Reef Sharks, Bahamas

The Epson International Pano Awards showcases the work of panoramic photographers worldwide and is the largest competition for panoramic photography. I submitted 6 photos and earned 5 bronze awards. Not too bad . Here are the 5 winning photos.

Cadik Boat, Lombok

Jellyfish, Monterey

Sharp Buildings, Koln

Blue Fusiliers, Derawan

A photography event you don't wanna miss!

Our favorite twitter topic #klinikfoto goes LIVE!

Mari ikutan, sebelum kehabisan! Seminar #klinikfoto yang didukung oleh Panasonic Lumix dan Majalah Stuff Indonesia ini mengangkat tema fotografi buat siapapun yang ingin membuat foto bagus dan bermakna dalam traveling. Akan dibahas persiapan alat foto yang pas, tehnik dasar fotografi travel yang sesungguhnya, bocoran tempat-tempat seru di Indonesia, cara travel yang praktis sampai tips rahasia menghasilkan foto juara dalam bepergian.

Dimana?

fX Lifestyle X’nter, The Cone Lt 7, Jakarta.

Kapan?

Sabtu, 26 Mei, jam 9 pagi – 4 sore.

Ditujukan untuk siapa saja?

Penggemar travel dan fotografi (pemula sekalipun!) yang menginginkan workshop/seminar yang seru, santai, berilmu dan tentunya menjadi ajang ngobrol dengan sesama anak fotografi.

Siapa aja yang ngomong?

Selain saya, ada dua teman handal turut menyumbangkan ilmunya. Fotografer ternama Edward Tigor Siahaan dan Riyanni Djangkaru, ibu muda penggemar traveling, ex-host Jejak Petualang dan juga editor Dive Magz Indonesia.

Biayanya?

Rp 390rb saja, sudah termasuk seminar sehari penuh, makan siang sampai kenyang, kopi/teh dan cemilan, sertifikat, door-prize dan tentunya, ngumpul seru!

Cara daftarnya?

Segera email Nama, No KTP dan Telepon ke admin@jerryaurum.com sebelum 23 Mei. Ingat, tempat (sayangnya) terbatas! Email akan dibalas segera bersama no rekening pembayaran dan no peserta.

Anything else?

Setelah registrasi dan mendapatkan nomor peserta, ayo ikutan kirim satu foto travel terbaik jepretanmu ke management@jerryaurum.com (JPEG, sisi terpanjang 1024 pixel, 72 dpi, RGB), siapa tahu terpilih untuk kita bahas langsung saat seminar. File foto dinamakan sbb: NoPeserta(3angka)_NamaPeserta.jpg (contoh: 099_SastyEmanuella.jpg).

PS. #klinikfoto with Jerry Aurum is a workshop/seminar that I personally initiated, so I will also treat it personally. Can’t wait to see you there, good people!

Yolanda

It was my first time shooting for a beauty pageant contest. I was lucky enough to be able to participate in this fun experience. The creative team from SCTV (who invented Miss Celebrity), Yosie and his producer Moenir, called me with a request, “Bring us photos that will surprise us, different to any other existing beauty contests pictures in Indonesia, but got to be easy to enjoy, and without making our contestants ugly.” So I did.

My concept was very simple. Nature. We tried to make all the props from natural elements; watermelon, lobster, dried crabs (no animal cruelty, promise), sea stars, branches, leaves and anything else that I could think of. The location was Macan Island, in Pulau Seribu area.

I used one portable battery pack flash head from Profoto with an umbrella to make better portraits under the sun. I sometimes used it as fill-in light, sometimes as back light to give nice rim light on the models. My Canon 5Dmk2 has flash sync at 1/200, therefore I needed a strong flash as I had to use small aperture in the bright sunny day. If not, whenever practical, I also used one or two round reflectors.

After shooting 5 (out of 20) contestants, I realized that I had made a wrong strategy. I used a different (scenery) background for every girl. And to come up with 20 different backgrounds in such a small island was turned out to be quite a challenge.

The other problem was time. I only had one day to make 4o images to be displayed on the final, live on tv. And the girls were all amateurs, a kind of girl-next-door trying to make their first move to the celebrity world. That made posing a challenge too. We pulled it off  anyway, thanks to my solid team.

Thanks SCTV and Miss Celebrity. Hope to see you guys, and new girls, in 2012.

