Walk In Rural Singapore: Alkaff Mansion

A little known place in Telok Blangah lies a place known as Alkaff Mansion. A little history on this place. It used to be owned by the Alkaff family whose ancestors come from Indonesia. They were wealthy traders, and they had built this retreat for themselves and their guest on the slopes of Telok Blangah Hill.

After the world war II, the place was abandoned until recently, it was renovated into a Italian restaurant, while keeping the original feel of the mansion.

I had known this place from young, but being in it's run down state (and it's closed to public), it wasn't a top location for photography. But one day, I happened to be jogging around the hill in the night and the bright and colorful lights caught my attention. And there lies Alkaff Mansion, renovated, like how it should look like.

I approached the staff if I could have a picture, and after some deliberation, they allowed me to photograph the place from the outside. I managed to take a couple of bracketing shots on the mansion before being asked to leave the place. Well, I guess that's the difference between a paying guest and a non-paying one. Nevertheless, I still thank the staff for allowing me to photograph the place, when they could have turned me down straightaway.

So, here is the picture. I used my 10-22mm lens on this one.

See this photo on flicker: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dallasgoh/6431459155/

HDR information:
ISO 100, 14mm, f/9
1st shot: EV - 3.0, 1.3sec
2nd shot: EV + 3.0, 30sec
3rd shot: EV + 0, 8sec

Post processing information:
Combined to HDR using photomatix
shadowmapping in photoshop
LAHR sharpening
Cleaned image using content aware
Enchanced details, and added tonal contrast, and other various color adjustments
Noise reduction


Enjoy the photo and don't forget to leave a comment for me!

Welcome EOS 7D to my life!

I finally got my Canon EOS 7D! Coming together is also EF-S 15-85mm IS USM and EF-S 10-22mm USM. Pictures below!

Boxed

Zoomed in

Unboxed!

My family photo

Been dreaming for it ever since it was released and I got it with the help of my parents who is sponsoring me a portion of the cost as my 21st birthday present.

Been reading alot of reviews thinking if I should get the 18-135mm or the 15-85mm. Price is definitely a big factor. Both are of comparable sharpness, 15-85mm being the sharper lens, but 18-135mm has a longer reach with 135mm. The price difference between the two lens is almost double. But since I'm upgrading, I might as well fork out another $500 to get one of the best lens in the EF-S lens line-up.

Another lens that I've got is the 10-22mm. Also have been thinking about it almost 2 years, and finally settled on 10-22mm because I won't be upgrading to full frame in the next 3-5 years, and of course, it's the widest lens an EF-S camera can mount. The angle of view of this baby is really awesome. Even the small details are crisp sharp! If you need a wide angle lens, this has to be it.

I'll be posting a photo from the recent photoshoot with this new camera real soon!