Gratitude-Values-Faith

  • May 2, 2012 9:38 pm

Straight-Out-Of-the-Camera with stamp.

 

Hello world!! I sincerely apologize for my very long absence from this space. In case you are wondering, all has been well for me:) I have heaps to update you about but I will summarize them into 3 main points. Hopefully it will turn out to be short and sweet.

Gratitude

Since week 1 of Semester 1, I have been crazily busy with catching up, reading up, organizing my things and trying to be on top of things. This is my final year and I want to put my best effort in every assessment. After 7 weeks, I am still trying to catch up. With all the goals come stress. True enough, all my course mates have the same goal in mind, hence we were all stressing one another out and keeping each other on track. It has been a hectic 6 weeks before I could actually pause and have a short break. Week 8 just ended and we have 5 more weeks to go before the end of semester 1.

Throughout this semester, I have been very aware of my surroundings. During the day when I am outdoors, I would look at the clear blue sky and enjoy the beautiful view; when I come home late at night I would look up and gaze at the twinkling stars; Not forgetting the sunsets that take my breath away in the midst of completing assessments… In the midst of the hustle and bustle in life, take a moment to pause, breathe and enjoy His creation (Even if it means just looking up at the sky for 5 seconds). Isn’t it wonderful to know that the Creator who made all things beautiful loves you so very much? I don’t know about you but just being reminded about this fact makes my days all the more brighter :)

Values

2 weeks ago we were asked to complete the VIA Character Strengths Profile as part of a subject. It is basically a questionnaire (that took approximately 30 minutes to complete) that helps you to identify values that you prioritize in life in a hierarchical order based on the questionnaire. It was interesting how my results turned out to be slightly different from what I expected them to be. Have a go at it and feel free to share your results :)   Click here for the link to the website.

My top 6 results are as follows:

Your Top Character Strength

Gratitude
-You are aware of the good things that happen to you, and you never take them for granted. Your friends and family members know that you are a grateful person because you always take the time to express your thanks.

Your Second Character Strength

Spirituality-
You have strong and coherent beliefs about the higher purpose and meaning of the universe. You know where you fit in the larger scheme. Your beliefs shape your actions and are a source of comfort to you.

Your Third Character Strength

Teamwork
-You excel as a member of a group. You are a loyal and dedicated teammate, you always do your share, and you work hard for the success of your group.

Your Fourth Character Strength

Love
-You value close relations with others, in particular those in which sharing and caring are reciprocated. The people to whom you feel most close are the same people who feel most close to you.

Your Fifth Character Strength

Honesty
-You are an honest person, not only by speaking the truth but by living your life in a genuine and authentic way. You are down to earth and without pretense; you are a “real” person.

Character Strength #6

Hope
-You expect the best in the future, and you work to achieve it. You believe that the future is something that you can control.

As a matter of fact, the last value on my list is

Love of learning
- You love learning new things, whether in a class or on your own. You have always loved school, reading, and museums-anywhere and everywhere there is an opportunity to learn.

After pondering upon my results, I realized 2 things.

1. My top 6 values are somehow linked and related to each other, and I believe that God’s presence in my life has greatly influenced these values.

2. I do not hate learning (which is obvious considering that I am currently still studying), but I guess my other values must have had much higher ratings that this one. However, if given the choice, I would most definitely choose heading out with my Nikon than to learning a new subject for 5 hours.

Faith

As most of you may (or may not) know, I have been “hiving” for the past 5 months. Hive or  Urticaria is a form of rash that is usually caused by allergic reactions. However, after numerous consultations to the skin specialist and GP, we have yet found the cause of it. Blood test results have shown that I am not allergic to any food (thank God) or the environment and I have been taking anti-histamines daily since December 2011. Things are under control when I am on the anti-histamines. Although doctors told me that anti-histamines do not have any long term effects, I am still not at peace with the idea of taking medications every single day just to alleviate the symptoms. I will be seeing the allergy specialist in a month’s time and hopefully we will get some answers then. At the mean time, it would be great if you could pray with me in this matter, holding hope that I will be well again someday soon. p/s If you have any prayer requests, drop them in the comments box and we can all pray with you as well. Know that whatever you are going through, you are not alone.

