Rue's Photos - Update: 'Le Mans Classic '12'

Rue · Jun 1, 2011

After some encouraging words from longtime GTP buddy Cano I thought I would post up some of my photos. You may know me mainly from the DYSAGT thread but in recent months I have been taking photos of non-car related subjects in order to broaden my horizons a little. As you can imagine, Hong Kong (where I reside) is a very photogenic place but the longer you live here the more used to the organized chaos you become and the creative eye starts to notice less and less... well, in my case at least. Anyway, here are some pics that I have snapped recently. I hope you like them and comments, critques and tips are ALWAYS welcome. I am certainly looking to improve.

I would like to give a bit of context to the images but I don't have much time right now. Maybe I will add some text later...

You can click the pics for the full-sized versions.

Buildings:

Don't look down! by R-W-P, on Flickr

Ominous Weather by R-W-P, on Flickr

Projects by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_1327 by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_7671 by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_7692 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Windows by R-W-P, on Flickr

Jumbo's Rear End by R-W-P, on Flickr

Mist by R-W-P, on Flickr

Harbour:

harbour_15 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Hong Kong Island by R-W-P, on Flickr

Cozzers by R-W-P, on Flickr

People:

Thankless Task by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_9334 by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_8063 by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_8039 by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_0322 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Artist by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_8022 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Cheese! by R-W-P, on Flickr

Zebra Crossing by R-W-P, on Flickr

Animals:

Stray by R-W-P, on Flickr

birds2 by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_8510 by R-W-P, on Flickr

'W' by R-W-P, on Flickr

Birds on Bamboo by R-W-P, on Flickr

Stray Cat by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_7868 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Sparrow by R-W-P, on Flickr

Random:

DSC_7653 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Tiles by R-W-P, on Flickr

Boots by R-W-P, on Flickr

Rust by R-W-P, on Flickr

Razor Wire by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_1256 by R-W-P, on Flickr

ceiling_fan · Jun 1, 2011

Wow, very beautiful and professional looking stuff :drool:

The third one down is probably my favorite.

Cano · Jun 1, 2011

There are some many unique views in here, I love the linear, rythmic compositions you've got going on with some of these, but the pictures with the people... MAN!!!!

These:

are absolutely mind-blowing, and after talking to you, you should REALLY give some context of some of those, as I'm sure that's not the only picture that reflects the cruent contrast of a city like Hong Kong. I know how that is, I live in a very similar city, at least in that aspect.

Also, loving the seaguls and the first pic of the buildings... heck, I could say many things about a lot of the pics, but most of them are amazing. You haave a very good eye.

The girl taking your picture is also pretty fine, haha

Syntax error · Jun 1, 2011

Amazing photos. I really dig the building ones at the start in particular. So much detail 👍

TB · Jun 1, 2011

Outstanding job, Rue! I'd love to see more. :cheers:

CTznOfTime · Jun 1, 2011

Great intro, and very nice work Rue!

Your creative eye does not seem to be fading despite living there for so long...
... but i suspect that even for most tourists, none of them could take pictures as good as you are...

Which camera are you using if i may ask...

TB · Jun 1, 2011

CTznOfTime
Which camera are you using if i may ask...

Flickr allows you to view the Exif data, part of which is the camera model - in this case a Nikon D80.

Rue · Jun 1, 2011

Wow, thanks for the positive comments all! Some more photos for you...

These were taken recently at a Lego exhibition in a shopping mall near where I work. The dioramas were amazing! Each was based on a different country or city around the world.

To Market by R-W-P, on Flickr

Unwelcome Visitor by R-W-P, on Flickr

Man About Town by R-W-P, on Flickr

You can see them all here http://www.flickr.com/photos/48817379@N03/sets/72157626689404580/

Here are a few obligatory car pics:

Range Rover by R-W-P, on Flickr

6 by R-W-P, on Flickr

14 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Mercedes 300SL by R-W-P, on Flickr

19 by R-W-P, on Flickr

car04 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Austin Healey 3000 by R-W-P, on Flickr

for_gt40_s6wuf_small_01 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Cayenne GTS by R-W-P, on Flickr

Porsche 993 Turbo by R-W-P, on Flickr

Toyota Echo / Vitz / Yaris by R-W-P, on Flickr

Some more randoms from a ramshackle boatyard I came across one day

DSC_7745 by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_7762 by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_7801 by R-W-P, on Flickr

And a couple of my home for the last ten years

starferry by R-W-P, on Flickr

harbour_09 by R-W-P, on Flickr

and my true home in the Southwest of England

Wiltshire Tranquility by R-W-P, on Flickr

I've had all sorts of compacts over the last few years but bought my first DSLR of a colleague a Nikon D80 11 months ago. I just sold my Canon G11 to a mate so use the D80 exclusively now. I may buy a $100 Pentax to stick in my back pocket.

