Project Speech 7 - Research Your Topic. Delivered at the project clinic using iPad to show the pictures, effective only in a small group and not at formal chapter meeting due to the limitation of the iPad. The objective is to demonstrate the joy of photography through quotations, examples and illustrations taken from various sources. All photos are copyright to the author.
My fellow toastmasters, if, you have a fairy godmother and tonight, if you are granted one wish, any wish under the sun, what will you wish for? Ladies and gentlemen, if I have that one wish, I would like to ask for the power to stop time! Anyone watched X Men 2 the movie? In the movie Prof X stopped time and caused all the people to freeze in that moment. I would like to have that power, to stop time in its track and freeze everything around me. But for what purpose? Certainly not to conquer the world.. But to capture the most beautiful moment for just a second longer! Guess what? I do have that power you know... Through the use of a camera!
One and a half years ago I picked up photography, and decided to take this hobby seriously. I bought my first Canon DSLR, and took my first basic photography course to learn the foundations of taking a good picture. Taking photos you might say, is such a unless hobby, after all, what good does it do to keep all those pictures? Ah, but little do you know, the job as a professional photographer is gaining popularity in many parts of the world. Take United States for example, a study conducted in July this year by the bureau of statistics showed that the profession is projected to grow by 13 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations. So you see, being a photographer does pay! However, my motivation to take up photography is not about making money, but to stop time and capture those beautiful things that I see onto a digital format, my extended memory.
The first thing that I would like to take photos of is the beautiful landscape and scenery that I came across when I travel. I remember when I traveled to Greece last year, I came across a great place of rocks in the air – the Meteora. It is one of the most extraordinary places in the world.
As you can see, it is a series of sandstone rocks rise from the
surrounding plain like tall lumps of clay on a potter’s wheel, as though
waiting to be mould. Today the Holy Monastery of Great Meteora is the largest of the monasteries built on
top of Metéora, amidst the vertical rock faces.
The picture showed the sheer magnificence of the building and the natural landscape around it and Wow! Isn’t it mind-blowing? There are many other great wonders of the world that I would love to capture, as such the Great Wall of China, the Great Pyramid of Giza and the Halong Bay in Vietnam. The ability to capture these sites at its best and most grand in my pictures became my first motivation to take up photography.
Besides taking landscape pictures, my next photo target is people, portraits. I always have an inquisitive mind, and when I was young, I used to look at an aunty or an uncle, their expressions and wondered what they are thinking, what kind of lives they lead and what their characters are like.. for I am sure, each and every one of the people that I met in my life has such rich life stories to tell and experience to share. Well, my curiosity is never really satisfied but extended by the use of photography. Take this man for example, on his weather beaten face you can see the lines on his forehead, the deep set eyes staring ahead, the unshaven face. Such strong features created an aura of mystery, strength and character. Plain t shirt and faded jeans all added to this image.
That is the power of photography, it tells you much more than you actually see on the surface, so long as you care to look in detail and let the photo guide your imagination. Not all photos of my subjects are mysterious and dark, I capture moments of innocence too - this picture is the best that I have taken so far, for children are notoriously difficult to photograph. See the childlike delight in this little girl's face and feel the happiness that she felt at that moment? If I am the child's mother I would be so totally moved by this picture. All this made possible only by stopping time through photography.
What else would I like to take pictures of? Well, something that we do every day, every few hours in fact! Food... Since eating is Singaporean's national past time. According to the popular history of photography, food photography used to be restricted to its commercial values, where you see pictures of dishes used in restaurants menus and sign boards. However nowadays taking photos of food is becoming a fashion trend, and you can even see youngsters doing it, and the next thing you know, they are posted on Facebook. A dish can be made to look as plain or as delicious, all depends on how you take the picture. For example, the old fashion way is to take the picture from above, as is. This is a good example.
Can you see what dish is it? Not only is it plainly and badly taken, the picture is also too overexposed to figure out what it actually is. However, if you would change the angle, and take care to capture the light and colour of a particular dish, it can be so vivid and clear that it looks simply fantastic! Just like this picture.
Don't you think that it looks delicious? Let you in on a secret, this is a part of a birthday cake and it is really too sweet for my taste. So you see yet again the power of photography? Nowadays I take only pictures of good food to remember a gastronomically good time, or savor a dish once again... even if it is only on the iPad.
So ladies and gentlemen, landscape, people and food. These are the three things that motivated me to take up photography. As Eudora Welty, the award-winning American author in the 19 century said "A good snapshot keeps a moment from running away". That is exactly what I wanted to do, and I hope you will join me one day, to stop time, in our lives, from running away.
Thank you.
The picture showed the sheer magnificence of the building and the natural landscape around it and Wow! Isn’t it mind-blowing? There are many other great wonders of the world that I would love to capture, as such the Great Wall of China, the Great Pyramid of Giza and the Halong Bay in Vietnam. The ability to capture these sites at its best and most grand in my pictures became my first motivation to take up photography.
Besides taking landscape pictures, my next photo target is people, portraits. I always have an inquisitive mind, and when I was young, I used to look at an aunty or an uncle, their expressions and wondered what they are thinking, what kind of lives they lead and what their characters are like.. for I am sure, each and every one of the people that I met in my life has such rich life stories to tell and experience to share. Well, my curiosity is never really satisfied but extended by the use of photography. Take this man for example, on his weather beaten face you can see the lines on his forehead, the deep set eyes staring ahead, the unshaven face. Such strong features created an aura of mystery, strength and character. Plain t shirt and faded jeans all added to this image.
That is the power of photography, it tells you much more than you actually see on the surface, so long as you care to look in detail and let the photo guide your imagination. Not all photos of my subjects are mysterious and dark, I capture moments of innocence too - this picture is the best that I have taken so far, for children are notoriously difficult to photograph. See the childlike delight in this little girl's face and feel the happiness that she felt at that moment? If I am the child's mother I would be so totally moved by this picture. All this made possible only by stopping time through photography.
What else would I like to take pictures of? Well, something that we do every day, every few hours in fact! Food... Since eating is Singaporean's national past time. According to the popular history of photography, food photography used to be restricted to its commercial values, where you see pictures of dishes used in restaurants menus and sign boards. However nowadays taking photos of food is becoming a fashion trend, and you can even see youngsters doing it, and the next thing you know, they are posted on Facebook. A dish can be made to look as plain or as delicious, all depends on how you take the picture. For example, the old fashion way is to take the picture from above, as is. This is a good example.
Can you see what dish is it? Not only is it plainly and badly taken, the picture is also too overexposed to figure out what it actually is. However, if you would change the angle, and take care to capture the light and colour of a particular dish, it can be so vivid and clear that it looks simply fantastic! Just like this picture.
Don't you think that it looks delicious? Let you in on a secret, this is a part of a birthday cake and it is really too sweet for my taste. So you see yet again the power of photography? Nowadays I take only pictures of good food to remember a gastronomically good time, or savor a dish once again... even if it is only on the iPad.
So ladies and gentlemen, landscape, people and food. These are the three things that motivated me to take up photography. As Eudora Welty, the award-winning American author in the 19 century said "A good snapshot keeps a moment from running away". That is exactly what I wanted to do, and I hope you will join me one day, to stop time, in our lives, from running away.
Thank you.
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