Luodai Market - Sichuan Province

When the purchase of a live fowl has been successfully completed, one can visit this other area of the market where artisans are specialized in the plucking of the feathers...

Luodai Market - Sichuan Province

Observing this man with his last hen for sale, I try to figure out what he could be thinking about... "if only you could lay golden eggs..."

Luodai Market - Sichuan Province

Other transactions in the vegetables section.

Luodai Market - Sichuan Province

The transactions in the live fowl section of the market are a delight to watch, with a nose clip.

Luodai Market - Sichuan Province

We reached the market at around 10 am. While it was maybe a little late, their was still plenty of choice and pretty busy.

Luodai Market - Sichuan Province

Bicycles are still widely used to carry all types of goods.

Hakka Town Of Luodai - Sichuan Province

Another street corner, another typical Luodai city dweller.

Hakka Town Of Luodai - Sichuan Province

Old methods of transportation are still very much in use.

Hakka Town Of Luodai - Sichuan Province

A stroll in the street is like going for a walk in the past, with some small anomalies such as plastic bags and electric motorbikes zipping by silently.

A trip to the Sichuan Province of China

This new series comprises of pictures taken during a recent short trip within the Sichuan Province of China.

Sichuan, or the province of four rivers, is surrounded by mountains and is therefore subjected to a very particular foggy climate, with the lowest sunshine total annually in China. Its capital, Chengdu, is located geologically on top of a water table, which is said to have protected the city during the magnitude 7.9 earthquake that hit the province in May 2008. The official death toll of the quake was set at 70’000 with millions left homeless. Called the province of abundance, Sichuan is a major agricultural production base in China and features large metal ore deposits. It counts a population of 82 mio people.



The first stop is in Luodai, an ancient Hakka town in the outskirt of Chengdu.

Marina Bay Barrage (5)

D700 70-300mm @ 100 ISO200 f/11 6 sec. tripod

And to close this Marina Bay Barrage series, a picture taken in the late twilight hour.

Well, considering the title of the series, one might have expected a shot of the barrage itself... Maybe another time!

Marina Bay Barrage (4)

D700 70-300mm @ 180 ISO200 f/11 0.8 sec tripod

The construction on the roof of the Sands building is just amazing. I liked the passing cloud that had a shape similar to the capping structure of the Sands. The key here was timing. First, the natural light had to be nicely balanced with the building lights, especially with the underbelly lighting of the roof structure. Second, the cloud still had to be in the frame when the light was right...

Marina Bay Barrage (3)

D700 70-300mm @ 180 ISO400 f/11 1 sec tripod

A sunset view from the Marina Bay Barrage area of downtown with a focus on the Singapore Flyer at sunset.

Marina Bay Barrage (2)

D700 14-24mm @ 24 ISO400 f/11 1/320

Marina Bay has always been a great place to fly kites. Now that the barrage building has been completed, the roof of the pump area has become most popular for this activity. Here at sunset with some back light on the kite and the Singapore flyer in the background.

Marina Bay Barrage (1)

D700 70-300mm @ 75 ISO400 f/4.4 1/30

The little Singapore water museum at the barrage is pretty interesting. I found my rewards in ceiling reflections...

Lotus Flower

D700 70-300mm @ 280 ISO400 f/5.6 1/30

Close up of a lotus flower. The 70-300mm lens allows for some near macro work.

Old Seletar Camp Area (10)

D700 24mmPCE ISO400 f/11 1/160

The eyes travel through the picture in a zig-zag pattern from the roofs to the gully, like the rain water. This picture will complete the series on the black and white buildings of the Seletar Camp. Till next visit?

Old Seletar Camp Area (9)

D700 24mmPCE ISO200 f/11 1/125

In the humid local climate, ferns can grow almost anywhere if you give them the time.

Old Seletar Camp Area (8)

D700 24mmPCE ISO200 f/18 1/125

A few wooden pegs placed on the clothes lines would have improved the picture!

Old Seletar Camp Area (7)

D700 24mmPCE ISO400 f/11 1/125

As the picture was taken from the ground level, the lens had to be shifted up a little to keep the windows straight.

Old Seletar Camp Area (6)

D700 24mmPCE ISO400 f/4 1/50

Light through the jalousie.

Old Seletar Camp Area (5)

D700 24mmPCE f/14 1/100

This is one massive old tree. The distortion of perspective created by the use of a wide angle lens is partly to thank for this effect! The tree is however impressive anyway.

Old Seletar Camp Area (4)

D700 24mmPCE ISO400 f/14 1/100

Another building in Seletar Camp area. Interesting symmetry!

Old Seletar Camp Area (3)

D700 24mmPCE ISO200 f/18 1/200

A cement structure that was part of a club house. The lens flare actually add some character to the picture...

Old Seletar Camp Area (2)

D700 24mmPCE ISO200 f/18 1/30

Sad view from the empty garden, previously visited by boisterous children...

Old Seletar Camp Area (1)

D700 24mmPCE ISO200 f/11 1/320

An interesting walk in the old Seletar Camp that has been partially marked for demolition for the development of the new Seletar Aerospace Park. The black and white houses found in the neighborhood were put up by the British to house the contingent attached to the Seletar airport. The airport was built in 1928 and served as a British army base till 1968.

Contrasts In The City

D700 50mm ISO200 f/13 1/200

A second picture taken with the 50mm within the exercise mentioned yesterday. I would usually use it as a fast lens (f/1.4) to control depth of field or for low light shot without flash. It was actually interesting to be limited to a single focal length for an outing. There was in fact more opportunities to use it than I had expected.

The Light At The End Of The Tunnel

The light at the end of the tunnel - D700 50mm ISO200 f/16 1.3 sec

This picture is the result of a little exercise suggested by Thom Hogan on his excellent photo blog [www.bythom.com]: an outing with the lens that is used the least and with the camera set on manual. Converted to black & white in post processing.

Shuang Lin Monastery (11)

Shuang Lin Monastery - D700 70-300mm @ 78 ISO400 f/4.5 1/80

This series is to end. I highly recommend a visit to the monastery. For more information on the site and its history, you may consult www.shuanglin.sg.

Shuang Lin Monastery (10)

Shuang Lin Monastery - D700 70-300mm @ 230 ISO400 f/11 1/200

The roofs of the monastery.

Shuang Lin Monastery (9)

Shuang Lin Monastery - D700 70-300mm @ 240 ISO200 f/13 1/400

Dragons protecting the temple.

Shuang Lin Monastery (8)

Shuang Lin Monastery - D700 70-300mm @ 70 ISO200 f/11 1/100

Detail of the pagoda.

Shuang Lin Monastery (7)

Due to the proximity of the HDB developments, it was particularly difficult to capture the main pagoda without any buildings in the frame. This angle gives the impression that this towering pagoda is a lighthouse braving large waves represented by the roofs.