A Travel Blog - One photographer's journey with the Canon EOS 5 Series DSLR Cameras and Lenses

Another image of Putrajaya, which is the government capital of Malaysia.  This image was shot from the second level (bottom level) of the Putrajaya International Convention Center (PICC).


EOS 5DS R / Lens 24-70 mm f/2.8 L USM

We are always taught in photography classes, workshops and magazines to never place the horizon dead center of the frame.  This contradicts the compositional "Rules of Thirds" whereby it states that the horizon should always be placed at the bottom 1/3rd or the upper 2/3rds of the frame.  However, compositional rules are not etched in stone.  Rules are just guidelines and should not be used just for the sake of using it.  There are times where you need to break all rules and compose according to the scene in front of you.  The camera is not going to break down just because you did not follow some compositional guidelines. 


While I am aware of the power of the Rules of Thirds, I have never allowed any compositional rules to dictate my way of shooting.  More often than not, I will still incorporate the Rules of Thirds in most of my images.  There are also times whereby compositional rules will not do justice to the architectural landscape in front of you.  The Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin Mosque shot from Ayer 8 in Putrajaya is one such example.  To enhance the symmetrical aspect of the composition, I had placed the horizon dead center in the frame - dividing the image into two equal half.  The Rules of Thirds composition will not work in this case.  I do not think the viewer's eye will be confuse on which half is the more prominent half of the frame.  The reflections of the mosque and buildings on the lower half of the frame will always play a supporting role to complement the upper half of the frame where I had placed the main focal point of the image.  In this composition, I do not mind the vast negative spaces left on the bottom and upper top of the frame.  These negative spaces had "isolated" the mosque from it's surrounding which to me had portrayed a stronger composition.


Two images were blended to make the single image you see above.  The strength of this image relies on the stillness of the reflection and the lighting of the buildings during the blue hours of twilight.  Close to the blue hour, a catamaran had powered across the lake.  This had created ripples and waves which had broken up the stillness of the reflection.  I had wanted to use an earlier image before the catamaran, but the lightings of the buildings were not prominent yet.  As a last resort, I had blended an earlier image before the catamaran had caused the ripples and a later shot of the mosque where all the buildings were lighted. 


Canon EOS 5DS R / Lens EF24-70mm f/2.8L USM

Back to a very familiar hunting ground! 
Many, many years ago when I was just starting out in photography, the Kuala Lumpur skyline from the Titiwangsa Park was among my very first few locations that I had visited to develop my photographic skills.  Back then, I was still using Canon's excellent EOS 3 and the Mamiya RZ67 Pro II medium format systems.  The Velvia 50 slide exposure was my sensor then.  Although I still have these fine cameras, it is now collecting dust in my dry cabinet today.  At that time, Putrajaya had not existed yet.  Seasons changed, weeks became months and months became years -  different locations were identified and visited, to an extent that I had almost forgotten about this location.


It was a very surreal experience coming back to the Titiwangsa Park after all these years.  I am now using Canon's EOS 5DS R - an evolution in resolution!  Besides my camera system, nothing else has changed.  I still know the exact location to set-up the tripod for the best viewpoint.  Most of my images from here was always cropped very tightly focusing only on the KLCC Twin Towers and also the KL Tower on the right.  For this visit, I had wanted to shoot a wider angle view of the Kuala Lumpur skyline.  The EF 24-70 mm standard lens was used at a focal length roughly at 35 mm - to ensure the skyline still retains it's function as a focal point of the image.  To enhance the symmetrical aspect of this shot, the horizon was placed dead center in the frame - mitigating the use of the Rules of Thirds.  Rules to me are only guidelines - it is not etched in stone.  Sometimes, you will need to break all compositional rules to ensure a better image.


This image is perhaps one of the last few images that can be shot from this location.  The Titiwangsa Park will be closed to the public very soon for the next two years.  This is to accommodate Kuala Lumpur's River Beautification Project which is scheduled to start next month.


