Friday, August 14, 2009 (Shadows)

"Wayang Kulit"

Malaysia Tourism Center, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

I have always been fascinated by shadow puppet play.

Once upon a happier time, you could just catch a show in one of the rural villages in Northern Malaysia (Kelantan, Terengganu)-- no reservations or hassle needed. In a world without televisions or twitter, the wayang used to be the primary source of entertainment at night for both the young and old. The art is dying fast due to a ban imposed on it by the ruling governments of the two states, PAS, citing anti-Islamic rituals and values.

Last Saturday night was my first time watching a real wayang kulit performance. Crosslegged on a straw mat while the cowhide puppets flit, dance and swagger across the screen to the cloying notes of the Nobat. The top of the KL Tower gleamed softly in front of me. At my back, sparkled the Petronas Twin Towers, on and on, late into the night.

-Darell

"Shadowing Time"
Melbourne, VIC

Aperture: f/6.3
Shutter Speed: 1/500s

What a way to capture the essence of a shadow. Credit to Denise for suggesting I make use of the sundial located in Cussonia Court, Melbourne University, to showcase today's theme.

-Jian

looking back.

bedroom, new york.

yup. that's me.

i used to be fairly normal.

don't know what happened.

(sigh.)

the quality here is awful.

do not view on large.

aperture: f/4.0|exposure: 1/10

-june.


Fire Escape
Philadelphia, PA

I got this one while "trawling" (in Jian's own terms) the city. I honestly have no idea why I keep taking pictures from/of fire escapes, but I just really liked the shadow on this one. I ended up changing it to black and white because it made the picture a little more striking and the form/shadow stand out a little more.

Shutter: 1/50
Aperture: f/5.6

-Jing

"Zigzag"
Gillman Heights, Singapore

Aperture: f/2.8
Exposure Time: 1 s

Wouldn't it be fun to walk in a zigzag path once in a while?
Should try it out more often...
Who knows what you'll find when you go against the norm!

~Tian