I shared my photographs with no watermark. Please do not abuse the good faith and the copyrights.

Widuri

The winner, Sirena

Putri Fadhilah

Putri

The magnificient Fox Glacier. Walk on the glacier is a must!

Kia ora, my dearest blog readers. Be well, it means, in Maori language.

This post is especially dedicated to you who loves nature, because you’ll have an orgasm with New Zealand. It will be such a great, great place for your next adventure (in my case, a honeymoon) and here are some of the reasons:

1. The nature is simply amazing. It’s magnificent, unbelievably beautiful. I’ve explored 23 countries so far, and NZ would be really hard to beat.
2. The facilities are so well done. Drinkable fresh water, clean toilets, information centers, smooth roads, emergency services and all the other things a first-timer like me needs are available and easily accessible.
3. People are extremely friendly. Unless you’re a blood-thirsty street fighter, you’ll most likely end up having a good experience with the Kiwis and other travelers.
4. English is the main language in NZ. So if you can understand my so-so English on this blog, you’ll be just fine.
5. All tourism are designed Eco-friendly, with nature conservation in mind. Nothing is overly done (which is an eye-disaster for a visual minded person like me).
6. The size of the country is just perfect. One destination to another is usually only 1-4 hours driving. You don’t have to fly all the time and miss all the fun.
7. Many places are so quiet. NZ has more sheep than people. It’s great for people from big cities who see too many people everyday.
8. The food is great! With NZ’s meat and dairy products, you better plan to visit your personal trainer more often once you’re back home.
9. For adrenaline junkies, you can test your limit here. There’s a reason why NZ is called home for bungy jumps.

Now, here are some insights from my experience that I hope can help you a bit to plan a better holiday:

1. Hire a camper-van. Hit the road with a little-moving-house that has kitchen, bed, toilet, shower and a fridge. Many companies made custom-designed camper-vans, based on their many years of experience. I even had my candle light dinner in it. You can stayt at many holiday parks that are dedicated for campers with a small fee (and you can park at any normal parking space just like a normal car).
2. Talk to other travelers. Beautiful countries are often visited by beautiful people. I got many useful information from them in holiday park public showers.
3. Travel light. It’s not a third world country anyway, you can buy almost everything you need in any town.
4. Wind breaker is a must, unless you’re from Antarctic.
5. Be adventurous. NZ is not a place for a potato couch.
6. Always watch the weather forecast. It’s much better to admire Mount Cook in a sunny day than imagining how it looks behind a thick layer of fog.
7. Plan your road trip a bit, but not too much. Your plan can easily change.
8. Never litter. Ever. The country is cleaner than our malls in Jakarta.
9. Don’t try to find Chinese food. You might better visit China.
10. The beer is good. Buy more cans.

Last but not least, here’s my story with my dear wife, Dena, through pictures (what else?). Enjoy, good people. Kia ora.

I shared my photographs with no watermark. Please do not abuse the good faith and the copyrights.

It was in city center. No wonder Christchurch is called The Garden City.

Brothers talking in a nice evening in Queenstown

The magnificent Fox Glacier. Walk on the glacier is a must!

View from the helicopter in Aoraki/Mount Cook area (btw your helicopter will land on the snow, on top of the mountain)

Boat riding in Tasman Glacier gives you a chance to touch (and taste, in case you're thirsty) icebergs

Go tramping at Mount John and be amazed with its 360˚ view from the observatory (plus a restaurant!) on top of it (order a super yummy hot chocolate)

Swim with the Hector dolphins in Akaroa. If you're lucky, they might like you.

NZ's capital, Wellington, has its unmistakable charm. And Peter Jackson still called it home.

The famous harbour of Auckland

Road to Lake Taupo. Even a cloudy day can still awe you in NZ.

The Hobbiton, the shooting location of, rrr, The Hobbits

Milford Sound

Whale watching from helicopter in Kaikoura. 19-metre fully grown sperm whale!!

Also in Hobbiton. Don't give me that look, I won't eat you anyway, Shaun.

Spend a day in Napier in the east coast of the north island. Such a charming little town.

Swim with the seals. You'll remember it for the rest of your life.

Last but not least, you might wanna see some of the less photographic-oriented pictures of our trip (but nothing less exciting too see, I guarantee you ). Please click here.

Mr. & Mrs. Aurum

Ha! We’re married!

