AFA - 4th Round

(Long overdue update) So I was back in Singapore again for AFA 2011. Apart from meeting up with old and new friends, I went around town to do a few shoots! There were of course a few things happening like the sudden bad weather, loss of transportation and so on. All in all, things work out eventually.

For AFA itself, it is more of the same old, same old. A lot more new folks around, and the place's even more crowded than before. So that is why there's not many photos, although I spent most of the second day at the Regional Cosplay Championship area.

The most epic thing about AFA, were the epic dinner sessions. XD

Event Photos: Here

So anyway, here are the shoots I did while I was in Singapore for the week:

The first shoot I joined was with my friends from the Philippines! There's a few other series being cosplayed too, so it was pretty run and random. I am glad that they had fun during the whole trip.

Album: Here

I joined them again for another shoot the next day. They were cosplaying the series Fairy Tail, which is a fun series to read if you are not into the serious stuff.

I brought them to the Suntec Sky Garden, because they asked for a location that is close to the AFA event. Well, the place's nice but we had to leave early because of the incoming rain.

Album: Here

A shoot with an old friend! It's been a while since we last had a shoot, so we fixed up a short session in Orchard Road. 

Since this is a night shoot, usually you will expect it to be challenging. But because the location's pretty well-lit, the shoot went well. :)

Album: Here

This was my first time working with Irene, and it was really a pleasant experience. She's good at posing, and was receptive to my suggestions.

Yeap, this is the bandaged version based on the figurine re-released for the third and final version of the series Shakugan no Shana. She looks good as Shana. ;)

Album: Here

"We Still Don't Know the Name of the Flower We Saw That Day."

Anohana

One of my favourite anime series for this year (aside from Madoka), it was a pleasure to work with Chocy-Xin and her boyfriend Jay for this shoot.

We had to split the shoot into two due to unforeseen circumstances, but we had some great help and the lighting for the second part was very bright and nice! Alas, all good things must come to an end and we bade farewell before I depart for the airport.

Album: Here

There's a few more shoots I did after I came back to Kuala Lumpur, but that will be time for me to write about that in a future update. Till next time! :)

Cosfest X.1 Photos

More shots can be found: Here

Been feeling unwell lately due to the bad weather as well as everyone around me falling ill. An unfortunate side effect of this was a shoot cancellation... quite a rare thing to be honest.

Anyway hope you guys like the photos! I will try to post more updates, and to be more active on the blogsphere~ :)

Cosfest X.1

Back from Singapore's biggest cosplaying event, I had a mixed feeling about it.

It was fun, it was good, I get to meet up with my friends again. Some I have not seen even during the past few times that I was back in Singapore.

On the other hand, well. Basically I have been attending this event since 2004, so the appeal of events kinda died off for me. Or perhaps I am still tired from my short trip since I had to contend with moving my gaming stuff back to Malaysia.

Photos to come soon~

Return to Singapore

Hi everyone, once again it's been a while (busy as usual) but recently I went back to Singapore for a short family trip... squeezing in some time to attend a small event as well as to complete 2 shoots.

Japanese Arts Fiesta (JAF) was fun despite the event being relatively small. I was invited to attend by a few friends who happen to be part of the committee. Media pass and everything. :P

Quite a few number of my Singapore friends happened to drop by and we spent most of the time catching up. There's a lot of new cosplayers around too, they all look young and probably are.

The older generations are still hanging around though... maybe for old times sake.

Album: Here

The Toradora photoshoot went pretty okay even though it rained and a few other cosplayers could not make it for the shoot. The shoot was also a good chance for a mutual photographer friend Joel to hone his photography skills.

Album: Here

I had another great shoot with Evie and Fariz. Evie, if you all remember, was the Luka and A.B.A. cosplayer that I worked with before. She's also a good friend of mine so it's fun too!

The shoot was pretty short because we were all tired after JAF and I need to fly back to Kuala Lumpur later in the evening. Well, except for Fariz... he never seem to look exhausted at all haha.

Album: Here

Anyway, I will be back again for Cosfest on the 25th and 26th of June, and will be bringing my new name cards to the event. Feel free to ask me for a card or to make a swap. See you there if you are attending!

PS. The next few days are going to be super busy with shoots, will update on that when things settle down.

GOD EATER

"Oh, just to live my life again, to treasure every little moment then,
satisfied, I'd leave you all behind, accepting of my fate.
But I am full of grief, to leave this life so incomplete.
My dream is coming to the end."

- God and Man

My last shoot in Singapore was actually the third in a series of shoots organised by these amazing cosplayers. Each of these shoots took place at different epic locations.

