Interiors Archives - Mudframes PicturesMudframes Pictures

March 3, 2017

Interior Photography of a Renovated Damansara Foresta Condo Unit

I was engaged to undertake interior photography of a recently renovated condo unit at the Damansara Foresta development. The renovation works of this condo unit has been done by TOD Interior Design.

The brief was to capture the general layout of the kitchen, dining/living area and the rooms, along with the detailing and decorations of the place. These actual photos are to be used as TOD Interior Design’s marketing materials to showcase their portfolio, instead of relying solely on 3D renderings of artist’s impressions.

August 27, 2015

The Rec Room, Jalan Beka

The Rec Room is a newly opened music recording studio located at Jalan Beka, Damansara Heights. I was engaged by the contractor responsible for the interior/construction works of the place to photo document the 3 studio rooms. Basically, I was to portray the setup, fittings and lighting atmosphere of these 3 studio rooms for his portfolio records.

November 11, 2014

Scoop Cafeteria

I got the most unexpected of calls just recently and at a moment’s notice, I found myself in an enviable position to be working with the Equatorial Group to photograph one of its newly opened eatery. They have just launched a new executive dining facility on the 8th floor of Menara Dion, Jalan Sultan Ismail, Kuala Lumpur. It’s simply called the Scoop.

Scoop is not your regular cafeteria or restaurant. Food is delicious, no doubt about it, but upon setting one’s foot into the cafeteria, one is greeted by a fantastic work of art by itself; posh and contemporary flavours of intricate ID works. The layout of the cafeteria is well thought out with optimum usage of space among its 4 distinctive zones.

The primary self-service executive dining cafeteria or also known as the “Markets” zone has tables of various configurations. Pre-packed salad and microwave-ready lunches are available for those on a time crunch. Otherwise, one can savour from a wide array of constantly changing menu of Asian and Western cuisines whipped up by Equatorial’s finest and discerning chefs. There’s even a counter space equipped with power points for mobile workers on the go.

The large and prominent “Tabloid” zone by the window overlooking the busy Jalan Sultan Ismail is a very comfortable living room-type zone with plush but firm sofas and cushioned chairs for customers to catch up over some discussion or simply chill out with a wide range of reading materials on nearby shelves.

The “Business” zone has two meeting rooms for rental but I did not manage to photograph them as they were still being fitted for the day with the right furnitures and wall decors. They can be rented for any corporate meetings and events with refreshments made available by the kitchen, just like in a hotel environment.

The “Honour Bar” zone features a Grab & Go counter. Customers can customize their meals from a selection of sandwich or nasi lemak, muffin or fruit and a drink; all 3 items at RM 15, of which the right amount is to be dropped into the “Honour Drop Box” at the end of the counter. No line. No waiting. No cashier. It all works based on trust!

The close-up food shots were supposed to be done with flashes but due to time constraint, they were just ambient-only grabs.

Scoop is indeed a playful attempt at associating with the pleasurable act of eating; also, it connotes an allusion to a hot bed of breaking news and gossip, both of which brew well in this highly conducive environment for business folks to unwind and strategize at one’s leisure.

Currently, Scoop is only opened to tenants of Menara Dion (and their visitors) on Mondays to Fridays from 7 am to 6 pm. Psst!!! I was even told that patrons will enjoy a complimentary copy of the Wall Street Journal.

June 14, 2014

Commercial Photography for the British International School, KL

Speaking of coincidence, I’ve always wanted to explore working together with The British International School of Kuala Lumpur (BSKL) when I first heard about it a mere couple of months back. So it came as a huge surprise when they contacted me out of the blue in late April to enquire about my commercial photography services. Within three weeks, I found myself at the school embarking on one of the most fulfilling and exciting projects for 2014.

Even though the Primary Wing of the school commenced operation about 2 years ago, the Secondary Wing only began operations rather recently. I was made to understand that the Secondary building was only officiated in late 2013. I was tasked to produce a fresh set of images of the Secondary school encompassing both people and facilities.

These images will be used for their online and offline marketing purposes for both web and print media. I was lucky to have been given full creative freedom to execute this project, though being readily guided with a simple roadmap and coverage list of items to capture.

One of the most notable and impressive facilities at the BSKL is the Astro Turf where most children come here to play during lunch break and have their morning exercises and after-school sport activities.

The swimming pool is no less awesome. BSKL prides itself with effectively moulding a truly all-rounder student who excels in both academic studies and being an active participant of any sports activities.

As I was working alone over a period of 4 days, mobility and speed were of utmost concern. I had a security guard followed me throughout the shooting period as a guide and “comforting” figure; the latter being essential to allay any uncertainties of the people around me. It was not really assuring to be pointing a large camera in the direction of children had I been alone.

The photographs of students in the classrooms were a good mix of with and without flashes being used. Sometimes when I was moving quickly from one classroom to another, I would chance upon an interesting scene which would cause me to stop and capture it through the window from the outside without me stepping inside.

The wall climbing facility located at the Primary Wing was always buzzing with activities.

The library is very spacious and besides the interior shots, I managed to round up some students and teachers for a staged session. Speaking of staging shots, most of the photographs from this project were candid captures without the subjects being aware of it.

The majestic theatre is just simply mind blowing and cavernous at best. The Monday morning assembly is normally held here. I also managed to capture a session of drama class being conducted here.

The basketball court in BSKL is located on the roof top, along with a secondary Astro Turf field and table tennis facility.

Music is another important activity that sees a huge involvement among BSKL students.

Here are some shots of students during Art class. I managed to capture one session of the students in casual wear while they were having a cardboard game designing activity.

