ORIGRAMI – Print Your Instagram

March 31, 2014 Leave a comment

Like most Instagram users (200 millions of them!), I love the “Polaroidic effects” on my digital photographs. These perfectly imperfect colorised photographs (grainy, under and overexposed, under and over saturated and vignetted) carry more depth and character than the other white-balanced-perfect digital shots. That is the reason why many users like Instagram!

I had over 2,000 Instagram shots and most of them are precious moments of my friends and loved ones. Finally, I found a wonderful company that converts my Instagram photos into beautiful prints! Introducing ORIGRAMI (http://www.origrami.com/) – a Sydney-based husband and wife team – who created a super user-friendly website (and now an iOS Origrami app) that allows you to browse your personal Instagram images effortlessly and get them printed! I love their passion and this awesome business idea!

For AU$29,95, you get 36 retro prints on 4″x5″ premium matte cards, housed in a very attractive “RangeFinder” tin pack. There are multiple design themes to choose from including a photo-map (printed at the back of each print) showing the location where the picture was taken* (that’s provided if you have stated the location of the photo taken in the Instagram). Best of all, delivery fee is free and it covers worldwide shipping! The web interface is so simple to use that I produced a couple of boxes for my wife and friends within half an hour! My favourite theme is the Polaroid frame.

Thanks to its co-founder, Jeff who is super-attentive and provides great after-sales customer service! Through him, I managed to get all 5 “RangeFinder” tin packs today to share with all my readers! Origrami is no doubt one of the greatest personalised gifts for your friends and families!

Filed under Cool Stuffs

Birthday Girl from Singapore

March 30, 2014 4 Comments

I was blessed with many Singaporean visitors over the past 3 weekends! Gareth, Felicia, Elkan, Joanne and Sherane were all in town! The two beautiful (non-stop-laughing-crazy girls) cousins dropped by specially to Hong Kong to visit us last Saturday! Felicia, Elkan, Tracy and I were so happy to receive them! We planned a small birthday dinner for Joanne on my favourite floating sea-food restaurant at Causeway Bay. It’s great to have good company in town! Just last night, I bid goodbye to my lovely young aunt, Yin San and uncle-to-be, Wei Siong. And in less than an hour later, Kalinda’s younger sister was walking a few blocks away from my apartment and we decided to catch up for a short bite!

Filed under Life in Hong Kong, Wahbiang

Instant addiction ~ Polaroid!

March 3, 2014 Leave a comment

It has been a week since I started my new obsession with my newly acquired vintage Polaroid cameras. My new hobby is highly poisonous and infectious! I have already indirectly infected a couple of my friends over the short 5 days. Worst of all, the addiction keeps growing deeper and deeper.

I love the touch and feel of these old cameras and films. The chemicals made the colours of the photographs so unique and rich. I enjoy the endless experimentation of the shutter, aperture and flash. I love watching the slow-processing photograph because the outcome was always so different and unexpectedly surprising.

3 days ago, my addiction in Polaroid drove me to acquire another new toy – The Impossible Instant Lab. Funded entirely by Kick-starter a year ago, the Impossible Instant Lab is a simple instant-photo printer that allows you to transfer any digital photographs onto the Polaroid films. All you need is just an iPhone 4/5. The device comes with an iPhone 4/5 tray that acts like an photo projection. All it takes it just an iOS app and 3 simple steps to print the photographs. For those who find it difficult to achieve photo-perfect on the SX70 camera will enjoy this. Every digital projection casts out a rich and vivid Polaroid photograph.

It is so addictive! I spent 3 hours on Sunday afternoon to print out all my favourite travel photographs. The result? A wall full of Polaroid Precious Moments.

Filed under Cool Stuffs, Jo's Thoughts, Life in Hong Kong, Travel

Falling in love with vintage gadgets

February 23, 2014 Leave a comment

The last few months have been rather strange. I am no longer intrigued by the latest smartphones, game consoles, wear-techs or even the upcoming new AR drone and the Instagram Socialmatic camera. None of these new gadgets has aroused me.

Surprisingly, I found myself falling in love with vintage gadgets. It all started when someone in office left a vinyl player on my desk. I was intrigued by the mechanism and the way it was built. And over the holidays, my parents showed me a stalk of old family photographs. I love the colours and textures of old photographs. The imperfections of these images show a lot of character. Unlike today’s digital photographs, these film-produced vintage photographs reveal the passage of time.

