How to be a Photo Genius

Sat, 25 Jun 2004
Equatorial Hotel, KL
2:00 - 5:00pm

Report & photos : Azul Adnan

Kicking off what is hoped to be a series of creative workshops, Apple Malaysia held a free photography class called "How to be a Photo Genius" with renown photographer Jen Siow. This was the second such class and almost two hundred people turned up.

Starting at 2:00pm, the first half an hour was a demonstration of Tiger by Shah from Apple Malaysia who highlighted its new features before taking questions from the floor.

Then Jen took the stage and started off by showcasing his works, everything from beauty and fashion to food and cars. Looking at his photos, it was no wonder why he's one of Malaysia's most sought-after photographers!

Just after 3:00pm, there was a break where we ushered to the poolside for some cakes and tea and coffee. A good opportunity to mingle and meet with fellow photo enthusiasts and Mac users.

After the break, Jen spent the next hour talking about the basics of photography, covering all the important aspects like types of digital cameras, tips in buying a camera, memory cards, exposures, compositions, types of photography, etc. To help illustrate his points, he showed a couple of videos of himself 'in the field'.

Two wonderful tips when buying a new camera:

• Look at your reflection in the mirror and see how the camera looks on you. Jen says we always do this when buying clothes or shoes .... why not with a camera!
  
  
• After having bought the camera, stop comparing! Stop looking at the adverts and prices because it will only give you heartache.

For the last half hour Jen demonstrated iPhoto 5. He went through setting up albums and slideshows, colour adjustments, and the straighten, red eye and retouch tools. The workshop ended with a question and answer session.

Jen was his usual down-to-earth and witty self and it was a truly enjoyable and informative afternoon.

For more info on Jen, visit his website at www.jenstudio.com