What camera and lenses do you use?
I use a Canon 5DMII, his name is Chase :) I usually use my EF 50mm f/1.4, and sometimes the EF 24-70mm f/2.8L. I also have a EF 100mm f/2.8 but I seldom ever use that. Most of my old shoots (up till the unfading summerdays series last October) were shot with my old camera, Canon 450D.
Do you use any lighting equipment?
Other than in the studio of course! I'm a strong lover of natural light and not a big fan of all the fancy light equipment (or artificial light for that matter), especially when I do more outdoor shoots. Although I recognise that this may reduce the "professionalism" of my photos to the eyes of 'techies', I'm determined to stick to my style for now. :)
How long have you been shooting?
Well, I had my first DSLR in 2008, but I never really took a lot of photos, till I got my EF 50mm f/1.8 and starting taking tumblr-inspired photos. I later stopped shooting anything for 4 months, and picked myself up after several issues in my personal life. So I think it's safe to say I started shooting "professionally" or knew that I wanted to shoot fashion and portraiture in May 2011. That's about 1 year now! You can read more about this in the "About Me" section among the navigation links above.
Which camera should I buy?
I'll help you with whatever I know, but honestly, I'm not up to date with the new cameras that are available in the market. Usually when people ask me, I'll just google, and compare the specifications (which I'm sure you can do as well) and give my judgement. But ultimately, I'll like to emphasize that it doesn't matter what camera you use - whether a simple point and shoot or an ultra-pro DSLR - what matters is your eye for photography, and your passion. It's always about the artist and not the camera. Unless your equipment is faulty of course, haha!
I love your curves, will you have more curves giveaway?
Haha thank you! I'll love to come up with more curves, but I think I may start selling them in future! For now, I think I'll hold curves giveaways when my
Facebook page hits certain "likes milestones"! I'm also thinking of prints giveaway and some other things. I'm having a giveaway of two 4GB thumbdrives for beautifuladieu's first anniversary this 28 June!
Which program do you use to edit your photos with and what is your editing workflow?
I use Photoshop CS5. I'm still trying to get the hang of using Lightroom and Adobe Bridge. My editing workflow is simple: I flag photos which I think I may edit, then rate them accordingly. Ultimately I choose the top 20 photos or so that I'm happy with. I don't manipulate my images that much, I usually just do simple retouching, use a couple of layer adjustments and apply curves.
Who are you inspired by?
Oh wow, there's a whole list I can't even begin! But mainly artists around my age or younger than me who also shoot and believe in natural light: Nirrimi Hakanson and Ann He. There's also Wendy Liu, Caitlin Worthington, Claire Alice, Emily Tebbets, Alexandra Sophie, Kitty Gallannaugh... Seriously, the list is endless! They all take really beautiful photos and you should check out their works too!
Where do you take your photos? They don't look like they were taken in Singapore!
Haha! But they're mostly in Singapore, I just don't like to capture recognisable landmarks. Sometimes I travel abroad and arrange for shoots on my vacations. So far I've done shoots in Hong Kong and Taipei. If you have to ask for specific locations where I take my photos, I'll appreciate if you would come off being anonymous. Being in a small country with limited places to shoot, I think everyone should make the effort to do a bit of their own research. I know it's a sensitive topic to talk about, but I don't think it should be taken for granted.
Do you take requests? How much do you charge?
At the moment, I take limited requests. I may open up to more in future or completely stop, I've no idea yet! I prefer not to state my charges online, so please do drop me a mail if you're really keen. Please note that my charges for lookbooks, model's portfolio and requests are different, so it's best to send me an email!
I've compiled a list of questions people usually ask me, whether by email or in person, and I hope it clears up some of your doubts! If you want to submit an FAQ or ask a question, don't hesitate to leave a comment or email me at enquiries@beautifuladieu.com.
