09-02-10
photo documentary – saigon motorcycles madness!
There are five million people in Saigon – and three million motorcycles. Almost no one walks or rides a bicycle anymore. Of course they are a few but it is very in a small count. the people have become motorcycle dependent, motorcycle bound. It’s impossible to separate them from their cycles. They go nowhere without them… and they ride them anywhere and everywhere.
Although they were traffic lights, still… under normal conditions no one stops at intersections in Saigon or anywhere else in Vietnam. Everyone just keeps rolling at a steady pace. They expect other drivers to read their intent, and to speed up, slow down, weave or dodge in order to avoid smacking into them. Timing is routinely split-second.
Motorcycles surge through the streets like massive schools of fish swimming in a river too small and too shallow to carry them all. their drivers weave like barrel-racers through an oncoming tide of traffic, up a one way street or into an oncoming lane. They sail nonchalantly through intersections, directly across the flow of traffic, stopping only when confronted by a much bigger vehicle. Seriously this is insane!!!
They ride up over onto the sidewalk, dodging and threatening pedestrians in equal measure, and with equal insouciance. They careen down narrow alleys crowded with people,with street sellers balancing bamboo poles or pushing large carts, with people drinking tea or beer, cleaning vegetables, cooking meals, doing dishes, and with children playing.
Motorcycle drivers come in all ages – some no more than children. They may be cautious and careful, or free-wheeling and reckless. Some are focused on what they’re doing, watching the road ahead, trying to anticipate what the other guy is about to do. But many seem to be paying almost no attention at all… they talking on their cell phone, looking for an address or yelling to a friend across the road. lol.
As my 4 days visit to saigon, i was totally amazed with this scenario! then i decided to documented this as part of my photo documentary project. This project is one of my ongoing long term project. maybe some of u have no idea what it is all about. Come to Saigon and experience yourself on the road. I already give a try to ride a scooter owned by one of local friends, but i failed! i cant stand any longer than 10minutes, especially when entering the junction and intersection. Dammit! haha.
Maybe all of the pictures above still not enough show how crazy the motorcycles in Saigon. I will try my best next time, need to get photos from different angle especially from the top!
regrads,
azimzainudin – saigon april 2010
05-03-10
next!
alhamdulillah. the deal has been confirmed.
will be in perth for another assignment.
hope everything will go smooth as planned.
im off for a week. perth here i come!!!
regards, azim.zainudin.
04-22-10
photo documentary – Life behind the great Angkor
Located between rice paddies and flanking the Siem Reap River, the small provincial capital of Siem Reap serves as the gateway to the millennium old temple ruins of the Khmer Empire, Angkor Wat. Been a tourist destination for over 100 years, the town is actually the result of a conglomeration of several small villages built around several pagodas and subsequently united under the French and Siem Reap’s architecture reflects their influence.
Angkor is one of the most important archaeological sites in South-East Asia. Stretching over some 400 km2, including forested area, Angkor Archaeological Park contains the magnificent remains of the different capitals of the Khmer Empire, from the 9th to the 15th century. They include the famous Temple of Angkor Wat and, at Angkor Thom, the Bayon Temple with its countless sculptural decorations.
The population of Cambodia today is about 10 million. About 10% are in Siem Reap. 90-95 percent of the people are Khmer ethnic. The remaining 5-10 percent include Chinese-Khmers, Khmer Islam or Chams, ethnic hill-tribe people, known as the Khmer Loeu, and Vietnamese.
Siem Reap is not just about the templs of Angkor. The beauty of the temples is unquestionable. As my journey this time i decided to documented about Khmer people. Although there are millions of tourist coming from all over the world, they still have their own unique life… life behind the great Angkor.
Shom, 28 years old have been living here at Bayon since he was born. He became a monk and help the lead monk, (picture of an old monk) 83 yrs old, to take care of the temple in Bayon area. Locals from all over Cambodia come to them because they provide traditional medicine to the patients.
This 2 young Khmer girls always wanted to go to school, but their family cannot afford it. Everyday they will help their parents to run the business selling Cambodian home made clothing to the tourist in Bayon area.
A group of young beautiful Khmer girls working as a full time traditional model in Angkor Wat. If the tourist want to take pictures with them, they will charged a small fee.
Garbage collector at the top of Angkor Wat. The poor life makes them do everything to get money to survive. Can u imagine how much they earn in 1 day, but still they are happy with their life…
The old market in Siem Reap always busy all day long. U can find a lot of things here, from the unique traditional Cambodian food to the high quality of home made jewelry.
Major of locals in countryside of Cambodia used to be in paddy production. In april, normally locals in Siem Reap will look for other things to do. Many of them will go fishing as the big famous Ton Le Sap is not far away from here. Some of them will do the fruit plantation. I manage to found a small community that still can plant the paddy although it is in the dry season. The source of water is very limited in this season but still, they got to do something for a living.
regards,
azim.zainudin.