I found out that there are more and more people like me who appreciate the goodness of these vintage stuffs. One of my art directors inspired me to go gadget-hunting online. I started browsing the internet for vintage gadgets and read more about them. Many of them are still very well-preserved and kept in good working condition. After 5 long nights of bargain-hunting on eBay, I bought 7 vintage cameras (3 classic 1940s Canons 35mm rangefinder cameras and 4 iconic 1970s Polaroid SX70)! It was a good (and risky) bargain to shop on eBay as some of these refurbished vintage cameras are selling at 4X more the price in Hong Kong. The biggest risk is the working condition of these old gears. Out of the 7 cameras I bought, 2 had to be sent out for repair locally. Nevertheless, it is still worthwhile.

It is an expensive new love. While the cameras are cheap, the films and its processing fees aren’t. I have to be extra attentive before I press the button – especially on the Polaroid. Each Polaroid Film cost HKD25! It took me almost 20 trials before I got to that ideal shot! My first 10 Polaroid Films came out super over-exposed. It was an expensive lesson. Thankfully, the friendly staffs at Mint Hong Kong (a shop that refurbish and sell vintage Polaroid in mint condition) gave me lots of tips to guide me. Check them out here: http://www.mint-camera.com/en/

While trying out on these vintage cameras, I came to realise how difficult it was to handle these slow manual machines. Without any digital sensors or auto-focus features, it is very difficult to compose and capture that “magic moment”. Legendary photographers from those eras are truly respectable! It is not easy at all to achieve a good shot. It certainly require lots of skills and practices.

Despite the pain and the very expensive trials, I love the final outcome of all my shots. I love the imperfect colours and textures in my photographs. The images are truly rich and authentic. And best of all, it starts to age beautifully with time.

Polaroid is no longer producing films or those old cameras since 2008. For those who are interested to get an authentic 40-year-old Polaroid SX70 or new films, you can still find them here:

1) MINT HONG KONG –  http://www.mint-camera.com/en/polaroid-sx70/
2) THE IMPOSSIBLE PROJECT – https://shop.the-impossible-project.com/shop/
3) eBAY – http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_sacat=0&_from=R40&_nkw=polaroid%20sx%2070&_fscr=1

While buying on eBay is certainly 1-2X cheaper than some local photoshops, but you have to be extra careful. Always make sure you check the camera’s description is “TESTED” and in “WORKING CONDITION” with the sellers. I ordered 4 pcs but 1 of them is not working at all.

Check out the 35mm sample-photos below. These were shot on a 66-year old 1948-Canon Rangefinder camera.

Filed under Cool Stuffs, Jo's Thoughts

This chick in mini is my Mum

February 4, 2014 Leave a comment

They are right when they say a picture is worth a thousand words. It is one of those things that my parents never showed me until now. These aren’t just ordinary old photographs. These are the photographs of my grandparents and my parents in their early teens. It opens up a new chapter of my parents’ lives that I never knew.

These vintage photographs are well-kept and most of them are in great condition. For the first time ever, I got to see my dad’s old kampong house and his childhood days. Page after page, these old tinted photographs are layout in chronological order and it replays their lives like a comic strip. I saw my late grandfather in his smart suit and the old vintage car they owned. I saw my dad in his primary school days (coincidently, I also studied in the same school compound!) I saw the factory where my dad worked and the Volvo he drove to date my mum. Both my mum and dad had many lovely dating shots. In those days, there weren’t many romantic scenic places in Singapore. Most of their moments were shot by the water fountains or in the parks.

Believe it or not, “selfie” was pretty popular amongst the youth back in those days. Except they have to get their “selfies” shot in the photo studios. Both my dad and mum have a decent collection of their own studio-made “selfies”. Mum confessed she used to spend her pocket money on studio shots every month. It does sound very familiar to what we do today. Generally, people like to take their most beautiful expression!

It took me less than 60 minutes to finish this photographic strip and that’s 60 years worth of precious memories! I also saw other photographs of my late uncles in their younger days. It was a day filled with so much emotions and wonders. I wondered how their lives were back in those days. I saw my parents in their teens, 20s and 30s, their attires and poses. Dad was very handsome and mum was sweet and demure. I saw the strong characters of my grandfather through his eyes. He must be a strict and tough old man.