F1GTR · Jun 1, 2011

Really digging your stuff, makes me wish I was back in HK, it's probably one of my favourite places to shoot.

poolhaas · Jun 1, 2011

You're really talented Rue, I'm really liking these photos especially the HK city photos.
Great work 👍

35mm · Jun 1, 2011

You have a new flickr buddy.

Excellent photography. 👍

E28 · Jun 1, 2011

Wow. Your pictures are INCREDIBLE. They have a very unique feel to them, different to everything else. I especially like the 3rd, 5th, and the bridge pic on your first post, and the range rover picture is amazing. The sort of thing I'd pay for to have on canvas. 👍

Rue · Jun 3, 2011

F1GTR
Really digging your stuff, makes me wish I was back in HK, it's probably one of my favourite places to shoot.

Did you live here before? Or were you here on holiday?

Thanks for the continued positive comments. Here are a few more photos from horse racing at Happy Valley racecourse this Wednesday evening. The Chinese are mad keen gamblers but almost all gambling is banned in Hong Kong. Only horse racing and the lottery are legal and more recently football betting. I've heard various 'facts' and figures about horse racing in HK, one of which is that more money is bet in one evening of racing here than the entire racing season in the UK. But I think that's a little ambitious, although to see the numbers of people at these races and the amount they put on I wouldn't be surprised.

This horse wasn't keen to get in the starting box, and was rather frisky. You can see he's claimed the attention of most of the people around.

Happy Valley Horse Racing by R-W-P, on Flickr

Happy Valley Horse Racing by R-W-P, on Flickr

A man readies the starting box. They move it to different parts of the track every couple of rounds.

Happy Valley Horse Racing by R-W-P, on Flickr

And they're off! I had no chance of getting any clear photos with my slow zoom lens in the conditions so had to make do with some photos that capture the energy rather than the clarity. These are all crops of photos taken with the 50mm F/1.8.

Happy Valley Horse Racing by R-W-P, on Flickr

Happy Valley Horse Racing by R-W-P, on Flickr

As you guys seem to like the building shots a lot, here are some more.

These are the kinds of buildings you expect to see around Kowloon. Randomness ahoy!

Kowloon by R-W-P, on Flickr

Old buildings are gradually being replaced by more modern ones

Windows by R-W-P, on Flickr

And these are the kinds of scenes you expect to find at the base of the buildings. Market traders and fast food stands.

Fishballs by R-W-P, on Flickr

also the obligatory BBQ meat shop.... Mmmmmmm.... roast pork.......

BBQ by R-W-P, on Flickr

And then below street surface things get spotlessly clean on the MTR (Mass Transit Rail), the arteries of the city of Hong Kong

MTR by R-W-P, on Flickr

NISM0_SKYLINE · Jun 3, 2011

This one

harbour_15 by R-W-P, on Flickr

And this one

14 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Among others are amazing. A lot of your shots remind my of National Geographic shots, very cool. I tried to get out of Automotive photography a little bit too, but you did it an amazing job.

Cano · Jun 3, 2011

grat new batches dude, I like the detail shot of the CSL, the colours are so vibrant! The pictures of the market traders and BBQ shop are also neat. And it's good to se that you're writing something about the pictures now. MOAR.

Rue · Jun 3, 2011

Causeway Bay is one of the busiest commercial districts of Hong Kong, if not the world. Like anywhere in HK, contrasts abound, from money-no-object, high-end fashion megastores to claustrophobic back street night markets, CWB is all things to all shoppers. Here are a couple of pics that I took over the last couple of days to try and give a feel of the less salubrious side of the district.

Fruit stall traders getting ready to pack up after a busy day of trade. I took this through the window of a moving bus at about 8pm with my Sigma 30mm F/1.4 and was very surprised at the comparative clarity in the circumstances.