“Through His stripes, we are healed”  Isaiah 53:5

Lastly,

HAPPY BLESSED BIRTHDAY to my dearest aunty!! Don’t you reckon we have the SU family resemblance?

Peace out.

Miss Amanda

  • February 28, 2012 8:38 pm

It was a sunday afternoon when Amanda and I had a fun photoshoot under the sun. I was telling her how I rarely shoot under the sun. Most of my recent shoots were done on a cloudy day so I would not have any problems with harsh shadows. I was aware of how my photos would turn out, but had a go with it anyway. The sun gave a nice glow to my model and the wind effect gave her a fashionista feel. WIN.

Unfortunately, my favorite portrait lens was malfunctioned during part of the shoot, so I had to manually focus while shooting. It wasn’t easy especially when manual-focusing is not my forte. Thank God pictures turned out well. Lens baby has been sent for repair. Hence I would have to take a break from portrait shooting for awhile. :( Enough with the sad talk, shooting Amanda was fun. This girl has attitude and confidence. That is what I like in a model. She knows what she wants and gives a go to every suggestion I made (this includes climbing over and under objects). I am a very dangerous photographer. beware! *wink* I hope you enjoy this final series of photos taken in my beautiful hometown, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia.

These 2 shots are my favorite. Nice motion shots are rare because you can never get the exact shots again.

End.

The Lim sisters

  • February 24, 2012 3:21 am

Growing up with Cindy and Vivian, it is wonderful to see them transforming from young innocent girls into beautiful young ladies. Now with a new addition, the fun has just begun! My first attempt in child photography has made me realize how challenging it is to shoot children, especially cheeky ones! Before the shoot, I had all these wonderful ideas in my mind that I wanted to try. Come that day, inspiration flew out of my mind when I was trying ever so hard to make this cheeky girl listen to me. Thank God for the 2 sisters who did most of the persuasion and instructing. Not forgetting my good friend/assistant, Miss Cheryl who was there to take behind the scenes photos of the chaos and throwing in brilliant ideas every now and then ;) By the end of the shoot, we were all knackered. With the high level of difficulty + unstable weather condition, I was surprised that the pictures came out better than I expected. However, it was during the filtering and post-processing process when I realized how much room I still have for improvements. In 10 years time, I hope that these pictures will still put a smile on the sisters’ faces, remembering the endless sweat, mosquito bites and laughter that we all shared together <3

All in all, it was a good photoshoot with great team effort!

Oh did I mention that I LOVE models/clients who come prepared with props? Look on and you will see what I mean..

Goofing around with her nerdy glasses :D

Supermodel-to-be

This is a perfect example of working around circumstances. The girl behind was not aware that she was part of the frame ;)

One of my favorites from this series <3

End.

Miss Esther

  • February 21, 2012 2:20 am

During Chinese New Year, I had the opportunity of photographing my beautiful cousin, Esther. While she was getting ready for the portrait session, it started pouring outside grandpa’s house. The extremely wet weather has limited our shoot to just indoors. It was funny because at the beginning of the shoot, we had spectators (aunties & uncles) and it seemed like everyone had an opinion. Esther and I were confused with the many voices (who provided ideas with of course, good intentions), so we ended up chasing them away :p Although the session was extremely short, it was nonetheless an enjoyable one. I specifically requested for her to use a RED lipstick to complement the vintage look I was trying to achieve for this series. It didn’t turn out too bad did it? ;)

I am looking forward to our next shoot in a year’s time. It will be awesome!

