WH Yeo Photography

Portfolios: Urbanscapes

As much as I love natural landscapes, cities do have their own share of beauty. The lights during dusk is very appealing and is one those rare points of time where mother nature (the ambient light) can go hand in hand with man made illumination. Deep down however, I do wish for modernizaton to take a slower pace and have some leeway for nature.

It was an arduous 45min hike from the hotel. My calves were burning from the lactic acid but the light was changing with each step and that pushed me on.
  
My favourite location in Melbourne. The skyline is distinctly different now and that is what makes this image even more of a keeper to me now.
   
At a small narrow street in Vietnam, my 2 other cameras were set on timelapse. Having a third camera is a good thing when you can grab shots while the timelapses are left undisturbed.
     
  
It is rare for me to have the chance to head out to Docklands during dawn as I would be chasing ducks at the nearby gardens. There was no regret this morning though as the pink soft light prior to sunrise was beautiful and I had the entire place to myself.
   
Street scenes always look better after the rain. The reflection off the grounds add great colour to what would otherwise be black patches of road.
  
An overcast morning was pulling my spirits especially when I had two cameras going on a timelapse. A third camera was on standby for impromptu shots. A sudden burst of light from the sun was all it needed to have that camera see action.
     
  
During the Chinese New Year, the streets of Chinatown in Singapore are packed with stalls selling all kinds of goodies. Using a tilt-shift lens, I lined the buildings in the background and got a few long exposure for a HDR.
   
On my way to a hopeful sunset, I saw cloud formations that I never witnessed before. It was almost 3-dimensional and to enhance the contrast even more, a polarizer was used.
   
Despite the wide angle lens being a staple for almost every urban photographer, a telephoto lens has its place in the bag too. The ability to pick out details in the wide cityscape is one and cutting off a drab sky is another.
     
  
Not really high speed clouds. Just the magic a high density ND filter can do. Plenty of shots were taken to ensure that the cloud movement was at its best.
   
The great thing about travelling in a group is you can sneak out halfway through a meal and get shots that would otherwise be missed. The light was fading and the cloud was getting more and more glow on it. Whipped out a ND grad and waited.
   
To the disgust of my close pals when I revealed this was shot in Melbourne and not NYC. The yellow cabs were what misled them but I guessed the lights from the offices on overtime was somewhat responsible as well.
     
  
Hot air balloons from Brighton Beach floated over the serene skyline while I was peering up at them in envy. I would bet that they had a great shot of the sunrise from up there. But then again, mine was not bad neither.
   
The dappled llight from the sun as it went through the leaves of the tree caught my eye. A widershot would not have worked really well as there was distractions all over the frame. The waitress walking to and fro in the background is one of them.
   
The high pollution levels in Guangzhou made sunsets a pretty sight. The fiery ball was already clearly seen way before it reached the horizon. It's was however not a very positive sign of things though.
     
  
Our driver and guide were great to stop in the middle of the bridge to allow us to grab shots of this great engineering feat. We had to hasten of course, as cops were aplenty and spending a night in a cell was not a good way to start a trip.
   
A blue sky offsets the warm lighting from the Flinders St. Station in Melbourne. A slow shutter speed blurred the water just so slightly.
   
Long exposures require a solid tripod setup, especially so when there is a wind blowing. Investing in a good ballhead and tripod will be the next item after getting a camera and a lens. Not the fastest media cards nor the wide aperture lenses....
     
  
Looking down Swanston's St from a high vantage point, it was a day of dull weather. Decided to go B&W during post-processing and it definitely works better than a dull colour version.
   
I can never for once imagine getting cooped up in a office for ten odd hours. Missing the best light that is offered from the heavens is just something that I cannot bring myself to do.
  
The high altitude clouds helped fill what would otherwise be an empty top frame. It allowed me to compose with less emphasis on the buildings but still gives the viewer a sense of place.
     
  
Everyone gets mesmerised by sunsets but turn back at times and look east. It will look great, maybe even better than the sunset itself.