03-11-10
photo documentary – Bajau Laut
Bajau Laut people are known also as the sea gypsy people.
normally associated with the island people of the Pacific, especially in the southern Philippines area and other smaller islands. In Malaysia, you can find them in most of the island in semporna, sabah.
These people have lived in the ocean on their make-shift ‘house boat’. According to locals there, only in recent years that they have made settlements into the coastal area, with their houses built on stilts. The big ocean is still their main source of living – fishing, collecting clams and mussels, and even pearl farming.
Normally, for the man of bajau laut of mabul, they use to go fishing at night and sleep in their ‘house boat’ during the day. Their unique lepa boat resembles the modern-day’s catamaran vessels, with two adjoining legs for added stability when roughing the wild Pacific ocean. They use a special ‘fish gun’ and powerful torch light to catch fish. While during the day, women and children of bajau laut will go fishing and sell it to the locals of mabul island.
Some said that original people of bajau laut cannot live in any land. They still want to stay in their house-boat.
I manage to capture a lot of portraiture and their daily activities. All of the pictures are taken at the mabul island and omadal island. This is some of the pictures from my collection from thousand of pictures.
I gain a lot of new info in my backpack trip to mabul island this time. If u guyz got time, i recommend u to visit mabul island. The crystal clear water, beautiful blue sky,white sandy beaches and superb underwater life will make u fall in love with mabul island. Not just that, it is also nearby to the new seven wonders of the world… u know what i mean rite, of course the sipadan! heaven for divers from all over the world, and not to forget nearby to the most beautiful and famous kapalai!
regards,
azim.zainudin
01-06-10
2010
salam 2010…
agak lambat utk aku post 1st entry for 2010 ni…but i guess better late than never rite?
just got back from traveling. dalam musim2 rakan2 lain yg sekapal bz dgn job wedding…
i took this chance to run from those things n go travel.
maybe some said that it was not the right time but i took it n i made it. after this my schedule will full again.
2009 byk mengajar aku erti kehidupan selepas bergelar graduan…susah senang nk mencari duit n kerja….tu baru nk buat tanggung hidup sendiri…
xtau la cmne nnt kan kalo dah anak bini…tahun ni gak ramai2 member2 n kezen2 yg dah kawen…congrates to them…
n mayb in this 2010 they will live with orang baru yg akan hadir xlama lagi…rezeki dari tuhan sape yg tau kan…
for me? too early for that…maybe im not ready yet…
so 2010 will be another great n challenging year… industri fotografi di malaysia semakin lama semakin maju…
makin lama makin ramai yg dah ada kamera…ramai gak yg baru menceburi tapi hasil2 kerja mereka lebih hebat dari aku…respect!
aku masih lagi perlu byk belajar… kena berlari laju2…kalau x kita akan ketinggalan…
my 2010 target for this year is simple…. “WORK HARD n TRAVEL MORE”
so far 2009 punya wishlist boleh dikatakan lebih dari separuh dah settle… so apa yg xselesai lagi tu akan di penuhi tahun ni …and…
a new list will come out…for me to run n get it!!!
terima kasih pada semua rakan2 n family yg byk memberi sokongan selama ni…
yg byk membantu xkira dari segi apa pun…thank you so much!
may 2010 be another great year to all of u!
me @ maya bay phi phi ley – 31st dec 2009
regards,
azim.zainudin
07-05-09
terengganu
jom ke terengganu!
if u guyz are planning to go visit let me know.
kalo ada masa lapang bleh join n bwk korang jalan2.
so much to see n do here. come n discover urself!!!
chow!
‘where nature embraces heritage’
regards, khamen.
05-27-09
photo documentary – perkampungan orang asli
trip kali ni membawa aku utk mendokumentasikan kehidupan kaum org asli di kampung harong, sebuah kampung yg aku fikir mempunyai kedudukan yg sangat terpencil.
untuk sampai kesana, perlu menaiki bot almost about 3 hours perjalanan menyusuri sungai. 1 pengalaman baru dalam hidup aku….syok beb dpt naik bot nih! 3jam dalam bot terasa sekejap je…mayb aku mabuk dengan kamera shoot keindahan alam yg jarang2 sekali dapat rasa. =)
sekali sekala bot kami melalui jeram2 yg air laju…terasa mcm nk terbalik bot pon ada…hahaha….
beg2 sume dah balut ngn plastik so xde la kene air…tp org2 kampung yg bawak bot tu steady beb!
maybe sebab hari2 depa dah naik kejadah ni…
kita yg naik 1st time cuak tu mmg ada…tp dah lama sket tu baru rasa steady…hoho.
bot akan tunggu di jeti kuala medang yg terletak lebih kurang 20km dari felda sungai koyan, raub, pahang darul makmur.
