I travelled to Siem Reap from Phnom Penh by minibus. After 6 hours we were finally there and people leapt from the bus door like newborns. Here I was in Siem Reap to photograph one of the manmade wonders of … Continue reading
Like many first time visitors to this country I visited to the Tuol Sleng Genocide museum to learn a bit about the countries recent dark history. This site was a high school until the Pol Pot regime converted it into … Continue reading
From Bangkok I flew to Phnom Penh, beginning the second half of an epic 6 week South East Asian sojourn. At the time I didn’t know how long i would stay in the country – with 3 weeks remaining I was torn between exploring Cambodia or fitting in a trip out to Burma (Myanmar).
Portrait of Remork-moto Driver, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Strolling out of the airport with backback and camera bag on my shoulders I was approached by a ‘remork moto’ (tuk tuk) driver offering his services, he had a cool hat so I went with him, where else in the world can you get a taxi into the city centre for $6?!
View from Remork-Moto of traffic, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
View from Remork-Moto of traffic, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
View from Remork-Moto of traffic, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
I did his portrait at the end of the journey, I’d been hoping to get a shoot done on this first evening here but the visa process at Phnom Penh airport dragged on.
Out the next morning nice and early, with no place in mind, just seeing what I could find, only a couple of lenses and the camera..
Fruit in Food market, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Fresh fruit and vegetables at Food market, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Fresh fruit and vegetables at Food market, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Fresh fruit and vegetables at Food market, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Butcher at Food market, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Fresh Limes at Food market, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Food market, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Seafood at Food market, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Meat in Food market, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
I stumbled across this morning market, always a great place to get started photographically in a new country.
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Throne Hall, Royal Palace, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Throne Hall, Royal Palace, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Throne Hall, Royal Palace, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Royal Palace, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Sometimes its good to include people in the shot – I exposed a frame without this mother and daughter but kind of like the eye contact and expression of the child as they walked away from the Throne Hall.
This was a warm up for the next week in which I would spend photographing mainly temple sites in the Angkor region. This was shot with the Nikon 14-24mm Wideangle and the verticals were corrected in Lightroom.
In the end I was glad I’d spent a couple of nights in Phnom Penh, there was a lot to see and I returned later in the trip for more, many people skip the capital and make straight for Siem Reap for the UNESCO sites of Angkor but they are missing out..
Lotus Pond, Royal Palace, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
On a day exploring the island we were lucky enough to stumble across this Chinese New Year festival, near Lamai Beach. On the south you can find palm fringed, unspoilt beaches like this one, with a relaxed tropical atmosphere. Back … Continue reading
From Bangkok I made the misguided decision to travel to the Island of Ko Samui with Air Asia, this involved an arduous coach and ferry journey because the flight only takes you south, landing on the mainland in Surat Thani … Continue reading
From Laos we headed south across the mountains, en route to Ko Samui, for one night in Bangkok. A city I’d been to a previous occasions, but had never managed to get much photographic return from this South east Asian … Continue reading
Earlier in the year we took a trip up to Northumberland, a part of the world new to me but one that I’d been meaning to explore for awhile. Being so close to the Scottish border we tend to usually … Continue reading
Last December I took a friend down to see the rugged beauty of the Cornish coast. As well the chance to show an American this stunning part of the world it was also an opportunity to see how my new … Continue reading
This is my Cambodian office! For your interest I’m (was) travelling on this 6 week Asian trip with the following equipment:
Nikon D800E (first big trip for this awesome camera, have been astounded by its quality and dynamic range. Upgrading to this has felt like the jump from Nikon D200 to D700) also have a Nikon D700 as spare body,
Nikon 14-24mm F2.8 Wideangle (first big trip with this incredible piece of glass – glad I brought it along),
Nikon 24-70mm F2.8 (this has been the bread and butter lens, its done about 90% of the work I reckon),
Nikon 70-200 F2.8 Telephoto (not used a lot but there have been a few sessions that I couldn’t have done without it),
Nikon 50mm F1.4 (just used for a few portraits – underused),
Nikon TC1.7 Teleconverter,
Nikon SB600 Flashgun
Cable release, Polariser, Neutral Density 3 and 6 stop, and Lee Hard ND Grads 0.6 and 0.9, Cokin 0.6 and 0.9 Soft ND Grads. The vast majority of the trip has been shot handheld, I’ve only got these grads out for a few dawn and dusk shoots in Ko Samui.
Casio Sea Pathfinder Watch (Love this for its in built compass)
Iphone 5 – A great travel tool for its Sat Nav to get me around these Asian cities. Music, to get me through these cramped, endless bus journies and camera to take preview snaps of potential locations which I can look back on later.
Guidebooks – I use Lonely Planet or Rough Guides when I travel, also use Trip Advisor for further info on accommodation and for ideas of what to do in an area.
Macbook Pro Retina 15” 16gb RAM – Dream piece of kit for a photographer on the move, this is my first big trip travelling with it but its hard to imagine life without it. Allows me to review and begin the post production process, keyword and caption work, and generally stay on top of business back home. The display is exceptional for its clarity and viewing angle, I can sit anywhere and still be able to view the photographs on screen. Its also got the required speed to handle the mammoth files that the Nikon D800E produces – 80mb an image!!
1TB Hitachi Portable Hard Drive to back the work up onto.
Not in shot but also with me is a Giottos Carbon Fibre Tripod, courtesy of David Noton.
The Morning Market, Luang Prabang, Laos, its 7:20am and I’m crouching inches from this fish aiming a wideangle lens at its lifeless mouth, if only every day could commence in this fashion! Nikon D800E, Nikon 14-24m Lens at 14mm, 1/100th … Continue reading
BEN PIPE PHOTOGRAPHY 