Miss Annabelle

  • January 18, 2012 11:32 pm

Shooting someone who grew up with you, someone who shared your achievements, joy and tears, someone that you know will always be there for you…..is a totally different feeling. This is our third portrait shoot together (since 2007) and honestly, I did not have to do much. While I wish we had more shooting time together, I am glad that we have improved since our last shoot. Well done buddy! This girl is ever ready, full of energy and her confidence just blows you away. Ladies and gentleman, I present to you my supermodel :)

Enjoy!!

The Queen & her princess

  • January 15, 2012 8:18 pm

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon and I did a photoshoot with the amazing Queen and her princess, Sarah. The queen has been wanting me to take some portraits of her since forever and I am honored to make her “dream” come true. ;)

Honestly, I am not good at directing people with fancy poses, and because of that, I enjoy capturing natural moments when the subjects are at their most comfortable state. Some of you may wonder the reason behind having different post-processing “feel” for each photo. Every frame has a story to tell and I like exploring the different “mood” that represents each frame.

I love how my models (thus far) can still give me such beautiful smiles after my “fierce” instructions. Perhaps I was not fierce enough? tsk tsk. Whatever it is, I am glad that people enjoy the process and final product as much as I do :) Love you all!

Enjoy!

Photo shoot with Carol and Kenny

  • January 5, 2012 1:31 am

I did a casual photo shoot with my beautiful friends Carol and Kenny on New Year’s Eve. I was initially worried about the weather because it had been raining every afternoon for the past 2 weeks. Without a doubt, the couple must have been praying hard for good weather and miraculously, it stopped raining by noon :)

It was such a joy photographing this couple. You do not need to physically know them to see how much they enjoy each other’s company and how they complement one another. Thanks again for bringing the props, being so sporting and for trusting me to capture priceless moments of you two. We sure had a wicked time trying out new things! I hope this series of photos will bring a smile to your face as much as it did to me. Lastly, may 2012 be a year of breakthroughs and awesomeness as we entrust our lives in the hands our Creator. Blessings to you and your family <3

Effortless.

The Boss.

K: you can stand under my tiny umbrella :)

Partners in crime.

Too easy to win a girl’s heart! NOT.

They had their candid moments.

Our very FAIL fighting session. The photographer had a good time laughing out loud behind the camera *wink*

Portrait shoot with Cassandra

  • October 26, 2011 12:00 am

During the mid-semester break, I did a photo shoot with my gorgeous cousin, Cassandra. It was raining and drizzling most of the time. So when the rain finally stopped (for awhile), we made the most of it. The photos turned out better than I expected, partly because I really didn’t expect much when the weather was so unpredictable. On hindsight, I am actually thankful for the rainy weather as I did not have to worry about my model being under harsh shadows. There is always something to be thankful for isnt it? ;)

Enjoy!


This week marks the final week of Semester 2. I still find it hard to believe that I am already halfway through my course! The coming weeks will be pretty hectic, with final assessments due and examination around the corner. All the best to those who are in the same boat as I. In the midst of your exam preparation, remember to pause, breathe and cast your burden upon our Creator who loves you more than anything else in the world :)

Quote

  • October 17, 2011 12:01 am

Have a fruitful week ahead! :)

Hello 22

  • October 14, 2011 10:53 pm

I had a wonderful birthday on wednesday. A day filled with good food, good company, birthday songs, gifts, cards, lovely wishes on facebook and twitter, international & national text messages and phonecalls :) Each and everyone of you made my day all the more joyous and special. I truly am more than blessed.

Brunch with my girls

Assorted cakes

Thanks for the cheesecake “se gu” (a.k.a. small aunt) :)

Dinner @ Bon’s

Thank you so much for baking the yummylicious cake Bon!

It was funny how my thunderous laughter made a deep impression to people around me recently. Did my laughter get louder over the years or were people just less observant during my highschool years? Hhhmmm….

Last but not least, I thought I’d share a birthday song sent all the way from home with you. Special thanks to Kevin Y. and his cell group for your thoughtfulness :) *melts*

Birthday song