Causeway Bay Market by R-W-P, on Flickr

When the day is done, market traders pack their stools up, go and grab some noodles and head home waiting for the same again tomorrow

Causeway Bay by R-W-P, on Flickr

This is the pedestrian crossing outside Japanese department store Sogo. It is said to be one of the busiest of its kind in the world with the price of commercial rent in the immediate area shooting through the roof. One little food stall is said to have the most expensive rent per sq. ft. in the world, but I point you back to the Hong Kong tradition over overembellishment or choi soy (spouting water). Anyway, it's pretty damned busy...

Waiting to cross Hennessey

Waiting to Cross by R-W-P, on Flickr

The green man lights up

Crossing Hennessey Road by R-W-P, on Flickr

If you want some solace from the throngs of people, you might dive into a quiet little Japanese sushi/teppenyaki restaurant, just look for these lanterns hanging outside

Lanterns by R-W-P, on Flickr

The restaurant and retail business is fickle, one day you're popular, the next day you're struggling to make a sale. Therefore one of the most consistent businesses is real estate. You'll find estate agents posters everywhere mostly on the shutters of closed businesses. It's a competetive game!

(This one taken in Kowloon)

Bill Stickers by R-W-P, on Flickr

The numbers with a ' after them are the square-footage of the unit and the other two or three digit number is the cost of rent or sale price x10,000. For example, 900' / 228萬 is a 900 square-foot unit that costs HK$2,280,000 to buy. That's about US$300k. Very cheap for HK, so I assume it's commercial and not a prime location.

35mm · Jun 4, 2011

^ Interesting.

Rue · Jun 6, 2011

A couple of shots from yesterday. A stiflingly hot Sundy at 33'c and at about 80-85% humidity it wasn't the best day for walking around with the camera.

Ferrari 512TR by R-W-P, on Flickr

Ducati 1098 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Lotus Elise by R-W-P, on Flickr

Unsung Hero, Hong Kong by R-W-P, on Flickr

kikie · Jun 6, 2011

I have a friend living in Hong Kong. He was back in Belgium a couple of days ago. Lok Ming Pang was born and raised in Belgium. His parents, Chinese, came to Belgium to open up a Chinese restaurant.

To make a long story short. Lok Ming left Belgium (don't blame him at all) and he's living in Hong Kong now. He invited me to visit Hong Kong.

Rue · Jun 6, 2011

Do it! Look me up when you're in town. =)

F1GTR · Jun 6, 2011

Rue
Did you live here before? Or were you here on holiday?

Only on holiday, but I have a lot of friends and family that live there so I visit often.

kikie · Jun 6, 2011

Rue
Do it! Look me up when you're in town. =)

Ok. From what Lok told me last thrusday, Hong kong is not that big. But very crowded. True?

Rue · Jun 7, 2011

In terms of area it's bigger than people think, but yes it's very crowded in the urban areas. I live in the countryside but just a 10 minute minibus ride from the city.

Rue · Jun 10, 2011

A couple of shots from the last few days...

Had a bowl of tomatoes and a permanent marker on my desk at work. Cue silly idea. I'd like to do more of these with different foods.

z_DSC_3457 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Then obviously I had to get sillier

z_DSC_3445 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Enter the toothpick of doom

z_DSC_3471 by R-W-P, on Flickr

And finally a scene from a tomato horror flick. I added some drops of water for sweat effects...

z_DSC_3501 by R-W-P, on Flickr

I have to admit for the next picture I have totally cribbed the subject from another GTP photographer, but with a different take on things. I like the lipstick red of the handle and also the way it appears the in-focus handle is in the foreground when in fact it isn't

MTR Handle by R-W-P, on Flickr

Spent Wednesday night at the races again. We got lucky and won 3 out of the 5 races we bet on. This is my mate's (not so) winning ticket. $10 is the minimum you can bet on a horse, equating to about 0.75p or US$1.30. We usually just bet $20 on each race, with a couple of wins you cover your beer money!

High Roller by R-W-P, on Flickr

A pretty simple shot of my better halves arm and bracelet. I just liked the tones.

Bracelet by R-W-P, on Flickr

Another quick snap this. A tram driver taking from about 10 metres away through a busy tram at 200mm. I was very fortunate to have him glancing right at me. I didn't know this until I checked the pics later on...