Lemme share a bit of our little story. I met Denada in 2009, when I was shooting for my photography book, In My Room. It was an awesome first meeting, because the moment I met her in person, she was wearing a bed sheet and nothing underneath . Such a great pleasure for being a photographer. The photo itself instantly became my favorite of the entire book.

It wasn't love at the first sight, but it was a lovely picture for sure

Several months later, we started dating and began to share so many moments together. Love was, and is, and I really hope that always be, in the air.

On the 13th July 2011, at almost midnight, in front of the sea of lights of New York, I proposed Dena at the top of Empire State Building (reminded me well of the movie Sleepless In Seattle. Or King Kong). As you might have known, it was a Yes. Such a perfect, perfect scene of our own movie.

Back in Jakarta, on the special date of 11.11.2011, I proposed Dena again. This time, officially. Eleven members of my family came to Dena’s house bringing the ‘seserahan’, consisted of eleven parcels. Laughter, tears of joy and so many memorable little things we shared that day.

Lord Of The Ring in action

Okay, fast forward to today, or to be precised, yesterday (15th Feb), we got married in Khayangan Estate, Uluwatu, Bali. We had the ceremony in the morning, attended by family only, besides our ten best-friends-forever as our best-men and bridesmaids. (To our journalist friends, sorry that we kept it very private. I’m sure that you will understand). The feeling, was simply indescribable. But my vow to my wife was simple and short, “Aku akan mencintaimu dengan sederhana.. tanpa agenda, tanpa syarat.” May God bless us on that.

The dinner party after that? Guys, it was THE best wedding party I’ve ever attended, and it was our own!! Great performances on stage (I married a singer with singer parent and singer friends, remember?),  great family members and friends (yup, nothing beats celebrating with people  we love) and great, great dancing and drinking (when my and my buddies’ shirts flew off on the dancing floor, I knew we had hell of a great party).

It was a night to remember. And a start of a new journey. Wish us luck, good people.

For more pictures, have a look here!

——-

PS. Some of our beloved guests said something about the party

The Best Wedding Party ever! Best Couple, Best Friends, Best Scene, Best Island. The most sincere party with only dearest families, friends & colleagues.. 8 thumbs up! – Ariya Sradha

The best party I’ve ever attended – Felly Hartanto

Seru banget party-nya…it was so much fun! We should do it again! *lho* hahaha. – Oka Yulianto

One of the best weddings I’ve ever attented to, congratz! – Rachma Devi

What a nice cray loving celebration last night. We’re sooooo happy for you! Oiya, should I mention gua & Thelly sampe berkaca2 pas bagian lo di depan kemaren, bwahahaha bagus kali! – Raden Antorio

The beautiful place, the nice people, the way you both dressed were very impressive. Jer, when I saw your mother it looks to me “she” was the bride in the way she dressed, beautiful! Dena, when your mother went to the stage, I thought she will give a long speech, (that’s what mothers doing most of the time, hahaha). How big the surprise when she start to sing, I would like to work every day with her in the kitchen, to hear her amazing voice! Now I know from whom you get your voice. I never heard you singing but it must be nice too! Even the guest on our table, the crazy photo (taken at the moment when we came in) and the performances was a nice surprise. You organized all very well. Chapeau! – Henk de Vries

Looking back a bit is necessary

Here I am again, two years after I wrote my last retrospection on this blog. Many things have happened since then, good and bad, and I have been fortunate enough to have more of the good ones.

So here are some of my (sometimes not-important) thoughts about many things in our creative industry and about myself:

1. 2011 has been the most exciting year in photography. Thanks to Instagram, which was chosen as the application of the year by Apple, more and more people are so into photography these days.

2. Number of professionals in commercial photography in Indonesia remain pretty much the same as many years ago. Many have come and go, and they usually stayed in the business not more than two years. Why? I guess the business side is not what many people expect to be a pro.

3. Photography in Indonesia has started to struggle its way to penetrate the fine-art markets. It is still a long way to go. C’mon people, it’s not only paintings that you can stare at.

4. I’ve seen that many architects and interior designers have been enjoying a great year, financially and creatively.

5. Fashion industry has remained exciting. It’s still full of arrogant people who take their pride more than it should be, but the some fresh blood have shown us that our fashion industry is getting serious, internationally.