I borrowed their photo albums and went to buy a photo scanner last night to capture some of the best images of my family history. It’s worth every effort and money to preserve them.

While looking through these photographs at my parents’ flat yesterday afternoon, I took a peek at my lovely parents. They have aged so much. Time has weathered so much from them. Photographs like these make me cherish my time and remind me to treasure every single moment with my loved ones. It is good to see my parents in their youth and it is even better to see them happy today, like they used to be in their younger days!

Filed under Family, Jo's Thoughts, Life in Singapore

CNY Reunion in Desaru

February 4, 2014 4 Comments

2014 CNY is a special one. It has been half a decade since the 2 families got together in full during CNY. For one rare occasion, we had the presence of Uncle Asty and Cousin Chester this year. In total, there were 16 of us this year! The last time when we had a full assembly was in 2009. That year, Leon and I flew back from abroad to join our families in Muar, Malaysia. Since the passing of our late grandmother in 2012, CNY has been a lot quieter.

Last CNY, we stayed at Resort World Sentosa. It was chaotic and very crowded. This year, we thought of traveling outside Singapore, to a quieter destination where the 2 families can relax and spend more quality time together. The planning started 4 months ago over WeChat and the group picked Desaru as this year’s CNY celebration venue.

On the first day of CNY, we set off to Changi Ferry Terminal where we took a 45-minute ferry to Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal in Malaysia. Entering Malaysia via the causeways during CNY can be quite an awful traveling experience. Thankfully, there wasn’t any long queue at the ferry terminal. It took us less than 20 minutes to clear the custom. From there, we took a 45-minute bus to the Desaru Lotus Beach Resort.

Desaru Lotus Beach Resort was fully packed with holidaymakers! Its car-parks were filled with Singapore-registered vehicles. Despite the overwhelming crowd, the hotel staffs were efficient to clear the queues. We didn’t need to wait very long before we got the keys to the apartment rooms.

The resort was big, housing over 700 apartments but most of its facilities were very old and poorly maintained. The water at the small water theme park was greenish brown. The swimming pool was small. Overall, this place felt more like a big condominium than a private beach resort. Buffet breakfast and dinner were appalling and pathetic! For RM$60/pax, the food actually tasted horrible. The only food that was acceptable was the roti prata. The dining hall and the food reminded me of the awful canteen food I had during my army days.

I will not recommend this resort to anyone. For almost the same amount of money, I rather spend my holiday at Bintan Lagoon Resort.

Despite the poor review of the resort’s facilities and food quality, we had a great reunion at Desaru. Afterall, it is the company that matters. For one rare moment, I can fully enjoy the slow siestas and not worried about the itinerary or travel logistics. The kids ran freely on the field, blowing bubbles, kicking ball and chasing one another. Thanks to my wife, sister and cousin Chester, they got every thing well arranged and covered perfectly for the families.

The next day, we went to visit the Desaru Tropical Fruit Farm. The kids didn’t find it very interesting. It was more for the old folks like my parents and myself. It was quite a good educational tour and we got to see many fruit-bearing trees and plants. A couple of new facts I learnt there: Coffee beans and longans grow on trees, bananas grow between the petals of its flower and plants are classified as unisexual and bisexual.

In the evening, we had dinner at an unusual venue – on a Kelong (an offshore fishing platform built in wood)! We took a 10-min boat ride across the swampy river to the Kelong. The Kelong is big and it offers air-conditioned accommodation (with attached bathroom) for only S$50/night. It also offers activities like fishing, kayaking and jet skiing. The seafood dinner is fantastic! The dishes came in big portions and were very tasty!

A big thanks to my wife, sister and Cousin Chester, we had one of the best CNY reunions ever! Let’s do it again next time and many more years to come!

