南怡島 (Namisum Island)

南怡島，位於韩国首尔東方63公里的一個小島，隸屬於江源道，是在1944年興建清平水库時，江水淹沒而形成的半月狀島嶼。許多南韓的偶像劇都曾在此取景，比較為人熟識的是2002年播放由裴勇俊及崔智友主演的冬季戀歌。小島得名源於南怡將軍(1441-1468)。李氏朝鮮第七代王朝時期，南怡將軍平定叛亂有功，27岁官封兵曹判书，但世祖死后睿宗登基，将军受逆贼诬陷，于28岁英年早逝，死後埋骨島上。[维基百科 ]

对于喜爱拍摄风景的摄影朋友，这里简直就是天堂。我们来到这里时是深秋，树叶都变成金黄色洒落满地，半秃的松树似乎在催我们快尽情拍摄吧，可惜我们跟团来，只呆了不到两小时又上路了。如果是自助游在此住上一晚的话，我必定从日出拍到日落，再拍至深夜星空最灿烂时才会罢休。。。:-)

拍摄风景，当然用我喜爱的广角镜，但偶尔用100mm长镜头却也另有一番滋味，在此分享三张南怡岛的景色，前两张是用16-35mm广角镜拍摄，第三张则是用100mm拍摄。

如果春夏秋冬四季都能来此拍摄体验四季的不同色彩与气氛必能提升摄影兴趣与功力。

注：这趟韩国之旅是2013年11月去的，希望能忙里偷闲慢慢分享一些值得推荐的地方。

Namisum is a tiny half-moon shaped island located in Chuncheon, South Korea, formed as it was inundated by the rising water of the North Han River as the result of the construction of Cheongpyeong Dam 1944. Its name originated from General Nami  who died at the age of 28 after being falsely accused of treason during the reign of King Sejo, the seventh king of the Joseon Dynasty of Korea. Although his grave wasn't discovered, there were a pile of stones where his body was supposed to be buried. It was believed that if someone took even one stone from there, it would bring misfortune to their house. A tour company arranged the grave with soil and then developed Namisum into an amusement park. [Wikipedia]

This is an ideal place for landscape photography, I was deeply in love with the autumn scene here and really wish to stay here for at least a night instead of just stopping by for two hours.

The photos here are the scenes in the island that I like, the first two were shot with Canon EF16-35mm f/2.8L II lens while the third one was shot with my Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS macro lens.

欢乐时光 （Memorable Bali）

除了拍摄风景古物花草艺术之外，孩子和家人们在巴厘岛的欢乐时光也是摄影好题材。

小孩们出外旅行，只要有伴，就能玩得天翻地覆，学业功课都被那排山倒海的气势击中飞到九霄云外，爱玩乐的本性表露无遗。

大人们除了游山玩水，暂时返老还童和小孩们打成一片之外，当然也趁机品尝巴厘岛的饮食文化。从简便宁静的山谷早餐，山崖海角的下午茶，到巴厘岛道地菜肴如烤乳猪，烤鸭，沙嗲，特色杂饭，和各式各样的咖啡样本品尝，让每个人都尽兴的满腹而归。

不吃过道地食品，不算来过巴厘岛；若不把家人小孩们的欢乐时光拍摄下来留念，也不算有个完整的旅程。

若干年后，重看这些相片，记忆瞬间就能划破时空，一次又一次的重新体验旅程固中趣味。。。

The trip to Bali was a satisfying one not only for me as an avid photographer, but all members of the two families, four adults and four children, enjoyed the company of each other throughout.

Without companionship, the trip would not have been so enjoyable. The swimming pool was exceptionally fun to swim in not only because it was located in a deserted valley in Bali but also just because everyone got to swim and play together.

The beach looked stunningly sunny and beautiful not only because it was located at the tip of Indian Ocean but also because everyone was in a lovely mood.

The sampling and tasting of the Luwak coffee and other numerous types of coffee was not only awakening but also fun. So were other numerous meal stops that provided for the much needed energy and rest before proceeding to the next attraction.

No trip would be considered complete without some family photos, where our sweet memory was deeply embedded inside, readily available for us to rediscover its sweetness at any time in the future.

