Would All Fishermen Have the Wisdom of the Mexican Fisherman? – Los Angeles Fine Art Photographer

Have you heard of the story of the Mexican fisherman?  In this story, an executive from America had a much grander plan for the fisherman.  The problem is that according to the plan, the fisherman would find himself where he already was, after 15-20 years of “mad rat race” (my own opinion ).  If you haven’t, you can read it here.

On my recent trip to Xingping (兴坪), China, a small fishing village near Yangshuo (阳朔), I met one fisherman.  As tourism is quickly changing the world, such little gem tucked in a corner can not escape.  Would people there have the wisdom to see what the Mexican fisherman saw?

It took me 16 years in “the America” to finally quit the rat race.  Places as depicted in this image are still beautiful to me.  Do people there see what I see?  I mean, what kind of life would you choose – mad (rat race) vs. peaceful?

 P.S. You know how to find me, if you’d like any of my fine art photography to decorate your home or office.

I Made it Earlier than the Sun in Yangshuo (阳朔) – Los Angeles Fine Art Photographer

Yangshuo (阳朔) in China has long been on my list to travel to.  There’s an ancient saying in Chinese that the landscape in Guilin (桂林) tops the world, and that of Yangshuo (阳朔) is the best in Guilin (桂林) (i.e., “桂林山水甲天下，阳朔山水甲桂林” in Chinese).  Its rolling hills, especially hidden in a thin layer of mist, is mesmerizing to me.  

You know I’m not an early riser.  But my behavior changes when traveling.  For one, I get up early to “beat the tourists” (see here as well).  And when traveling to a place like Yangshuo (阳朔), it’s worth sacrificing every bit of comfort.  In this case, it means rolling out of bed and climbing up the mountain in darkness, with heavy gear, to catch the first breath of the sun.  And then wait to meet His Majesty.   

For a short window of time, we were rewarded with this spectacular sun rise.  Don’t you love the play of light and the shades of colors?

BTW, according to the locals, we were the lucky ones – it had been raining in previous days and will rain again the next day.  So to see the sun, in these dreamy clouds, is photographer’s-dream-come-true.  Of course, someone once said that the mighty power up there likes good people.

P.S. It goes without saying that you can contact me if you’d like this beautiful piece of art to be decorating your living room, dining room, or bedroom.

 

A Woman is Always Beautiful (Just like Flowers) – Happy Mother’s Day – Los Angeles Transformational Beauty Photographer

A friend once made a reference of a woman’s life to that of a flower.  I’m pretty sure she’s not the only one making the connection between the two.

People tend to associate later parts of lives to something not so positive.  I beg to disagree.

In my household, I barely throw away things, not even the flowers that have fallen off the stems and dried.  By the way, my hubby has stopped trying to argue with me.  How would you argue with an artiiiiiist?

Anyway, in my eyes, all organisms move through stages of lives, having distinct characteristics.  Take this orchid for example.  Some clients have seen it in my home.  I’ve kept it even when most people think its life has ended.  Its days of plump skin, perching on the branches have ended.  But those days have been replaced with rich colors, textures and an “attitude” that nothing much can affect it anymore.  To me, that is beautiful!  And I celebrate such a beautiful life by keeping it around and showing people, including clients, how I’m crazy about such a drastically different yet still splendid look at the end of life.

Today, I wanted to take the opportunity to wish all the moms a happy Mother’s Day!  Have a great time celebrate what makes you!  And to those of us married women with no children, give ourselves a pat in the back.  You know what I mean if you think back the day that you take over your husband from your mother-in-law.  You’ve somehow stepped into her shoes, haven’t you? Have a happy day, all my women sisters!

P.S. Sample fine art photography can be viewed here.  To purchase or to discuss how to make a fine art “out of you” ( ), I can be reached here.

     

Nature – Where Spring and Fall Co-exist – Los Angeles Fine Art Photographer

Even back in my corporate days, I never let my position define what I do or who I was.  Now that I’m in a creative realm, it’s even more true.

Yes, I “transform” women/beauty.  But, that’s not going to stop me from appreciating the other beauties that we have around us.  So, when I go on a hike, I do not just hike.  I get “distracted” a lot, while my “assitante” anxiously plod ahead, trying to get to the end of the road before sunset.  However, wouldn’t you agree that had I not “stopped and smelt the roses”, we wouldn’t have this image, where spring and fall magically co-exist?

