Tabi basa & greetings everyone! For today’s blog post, I’d like to feature the recent outing that Seahorse Boys had with Mystic Gems Scout Outing, led by Norbert Sirai at Miri, at spacious area somewhere near Parkcity Everly Hotel.

From Seahorse Boys, those that joined were Clayri, Om Jay, Rapheal Lutta, Steve Maggie & myself. From the MGS-side, we are joined by Norbert Sirai, Mira, Sulaiman, Rosita, Nana & Boone.

CONTEMPORARY COSTUMES

Based on the words of Mystic Gems Scout, the costumes that was being used for this photoshoot is considered contemporary, inspired by Sarawakian costumes, and it has no intention whatsoever to disrespect anyone or any culture whatsoever.

If there is any offences, it is purely unintentional.

Also, these costumes

ENTER RICOH GR III

Usually, for my photoshoot, I will bring my DSLR because I don’t want to compromise on the image quality. However, for this photoshoot, since there is a request from Steve, asking me to bring my GR III, I decided to use my GR IIIs. instead for this photoshoot.

For close-up / portrait works, I used the 40mm GR IIIx and for wider-angled shots, i use GR III (28mm field-of-view equivalent). Both of these cameras were shot in RAW+, where it includes the JPEG files as well.

The images created by these GR III are superb, and its RAW files pack a punch. However, I tweak the final colour according to my taste, temperature and skin tones. I didn’t adjust the bokeh artifically using Photoshop as it takes a lot of time to go through the files one by one.

I just did the final adjustment using Capture One software because I like how it renders color.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GR III & MY GO-TO DSLR

Being so used to a camera where I can adjust everything without referring to the LCD screen, using GR III is another refreshing experience for me. The thing that I like most is the size, because I don’t have to lug my heavy gear, for now.

There are some compromises, but after using GR III for a while, it gets interesting. I start to appreciate its ease of use, though for more serious works, I will still use my DSLR.

GOOD BYE EASY-BOKEH

Being used to manual lenses that I can just twist to get a desired bokeh, for this one, I need to get very close to get a desired bokeh from my subjects. I can live without bokeh, no problem. By using this pocket-camera, it forces me to rely on the fundamentals, including lighting placement, leading line, composition and most importantly, the expression of the subject to create a flattering image.

After a bit of tweaking and contemplating over the images, here’s the final result.

THE FINAL RESULT

NORBERT & ROS

NORBERT SIRAI

ROS

NANA

SULAIMAN

BOONE

MIRA

OTHER SEAHORSE BOYS IMAGES

STEVE M MAGGIE

Steve likes to play with tones, which is obvious in his artwork below.

CLAYRI

Clay is enjoying the session. More images will be coming soon.

JAY POTRET – RAJA BOKEH

From what you can see, Jay is a huge fan of bokeh. You can see the effect of this beautiful medium-tele lens and its pleasing bokeh. It also created a flattering face-form for Nana.

LEARNINGS FROM USING RICOH GR III

Lesson 1: Reinforcing Photography Fundamentals

First and foremost, by using this camera, I helps me to reconnect back with the roots of photography that I have always passionate about. It forces me to think more, act more and experiment more because the high-end camera ends up pampering me too much that if I have a poor background, I just blow it all out using bokeh. Simple, right? But it doesn’t help me with mastering the fundamentals.

I should use it more often.

Lesson 2: Testing Colour Grading Skills

In terms of post-processing, there are a number of colour correction that I need to do because the final image is too reddish for my taste, but it’s no doubt still a good colour, and I will still choose GR III over other APS-C models. This is a matter of personal choice. Yours might be different, so let’s agree on this.

Lesson 3: Ricoh GR III Is A Good Alternative For Event Cameras

If you don’t need to emphasise on the portrait, but rather focus only on the moments, then Ricoh GR III is a good camera that you can use. All you need is a couple of extra battery because one of the known issue with GR III is its small battery capacity. Two should be sufficient.

In terms of ease of use, it is definitely good one for me. It is superlight (relative to my DSLR), and I can even pocket it easily without anyone noticing. You can be a stealth cameraman for the event.

With its matte-black finish, it is a design that I like. No wonder it is called Street Photography King (Sorry M & Q).

BONUS TOPIC: DON’T UNDERVALUE YOURSELF

If there is something that I really appreciate, it is respecting one-self. If you don’t respect yourself, how do you expect others to respect you? For example; you know already that you have issue with alcohol & money, but you keep on doing it because it “feels good”. In the end, you’ll be having health issue & broke. Worse, you have the balls to blame others. That person definitely don’t command respect from anyone.

Same goes to photographers. A lot of peoples are aspiring to make a living out of their photography art. But when it comes to getting a paid job, that’s where their delaying gratification is being put to the test. Would you like to live with a small paid job from now until today? Or would you like to learn about photography fundamentals for the next 5-10 years, so that you can command a higher price the next decade?

Who doesn’t want an instant cash? But there is a limit to this. As a start, if that particular job is less than RM500 per hour or RM1500 per job, I won’t accept it because my time, energy and attention worth more than that. The struggle comes after shooting, where I need to do a lot to ensure the images created is worth their money.

When I first started this journey, people paid me RM300 for a day to day. When I think back about it, it is such a small pay, but it teaches me a lot of lesson; especially about knowing your worth and how to value yourself.

I want to deliver the best to those who appreciates my art, but if they don’t appreciate it as much and not willing to invest, then they are most welcomed to look for another photographer.

EPILOGUE

For me, the session has been a wonderful one. It is fun to meet and have a photoshoot with new peoples. Thank you to Norbert Sirai for his kindness, Mystic Gems Scout team for the wardrobe, Man, Nana, Mira, Ros & Boone for becoming our models and you, for reading this until the end.

Stay safe & take care!

Your Tukang Rantek, Claudius (Del)
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