返璞归真 (Original Bali)

返璞归真，才是最响往的生活。

走在巴厘岛乡间的小路上，我的步伐出奇的轻快，我的思绪出奇的松弛。空气中似乎充满无限新鲜氧气，从鼻根吸入后充沛迅速输送全身，令人心旷神怡。

暖暖的阳光透过大树照在身上，徐徐的微风轻拍树叶发出的乐声飘入耳根。鸭子群在翠绿的田里嬉戏，小童们结伴步行上学堂；独自耕种的农人，头顶载物的行人；一幅极其简单自然的画面，竟让习惯了城市里霓虹灯吵杂声电脑电视手机多媒体广告等严重污染的官感，霎时获得释放，回归自然，返璞归真，感觉就像回到最初的起点，只有真，善，美。

巴厘岛某些景点，需要步行一段路程才到达目的地。由于所经过的村庄小巷朴素的田野风光，倒有点像是到郊外远足，连我们年幼的小孩们也虽然疲倦却不喊累。

郊区的巴厘人生活也许清苦，依然依靠山上流下的水洗澡洗衣，但朴实无华的简单生活，是另一种城市孩子们无法理解的现实与修行。。。

In the rural areas, Bali is exceptionally original in nature without much influence of modern technology and western culture.

We noticed that in the village, the villagers still rely on the stream from the mountain as the main water source for shower as well as washing their clothing. There were groups of ducks seen in the paddy field and the owner would come to chase them back home in the evening.

The original village life of Bali is a purity that is hard to experience in the city. Ironically there are many city folks who lead a busy city life with the objective of retiring and retreating to a peaceful and quiet life one day.

We met with a rich Danish American here who owns a beautiful resort in a valley in Ubud. Obviously he had chosen Bali to be his permanent residence, and his quality of life here is really admirable.

Who dares to say simplicity is not the ultimate sophistication….

天涯海角 (Romantic Bali)

站在巴厘岛最南端的峭壁上，面向着水天连成一体的印度洋，吹着迎面而来的海风，心情莫名的兴奋，潜伏已久的意识呐喊起来。

乌鲁瓦图也许不是个发达的城镇，其大自然景观的气势却得天独厚，教人把一切烦恼抛诸脑后，宁愿在此乐活慢活发呆一辈子。

断崖庙的绝景不止吸引了游客，也引来了大群的猴子猴孙在此常驻，可见其山灵水秀必定不亚于神话里的花果山。

这里也有些专门帮情侣们安排度蜜月甚至婚礼和结婚照的服务，包括浪漫的住宿，梦幻的玻璃小教堂等。在晋身柴米油盐阶段之前，小两口在此宠一宠自己也是应该的。

风尘仆仆来到这天涯海角，为的只是喝杯下午茶，听那海浪打在岩壁的声音，和看那冲浪高手们和大海最亲密的接触。当然也不忘了好摄一番。。。

We found the romantic face of Bali at Uluwatu.

Here, the soft and sexy Indian Ocean comes in close contact with the strong and handsome Rocky Cliff of Uluwatu. Their encounter results in the most natural sight and sound entertainment of the wave hitting the rock, in a way that melts the heart of all souls.

Pura Luhur Uluwatu temple was built here in the eleventh century facing the breathtaking view of the cliff. This is not only a popular tourist attraction but it also attracted large groups of wild monkeys to make this place their home. It is a dream natural habitat after all.

There are some villas here that provide services for honeymooners, as well as photo shoots and special itinerary for newly married couples. Most of the villas have beautiful facilities and scenery overlooking the Ocean.

If you want to get out of the hustle and bustle of city life, Uluwatu can provide you a dream retreat where you can pamper yourself with either a spa treatment or just taking your own time sipping tea while watching the wind surfers in action or listening to the sound of wave hitting the rocky cliff.

