Portrait #9

Pattaya is a city in Thailand, a beach resort popular with tourists and expatriates.

It is located on the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand, about 100 kilometres (62 miles) southeast of Bangkok.

Hangin on the shore of Pattaya, one can see a lot of tourist and water sport enthusiast. It is indeed a busy tourist attraction. 

After the trip to Koh Larn, we had a short opportunity to relax and take some photos at the shore of Pattaya.

Still armed with a single speedlight and my x100, I wanted to create a different mood for my next portrait.

Aunt Janet made a quick pose for us.

With this I can conclude that I will be alright travelling with a light kit, my X100 and a single speedlight. 

Not enough for a pro work, but good enough for travelling light do that one can enjoy the trips more.

Cheers.

Alex

Portrait #8

Last December, we had the chance to visit Koh Larn island, Thailand.

It is a beautiful island 30 minutes off the coast of Pattaya. Read more about the island here.

I was able to made a quick portrait of our friend Glace using my X100 and a single speedlight.

Situations like this calls for a quick and simple set up.

For this shot, I set my X100 to A priority and use a handheld speedlight as a fill flash.



A very fast and suitable set up when travelling and planning to take some portraits.

No need to carry the heavy stuff.

A good way to enjoy photography while travelling.

Cheers.

Alex

Portrait #7

We are supposed to shoot around 5 PM, but some misinformation about the venue caused some delays.

 I arrived at the park a little bit more than 6 PM.

Light is fading, I need to move fast and think about my lighting.

We are supposed to shoot retro style portraits, but with fading light, it's impossible.

A single flash at camera left. Shot with my X100.

Not close to what we really wanted, but circumstances led us to this.

My subject seems satisfied, I'm not.


We agreed to shoot sometime in the future again.

Instances like these always reminds me to always be ready of different kinds of lighting needs.


But it's all part of the joy and excitement of doing photography.


Model: Kristine

Kristine is a musician based in Bangkok, Thailand.

She loves to play the violin, and been doing so for the last six years or more.

Cheers!

Alex

Early morning with the Fuji X100

We woke up before dawn to catch a glimpse of Erawan during its early hours of glory. Once we finished our coffee, we set off on our adventure. The sun was just beginning to rise, and the air had a crisp, refreshing quality to it. It was perfect! Equipped with just one flash, we made our way towards the waterfalls, stopping along the way to snap some shots.

I was testing my light, I had Lyn sat at the middle of the paved path surrounded by trees and bamboos.

A little farther ahead, we had a very nice spot where the sun is shining through the thick forest of bamboos.

I love how the X100 rendered the color of the sunlight. A handheld flash was used as a fill light.

After a brisk walk, we finally reached our destination: the first level waterfall, which we had chosen as the location for our portrait shoot.

As Lyn changed into a new outfit, I prepared my camera and flash, eager to start capturing some great shots.

Shot with one flash on a stand at camera right.  Lyn was braving the chilly water of Erawan falls.

After a satisfying photoshoot at the first level waterfall, we decided to take a couple more shots before heading back to our room. As we walked, we couldn't help but feel excited for the climb going to the seventh fall of Erawan. We knew that it was going to be a long and tiring journey, but the thought of capturing more breathtaking shots kept us going.

Shot with the same set up as above. Shot with aperture of  f2.8, 1/125 seconds at ISO 200.

The Fuji X100 is my go-to camera for environmental portraits. The sync at any speed and the built-in 3-stops ND filter make it a perfect fit. It's the camera I always grab for shots like the ones above.

There's something special about the morning light. The way it refreshes everything and adds a golden touch to the scenery is simply breathtaking. Walking around with the X100 during these hours is effortless, but if I had brought my DSLR, I'd be dragging it around like a backpacker's bag. Sadly, waking up early is not always easy, so we can always resort to shooting during sunset.

Cheers!

Alex