Food is fuel. Nutritious great food fuels and nourishes a child’s education journey. I tried portraying the fun-filled relaxing moments of lunch break that students look forward to every day.

Taekwando is another after-school activity at BSKL among others.

In between shoots at the Secondary Wing, I also managed to capture some students lounging at the Primary Wing’s library.

Students at the Secondary Wing can also enjoy a game of life-sized chess as seen above. I also managed to round up some academic staff for a photo shoot, before finishing off with a staged session of students mingling.

Because I needed to be working really fast, I was balancing the shooting process with and without flashes from time to time. Depending on the light conditions, environment, nature of class or the scene before me, I swung back and forth between for or against the use of flash. Had flashes been used, it was always off-camera, two of them, while the third on-camera flash was used as the master trigger. I opted for this mode of operation and not Pocket Wizard to simplify the process. In fact, I only remembered using the radio triggers once when the former failed on me momentarily.

The students of The British International School of Kuala Lumpur were fun, funny, warm and an intelligent bunch of children. When I was photographing at the Astro Turf during lunch break, one small little girl about 7-years old walked up to me and asked me were the photographs for “commercial” purposes. I was speechless indeed! And those secondary students above looking at the Mac were actually looking at a live picture of themselves using the Mac’s webcam to ensure they looked good for my camera! They figured that out.

All in all, this commercial photo shoot project for a prestigious international school in Malaysia has been a huge success. The client was clearly very happy and impressed with the resulting 790 images and I’d certainly like to think that the right mood and energy of the school have been well communicated and represented visually.

November 2, 2013

Mudframes Boutique SOHO Photography Studio in PJ

Renovation works on the Mudframes boutique SOHO photography studio began in early November 2012 in the vicinity of SS 2. The 4-storey corner unit is an old house in a rather old quiet PJ neighbourhood overlooking a playground. This home photography studio is designed and built by Tunhon with a country-like and industrial-themed concept that serves to strike a balance between a functional creative working space and residential purposes.

The entire house studio was painted with Murobond paint, the very same paint used by Ernest Zacharevic in his awe-inspiring and amazing street murals. There are two shooting areas, mainly, the primary studio area on ground floor and a secondary studio area at basement next to the kitchen. This secondary studio area which also doubles up as the timber-decked courtyard is directly under the pergola skylight.

Here are some interior and exterior pictures of this home photography studio which is still currently undergoing many micro changes towards aestethic and functional perfection. Improvement is constantly underway since its launch in mid Jan 2013 with internal decoration and furnishing works slowly working their way into place.

The kitchen with custom-built cabinets/drawers and Corian solid surface is one of the main hallmarks of this architecture project.

In the shot immediately above, you can see the meeting table at the common area to the right, which sits in front of my office cubicle.

As you can see above, the office area with the cubicle is a pretty tight but neat enclosure at a corner next to the powder room which boasts a chalkboard sliding door painted with Murobond pure low sheen chalkboard paint. This chalkboard acts as the “command centre” giving an overview of status of things; which is highly important in planning works.

The meeting table in front of the office cubicle is right next to the stair case leading up to the ground floor. Seen above is the wooden equipment rack where all my props, gears and accessories are kept.

Externally, this home photography studio looks just like any other typical house, albeit, a rather unusual but strong representation of bold colours that serve to define the space and delineate the lines of this fortress-like iconic landmark in this otherwise drab and dreary PJ neighbourhood.

One of the salient features of this house is its large dark brown “canvas” on its side being held together by a transparent pergola skylight extending down the lateral wall.

This large wall overlooks and guards the alley on its side.

Here are two opposing angles of the primary studio area.

If there are any pictures that best sum up the architecture wonder of this home photography studio, it would be these two shots:

The picture immediately above depicts the 4-storey build of this revamped old corner unit house. Seen here are the kitchen and office area down at the basement level of the courtyard, the primary studio area on the ground floor at right (white curtain), the “living room”and resource library (bookshelf) on the first floor seen at the top centre and an unseen second floor beyond it. The picture above the shot directly above shows all these 4 storeys in a single frame.

Here are some views from the courtyard at basement level.

The “living room” in the following shot overlooks the courtyard below. Seen here are the primary studio area at left and kitchen on bottom right.

This home photography studio also spots a solar-powered ventilation turbine installed at the skylight above. You can see this clearly from this shot taken at the second floor’s master bedroom’s wash room. The double exhaust turbine fans below the lateral skylight help further ventilate the house.

The bare cement finishings of the kitchen and powder room gives the place a highly industrial and gritty feel, both of which are highly characteristic of this home photography studio.

Finally, the kitchen’s polished and reflective Corian solid surface working top seen here against a cement-furnished wall. The kitchen is located next to the courtyard’s secondary studio area to especially facilitate any food photography sessions.

Most of the above pictures were ambient-only shots with a considerable number of them being composites, taken over a period of 3-4 days in a rather rushed manner due to a tight working schedule. However, some shots were flash-balanced too. They were all taken with a super wide angle lens on a full frame 35mm digital SLR camera.

The following are some pictures of the place undergoing renovation that really help lend some context into the extent of make over experienced by this home photography studio.

Mudframes boutique SOHO photography studio is open for business to walk-in customers by appointment only. The professionally-equipped photography studio is able to take on portrait, family, children, pre-wedding, stock, product and food photography assignments among others.

The photography studio is also open to all corporate, commercial and editorial photo shoot assignments. In addition to this, the photography studio is also available for rental by other photographers on a daily basis.

This fully air-conditioned small but intimately warm boutique photography studio can house comfortably a group of 8 to a maximum of 12 people. For more information on bookings and work engagements, you may call Melvin Tong at +6.012.277.1611 or give us a buzz.