巴厘岛微距生态 （Natural Bali）

巴厘岛的天然微距生态，给我们的旅途增添了些小乐趣。

除了神秘的火山，漫长的沙滩，蜿蜒的河流，浓密的森林，壮丽的断崖，纯朴的村庄，葱绿的梯田，尔雅的居民；巴厘岛路边一草一木一虫一蚁皆流露着自然气息，感觉就像投入大自然的怀抱。一些微距生态在我们不经意间出现，逗乐了孩子们，也让我的微距镜头派上用场。

你看，巴厘岛的蜘蛛是否特别妖艳，连蜘蛛网也散发出野性。你看，巴厘岛的苍蝇和辣椒是否与众不同，谁敢说不是火山泥孕育出来的。你看你看，巴厘岛的绿叶本身就是艺术，可比美任何一件最细腻的手工。还有你看，巴厘岛的宝贝螺还是活的，生活在天涯海角的花圃里，还和我们共用一条行人道。

真情流露的巴厘岛，与其坦荡荡的热情，在瞬间就把我这个好摄之徒给征服了。。。

(注：“天涯海角”是巴厘岛乌鲁瓦图位于印度洋县崖上方的度假村的称呼，拥有海天一色的景观并可让人俯瞰印度洋，来到这里，我们都醉了！)

For my trip to Bali, I brought along three Canon lenses, i.e. 10-22mm wide angle, 50mm f/1.8II and 100mm f/2.8L macro lens.

For all my travel abroad, I would consider the 50mm f/1.8II a lens that I would definitely bring along due to its negligible size and weight (yet it provides for large aperture and sharp images). Another lens that is a must-bring-along is none other than the 10-22mm ultra-wide zoom lens that is extremely suited as well as versatile for scenic landscape shots. For the third lens that my bag was capable of carrying, I hesitated between the 100mm macro lens and the Sigma 18-250mm super zoom. Eventually I decided to choose the 100mm macro lens due to its better image quality and macro capability.

The result of the decision was some macro shots that I would have missed if I brought along the 18-250mm super zoom instead.

The images here were shot as the opportunity arose without our intentionally searching for the subjects. I like to take macro shots, and it sure felt nice to shoot bugs and plants away from home. The spider was more photogenic and wilder than those in my garden, the fly and the chili just looked special compared with those in my neighborhood, the plants were more artistic, and the shell critter from the Cowrie family detected by my kids was such a good model that I could hardly find near my house.

Bali really is a paradise for a photography enthusiast like me….

旅者与人（Balinese People）

也许是我们以旅者的心情看巴厘人，总觉得他们都很悠哉闲哉地过生活，并都平易近人，有着极其温和的个性。

负责驾驶的巴厘叔叔，以平稳的驾驶技术，东南西北穿越巴厘岛大街小巷山区闹市，不徐不疾不温不火，完成我们六天顺畅的旅程，其耐力和耐性值得一赞。

旅店中的职员，画廊里的画家，炒咖啡豆的青年，都尽责的做着他们的功课，悠闲中不失敬业乐业的享受着生活的每一时刻。

村庄里的小孩，路边的头顶小贩，文化村里的舞蹈员，都是生命舞台的表演者，也是身为旅人和摄影发烧友双重身份的我的摄影目标。

所谓旅人一转身，就是一辈子。所有在巴厘岛有缘一见的人，也许一辈子里就只有一面之缘。能将之摄入镜头留念不失为一乐事。

除了巴厘人，一些同是旅者身份的人物，也被我摄入镜头中。。。

Whenever a photography enthusiast travels to a new place for vacation, the local people always make for a good photography subject. There was no exception in my trip to Bali.

Balinese people are generally friendly and contented. In an island rich in historical, culture and art heritage, and with its economy largely depends on tourism or related activities, most of the people are soft-spoken and well mannered.

Other than our extremely friendly driver and tour guide, the people that we met there including the painter, the coffee bean baker, the hotel staffs and the kids on the streets all were always seen in a relaxed mood. The only slightly stressful encounter was with a few villagers trying too eagerly to sell some local merchandise to us.

Besides the local people, I managed to snap a few shots of other tourists while waiting for sunset in Tanah Lot Temple.

People are indeed interesting subject to shoot in photography.

艺术一周 (Artistic Bali)

在巴厘岛的一周里，我们无时无刻都被艺术包围着。

不管在旅店里，街道上，餐厅或神庙里，各式各样的画画，石雕，木雕等都在散发出它们独有的气息，悄悄的感染着所有周遭灵魂的情绪。

一幅画，到底包含着多少创作能量？一尊石雕，又到底有着几许灵性和意念？

我在想，巴厘人为何花费如此巨大的时间与精力在艺术创作呢？是在向世人展现他们的才华，是和宇宙对话的方式，还是一种精神抒发的表现？

我当然想不出任何结论。

因为人本身，又何尝不是一件最具震撼性的艺术创作。。。。

祝各位在新的一年里，身体健康之外，人人都充满无限的创作灵感。

Bali is truly an artistic island.

