I want to have my photos on the cover of National Geography...

There.. i put it in writing... i will make that statement my next goal in life... i know i have a lot of learning to do... composition.. lighting.. exposure.. creativity... what i need now is a lot of practise !

I recently attended a talk by world famous photographer, Steve McCurry, at the Annexe Gallery in Central Market Kuala Lumpur. I arrived 10 minutes before the talk was scheduled to start and the organisers already closed the door because the room was packed to the brim.. they were afraid the floor would give in because it is an old building. Thanks to my gentle persuasion, they let me in.. and i was lucky enuff to get front row seats so i had a good view of the slides projected on the screen :o)

Mr McCurry has travelled all over the world, on assignment for National Geography and i am sure a host of other magazines. What a dream job, for me at least.. to wake up in a new place every other week.. meet new people.. see the best and the worst that life has to offer.. what would i give to live that life ? Is the grass always greener on the other side of the fence or should i be content with the comfortable life i am now living ? Did Mr McCurry have to make a lot of sacrifices to get to where he is now ?

Mr McCurry takes amazing portrait shots. I wonder what his secret is ? What does he say to his subjects to bring out the emotion in their faces ? Since they are mostly non-English speaking people ( like the the famous Pashtun Afghan girl, Sharbat Gula ).. he probably has to ask his translator to speak to them.. Well, Mr McCurry.. if you are in need of an assistant, please give me the opportunity to send in my resume :o) What i lack in skill and talent, i will make up for with my enthusiam and ability to think out of the box :o)

A picture speaks a thousand words..

Thanks to Airasia ( Now Everyone can Fly ), i have had the opportunity to travel to a lot of destinations over the past few years. My knowledge of the region has increased ten-fold or maybe even hundred fold, and there is really no textbook which teaches you more than travel experience itself.

What better souvenir to take with you than photographs. Everywhere i go, i take hundreds of photos and will create a CD of pictures which helps me to re-live the experience of visiting that foreign country.

Will post some photos of a city i recently visited. Any idea which city this is ? It is not a place which is tourist oriented and the customs officers were surprised when i announced my travel intentions :o)