I like messing around on my comp.

One thing I like to do when I'm experimenting for concepts at work is to try out different Photoshopping tricks. And there are crazy Photoshop masters out there who have all kinds of useful tips and tricks that make pictures look so much more unique (and often better).

I love vintage and Lomo effects, but I don't own a lomo camera, so I often end up doing what most of the lomo-film-less population does--using Instagram filters/phone apps to edit my photos to get a similar effect.

I love these apps, I really do. They're a quick, convenient way to spruce up my photos for uploading. But sometimes it's fun to manually tweak things in Photoshop and add little effects and details here and there that aren't so customisable in filters and apps. 

Here I tried a vintagey-lomo tutorial on this rather unglam photo of me and Hua. I like how all the blurs smoothened out our complexion, and how the curves adjustments and gradients I added help to give a nice warm feel to the whole photo. I especially liked the white spot and red streaks that the tutorial recommended. Gives a warm, vintage, retro finish to the whole look. All the way I was thinking to myself, "Ohhhh....so this is how Instagram filters work....."

My pals got me a Lomo lens for my Nikon J1 for my birthday this year, but I haven't really taken the initiative to bring it out for a shoot yet! Sometimes I feel as if I have too many things that I want to pursue that aren't as related to each other as they would be in an easier, more convenient life.

I want to play my newly acquired (but secondhand) keyboard and record music/covers, write songs, play my old favourite tunes.

I want to dance as much as I can with the people that I treasure. I yearn to perform and to hit that stage again. I miss performing and I love rehearsals, no matter how tiring they can get.

I want to get somewhere with my art, be it the Singapore doujin circle, or even getting a presence online. Pushing out artwork for people to see and love, and making more friends with people in the scene.

I want to meet up with all my old friends and catch up just like old times. We needn't be doing anything fancy, just a simple meal and gathering where we chill and hang out. Work life has made me cherish the importance of that more than ever, and I think that seeing my chums less than what I used to when we used to stay together in school (i.e. every day) is starting to take its toll on my mental well-being HAHAHA.

When your interests are so varied, and there are limited friends that share the same several circles as you, I guess it's normal to feel like an alien when you're trying to settle in and find your place. I sometimes wonder whether it's up to us to make our presence known and create a place for us in a place that seems like it "doesn't have a place for us". Do we carve out (and somewhat force) a place for us to be in a scene that doesn't welcome us? Or do we search for a scene that does? I really don't know, sometimes.

Life has been, and will continue to always be, a big question mark for me. But it doesn't mean I can't be happy and content along the way. :) I guess we're all just struggling in our own ways on this wonderful journey called L.I.F.E. I'm just glad I don't have to face it alone. :)

☙ ❤ ❧