Tag: Urban

  • Mobile Photography Accessories Worth Buying

    My first real photography purchase after my phone was a lens kit. You know the type — a little pouch with a fisheye, a macro, a wide-angle, all clipping onto the smartphone camera. It cost me less than a nice dinner, and I was convinced it would transform my photos and enhance my mobile photography…

    Upgrade your shots with mobile photography accessories worth buying in Singapore, from tripods and lenses to lighting tools for sharper photos.
  • The Essence of Singapore Photography: Documenting The Culture of Hawker Stalls

    It was a Tuesday morning at Old Airport Road Food Centre, one of the favourite photo spots for street photography in Singapore. I’d gone there to shoot char kway teow, the usual glistening plate, the wok hei, the kind of picture most tourists and photographers take, the kind the world wanted to see. But my…

    A food stall counter with diners standing nearby in a covered walkway.
  • The Only Mobile Photography Apps Worth Keeping on Your Phone

    The best photo I took last year came from my smartphone cameras, not a professional camera. It was a wet Tuesday in Chinatown. I’d left my proper gear at home, and I almost didn’t bother stopping. But the rain had just eased, the red lanterns were glowing against the dark pavement, and something told me…

    A person holds a smartphone horizontally, photographing a historic building street scene on the screen.
  • Ethical Street Photography Explained by Street Photographers

    The first time someone confronted me, I was standing outside a provision shop in Chinatown. I’d just lifted my camera toward an old uncle stacking oranges into a pyramid. The morning light was gorgeous, soft, gold, sliding along the shopfront. I got greedy. I stepped too close, framed his face too tightly, and pressed the…

    A row of traditional shophouses with gray shutters lines a street with modern buildings in the background.
  • Photography Techniques in Small Cafes Without Making Them Feel Crowded

    The first time I tried to take a picture of tiny shophouse café in Tiong Bahru, I ruined every shot in the first five minutes. I stood at the doorway, screwed on my widest lens, and tried to capture the whole room in one frame as the subject. I wanted it all — the counter,…

    Cappuccino with latte art on yellow saucer beside vintage film camera with lens on wooden slatted table in natural window light.
  • How Cafe Design Influences Photography: A Guide to Singapore Cafes for Coffee Lovers

    The first time I understood this, I was sitting in a heritage shophouse café in Tiong Bahru. It was an ordinary morning. Natural light came in sideways through the tall windows and settled on old wooden furniture and a worn wooden table. I ordered a latte, lifted my camera out of habit, and started shooting.…

    Bright cafe interior with colorful chairs, woven pendant lights, exposed brick wall, and floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking outdoor terrace.
  • Cafe in Telok Ayer: Finding Singapore’s Most Photogenic Coffee Corners

    I keep coming back to this Telok Ayer cafe stretch, camera in one hand, coffee cooling in the other. There is something about this pocket of cafes in singapore that rewards slowness. It is easily accessible from the east west line, yet it feels miles away from the rush of marina bay sands. This is…

    Latte with latte art and black coffee in brown cups on saucers beside a cheese-topped pastry on a white plate with fork and knife.
  • Understanding Film Grain: When Noise Improves Restaurant Photography

    The first time I tackled restaurant photography at an omakase dinner in Singapore, I almost deleted my best photo of the night. I was sitting at a tiny counter near Tanjong Pagar, where the chef works in a pool of warm light and the rest of the room melts into shadow. I had pushed my…

    Hands holding a camera over a table of assorted food and drinks.
  • A Beginner’s Guide to Candid Photography for Date Ideas in Singapore

    The first time I tried to do a couple photoshoot in a date night, I ruined the whole thing in about ten seconds. I had a friend and his partner sit down at a little wine bar near Keong Saik Road, and the moment I lifted my camera, I said the deadly words: “Okay, now…

    A man and a woman smiling at the camera while wearing backpacks and standing outdoors next to a white structure with intricate green patterns.
  • Low-Light Restaurant Photography: A Guide to Food Photography in Singapore, Capturing a Candlelit Dinner Without Flash

    The first time I tried to photograph a candlelit dinner at Clark Quay Central, I committed a small crime against the entire restaurant. I was at a romantic little Italian place off Keong Saik Road, the kind with one flickering candle per table and the lights dimmed to a soft amber glow. My pasta, the…

    Candlelit dining table with lantern centerpiece