Why epic? Great cosplay, huge weapons, among some of the reasons. Also, it is because the locations we used are rather unknown to the general public, ruins and all. It's pretty hard to find a seven storey tall abandoned office/factory, but I was lucky to have found it and after an early recce trip by my friends it's good to go!

I'll be back in Singapore once in a while (for shoots, meeting with friends, shopping, family stuff), but for now my 20-year stay in Singapore has come to a rather happy end.

Album: Here

Next up, life in Malaysia and the shoots I did so far... stay tuned~

The SG Photo Derby (Part II)

And here's the second batch of shoots I did in Singapore...

CLOVER - First time working with Angelion on a series from Clamp. Nice weather, pity about the wet grasses though. For a relative newcomer to the cosplay scene, she did a pretty good job with this cosplay. She's friendly too, very easygoing with a love for singing.

Album: Here

Hakuouki: Shinsengumi Kitan - Despite never having to play the game or watch the anime, I have... quite a substantial amount of information on the series.

Anyway, it was a hot day and we stopped early. The shoot was okay, and I get to use the Canon 5D Mk II for a short while. The camera's not bad, although the lens supplied could have been better.

Album: Here

Sandplay - Well, what can I say... I love Miku and I love to work with Yang. The studio shoot was also a great learning experience for both me and Shane, because usually I don't get to operate the big lights for my other works.

Album: Here

Kuroshitsuji: Alois - I managed to secure a bar for this shoot. Interesting time since a bunch of friends dropped by later and make it into an informal gathering. Lots of laughs but the shots turn out pretty okay in the end~ :)

Yang's Alois is near perfect!

Album: Here

Kenka Bancho - I was there as a helper, but I took some shots too!

It was also the last time I visited the abandoned factory in Kranji. I had some pretty memorable shoots there, so I felt kinda sad on that day. Heh.

Album: Here

Defense Devil - It was a last minute invite, but I gladly accepted it since I will be working with a few of my old-time friends.

Good thing too, since the location we used to do the shoot was closed a few days later to make way for a new arts gallery situated there. A bummer for many photographers and cosplayers.

Album: Here

Angel Sanctuary: Kurai - My final shoot with Yang. Guess that all good things come to an end.

Album: Here

Once in a while I get to do a trial shoot, this is one of the instance. Spent the time on getting a few shots while waiting for the train to show up... well it did, when we least expected it.

Album: Here

Well, that's all I guess! Actually I have one more shoot to talk about, but I'll leave it to another entry in the future. You might also noticed that I kept my comments short and sweet this time round... guess it is because I already mentioned quite a bit of stuff in my photo albums.

Onwards, to great justice!

The SG Photo Derby (Part I)

The month of January was filled with craziness as I had a photoshoot almost every other day before preparing for the move back to my home in KL. Here are the first batch of shoots that I did:


Final Fantasy XIII - It's an honour to be working with some of my old-time friends once again. It was raining heavily that day so we had to relocate to another location, but as it continued to rain on we decided to throw caution to the wind and shoot normally. It went pretty well I guess.

We ended the whole thing pretty late at night... but it's alright, as long as everyone like the end result.

Album: Here


Resonance of Fate - I miss my gaming days very much, so when there's a chance to shoot a series based on a Tri-Ace game, my answer is in the affirmative.

Originally meant to take place in two different locations, we ended up with just one because of an unforeseen factor. We made it up by having a Japanese lunch instead, heh.

Special thanks to Erving Go for accepting the invite to join in as a photographer for the shoot... was nice to catch up with him since he's in Singapore for a family trip.

Album: Here


Kannagi - I was introduced to the series by someone I used to know, and I quite like it because of the main lead character (Nagi). She's a bit different from the usual tsundere characters... although I can't really explain why though.

Anyway, I thought I won't have the chance to shoot this series, until Crestryn (whom I worked with previously for a few Vocaloid shoots) wanted to get a video shoot so I asked if I can combine a short photoshoot with video as well. Thanks again! :)

Album: Here


Iroha no Uta - A shoot with a good friend of mine, it was kinda short because of the sudden burst of rain. I also forgot to bring an umbrella too, so we were stuck at the location for quite a long time... but its fun to catch up on things. :)

Album: Here


Alone II - Manman wanted to try something new so we had a concept shoot in some abandoned area in the western parts of Singapore. Manman really is a good model to work with.

We started late but most of the shoot's objectives were met by the time night falls. The place's really creepy at night so it is a good thing to leave early.

Album: Here


K-On! Don't Say Lazy - Roamed around Clarke Quay for this shoot, which I invited Serene to cosplay as Mio once again. Shane came along for the shoot too, which is nice because it's a good learning experience for him photography-wise.