Throughout our six-day stay here, all sorts of art forms ranging from numerous paintings, handicrafts, sculptures and architecture surrounded us.

Down here, we need to learn to turn down our pace of living. Else, we would not only miss the numerous creative paintings and art creations both along the street and in the galleries; but we also would not have noticed the details embedded in the daily objects such as the meticulously crafted doors, the exotic architecture exclusive to Bali, and the numerous wood and stone sculptures that complimented the buildings.

It may be not exaggerative for me to say that in our six day here, I had seen more paintings and sculptures than I had in my whole life, till now.

As I grow older, I learn to slow down and appreciate art more and more. Our trip to Bali opened my eyes even wider to the Balinese art, culture and style of living.

It's the first day of 2012, wish everyone a happy and prosperous new year...

巴厘岛风光 （Scenic Bali）

巴厘岛是个独特的岛屿，在这个高科技时代，她不仅没有高速公路，没有火车铁道，没有高楼大厦，也没有很多工业；她有的，似乎是与生俱来的艺术血统，流露着浓浓的文化气息，以及自然不造作的优雅气质。

对于巴厘岛的风景，如果我是个诗人，我会诗兴大发而吟诗作词；如果我是个歌者，我会心旷神怡而高歌一曲；如果我是个作家，我会舞文弄墨大做文章；如果我是个画家，我会手痒难耐就地取材。

然而，我只是个摄影发烧友，于是我只好让可怜的相机超时工作，履行它的职责，把巴厘岛的明媚风光带到大家的电脑萤幕前。

There is no absolute unit to measure how beautiful a place is. Whether a particular place is considered scenic or not may be highly subjective and relative to each other. It is also not incorrect to say that beauty is always related more (or entirely?) to art rather than science.

Bali is an island of art and culture in nature. I was astonished to be told that there is no highway at all in the island. Neither is there a railway service nor mass rapid transit. I could not see any high-rise building taller than a coconut tree (the pagoda shape temple may be the tallest). There is no industrial area (I only saw a Coca Cola factory throughout my stay there). Almost the whole population is dependent on art and culture, tourism, and agricultural sector to make a living.

I shall not describe how scenic the island is. Instead I shall let the pictures here uncover the mask of Balinese scenic face.

古老的神话 (Mythical Bali)

巴杜尔火山，是巴厘岛上的其中一座活火山，曾经在1917与1926年爆发过。举凡有山的地方，就有本土的古老神话，使得原本就高深莫测的山峦更添加了一些神秘色彩。

话说好几个世纪之前，兴都教之神西瓦发现巴厘岛的居民思想单纯，却对大自然虔诚的膜拜并都具有佛心 ，于是选择了巴厘岛宣扬兴都教教义。

西瓦的爱女，妲驽却抗议巴厘岛没有高山作为归宿。于是西瓦就从爪哇东部把三座山移到巴厘岛。最大的那座山，西瓦把它分成一大一小的两半，自己住在大山的山峰（这是阿贡山）上，把小山峰（这是巴杜尔山）让给女儿住。

妲驽分得小山，心有不悦，因此巴杜尔山偶尔还会冒烟喷火。

无论如何，妲驽最终成为巴厘岛居民信奉的水神。巴厘岛每年农作物与稻米的丰收，都是靠水神引用巴杜尔湖水所灌溉的结果。

拍摄着浓雾笼罩的巴杜尔山，心灵上深深感受到大自然的巨大魔力。

According to myth, many centuries ago, there was no mountain on Bali Island. Siva, Hinduism’s deity found that the Balinese people, even though still savage at that time, seemed to exhibit a reverence to such deities. Hence Bali was chosen by Siva to be the special place where he would bestow the wisdom and teachings of Hinduism and bless the island with the presence of gods.

However, the daughter of Siva, Dewi Danu, objected moving to the island, as there was no mountain suitable for the residence of deities.