Filed under Family, Life in Singapore, Travel

Team Hiking @ Scenic Maclehose Trail

January 20, 2014 Leave a comment

Hiking season is back. Saturday’s weather was fantastic and I spent the entire afternoon with my lovely colleagues at Sai Kung Country Park. I was at the same Maclehose Trail 4 years ago with Felicia, Elkan and Harshad.  The only difference was we spilt the 12km-trail into 2 weekend sessions. My colleagues were so fit and we managed to complete the entire 12km (including 3km uphill and downhill) under 4 exhausting hours. Even my CD’s 7-year-old boy and another colleague’s pet dog were able to complete the trail effortlessly. This was my longest Hong Kong hike ever! I was stretching myself close to 95% mark. At the end of the trail, my thighs were cramping and my knees were trembling. Despite the long tormented hike, It felt good, satisfying and very healthy. Guess I have to walk more this season to catch up with my health.

The Maclehose Trail was indeed a very popular course with many local hikers – both young and old. We saw many runners along the way. They were taking part in the 2-day “Vibram Hong Kong 100km Ultra-Endurance Race”. These participants were jogging past us. They made our strenuous hike looked so easy.

Our 4-hour hike took us to some of the most beautiful and scenic coastal sites of Hong Kong. We walked past 2 beautiful unspoiled beaches, small streams, ancient forests, reservoirs, a small village by the beach where we had really yummy food and a couple of old eerie looking abandoned houses.

Enjoy our beautiful hiking photos below. Hope to do another with my team soon!

Filed under Life in Hong Kong, Travel

The adventure continues… (New Videos & Photos)

January 5, 2014 Leave a comment

Our adventure didn’t ended the moment we came back to Hong Kong. In fact, it continued with quite a fair bit of drama.

First, we discovered we had left a luggage in London! Incredible, none of us realized that until we were back at home – 22 hours later! At first, I thought it was an unimportant bag with all the dirty laundry. I told Felicia that we can afford to lose that. It was only after a night of unpacking when I realized all my expensive gears were in that missing luggage! Amazingly, it was a big luggage and all of us simply missed that! It took us a long night to trace back its whereabouts. In the end, we had to trouble a colleague to hand-carry it back to Hong Kong for us. At this very moment, it should be in the air, on its way back to Hong Kong. Lesson learnt: Travel with lesser luggage bags in the future!

Second, Felicia and Elkan received a big and unforgettable surprise New Year Gift at Changi Airport. Well, they spent their New Year Countdown in the airport’s police station. Apparently, Elkan’s plastic toy gun resembled one of the banned firearms and Felicia was prosecuted for bringing in the restricted item. Elkan was so terrified by the experience that he broke down in the station. Not bad for my boy who received his 2nd police warning letter before he turns 10! That must be the first police report of 2014! They weren’t the only ones who spent this very unique countdown at the airport. My mum, auntie Amy, Lionnel and Joey shared their unpleasant New Year day’s experience outside the arrival-waiting hall. I apologised for this dramatic night.

Let’s hope these 2 are the final closures to our little European adventure. What an amazing and dramatic trip we had – from the 1st minute to last! Enjoy our final travel photos and videos here!

 

Filed under Family, Life in Hong Kong, Life in Singapore, Travel

One year lesser

January 1, 2014 Leave a comment

For many, they came out here to celebrate the arrival of a brand new year. For me, I came to give thanks and bid farewell to great year. 2013 has been one of the best years in my life. Not in terms of wealth or power (or my new haircut and moustache)  but the many priceless and unforgettable moments I shared with my loved ones, family and friends. I am glad that I have fulfilled my wishes for 2013, that’s to live life fully with the right balance, give happiness to the ones I love and cherish every moment. I am very blessed with a very wonderful company of sincere and honest friends, colleagues, clients and partners. Life’s short, leave no regrets behind to ponder. Family+friends comes first, the world second. These moments were beautifully recorded as photographs and stories in my digital vault.