Album: Here


Code Geass: C.C. - Indoor shoot at the hotel. Special thanks to Emi for the invite, as well as paying for the food and lodging.

As a bonus, her sister and sister's boyfriend showed up to help a bit with the shoot, and finishing up the extra food. I think I ate too much pizza that day...

Album: Here


Macross Frontier: Star Date - Second day at the hotel was spent shooting this series. We had a buffet breakfast before having both an indoor and outdoor shooting session. It was rather relaxing, despite having to bring so much stuff for the shoot.

Album: Here


.hack//G.U. - Max and Elie, cosplaying characters from the popular RPG game for the Playstation 2/3 series. Pretty cool stuff!

The shoot went without much issues... well, except for the very windy conditions that is. Winds so strong, that my flash and stand nearly flew away a few times.

I also see another photographer having a shoot there with a beauty dish. Now, this is something that I may obtain the next time I pay a visit to the camera shop. :P

Album: Here

That's the end of the first part! Forgive me if I left anything out because it's been a while since that time. Anyway, stay tuned for the second part, coming soon!

End of 2010

Another long delayed entry, apologies for that as I was busy catching up with my family as well as my new job in Kuala Lumpur.

Here are the last few shoots that I did for 2010.


My model friend asked me to do a casual shoot for himself and his girlfriend, so I was happy to obliged. Yang dropped by to help with the styling and makeup.

Album: Here


A shoot with Yang and Manman at Fairy Point Hill's abandoned building, featuring characters from the Soul Eater anime/manga series. Special thanks to Shinji and Fariz for the help during the trip to the location.

Album: Here


Later that day, I went with Fariz to the other side of Singapore to shoot this unique version of Vocaloid cosplay. It was my first and only time working with Yasuu and Akairi, they are a real cool pair to interact with. Friendly too!

Album: Here


A shoot with Elaine at Millenia Walk prior to the STGCC event. It was really short and sweet, much thanks to Leonard (Invinc) for the help too!

Album: Here


I had a shoot with Yuki for her Neir Replicant (Or Neir Gestalt, depending on if you play the PS3 or the Xbox 360 version) game cosplay. She's a very nice girl, would love to work with her again.

Album: Here


Kairei's Granado Espada cosplay is spectacular, and she wanted a shoot so it was merged together with Yuki's. Really nice, especially the wings.

Album: Here


An old cosplay friend invited me for this Christmas shoot, so I accepted the offer. Unfortunately, half of the group had to withdraw leaving us with only two cosplayers, but we made do with what we have. It's fun still, though the day was very hot.

Album: Here


And lastly, a shoot with my Australian friends who were in Singapore for a visit. I think we had loads of fun during this period of time, lots of crack and some funny stuff happening during New Year's Eve as well. What a way to end 2010, heh.

Album: Here

So here we are in 2011... next update's about my shoots in January, though it might be split up into two or three entries. Till then!

STGCC/EOY/CF

An entry long overdue due to work, life and lots of photoshoots. I would like to apologise for the lack of updates on my blog.


2010's STGCC event felt like a rather hohum event. I guess it is because of its close proximity to other events in December. Anyway, there are many amazing cosplayers that showed up during STGCC so I didn't feel like any time was wasted.

Album: Here


Although there's some improvement over the previous year's event, I felt that EOY 2010 could be better. Some of the cosplayers and photographers hung out around the outside areas as the interior felt crowded and there's not many places to move about.

Album: Here


The last ACG event for 2010, Comic Fiesta 2010 changed the venue back to Berjaya Times Square. Only this time it were to be held at the hotel grounds, so I was expecting something similar to the Sunway convention area.

I was wrong though, the crowd was crazy! Still, I met up with some of my Malaysian friends, although most already know that I would be moving back to Malaysia eventually (which I did).

Album:

Day 1 - Here
Day 2 - Here

Coming right up, the last few photoshoots for 2010. Stay tuned. :)

Burst Angel - The 2nd Impact

Time sure passes by quickly. It's going to be nearly a year since I first worked with Yang, and before long I would be moving back to my hometown.

This was our first shoot since DOGS, and it felt different. Maybe because I am have finally completed my studies? Who knows? :P

Hope you like the shots, been getting a lot of inspiration from photo and fashion magazines lately as well. Been catching up on a lot of reading, felt relaxed as well.

Album: Here

Coming up, STGCC/EOY/CF. Then it's all over for 2010.

Till next update. :)

Makai Kishi Garo

Richfield and Su Gwan, two of the most epic cosplayers that I have ever met.

Album: Here

I also posted some photos on my Facebook page, do drop by if you are interested in the updates that I posted once in a while. :)

AFA X

It's been a while!

Photos from the recent Singapore ACG event: Here

And now, back to work!