A Hazy #WWPW2015

It was finally done and I stayed indoors most of the time. The API doubled between the time we gathered until we split for lunch. And the KL Marathon scheduled the next morning was cancelled soon after due to the haze.

But that did not deter our determination to shoot. In the end, only 40 shooters turned up, which was a decline from last year. On paper it should have been at least 70.

We congregated as planned at Restoran Yusoof dan Zakhir right opposite the Central Market main entrace. Since I arrived late from the hospital, I parked straight there. Luckily it wasn't affected by the KL Free Car Day that morning. Had a quick breakfast before we congregate at the front of CM main entrance for a quick briefing as well as the obligatory group photo.

Soon after we that, we set off. We walked past the old “Bus Stand Kelang” - now transformed of course, passing by the far entrance of Petaling Street towards Pasar Karat, which was our first shooting area. We spent around half an hour there, shooting and mingling around with the crowd, having some coffee in the end as well.

I then walked past Petaling Street proper - which was still closed as it only operates from 11 am - through the remnant of Hotel Malaya towards the Guan Di Temple. Here, the group started to thin out with half of the group moving on towards the Sri Maha Maniaman Temple while others decided to hang around at Pasar Karat.

Me? I went to a completely different direction. I turned back towards Petaling Street, all the way towards Stadium Negara and join some friends at Merchant's Lane Cafe. This was a real discovery for me, a quaint, rustic cafe bar, renovated from the old pre-World War shophouses along Petaling Street with a hipster twist. Something that Puan Anita would appreciate! More on that later.

I had a slightly bigger breakfast, took some photos there while catching up. Half an hour later, it was time to walk towards the end meeting point while taking snaps along the way of course. But by this time, the haze was really picking up. The sky was even greyer than when we started, the air quality deteriorated, not a conducive time for a photowalk all around.

I skipped the planned stop at the Indian Shops along Leboh Ampang, and went straight to Burger King where we end our walk. We reached there quite early and got the best seats in the house. Again, we caught up with friends, said our goodbyes, quenched our thirst before finally setting off towards Central Market again, via Dataran Merdeka.

At this point in time, the KL Marathon had yet to be cancelled and preparations were in full swing. A long of runners were there to pick up their gears for the next day's race and judging from the air quality, I wasn't surprised that the announcement for cancellation finally came. We walked past the Masjid Jamek bridge and walked towards the CM Annex for our final stop - lunch.

Bob Magnus suggested that we have lunch at his old stomping ground on the top floor of Central Market. It must have been around 20 years since I last been at the stalls there, and not much had changed. More food and finally time to pack up and go.

A subdued walk due to the haze unfortunately, but the flame was still there. Definitely would be going again next year. And now time for post-production …. and uploads of course!

The Two Temples

Namely Guan Di and Sin Sze Si Ya Temples at Jalan Tun H S Lee, just round the corner from Central Market. It was Chinese New Year after all and words were out that some of my photography buddy were out in town.

I rushed through the morning rounds and parked my car at NU Sentral, taking the LRT to Central Market to join the rest.

It was still early, and we were in between a change of crowds. The early morning ones had just left and the ones for mid morning were just trickling in. And the light was kind as well. Just enough to capture the wonderful colours without compromising the contrast.

But the main drawback was the smoke from the incense. I could stand the smell but the sting onto the eyes which hurt. It also formed layers at the front of my lens filter. And by the end, my whole shirt and hair smelt of soot.

Guan Di was the first that we stopped at. It was more opened and more crowded. The second stop was better for me. It was more intimate and the place being indoors created some interesting light. Although a bit more smokey. For good effect of course.

I just had to stay away from those coming in to worship but on the whole, no one gave me any grief. It was a great outing although I had to head back to the hospital to see a referral right after.

I would definitely do another temple run in the future but maybe with better planning. It was more of a spur of the moment thing yesterday.

Enjoying the Cron

Over the last few weeks, I have added a new set up to my camera gear. I've gone full frame and added a Leica lens - the Summicron-M 1:2/50 - to my arsenal. At a very good price.

Over the last couple of days, I've managed to pack up early from work and take the gear for a spin, enjoying the great weather to boot.

I was still trying to get used to the new set up. Certainly it was a departure to my usual habit of picture taking. Having to master some new technique. Hopefully soon it would be ingrained into my muscle memory. At the moment, I still had to stop to manual focus on my subjects and often the moment would have passed by the time I press the shutter trigger. Now, I have to anticipate the moments before it happens. I wasn't able to ninja around unnoticed with my smaller compact.

More about the gear on a later entry. For the moment, still getting to know the setup ....

Time for Goodbye

Another photowalk was sorted. Certainly this year the walk was different. There was a more raw edge to it. And this happened in Pudu a few days after a bomb exploded in Bukit Bintang nearby killing one person.

There was always a suspicion that the local triad had a hand in that. This was always a case in a Chinese dominated business district. Pudu was no different.

As usual, the walk was started with the obligatory group shop. And at the end point, there was always lunch. This time the exit point was back at Pudu Plaza. That was handy since I parked there.

After a quick snack, it was time to say goodbye. We shall meet again next year ...

The Old Town

Jalan Pudu used to be a business hub of the town. But over the years, the commercial area had moved somewhere else and the shophouses here had lost their importance and some were even left abandoned for new development.

The same went for the residential areas round here. The old flats here were still occupied and despite being near the city center, the place was still quiet and green.

There were plenty of urban decay to be captured though as most of the buildings here could easily be dated from the 60s and 70s, mainly occupied by Chinese businessmen.

The houses were mainly rows of flat 4 stories high, with Art Deco finish and bright colours. As with most part of KL, the maintenance and facade had suffered over the years. A new coat of paint would have been nice.

We took a left turn along the rows of houses to reach one of the old abandoned building which Ripi had identified .....