Category: Places

Riding the Light in Jogjakarta

Matsuda MashimaruLeave a comment
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A lady sitting on the floor of a market in Bantul, Jogjakarta

I was in Jogjakarta, Indonesia for a few days in mid-November last month. Hanging out at Kota Gede with my local photographer friend, Romeography of Studio 76. We planned to wander aimlessly around the east part of Jogjakarta with our cameras.

It was already the beginning of monsoon season here in Southeast Asia … and I was pretty sure that the sky would be dull and the light would be challenging in Jogjakarta too, as the raining season is here to stay until at least towards the end of January next year

After a few failed attempts to hunt for sunrises and sunsets, we decided not to waste our time wandering around hunting for gorgeous landscape anymore… we were out on the street focusing on human interest instead.

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Plaosan temple at sunset

We hang around markets mingling with locals selling all sorts of daily items. We snuck around a group of people selling roosters or cocks for the gamecocks or cockfights. Uh … scary sight of bleeding roosters fighting for its life.

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Spontaneous gamecocks
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6-months old  rooster was for sale at rp600,000
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Caged birds were for sale
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Mbah Madio selling palm tree sugar at a market in Bantul, Jogjakarta

Wandering around with motorbike hunting for subjects and lights has its pros and cons. Other than the pain in the butt (from sitting on a small seat for too long), it was also the risk of getting wet from the rain.

But … it was the easiest way to move around from point A to point B without having to worry about the condition of our routes plus we can just park the bike anywhere we wish. Talking about convenience right …

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The horses of Malioboro street were having their morning bath here at a river near Bantul, Jogjakarta
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Hunting for light at the nearby bridge in Bantul, Jogjakarta
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Farmers along side of the road in Bantul, Jogjakarta
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Spent a few hours here at Pak Sugiman’s workplace at Putat Village, Gunung Kidul, Jogjakarta

Well … the rain doesn’t stop me from achieving my primary goal for this trip lol … which was to have a stress free moment chasing the light. I had a great time … getting close and personal with my subjects, good food and good companion all the way … ahhh I couldn’t ask for more, alhamdullilah.

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My closing sunset for this trip. A dramatic sunset due to the unpredictable weather

We are planning for more future trips to explore more of the landscape surrounding Jogjakarta … maybe after the monsoon season is over. Who knows … In Sha Allah

And …. life goes on and on … and I am learning throughout the journey. Learning to be grateful for each moment that Allah presented to me. Learning to see and accept people as who they are. Learning to love every soul that cross path my journey … and letting go the one that decided to venture out of my path. People changed … a heart changed.

“Oh Allah, please ease my path. Guide my iman. Guide my every single actions. Guide me to love for Your sake. Protect what is in my heart. What lies in the future, only You know. Verily, Allah is All-Knower, Most Merciful and Most Gracious.”

Bye for now,

Cheers

MM

Wandering Soul

Matsuda MashimaruLeave a comment

New places always excite me.

I could spend hours just wandering and observing my surroundings for something to learn from or just something to look at. Sharing 5 of my favourite portraits that whenever I look at them… I feel like packing my bag and starting wandering on the street again.

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View at 6000ft via Paramotor at Tekah Airfield

Matsuda Mashimaru5 Comments
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at Tekah Airfield on October 01, 2016 with my flying buddy

I always wonder.

On how would our earth look like from 10,000ft high up on air from a paramotor ride? Just you and your bared machine up high above the cloud looking down upon the earth with both of your feet dangling in the air at 10,000ft … wohooo!

I said yes when my PPG friends (powered paraglider) invited me to their latest flying event, a Malaysian Book Of Record (MBOR) challenge to fly as high as 10,000 – 15,000 feet up on air this coming December as their professional photographer.

They had a few rounds of training at Tekah Airfield, Taiping, Perak.