kalo anda try google earth, sungai koyan ni dah located agak2 btol2 dlm center semenanjung malaysia….hehe…tu apa dari yg aku buat research la sebelum pegi…
penduduk kampung harong ni mostly sume sudah beragama islam. alhamdulillah!
aku beserta beberapa org volunteer yang lain membawa bersama kelengkapan utk gotong royong masak bersama org2 kampung. kami juga ada bawa bantuan2 lain seperti pakaian dan ubatan…
penduduk kampung ni masih lagi menggunakan bahasa apa aku pn xtau…mayb bahasa org asli la kot…haha..tp dieorg boleh bertutur bahasa melayu dgn baik!
trip kali ni juga byk buat aku balajar bersyukur kerana mereka duduk sana mmg dgn serba serbi kekurangan…
yang paling ketara aku nampak ialah susu. kalo kita hari2 biasa minum air teh susu tu kdg2 mmg terasa mcm air ni murah n da xnk minum…order yg mahal2…
bagi mereka kt sana kalo dpt minum teh susu tu mcm dpt minuman yg mahal giler!
sampai berebut2….hurm…
byk lg benda dpt tgk…kalo dpt peluang lg mmg aku nk pergi lagi!
mayb kalo korg dpt pergi baru korg rasa mcm mana…xdpt nk cite saje…kene pegi n lihat dgn mata anda sendiri…
satu trip yg sangat menarik….dpt jumpa kawan2 baru…yg mmg sekepala n sempoi!
mira, akma, ezri, amri, liza n d geng. xlupa juga pada ustaz latip, ayah akma, en mat noor n ustad kahar. (mayb lepas ni kita leh g kuala tembeling plak…hoho)
my special thanks to amri bcoz sudi tumpang kan aku n silu…thx juga for the lunch!
bes giler…
till next time!
dah start bz balik ni….aiyooooo!!!
regards, khamen.
05-09-09
paradise part II
cuaca yg sangat baik pada 2nd day. terbaek sgt2 utk snorkeling.
snorkeling kt sini patutnya rm40-45 sekepala.
tp kiteorg dpt special price rm100 for the whole day. so kira cm rm33 sorg. hoho.
abe noor , our tour guide mmg sempoi…hoho.
muke2 baru bgn tdo. sunrise? harammm……haha.
gambar bot lagi…xtau ar nape suke sgt aku amek gmbr bot. hoho.
introducing, our tour guide….abe noor. hoho. byk cerita2 yg syok dpt tau dr abe noor nih. walaupon blaja xtinggi tp english dia bagus beb! respect!
1st stop ialah kt turtle point. aku xpnah lg masuk dlm laut gini. sumpah xtipu. walaupon ada life jaket tp cuak sial. mula2 tu eceee steady…lepas 3minit…tolong2…kaki gua krem. kah3.
kt bwh ni mmg ada penyu. sapa pandai berenang bleh turun dlm tu mmg leh pegang2 penyu tu. peluk2 ke. abe noor ckp kalo mat salleh mmg dia kejar nyer penyu tu. tp depa xbuat apa2. just bergamba2 cmtu je. hoho.
next stop ialah k.k bay. tp kami hampa sbb gmbr snorkeling underwater mcm hampeh. siot tol kamera 16hengget. pengajaran ialah kalo nk bli disposable kamera underwater, jgn bli yg murah. hahahah.
dah puas tgk n bg ikan makan kiteorg singgah di perkampungan nelayan utk lunch. lepas lunch abe noor bwk g satu pantai private. private ke?…tah aku pn xtau…tp pantai tu lawa giler…utk mandi manda mmg superb la. kt sini xde kediaman manusia.
hello dreams kaled!
pantai ni selalu menerima kunjungan penyu utk bertelur sebab ada kejadah ni. hoho.
dah puas mandi kiteorg gerak balik ke long beach sbb cuaca mcm nk ujan.
*muka puas menikmati keindahan lautan walaupon xbyk gmbr sgt amek. haha
lepak minum…penat bontot kot naik bot tu. haha.
mlm tu kiteorg kuar dinner lmbt sket sbb penat. haha. dinner mlm tu pekena ’shark’. best!
after dinner lepak2 je n bli sobenirrrr utk si dia yg tersayang. suma beli benda sama. haha. pattern je lain2.
day 3.
miss lagi sunrise. kah3. mmg xdak harapan la.
pagi tu sempat lagi terjun laut sblm pack2 nk blk.
check out kol 12 mcm biasa.
then kiteorg decide nk buat ’street’ n usha2 chalet2 lain.
mana tau kot2 len kali nk dtg lagi kan…usha2 rege n tempat. tp suma lebih kurang je rate dia.
nk wat ’street’ kejadah kt pulau nih. haha. tp hasil tangkapan kali ni lain dr yg lain. sotong fresh!
wakakakaka.
thats all for now. smpi skang terigt2 lagi perhentian. hoho.
satu masa nnt aku akan kembali. aku janji!!!
regards,
khamen.
