A Place Of Quiet Rest

A quieter corner on Bintan Island. Photo credit: Jonathan Chua.

The Gentle Giant

One of the few Manatees taking a look at visitors through a viewing window at River Wonders. Photo credit: Jonathan Chua.

The tank was dimly lit and cloudy. So I had tried with a nifty-fifty wide open at f/1.8 with the exposure biased 1-1/3 stops darker. In post, shadows were lifted, highlights were pulled back and the image was then exposed to the right with the contrast tweaked a bit.

The Award-Winning Weeper

A sparse looking Prunus kiku-shidare-zakura flowering in the conservatory. Photo credit: Jonathan Chua.

This is apparently a very old Japanese cultivar. Known since the late 19th century as the ‘Weeping Chrysanthemum Cherry’ in Japanese (you may find more information here: Gardenia).

A Yellow Sunset

Miltonia Sunset glowing together in the National Orchid Garden. Photo credit: Jonathan Chua.

A stop of underexposure was used here to darken away the shady undergrowth to better isolate the orchids.

A Wartime Orchid

Aranda Hilda Galistan blooming brilliantly in the National Orchid Garden. Photo credit: Jonathan Chua.

This orchid hybrid apparently first flowered at the height of World War Two in 1940. It’s said to be named after Hilda Choppard, wife of honorary member of the Malayan Orchid Society Emile Galistan. 

Using a 50mm prime lens, I worked a little differently; moving closer, composing with my feet and being more selective in my focussing. Aperture used here was f/4 so the depth-of-field was shallower than what I had been more accustomed to get from the slower lenses that had been my constant companion recently.

Daily Refreshment

A bamboo orchid getting its daily shower in the National Orchid Garden. Photo credit: Jonathan Chua.

This was captured with a nifty-fifty up close. It had been a while since I last used this lens but it had come in as the substitute for an 18-270mm that was having focussing issue.