Siva then proceeded to break off three mountains from Eastern Java, and move them onto the flat land of Bali. The largest of these mountains, Siva split into two parts and gave the smaller one, named Gunung Batur to Dewi Danu to reside on. The larger peak, known as Gunung Agung, was to be the residence of Siva.

Dewi Danu went on to become the Balinese Goddess of water who ensures timely irrigation of Balinese crop and paddy fields every productive year.

The images of Gunung Batur above were shot from Kintamani during a misty day, however the mist does make the final images look more mysterious and mythical.

非一般山谷 (Mysterious Bali)

巴厘岛神奇之旅，是我在网络上消声匿迹了一个星期的原因。

首次踏足巴厘岛，来到这座幽谷中的千年古庙，竟有似曾相识的感觉。荒山野岭，古木苍苍，山涧溪流，足以栖身的山洞，荒秃的石壁，和石壁上雕朔出的庄严神像，我活生生的行走于这片土地上。

时间像是回流到神秘的远古时代，空间却是这山谷里，族人们都在忙着开山劈石，拜祭神灵，种稻打猎等等。每个人都在生活着，劳动着，不察觉时间的流逝。每个人生活的目的，为的就是大自然的神明与英明的君主。

我的快门按了又按，深怕错失了任何现代城市里已经绝迹的时间痕迹。

族人们必定不知道，几百年后远在荷兰的另一个文明，登陆巴厘岛后以殖民方式统治了这个岛屿。也必定没有任何智者会料到，若干年后会有一群群的来自世界各地的陌生人乘搭一种能在天上飞的工具到此一游，对他们的鬼斧神工唧唧称奇。

My free-and-easy tour to Bali was indeed a fascinating experience. Bali has its many faces that are both mysteriously charming and exotically interesting.

As an enthusiastic shutterbug craving for photographic subjects, the island is a dreamland. Opportunity for photography is almost everywhere ranging from sunny beaches, scenic mountains, historical temples, artistic paintings and sculptures, rural villages, fauna and flora, people and animals etc.

The images shown here are taken in Gunung Kawi Temple Complex that was built around a thousand years ago. The tall, sculpted rock walls of the mountain are majestic looking. It was hard to imagine how difficult and how much time it took the people at that time to complete the complex.

My presence here alone was enough to make me feel that I had travelled back to the ancient time, and the whole structure of the temple complex made me deeply appreciative of the ability of human being (in the lack of modern construction equipment) to turn their imagination and creativity into reality. If such a majestic structure could be built and carved out from the natural rocky mountain, what else could not be accomplished?

I shall share with you more photographs of other faces of Bali in the future posts.

太鲁阁 (Taroko Gorge)

据说，台湾是400万年前，欧亚大陆板块与菲律宾海洋板块相互撞击，剧烈的地壳变动，使地层急剧上升而形成的岛屿。

来到太鲁阁国家公园，目睹了此地独特的地形与岩石，和人工开拓却不失其自然风貌的道路，步道，桥梁，庙宇等，大开眼界之遗，心境也顿时开朗起来，虽然背着不轻的背包，却一点也不觉得累。

太鲁阁国家公园范围极为广大，因为时间关系，我们只参观了长春飞瀑与砂卡礑步道(Shakadang Trail)一带九牛一毛的风景，不能尽兴而归。

相片中红桥（图一）左边有一座阶梯，往下走就到达砂卡礑步道的入口（ 图二）。在步道中行走，沿途可观赏左边幽美的峡谷河床，及右边和头上的岩石壁（图三）。这里的溪水清澈蔚蓝（图四），令人有下去嬉水的冲动。

长春飞瀑是長春祠与飞流而下的山水所构成的景色（图五），位于青山绿水间的长春祠，是为了纪念修筑中横公路的殉难者而建的。从弥陀岩（图六）前往長春祠的台阶中途，有座观音洞（图七），洞内有观音石佛及横贯公路的施工全图。古色古香的長春祠周围，有亭子石阶与山上流下的泉水（图八）。

As a nature lover, Taroko Gorge National Park is one of the places in Taiwan that I appreciate best. Unfortunately due to time constraint, we only managed to visit very few places of the national park. Below is some brief introduction of the photos taken around the place.

