Breakfast Near The Docks

The new blog is coming along...almost done. I have been showing some people to get their opinion, and most seem to like the new version better, but some like this blog better because of the black background....tell you what....I will give you a peek...just be aware that it is not finished yet....most of the links at the top of the page are empty...I am trying to get one done per night, but keep going back to edit what I have written....but I think it is ready for you to take a peek...please let me know what you think...you can comment over there or here...

CLICK HERE TO TAKE YOU TO A PREVIEW

The address will change once I am finished....I have another site up at scottygraham.com that I will take down and replace it with the new blog, so that I can use scottygraham.com as my root site...the next step is to move my galleries over to smugmug....will get that done soon, I hope.

By the way, the photo below was edited with Nik's Color Efex Pro 4... With Google purchasing Nik's filters, I thought I better buy it before it might disappear...who knows what Google will do with my favorite plug-ins...I also bought Nik Sharpening 3....I love all of their software, and also own Silver Efex Pro 2, and Viveza which both ROCK...they all ROCK....get them quick, you never know....

A Revisit To That Old VW Bug

I have been driving my little VW beetle around a lot lately. I always get comments on that little car...and whenever I pass another bug on the road, it's like instant bonding with the driver...we both wave and give a thumbs up...not sure other types of cars has that same effect on people.

New Blog Coming Soon

I have been working every night for the last few nights on my new blog. I finally went with Pro Photo Blogs, and have been most impressed with their customer service. There seems to be an infinite different things I can do to customize my blog...I think I have the color scheme I want, the layout I want, but I am now working on my pages, bio, and other links...it is great fun, though, playing around with all the options. It should be ready for viewing in a couple of days...exciting stuff!!

In the meantime, here is a photo for today's post...

The Metal Workers

One of the amazing things about this huge sprawling city (Jakarta) is that there are these zones where you can find a million different metal workers on one street, or a million different wood workers, or lines and lines of shops that sell anchors, chains, or motorcycle parts...you need your jeans fixed? Well, there is a street somewhere that has lines and lines of people with sewing machines that can fix your jeans.

This shot is from a street that had many of these guys working on metal parts from "something"....maybe boat parts?

Man In The Window

I have a hard time naming my posts...I am sure there is a better title for this one other than "Man In The Window"...it is hard to be creative when it comes to the title...I guess writing was never one of my strong suits.

In any case, I took this shot from the canoe as we glided past the back of one of the Bugis Schooners...He was looking inside the boat, so I yelled up to him, "Hey Bapak!!", he then turned to look, and I shot the photo catching a nice smile...

The Indonesian Squat

Have you ever tried to sit like this? Indonesians do it all the time...and they can sit like that for hours. I tried to do it, but got tired after a couple of minutes, and it was tough to keep my feet flat on the deck.

By the way, what's up with the helmet?

Reflections

Man, I can't get enough of those old wood boats...they are awesome! The colors, the textures, the character. Not many places in the world where you can see these big Bugis Schooners...it's like walking back in time.

Boat Captain

After we walked around the big Bugis Schooners at Sundah Kelapa, we boarded small canoes, and our captain would take us around the backside of the boats, and then to the kampung (village). This guy was our boat captain...

A Walk On The Tracks

We were told before going down to the tracks to take photos, that the area was not really a "good area", and that the people were a bit dangerous...but we went anyway, and although the people were not as friendly as in other parts of the city, we had no problems and were still greeted by the big Indonesian smiles we are always used to seeing....this guy, on the other hand, looked deep in thought as he walked down the tracks...he did give us a big smile after I took his photo, though...

The Back Side of That Old VW

Here is another view of that rusted VW we found near the airport the other day. Amazing how nature takes over, heh?

Urban Decay

As a photographer, I have always liked graffiti. Today, I took my daughter out for some photo hunting. We found a great spot to wander around and take photos...an old abandoned house, we think, that was taken over by graffiti artists. Kayla took my old Nikon, I had the Leica, and we walked around having a blast taking photos of each other and the graffiti.

Back to work tomorrow...the fun always has to end...

Living On The Tracks

It has been a while since I played with some textures. This is my newest creation. It looks somewhat like a collage of photos, but believe it or not, those people live literally next (within inches) to the tracks.They casually sit while big trains go whipping by them every 10 minutes or so.

I used four different textures in this photo....masked some areas, and played with the order of the layers and the opacity of each layer...isn't digital photography fun??

Different Version of The Boat Guy

A few days ago, I posted a portrait of the boat guy I have seen most every time I go up to Sunda Kelapa. I posted the photo on Google+ . Another photographer that I admire on Google+ is Mike Shaw. He really does some fine post work in Photoshop, and I have always admired what he does with his portraits. He chimed in on my post, and after a couple of emails back n forth, he took the challenge to work his magic on my portrait. Below is his version of my portrait. I like it...

I am off to Singapore for a couple of days....I won't be making any posts during that time....see you on Thursday!!

Hard Living

Most people in Jakarta don't live in the multi-million dollar mansions or the high rise apartments you see downtown. Most live below the poverty level in these slums. The thing that always amazes me, however, is how happy and welcoming the people are in these areas. I guess they just adopt the attitude, "it is what it is", and live with it. Never do I hear a person complain...kids run around being kids, and the adults do what it takes to put food on the table and a roof over their heads.

Down By The Tracks

My buddy and I went down to the railroad tracks today for a short photowalk. I brought along with me some photos I had printed to hand out to the people. People are always so gracious about having their photo taken, but rarely (if ever) do photographers actually give printed photos back to the people. So, that's exactly what I did...and you wouldn't believe the smiles!! Suddenly, everyone wanted their photo taken as I promised I would be back again with more prints...

A couple of kids hold the photo I took of them a few months ago...

Same Guy, New Photo

I took a photo of this same boat guy at Sundah Kelapa this past August. He is still there doing his thing with the boats. I told him I already had a good photo of him (one of my all time favorite shots), and asked him if I could get another. He happily posed again...hard to beat the lines on his face...the stories he could tell...

Happy Birthday JIS

The school I work at, and the school where my kids attend, just celebrated its 60th Birthday...

a very fun day!!

The Nikon D800 Vs. Canon 5D Mark III

This review cracked me up (link below), but I think it sums up the two cameras quite nicely...In case you are wondering, I still have my Leica M9, and have no plans on changing cameras anytime soon. However, I DO need a new underwater camera (and housing), and I am considering the D800 for the job...there are even housings already on the market...amazing how that happens, heh?

If I do end up getting the D800 for my underwater camera, I will then be able to do my own review of the D800 vs the Leica M9...that would be fun!!

CLICK HERE FOR THE REVIEW

SOME SALTY DUDES

I originally processed this photo in color, but ended up liking the black n white better. These guys have been working down at the pier for a long time...salty dudes!!

Like A Painting

I have been working on a few images for an art auction next month. This is one of the images I have submitted...it is iconic Jakarta...the Bajai. I love the way the textures (I used 4 of them for this image) change the entire look to the photograph and turns it into more of a painting or work of art than a photograph. I printed this large on canvas, and I think it will look cool in someone's office...I hope, anyway.

Back From Trip

I was in Singapore the past 4 days. I thought I would be able to update the blog while I was there, but got so busy, I was not able to get a spare moment on the computer. It was a great weekend though!! I tried to get down to the Marina Bay Sands during their laser light show, but didn't make it...I will be back in Singapore at the end of March, so will try again.

This photo (below) is from the bird market. I liked the "green" in the building, and all the birds chirping away...nothing special in the processing...some sharpening and a curves adjustment to bring out the green!