Canon EOS 5DS R / Lens EF24-70mm f/2.8L USM

There was a time, many many years ago where every photographer just had to shoot the Wilayah Mosque from this location at Publika during sunrise.  You will not be well known if you do not have this classic view of the mosque in your collection.  Not wanting to be left out, I had also joined the bandwagon.  Trying to be smart (or maybe trying to be different), I had opted to shoot the mosque during twilight instead.  The internet has had enough of sunrise images of this mosque.


However, the season has passed.  Times have changed and photographers move on.  We hardly see any new images of this mosque nowadays.  The location and viewpoint has now become like the Berembang Indah apartments.  Everyone who has a camera has shot from here already.  Lots of images by different photographers, all with the same viewpoint and angle.  I have only made one attempt to shoot this mosque during a clear and calm evening three years back.  I have not been back to this location ever since.


If a scene has been shot to death, I will try to avoid that location at all cost.


EOS 5D Mk II / Lens EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM

The Blue Mosque in Shah Alam is also known as the Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Mosque, named after the reigning Sultan of Selangor.  It is the largest mosque in Malaysia and also second largest mosque in South East Asia, after the Istiqlal Mosque in Jakarta, Indonesia.  Most images of the Blue Mosque are mostly shot from either one of two viewpoints - from the overhead bridge overlooking the mosque after the Shah Alam Square or from the Shah Alam Library overlooking a lake.  The second viewpoint from the Shah Alam Library is the more famous of the two as you will also get the reflections of the mosque in the lake.


The composition of this image is simple.  I had wanted to use the light-trials below the mosque as a lead-in lines to lead the eye towards the mosque, which is the focal point of this image.  The mosque was also positioned at the upper two thirds right of the frame using the Rules of 3rds compositional concept.  Some negative space was intentionally left at the top of the frame.  This is to make this image wore enticing for copywriters or magazine publishers to include the magazine title for editorial sales.  As with all shots, I had used Sigh-Ray's excellent 105 mm LB Warming Circular Polarizer filter to increase colour saturation and contrast.


Nothing much was done in post-processing.  I had just used the Levels, Curves and Saturation in Photoshop to enhance the already vibrant colours of this image.  A slight sharpening was also applied globally using Nik's Output Shapener 3.0


EOS 5DS R / Lens EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM

The Puchong Perdana Mosque is also known as the As Salam Mosque.  I think this is the most famous photographic viewpoint in all of Puchong.  Photographers would come from near and far just to shoot this mosque during sunrise.  Yes - this is a sunrise location as the sun would be rising behind the mosque - throwing the mosque into a very nice silhouette against the burning skies during sunrise.  However, I would always shoot this location during twilight as I am too lazy to wake up in the morning for the dawn shoot.  At the time of making this image, I had just acquired Canon's excellent 24 mm Tilt & Shift Mk II lenses.  This was my first image exposed using the TS-E lens.  I was playing around with the Tilt and Shift functions of this lens - finally, I had settled for a 1 mm upward shift and 0 degrees tilt to make this image.  I was pleasantly surprised on how sharp this lens was.  You can see and count every blade of grass in this image.


EOS 5DS R / Lens TS-E 24mm f/3.5 L Mk II

Putrajaya's pride - The three government buildings shot an hour before sunrise.


EOS 5D Mk II / Lens EF24-70mm f/2.8L USM

The Iron Mosque in Putrajaya is also known as the Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Mosque.  I must have shot the Iron Mosque hundreds of times already.  However, this image will always have a sentimental value to me.  It is the first exposure I made with the (then new) EOS 5DS R DSLR camera.  Seeing for the first time the RAW exposure with over 50 megapixels on my monitor is and remains a surreal experience for me.  As of today, no other 35 mm DSLRs come close to the resolution that the 5DS R can offer.  Due to the RRS camera L bracket not available at the time I purchased this camera, I had to wait for almost two months before I could fully use the 5DS R.


EOS 5DS R / Lens EF 24-70 mm f 2.8 L USM

EOS 5D Mk II / EF24-70mm f/2.8L USM