1) Family Reunion, Last CNY – https://wahbiang.com/2013/02/12/family-reunion-time/
2) Thanks for your presence – https://wahbiang.com/2013/06/17/thanks-for-your-presence/
3) World’s longest Valentine Card – https://wahbiang.com/2013/02/19/a-jar-of-love-possibly-the-worlds-longest-valentines-day-card/
4) A Perfect 20th Anniversary Trip – https://wahbiang.com/2013/11/29/the-most-romantic-paradise-of-asia-maldives/
5) My brother 风 is back – https://wahbiang.com/2013/09/22/brother-%E9%A3%8E-is-here-again/
6) Surprise trip to Vietnam – https://wahbiang.com/2013/09/14/a-surprise-adventure-for-felicia-and-elkan-ho-chi-minh-city-vietnam-11th-14th-sept/
7) Wahbiang in Hong Kong – https://wahbiang.com/2013/08/11/wahbiang-is-here/
8) Little reunion in Bintan – https://wahbiang.com/2013/03/24/reunion-at-bintan/
9) Leo and Joey – https://wahbiang.com/2013/03/19/lionnelandjoeywedding/
10) Eat, Play, Work Bangkok – https://wahbiang.com/2013/05/29/eat-play-work-thailand-bangkok-trip/

It is time to relook at the meaningless, pretentious corporation’s commandments where nothing really matters. It is time to realise there are much more important and meaningful things in life to fulfil. Time to explore, to discover and to create a purposeful difference. Time to discard the old craps, change the old systems, get real and walk out to weave a new meaningful life.

It is never a brand new year. It is a year lesser for all of us to accomplish what we truly wanted. Don’t let your wishes be as short-lived like the fireworks. May 2014 be a rewarding year for all of you and me! Start running and get your dream realised! Live each day beautifully.

Filed under Jo's Thoughts

Christmas Weekend – Part 3 – Edinburgh

December 30, 2013 Leave a comment

Due to the train crisis, we wasted one day in transit. We had only one precious day to explore Edinburgh. Thankfully, the weather was perfect! Sunny blue sky! It was supposed to be rainy and cloudy.

The locality of our hotel was perfect for newcomers like us. It was situated just a few hundred meters to most of Edinburgh’s attractions. We mapped out our journey for the day. I figured out we can only cover 3-4 main attractions.

Our first stop – the iconic Edinburgh Castle. This is one of the most popular castles in Europe. Sitting 130m high on the Castle Rock (an extinct volcanic rock), the fortress dominates the skyline of Edinburgh. On photo, the Edinburgh looks big and majestic on top of the hill. In actual, it is smaller than I have expected. The museum inside the castle revealed the history of the Scottish armies and the regiments’ sacrifices during the old British Empire. It was here where I learnt that the Scottish was an important part of the British Empire. Without the Scottish’s contribution, England wouldn’t have survived those bloody wars.

Our next stop “The Scotch Whisky Experience” is just 200m downhill from the Castle. Here, we went in for a 50min-Whisky-Appreciation Tour. We sat in a 15min- barrel-multimedia-ride that took us on a journey of Whisky-making. From malting to mashing to fermentation to distillation and finally to maturation, we learnt the simple 5-step process of Scotch Whisky-making through animated illustrations and videos. The presentation was simple and easy to comprehend.


Next, we were brought into a tasting room where we learnt about the 4 key Scottish Whisky regions. We were each given a scent card and the Whisky Expert got us to smell the different flavors and aromas of each region. At the end of the session, we got to taste a glass of whisky from one of the regions that we have selected.

At the final stop of our tour, we visited the World’s Largest Scotch Whisky Collection Gallery where there was an impressive collection of 3,384 bottles of vintage, unopened whiskies. This collection was gathered by a Brazilian connoisseur Claive Vidiz over 35 years. And it was impressive!

On our way to dinner, we stopped by the St Giles’ Cathedral. Built in 1124, this is the principal place of worship of the Church of Scotland in Edinburgh. For ₤2, I got a sticker on my jacket that allowed me to take photography freely inside the Cathedral and chapel. This was a good stop for us to get some warmth and nice soothing choir.

The next morning, we packed our bags and made our way to London. Our 16-day tour was coming to an end. On our way to the Edinburgh train station, we stopped by to take photos and did some last-minute shopping. Thankfully, the train services to London had resumed and there was no delay.

Here am I on the train typing this final blog of our long tour. Indeed, it has been a long long journey for all of us. We had an eventful trip with many “first-in-life” experiences! Plus a priceless bonding time with my family and friends and so many beautiful moments captured!

This is it! A great sign-off to 2013 and looking forward for a happier and wonderful 2014! Time to head back to Hong Kong. For those who have been following my travel stories, thanks for all your good words and encouragement! Wishing all of you a great 2014! Cheers!

Filed under Family, Life in Hong Kong, Travel

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