I tagged along as part of the team and as the flying partner to En. Tazza. Flying with him is always a good vibe. It seemed that both of us adore flying so much that whatever people said about us, we would still be a good partner. Last weekend on October 1st and 2nd were their second MBOR training. They planned to test their physical endurance and engine capability while attempting to reach at least 6000ft to 8000ft.

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imagine your feet dangling on air at 6000 ft

The wind was gusty that morning.

We were swaying from left to right, up and down dangling on the airspace. I nearly vomited out my early morning ‘nasi lemak’ (breakfast) 😛 … oh boy! after hours and hours of flying with them I still experienced air sickness, It showed how gusty the wind was that morning.

Since ‘giving up’ has never been my favourite words. So, we kept on going.

The gutsy wind finally settled calmly as we ascended exceeding 3000ft and we started to feel the chill and oh my God! the view was priceless. Look at how huge the airspace was. Oh, the word ‘priceless’ felt underrated … the view was awesome A+++.

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at 1935m = 6354 ft … bullseye! we reached the target
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the view at 6000ft
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the view at 6000ft
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at 6000ft … and that fluffy clouds on the left

I often get misunderstood by my viewers.

Guess that professionalism is still unknown to some of my conservative audiences. It may seem like I am the only woman in the team but as a frequent traveller and a professional photographer, this is a normal on-the-job environment for me. I didn’t feel awkward at all as I am not doing anything wrong … religiously or morally. The view up there is worth all the bad mouth rumours on the ground.

People do talk but having a mutual understanding between me and my subjects makes my work comfortable and easy … truly blessed!

“To live is the rarest thing in the world, most people just exist. That is all.” ~ Oscar Wilde

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at 6000ft we blend well with the surrounding
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been here, done that!

Yeay … been there, done that! and I am slowly moving on to my next project.

Preparing myself to get lost in Jogjakarta, Indonesia in mid-November. This is going to be my 3rd time wandering in Jogjakarta … this time around I will be joining my local photographer friend hunting for lights around the beaches, jungles, hills, paddy fields and some bushes outside Jogjakarta. Wish me well …

Bye for now

Cheers,

MM

ps – I am leaving it all to Allah, he is the best of planners. Ameen …

And [remember, O Muhammad], when those who disbelieved plotted against you to restrain you or kill you or evict you [from Makkah]. But they plan, and Allah plans. And Allah is the best of planners. [Al-Anfal verse 30]

The Art of Seeing in Northern Pakistan

Matsuda MashimaruLeave a comment
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Shangri-La Resort at Skardu, Northern Pakistan against the mountains

Yes … I am still digging into my collections of external HD, hunting for hidden treasure. A continuous quest for me or for every photographer out there … a never ending chore to filter thousands of photograph  for just one or two killing images.

While digging … I found a few interesting photos that related to ‘reflection’ that I wanted to share here.  Sharing some photos of the landscape surrounding Shangri-La Resort in Skardu, Northern Pakistan (please excuse my watermark).

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View of Shangri-La Resort at Skardu, Northern Pakistan from a different angle

Capturing reflection either on a puddle of water, on a lake or on some mirrors have a satisfyingly calming effect. The sense of calmness came from my need to be super quiet and totally immersed in the moment, to be able me to notice details in my surrounding such as reflection.

The camera setting to capture reflection is the same setting as capturing photos of any landscape. But our eyes need to be more cautious though, aiming at various angles and at the same time maintaining the best composition. And don’t forget to wait for the right light and the moment when the wind decided to stop meddling with the water surface.

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View of Shangri-La Resort at Skardu, Northern Pakistan with an interesting foreground

Looking back at these photos brought back sweet memories of us in Skardu, Northern Pakistan, we were hanging out at the edge of the lake while waiting for the wind to stay idle for us to capture a perfect reflection of this place.

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Me … enjoying my moment

I think I am more of a traveler than a photographer. Photography is just another reason for me to pack my bag and travel.