Tram Driver by R-W-P, on Flickr

A very mundane juvenile sparrow strikes a pose on some bamboo in the park. I'm pleased with this shot as sparrows barely stand still for a second.

Juvenile Sparrow by R-W-P, on Flickr

More sparrows. This was an utter fluke as I just turned the flash on and was finding focus on the branch when these two landed right there in the middle of the frame.

Sparrows by R-W-P, on Flickr

A typically busy Hong Kong market scene. Again, I didn't notice the fellow staring at me until I got it on the computer. My mate has dubbed this photo 'The Assassin'. Apt...

Wanchai Market by R-W-P, on Flickr

You'd never work out the components in this pic of Giggsy in a month of Sundays.

Peekaboo by R-W-P, on Flickr

Took this picture of an Indonesian Muslim girl in her Hijab from the back of a tram. She was walking quite quickly and my lens is relatively slow, so I'm happy with the results.

Hijab by R-W-P, on Flickr

Detail of something on a wall near where I live. I really like this kind of photograph and I'd like to do more like it.

Wall Detail by R-W-P, on Flickr

The cogs in the machine of Hong Kong, Domestic Helpers (maids). The city would barely operate and families would fall apart without these women. The governent has recently just raised the wage of Foreign Migrant Domestic Workers to HK$3740 (US$480/GBP293) per month, most of which is sent back to families and children in their country of origin. Bear in mind there is no minimum working hours for these young women, only a continuous period of 24 hours holiday per week (usually taken on Sundays). In many cases employers set a curfew of 7pm or 9pm on the weekly day off, thus completely contravening the law. The world's *****d, isn't it...?

Foreign Domestic Workers Protest for Fair Wages, Hong Kong by R-W-P, on Flickr

That's all folks!

Neal · Jun 10, 2011

I love the tomato pics, I've not seen many amusing greetings cards done better 👍

Also really like the red handle and box on wall shots but they are all great.

Rue · Jun 11, 2011

Neal
I love the tomato pics, I've not seen many amusing greetings cards done better 👍

Also really like the red handle and box on wall shots but they are all great.

Thanks mate! Appreciated.

Despite being oppressively hot, the views around Hong Kong are crystal clear right now. Took the opportunity to take the camera up Victoria Peak with a tripod. A little disappointed with the results when viewed full-size as I expected the outcome to be a lot clearer. If anyone has any tips of taking this type of photo I would be very grateful.

Hong Kong from Victoria Peak by R-W-P, on Flickr

This is a view over HK Island with Kowloon on the other side of the bay. The recently finished ICC building stands proud on the left with the IFC on the right.

Hong Kong from Victoria Peak by R-W-P, on Flickr

The whole shebang...

Hong Kong from Victoria Peak (8093 x 2953) by R-W-P, on Flickr

Moglet · Jun 11, 2011

Those tomatoes are awesome :lol:

The expressions are perfect! I'm not sure what you mean by wanting those last ones to be clearer though, they look pretty damn good to me. That view is spectacular.

Rue · Jun 12, 2011

Moglet
Those tomatoes are awesome The expressions are perfect! I'm not sure what you mean by wanting those last ones to be clearer though, they look pretty damn good to me. That view is spectacular.

Thanks mate! Yes, I think I was being a little picky. Speaking of little piccies, here's another...

Untitled by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_7538 by R-W-P, on Flickr

z_DSC_7509 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Rue · Jun 14, 2011

Went into my little town yesterday evening to run a quick errand but the light was good so I decided to stay and take some snaps. I only had one lens though which is my slowest so I was rather limited on options in the fading light. Still, I managed a few decent shots. I especially like my panning boat shots. There's a little background info on most of the pics, just click them to be redirected to the Flickr page if you want to read it...

Ready to Row by R-W-P, on Flickr

DSC_3784 by R-W-P, on Flickr

Training Day by R-W-P, on Flickr

Something Fishy Going On by R-W-P, on Flickr

Gutting Fish in a Barrel by R-W-P, on Flickr

Bagging Up by R-W-P, on Flickr

Climbing the Walls by R-W-P, on Flickr

Catch of the Day by R-W-P, on Flickr

Sai Kung Pier by R-W-P, on Flickr

Pleasure Boats by R-W-P, on Flickr

Angus by R-W-P, on Flickr

Green Hills by R-W-P, on Flickr