Flotilla

It’s crazy to think that in some alternate universe I’d be on the boat on the way to a war zone at this time. 

I suppose we are defined by the things we accept, the things we decline.. 

but also the ones we are called to. 

Snapshot

A quick snapshot of the week, 3-9 March

My photos of the historic iftar at Windsor Castle going global. 

Malaysia Airlines inviting me to Paris.

The commercial director of National Geographic UK complimenting my work and inviting me for coffee. 

Joyeaux Janvier

 

Somewhere in between having my face as Malaysia Airlines ambassador being disseminated across the digital-verse, witnessing two Prime Ministers meet at 10 Downing Street, having my design be the backdrop of a national event, and finally stepping foot into Old Trafford (with lounge access!).. the first month of the year passed by.   

MH x AD x DN

Hello Dante!

The past few days have been an absolute trip! Can you believe your girl's living her dream! She got to be a featured personality and collaborator for Malaysia Airlines! As a travel photographer! MALAYSIA AIRLINES!! TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY!!!! ACACIA DIANA!!!!!!!

There truly. Aren't. Words. 

We've just wrapped a whirlwind shoot for 5 days in Da Nang. I got to stand side by side with April, the cabin crew in her iconic uniform, and look absolutely inspired by the sights, tastes, scents, textures, and sounds of the city (bear with me, it's the brief). There was also the added pressure of curating and crafting branded photographs, waking up at 4am for full production days, and wilting under the sweltering heat - but all this, is part of living the dream. 

It's day 6 and I'm just back in Kuala Lumpur feeling immeasurably grateful and hoping to live up to the life that's now happening in front of my very eyes. Up Next - comprehending that I'm spending Monday in Vietnam, Wednesday in Malaysia, and Friday in UK; stepping up into the full fledged international creative life and personality that I have built; and going onwards and upwards with winning in life. 

InsyaAllah. Excelsior. 

Bismillah from Belgravia

Blessings upon blessings upon blessings

It's strikes me as unreal that my prayers are coming to life right before my eyes. How many hours and days and years had I spent fantasising about living in a beautiful London Victorian apartment, walking through Hyde Park, and working for notable organisations in this city. I am mindfully accepting this as my reality, taking it all in with immeasurable gratitude. By the grace of god.

A proper recap

Thank you 2022

Here's to finally moving to the city of my dreams, to fulfilling my umrah during my 30th, to volunteering in Syrl4 and Tanzania, to enjoying so many beautiful sunsets, snows and sights. To the local hammams in Istanbul and feet massages in Bangkok. To muffin man scones in Kensington, Korean bbq in Piccadilly, nasi lemak Wanjo in Kampung Baru, and eating wheatflour in Tanga. To getting recognised as a global talent, noted by Tatler, and to multiple exhibitions and workshops. To being healthy, and being able to live life with my loved ones. 

Final and most precious shoutout to my two amazing flatmates, without whom I wouldn't have survived the year without my mental health and sense of self intact. Thank you Mad & Mido, I love you both. 

How to step up

 

The beauty of feeling lost & The humanity of honouring the process of life

Thus my life changes

My decade in the United Kingdom begins. 

This is crazy

 

Pingat Jasa Malaysia Committee, November 2021

Record Scratch, Freeze Frame

Record scratch, freeze frame, 2.05pm 7 October 2021. 

Look at me, hopping on the Picadilly tube service to Covent Garden for my class in Space, Architecture and Photography. Awaiting confirmation from Istana Negara on whether I’m meant to attend a work trip to photograph the royal family. Sifting through my archives for relevant photos of Malaysia as requested by the Director of Tourism Malaysia in UK for the World Travel Market Fair. Having a photo of mine displayed in Amsterdam as part of an expo with Canon Europe. Concluding the first week of my first solo exhibition in London. 

Ma! I'm on eventbrite!

Holger Pooten, founder of the London Institute of Photography, said my talk was amazing.  

 

Through the Looking Glass

Similar to how Alice dives into the Wonderland in Lewis Carroll’s illustrious series, this project aims to explore and elaborate the city through various visual filters and fronts.

Perhaps more often than not, residents and visitors of the capital view it through some sort of screen. Be it rain-stained windscreens, cracked side mirrors, phone cameras, office windows, or even smudged sunglasses. There is often a ‘looking glass’ separating our naked eye from the physical world. We are rarely fully awake or immersed in our surroundings, as we experience the environment through these material mediums.  

Kuala Lumpur Through The Looking Glass peers into the every-day of city experience in 2020. Varying scales of subjects is captured at random and ordinary moments. The visuals depict KL as how it’s viewed via a screen or surface, where reality is slightly altered and distorted. Over the course of the photo project, the series seeks to uncover, if any, local interpretations of Carroll’s settings and characters - a red queen, a garden of live flowers, to name a few. A quality of literary delirium is depicted through consideration of tone, colour and composition. 

______________

My project proposal, for KL 20X20 photo exhibition. All artistic ambitions aside, I feel like this is a real solid and fun idea. If I had any modicum of discipline and self motivation, I'd probably just do it myself sans competition prompt. 

Had to have High Hopes

October 2018.

A Canon EOS Youth Ambassador. 

Results

5. What's currently on your mind

Alhamdulillah!!

Mission Possible

2. 5 not so basic things about you 

In lieu of my present existential state; that is, on my path to achieving several goals*, I'm noting my current top 3 life missions, and an additional 2 I'm really thankful for...

