Friday, November 27, 2009

Photography tips from Alex Majoli

i'm not a regular reader of the Digital Camera Magazine...dunno why... kiamsiap guar...
rather learn from forums and tutorials online...free...hehe...

the other day at Queensbay while my dear browsing for magazines, i wander off (as usual)...found this issue...and bought it

what i'm interested is not the brand battle (it will be years before i get another camera)
or HDR (never have much interest in them)
or how to get creative with lenses (no money buy)

it's the 50 tips from 50 top photographers...
not that i expect a few lines from the pros will make me a pro...
just interested to know, name and faces, who are among the top photographers of today...
and see what do they have to say, in a few lines, about this art...

in a nutshell most of them are more or less the same...
some technical advises...
some philosophical insights...
some sharing of experience...
try and keep trying
don't stop learning
keep the passion burning
know your gears well
read your inches thick manual
follow your instinct
do your research
use your imagination
use a tripod (so disappointed...it's photography 101...no need a pro to tell me that)
don't use a tripod (contrary with photography 101 leh...but hey these are pros...they dun follow rules)
bla...bla...bla...
nevertheless...it's an interesting read...
interested? still can get the issue online...

just want to share one that i find the most interesting
it's from Alex Majoli (multi award-winning member of Magnum Photos)...
1) Read. My suggesstions are: Amos Oz, Pirandello, Saramango, Musil.
2) Learn how to choose a good wine and know one or two recipes.
3) Walk 5 to 10km everyday.
4) Read the Herald Tribune everyday.
5) Shoot a slide film every six months.
6) Be light on your equipment - one lens and one camera and in your hotel/b&b/tent, plus a back-up.
7) Buy good shoes - make sure they're light, waterproof and comfortable.
8) Don't try to understand things/people/cultures, before a trip.
9) Try not to organise your assignments too much before you leave home.
10) Enjoy photography, remember that it's not a contest.

my favourite line is of course the last one...
gotta constantly remind myself that...
it's not a race...Enjoy!
(by the way...he uses dummy Point and Shoot camera)

Saturday, November 7, 2009

a small pharmacist in a small hospital...

in a zapp...i spent a month in Hospital Gerik...really fast...

there are definitely major differences between working in a big state hospital compared to a humble district hospital...

a humble district hospital with 4 wards...only

but talking about "pharmaceutical care" that the lecturers kept repeating millions of times back in the university...i have more opportunity to practise here...perhaps it has nothing to do with the hospital...just that i'm no longer a very very lazy PRP but just a lazy FRP...

in Ipoh...it's either
i see their case and counsel them in ward...
or...fill their in-patient medication...
or...prepare their cytotoxic medications...
or...prepare their Parenteral Nutrition bags...
or...analyse and interpret their serum drug level...
or...find information for their attending doctors...
or...purchase their medication...
or...lastly...dispense medicines to them before they go back home...
its either...or...

at best we can do 2 of the above at one time...or 3 if we happen to dispense to the same patient we see in ward when relieve at the pharmacy counter...

here at this tiny little hospital...
i see their case and counsel them in ward...
and...check their in-patient medication...
and...find information for their attending doctors...
and...dispense to them at the counter
and...lots of time to counsel (i.e chit chat with) them at the counter before they go home...if i do the same thing at HRPB...definitely will be flooded by trays and medicines...

and...interpret their serum drug level...
tests were done in HRPB...and results do come with recommendations...but i'm no longer a PRP...so i can choose not to agree with them...heheheh

in short...here i can give one dragon service from beginning till the end...

the good thing here?
lots of time to learn and study...
time to pick up...again...the knowledge lost somewhere along the way...

the bad thing?
the other day i was following a case...until he had an acute exacerbation and transferred out to Ipoh...
there is a limit to what we can do here...thus a limit to what i can see in the ward...
but then...at ipoh...u can only see the patient during and after the attack...
here i can see before...still something different to learn...

but still...
no matter how hard we complaint about the chaotic large hospitals...
no matter how hard we bragged about the the peaceful small hospitals...
deep down we do want to return...because that is where we are from...Ipoh...

in case i have the opportunity...i want to return as a better me...
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