So it is kind of annoying when some ‘real’ photographer judging my photography skill based on whatever that I posted on FB after each trip. They’ll ask to see my winning photos of each place that I went … and questioned on why were I still travel to such places when I knew for sure that I can’t even shoot people on the street.

Hmmm. Speechless …

I need to remind myself that I am a traveler first before a photographer.

Having a good photography skill helped me to sharpen my eyes towards details around my surrounding. So … when I traveled … I can see more. The more I see the more I learn. And, if traveling with my camera could turn me into a ‘real’ professional photographer … then I am truly blessed.

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Me … looking down to make sure that my feet still sit on the ground

The world of photography has no boundary … you can be as unique and as creative as wish you could be.

Bye for now

Cheers,

MM

Beyond the Fog of Mt Bromo

Matsuda Mashimaru2 Comments

Mt Bromo
Morning at Mt Bromo hmmm … dreamy!

I visited Mt Bromo at Probolinggo in East Java, Indonesia for the third time last July 2016. I heard from my friends that Mt Bromo was actively coughing off smokes out of its opened crater for the last few months … and I couldn’t resist the temptation for a quick weekend gateway.

We traveled in a very small group this time around. Just the three of us … leaving behind the rest of our “Sailangers” travel mate. I began to love traveling in a small group. Less drama and less need to socialize among us … which mean more time for observing and mingling around with the locals.

Tengger people of Probolinggo was celebrating their Yadnya Kasada festival that week and we intended to observe the ceremony. The ceremony was for the Tengger Hindus to express their gratitude to their believing Gods for good harvests and fortunes bestowed upon them.

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Dramatic sunset that afternoon … the drizzling rain brought along thick fogs

It rained during the 4 days of our stay at Cemoro Lawang, Probolinggo.  The last 2 days were a bit forgiving as we managed to catch morning sunrise before the fog and the rain started to concur the area.

The drizzling rain brought along thick and unpredictable fog that comfortably snuggled  Mt Bromo alley into a deep dreamy sleep. At first, I thought that I was cursed … but rain, fogs, clouds and smoky landscape are always been my favorite moment. The reason why I still love flying with my paramotor/ PPG buddy is because of this dreamy imagination that one day I might stumble into a beautiful thick clouds formation during our flying stint.

Raining morning … at day 1 after a disappointed sunrise
Doing street on a raining morning …
Moody looking jeep at Mt Bromo … waiting for the rain to stop
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Mt Bromo jeep

Well …  a sure challenge for a landscape or ‘chasing the light’ photographer when the sky is dark and the rain is dancing in the air. This is what I called … a lesson of letting go. Nature is teaching us to learn to let go … nature is beyond our human control and I need to learn to let go, this is not my moment yet. Full stop!

dreamy … dreamy landscape
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The clouds and the sky … lovely
us … in the fog

Once I decided to accept my fate … wallah! the sun start peeking out from the thick fogs … and presented us with a dramatic landscape view of Mt Bromo. Ahhhh … blessing in disguise  alhamdulilah … couldn’t ask for more. And … clicking the camera shutter once again … is an exciting thing to do 😛

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Us … looking for the best angle 😛

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Us … doing what we always do … shooting the target 😉

My DSLR is getting heavy and heavier lately … I blamed it on my ‘aging’ 😉 process . My heart still feels young and energetic but my shoulder started to crank up, my knee started to lose its vigor too … damn!

So … I bought a new tool for this trip … a Ricoh GR2 camera, a boxy old fashion looking dude with hmmm an acceptable image making ability. Pictures shared in this post were all taken from my boxy little Ricoh GR2 camera. Not bad for a small point and shoot camera …

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Smoky dramatic Mt Bromo taken with my boxy little Ricoh Gr2 dude

Life is full of wonder … and having a curious mind could always work wonder. Ahhh … I want more and more of this.

 

Bye for now

 

Cheers

MM

 

ps -“Creativity is intelligent having fun.” ~ Albert Einstein