6. I got involved more in the fine-art world this year and got to know a bit more about it. Wow, many real successful fine-art artists have made me feel like I was in the wrong field. Enjoy your big houses and fancy cars, lucky bastards.

7. I failed to discipline myself to finish my 3rd book, the Femalography part II. Instead, again, I have started another book, which excited me more. Not that I hadn’t tried to work on Femalography, but I just didn’t get what I wanted after each shooting. So I decided to take a little break, again. Hopefully, my next book will come out at the end of 2012.

8. Some people see me more as a celebrity than a photographer, thanks to some commercials that I was featured in. And some know me more than my work these days. That’s never been my intention, and it doesn’t make me happier either. Being more and more well known does give lots of benefits, but it also gives nothing less of limitations in my daily life. Anyway, I think staying focus in making good arts is still the most important (and exciting!) part.

9. I am truly sorry to all the people that I have hurt, no matter how small it was. I hope they would forgive me and I hope not to do the same mistakes in the future.

10. I have learnt to be more patient and being less perfectionist this year. I am still not sure if it’s the best attitude, but it seems that it works pretty well. Maybe I’m getting old? I can live with that.

11. I have finally finished my home – studio – office renovation and it’s been covered by several media since then. The new Studio Praja is more convenient now and I enjoy cooking so much in my new kitchen . Maybe you should hire me as your decorator the next time you renovate .

12. I tried the prototype of Canon 1Dx. The biggest, heaviest DSLR I’ve ever tried. I’m not sure what to do with its 14 frames-per-second shutter, but it impressed me much anyway.

13. I have enjoyed mirrorless camera more than ever. I fell in love with my Panasonic Lumix G3 right away. Light, fast and has great image quality. Not mentioning its widest range of quality lenses among its competitors.

14. I finally changed my 10 years Hensel lighting system, and welcomed the high-end Profoto. It was a right choice.

15. No matter how much I hate being involved in confrontation, there were two fights I had to face this year. One was with an advertising agency who was trying to treat me like shit, and the other one was with my lunatic, grumpy old-man neighbor. I guess, when you really have to fight, fight.

16. Love has shown me the way. I proposed my girlfriend in a wonderful evening at the top of Empire State Building last July, and I am truly honored to have your blessings for my wedding in 2012.

Enjoy 2012, good people!

Senjata perang sejak 1992. Apik tersimpa, bebas jamur, bebas debu.

‘Kamera saya berjamur, kemana dong benerinnya?’ Ketimbang kamera atau lensa jamuran, yang mana sama menyebalkan dengan jamur di kaki, mendingan dihindari.

Ada cara gampangnya. Sediakan lemari ukuran sedang, dari bahan apa saja. Tidak usah yang mahal. Multipleks juga boleh. Sambungkan lampu pijar 5 watt di dalamnya. Ingat, 5 watt, jangan lebih, kecuali lemari penyimpanan kamera kita besar. Lampu ini berguna untuk memanaskan isi lemari. Idealnya, 30 derajat celcius. Di suhu tersebut, jamur tidak bisa tumbuh, sehingga lensa aman sentosa bebas dari organisme perusak kelestarian alat-alat fotografi kesayangan kita. Suhu tersebut juga masih tidak terlalu panas untuk komponen-komponen elektronik ataupun sekat-sekat karet di kamera atau lensa, yang rentan dengan suhu panas. Hasilnya? Sejak 19 tahun berlalu, Nikon FM2 saya alhamdullilah sehat walafiat, selayaknya atlet Sea Games kita.

Debu sedikit demi sedikit akan terkumpul memang. Tetapi bila pintu lemari cukup rapat, biasanya baru perlu dibersihkan 3-6 bulan sekali, itupun biasanya di bagian dasar lemari doang.

Yang lebih penting adalah membersihkan kamera atau lensa sebelum di-lemari-kan dari bekas garam yang terdapat di tangan kita ataupun udara pantai dan laut. Garam-garam ini lumayan nyebelin, suka bikin karet body kamera kusam, dan keropos lama kelamaan. Membersihkannya paling bagus dengan cairan pembersih kamera yang bisa dibeli di banyak toko kamera.

Terakhir, biasakan untuk membersihkan sensor kamera dengan blower setiap kali sehabis dipakai (untuk tipe kamera yang lensanya bisa dilepas) agar debu tidak lama menempel dan jadi susah lepas.

Selamat menyimpan ria!