too as I have been for my beauty reviews site. So there is a co-relation between food and beauty after all!

The Canon Ixus 860 has a huge LCD screen but no viewfinder. It doesn’t bug me but it seems to bug some people based on some online reviews. I find the focus good and it performs decently enough under low light conditions which was the prime reason I chose this Canon over the Panasonic Lumix. Being a food blogger (reviewer) too, I have to have a camera that works in low light because most restaurants keep their lights low.

I’m worried about the flimsy cover for the AV/USB output as it feels and looks like it could break at any second so I’m extra careful with it. The battery cover too is rather flimsy. I found battery life decent. A full charge lasted me about a week without having to recharge. However I only took about 5-8 photos a day without flash so that has to be taken into consideration.

All in all, I’m loving this little Ixus 860. Its a decent point and shoot camera and I think I’ll just stick to Canon for cameras from now on because I can use the same USB cable as with the old Canon I had which gives me more mobility!

I hope everyone had a good weekend too and thank you all for your kind support over the last week!