1. Becoming a Canon EOS Youth Ambassador 

2. Travel Host under Paranormal Network

3. Part time travel writer Have Halal, Will Travel

4. My current full time job with the IO Movement. 

5. My freelance part time job with  Awesome Adventure

 *a.k.a. really really really praying for these opportunities to work out. InsyaAllah, may he guide me to what is best for me and my growth. Come on, 2018. 

Kampop

An eternal festival based on traditional Malaysian ornamentation, located in Putrajaya. 

My final Master's thesis and project was a contribution back to home.

And there it is. It is done! 

A little for show

"The time you enjoy wasting, is not wasted"

Prototyping Exhaustion

Life in a snapshot. Current project: systems for a wellness center. 

1 News

On the day after my last exam paper for my degree course, I started working full time. It wasn't a tough transition since I was already juggling three part time jobs during the semester. I was introduced into the world of broadcasting through a formal interview (that with sheer luck, was an opening for an English speaking editor/newsreader for an online news platform) and was offered the position on the spot during my final year. The rest, they say, is history.

The job scope was amazingly refreshing as it was basically the intake and analysis of news every day. I would tag into the office and scan the international feed, as well as the stories from in house reporters, whip them up into paragraphs, spruce myself up in make-up and wardrobe, then stand in front of the camera for recording. It was nerve wrecking the first few times but as with all things it grew to a developed skill, and eventually became a big part of my life.

The whole news reading affair was only a small portion of the working experience. Being in a government aligned broadcasting station had it's many perks in terms of honing people skills. I found myself in situations hard pressed to be involved in anywhere else. From reporting live right in the city center, to brushing shoulders with top ministry officials, to exposing myself to a wide network of media practitioners and employment opportunities.

It was incredible to participate in such a diverse range of work, to understand, to an extent, the structures of office politics and the importance of professional ethics. Even more so, coming fresh from university. There is a vast chasm between the world of academics and industry that can only be familiarised through first hand presence. As it is with the employment landscape in Malaysia, network is vital, but selling yourself in the first place, is paramount, too. In order to do these things, you must know who exactly you are involved with and taylor yourself to their requirements. Adapt yourself! A skill. It isn't a lesson that is easily earned elsewhere.

An Epic Journey

"So you guys build a fully livable house from scratch, for orang asli?"

"Yep. We, are the Epic Army."

For three days in the first week of August, along with a group of volunteers, I stayed at the arboreous outskirts of Gombak to build a house. We were posted here under a joint program by Berjaya Youth and Epic Homes. This build was amazing for copious reasons, but I'll start with something personal.

For years I've entertained the ambition of participating in aid organizations. I took steps after my final school examinations and acquainted myself with various programs - from teaching art classes at orphanages, hosting donation drives, refurbishing homes for the disabled, to soup kitchen. In addition to all this, I cultivated the dream of flying to third world countries to help in the big leagues, to give my little print on someone's life on the other side of the globe. How incredible would it be to affect a soul in Cambodia, South Africa, India? I realised in the first week of August that I didn't need to fly so far, to find the same depth of humility.

That week, 40 of us, plus organizers and a documentation crew, stayed at dorms near the village and slaved close to 10 hours a day to present Mak Cik Bidah with a new house. Mak Cik Bidah is an orang asli, and lived in a dilapidated home on the steep, rocky hills of Bukit Terang. The house she had was creaking, swaying, leaking in various places and had an outdoor, zinc-wrapped toilet with no roof. In this house, she lived with 13 others, mostly children of her daughters.

Part of Mak Cik Bidah's home.

Mak Cik Bidah, lady in flowered top on the left. On the right, members of her family.

The build commenced immediately after our unpacking. Foundations were dug up, leveled and packed; wooden planks for floors were carried, measured and sawed to size; steel structural frames were collected and erected. For days we laboured under the baking sun, executing assemblies that most of us could've only dreamt of doing. All volunteers were youths aged 18-29 from diverse backgrounds: nursing, biochemistry, teaching to architecture, and some had never held a power tool in their lives. But in that event we chainsawed, drilled, hammered, climbed and lost pounds of sweat performing the various construction.

First day on site. Mak Cik Bidah's home, in the background.

I had never been subjected to such rigorous, physically demanding work. There were times when the sun was just pouring down, blazing heat onto our necks, and each nail pounding echoed in our heads to scream with the wooden splinters embedded in our mud caked gloves, when the idea of iced water was almost heaven sent, and we were so driven to finish building, that lunch was almost an afterthought - but all this and more, I enjoyed it immensely. The unifying thought that got us through the mounds of packed earth and scattered screws was our drive to give Mak Cik Bidah a new home.

It's a wonderful end goal to have. Seeing the smile on her face upon receiving her new house was the actual cake. But the cherry, icing and candles on top was gaining all the new friends, team mates, construction skills, and knowledge of orang asli culture throughout our stay. After builds we'd board the bus back to the dorms, jump into the pool, before spending the rest of the night with some natives, learning how to make leaf garlands, play bamboo instruments, hear stories and dance.

Random selfies were taken with our phone during the breaks.

Progress shots sneakily taken during the build.

I left the event feeling so humbled and in awe. Flying off to help citizens of the world is one thing, but there is somehow a bigger sense of gratification in helping someone closer to home. There are people suffering right in our own backyards, and rather than complaining of these issues, or looking the other way, it is a better choice to just stand up, take action, and help.

Biggest appreciation to Berjaya Youth and Epic Homes for the opportunity of a lifetime. Epic started out a couple of years ago by regular Joes who just wanted to help, and now it has grown and activated to build homes for rural folks almsot every weekend. Berjaya Youth does activities in line with the empowerment of the new generation. You can check both their pages here (link) and here (link)

The build was featured in The Star newspaper, 19 August 2014.