At one end of the red bridge (photo 1), there is a staircase that leads us down to the entrance of the Shakadang trail (photo 2). This trail is built along the river cliff so travelers can easily observe both the rock folds and plant ecosystem beside in the river valley (photo 3). The pool with clear blue water here is so enchanting (photo 4) I feel like going down for a swim.

The Eternal Spring Shrine and the waterfall (photo 5) present a scenic view to visitors. Near to the Amithaba Rock (photo 6), there is a Guanyin Cave (photo 7) built to commemorate the 226 personnel (military veterans) who died during the construction of the Central Cross-Island Highway. At the surrounding of the Eternal Spring Shrine, there are some nicely built shelters, stairs and natural stream of water (photo 8) that flows down from the mountain.

日月潭 (Sun Moon Lake)

日月潭，是台湾最大的淡水湖，不仅名字优美如诗，景色也像画般山明水秀，是摄影同好们取景的好地方。

到达日月潭，大约九点多左右，这并非摄影的最佳时刻，拍不到日出时的绮丽气势，也捕抓不到日出前那静如止水的气氛。

既然已到来，当然不能空手而回。于是就尝试用不同程度的白平衡 (White Balance) 拍摄了不少的相片。

在此四张不同白平衡程度拍摄出来的相片中，你个人较喜欢哪一张？

Sun Moon Lake is one of the most scenic places of Taiwan. It is a heaven for a photography enthusiast like me.

I experimented with different White Balance setting to obtain different feel. The effect of different temperature setting towards the final image is amazingly vast, as can be seen in the images shown above.

My personal preference is a little colder temperature that gives rise to a bluish scene. However, overusing the white balance also will give rise to an artificial feel that many people dislike and try to avoid. This obviously is down to personal liking.

Do you mind to share which of the photographs above do you like the most?

早晨的月亮 (Morning Moon)

十一月的台湾，清晨来得特别早，夜幕也在六点钟就开始降临。

在台东温泉旅店一觉醒来，发现窗外的风景分外迷人。缠绵了一夜的月亮依依不舍，高挂天边久久不愿离去。

浪漫美丽的一幕，好想让时间就此停留住。我不假思索把相机拿出，一口气拍了好几张月亮与大地离别在即的情景。

没有分离，哪来再见的欢喜？每一个结束，都是为新的开始做准备；每一个开始，又何尝不是为必然会到来的结束作准备呢。。。

活在当下，也许是最佳的生活方式把。

The breathtaking view from the balcony of our hotel in Taitung in the early morning inspired me to start taking photos even before I washed up.

Since trying up shooting in RAW (instead of JPEG) format recently, I have been craving for more and the view in front of me presented with just such a golden opportunity.

The beauty of the morning moon overlooking the scenic environment prompted me to wish that I could be here forever.

With the full control over the white balance for RAW format, I am able to bring out the rich blue tone of the sky and the mountain that I prefer (over warmer color), hence freezing the moment and the scenic view forever electronically….

好摄之徒 (Photography Enthusiast)

对好摄之徒而言，恶劣的天气并不能阻止摄影的任何机会与心情。热衷于摄影，就是如此奇妙，难以言喻，不能自己。

对生命若有热忱，也就不畏惧台风暴雨。迎向风雨，风雨同路，与大自然对抗，倒不如把生活融入大自然中。

到台湾之游，首次体验了五级的轻微地震。当地人都习以为常，大人与小孩继续谈天作乐，欣慰地壳得以释放能量，减低大地震发生的几率。

七星潭的风吹得好猛，好几艘战斗机突然从上空呼啸而过，没能及时把相机拿出来，错失了良机。

夜晚竟传来了朝鲜攻击南韩的新闻。。。

To a photography enthusiast, a lousy weather will not deter any photography opportunity and spoil his mood.

Having passion towards life, no adversity can intimidate us. Instead of struggling to fight against the nature, we must well have our life blends into it.

Experienced a mild earthquake in Taiwan. The locals were used to it and actually were glad that the earth is able to release its energy periodically, it is believed that with this, there will be less chance for a severe earthquake to occur.

Same night after we visited Chi Hsing Tan, we came to know that North Korea had attacked its neighbor….

Besides natural disaster, we sometimes have to face with man-made ones.