 

Is Full Sun the Best Light for Portraiture? – Los Angeles Portrait Photographer

My job as an artist is to provide the best portraiture no matter what light condition we have.  More than once, I would hear comments from clients about how a location would be great for photography because it gets “all the sun”.  But let me tell you, personally, I think the best character in the “natural” backdrop comes out when the sun is not “all out”.

Take a look at the below image, and let me know if you agree.  This is where we can create some fine art for our clients:

P.S.  The “dude” in the image is my trusty “assistante”.  When you hire me, it’s included in the portrait packages to meet him.

 

I Continue my Quest with Painting with Light – Los Angeles Newborn Photographer

You know I’m a Transformational Beauty Photographer.  If some of you out there are wondering what age group I work with, the answer is, there is no limit to ages.  There is, however, other criteria to make sure that you are a good fit for this kind of “transformation” (and they are not related to weight or look or anything “superficial”, for lack of better word) .  Come on, I’ve got standard!

So, how did I “transform” this zero-aged baby, you may ask?  Well, you notice it’s not the usual newborn photography that you see on the internet?  To me, a baby coming to this world is a divine thing.  And I let the light “touch down” on the baby to give that feel.  Is that what you feel?

The creative process is nothing when described in words.  I got the baby and saw the stairs and decided to take a photograph there.  Blah…  All that wonderful chemistry going on in my heart (and brain) is hard to be drawn with words.  But hey, all that stuff that’s bottled up in my heart is why my clients hire me, because I’m creative.

Look forward to continue “transforming” you, little girl!

P.S. Of course I know how to do the “usual newborn photography” that was mentioned above.  I’m just not showing.

Tianzifang (田子坊), Shanghai, Where Fusion Happens – Los Angeles Travel Photographer

My photography evolves over time.  Sometimes it’s the mood; sometimes it’s the composition; it could be the interest of subjects and it could be the color tones (like how I recently started processing some images into black & white)…

That’s why it’s interesting to see my heart skip a beat when I saw this image that I made 3 years ago and never had a chance to post.  I guess some things never change.  It’s the longing for the reminiscent of the past, the things that show evidence of age, the things that we “modern” people demolish and so-ever-clumsily try to reconstruct with no success …

Yes, heart is a tricky place to reach, let alone understand completely.  And yet, I choose to listen to my heart.

Please click on the links to see my other fine art photography (here and here) and travel photography.  And to reach me, you can find me here.

I “Transformed” a Dandelion – Los Angeles Transformational Beauty Photographer

I once received a comment about how I can handle any weather condition when photographing during travels.  Comments like this are always nice, especially when you least expect them.  Lorraine, you know you made my day, and the next day, and the day after, and so one and so forth …

Lately, I’ve been thinking about this.  In an age where consumers are converse about terms such as saturation and contrast, good photographs are easily reduced down to a bunch of good cameras and some Photoshop tricks.

Is it really so though?

The other day, I picked up a stem of dandelion and had a vision in my mind.  I started out in the flat natural light.  And as you see (in the insert), it’s not bad.  However, my vision includes nothing but sharp detailed hair, and not much distraction from the base of the “hair stems.  So, with some adjustments to lighting, I “transformed” a stem of dandelion.  (After all, photography is painting with light, isn’t it?)

If I can transform something that does not follow instructions, imagine what a difference my lighting, posing, styling and (of course) joking can make to a client.

Interested in a “Transformational Beauty” session?  You know where to find me.

I did something about my unruly hair – Los Angeles Portrait Photographer

I’m sure you’ve all seen my ever-crazy, ever-fun-loving profile image (see the image on the left below and here and here).  It expresses the inner peace (should I say passion and happiness instead?  Haha… ) and has gotten tons of compliments.

Well, something like this would be hard to out-do.  And yet, “change is the only constant” is the B.S that I learned in my corporate life.  So, I’ve decided to do something that’s so drastically different from the beloved profile.

For those of you that’s been asking for more images of me online (J.M., are you reading this?), this is to show that I haven’t been playing deaf to you.

Now, here’s my ask – give me your thoughts before I blast this all over the web (wait, is it already too late to take back?).  At the least, give me a word that you feel from the image on the right.

What is sexy for you, ladies? – Los Angeles Transformational Beauty Photography

Women have definitely come a long way in fighting for rights to work, vote, to hold public office, etc.  Social status has, no doubt, bearing on how we view ourselves and the relationship with people around us. 

As controversial as the word “beautiful” can be is the word “sexy”.  They both are frequently associated with women.  On the eve of International Women’s Day, I thought I’d take a quick survey of my lady sisters.

What words/impressions come to your mind when you hear the word “sexy”?