Real Summer Days

Weather-wise, it's almost always summer here, but it only truly feels like summer to me when I can spend a whole day as I like. How has your summer been?




(Yashica Electro 35 GSN test roll, Kodak Gold 400)

These photos are from a relaxing morning some months ago, when we drank tea and made plans for A's wedding.

One Year

(Olympus XA, Fuji Sensia 200 cross-processed)

Early last year, I started taking photos with some film that I meant to double-expose. In my quest to get images that were as amazing and whimsical as these, I was super picky about what I shot (so silly!) and as a result it took me a year just to finish the roll.

The upside of me being such a slow-poke is that this roll accompanied me on my travels to Malaysia, Vietnam and Korea. It was fun trying to spot the bits that were taken at each location.

My conclusion: double-exposures taken using the method I chose (take photos, wind film back into canister, take more photos) can't be planned, so it's best to just snap away with abandon. I'll probably stick to regular photography for the most part, because I like having some control over the pictures I take, but I'll definitely try this again some time.

P.S. more double-exposure photos can be found here, if you're interested.

Local Tourist: Seah Street

Last Tuesday I met Elly for lunch - you might remember her from the last installment of Local Tourist - and she brought me on an impromptu mini-tour of this area, which is tucked away behind Raffles Hotel.

We had lunch at a coffee-shop on the corner of Seah Street which serves one of the best cups of teh-ci (tea with evaporated milk) I've ever drunk. It was so good that we simply had to go back for a second cup later in the afternoon.

Most of these photos were taken in and around Actually... and Supermama, which are both on Seah Street.



Little whimsical details along the stairs leading up to the two shops





I love how quirky these shops are and how the items they stock feel like they've been thoughtfully chosen and arranged.





Using their store signage for a photo op



It was a blazing hot day so we ended off our tour with some icy Chinese dessert at Liang Seah Street.



A bit of historical trivia: This area (including Beach Road & Middle Road) was where the Hainanese settled when they first arrived from China in the 1850s and the Singapore Hainan Society is still located on Seah Street today.

(photos from my Instagram feed)