A new beginning

This is the last post on LHCwords.blogspot.com. Wow ... I can't believe I'm officially saying goodbye to the blogger platform. But the time has come for something new, and that new is here:

www.lisahollchang.com/blog

Update your bookmarks or Google Reader and leave a comment on the new blog to let me know you've made the transition! I'll see you over there! :)

Engagement: Selena and Pate

Last Saturday I got to photograph some engagement photos for two lovely international people who met each other in Taiwan. Selena and Pate let Winnie and I take them all over the crowded Taipei Main Station area and even take pictures inside the station itself! It was a lot of fun. Thanks Selena and Pate. Below is a sequence of black and whites. Enjoy!









For those Photoshop nuts like me out there, I got the "TRA recipe" from this blog post. Amelia Lyon is an AMAZING photographer in the LA area. She and her husband Justin provide great photos and content on their blog, making my Google Reader list! And Justin is in Haiti right now taking pictures for a mission group ~ something that I think is totally cool. Check them out here.

One thing about this "recipe" is that it added grain to the photo. I'm inclined to be against grain because I usually work really hard to make my images sharp, why then make them fuzzy/noisy? But after doing this set, the idea is growing on me, if only for black and whites. The other thing I like about Lyon's processing is that she really pushes the limits beyond where I'm usually comfortable going. It was a good stretch for me. :)

Yilan Cultural Arts Center

Just a few photos today. Processing photos can be therapeutic. :)

Our walk

Tonight, we went out for a walk. I really appreciated it. Tonight could have been lonely, since my husband is at his company dinner and all. But it wasn't because we took a walk together.



The weather was really nice. Only a little bit of a chill. It's late January now and I can already tell it doesn't get dark quite as early anymore. That's great ~ it definitely makes my walk with you more enjoyable! But since it's already 5:30 it'll get dark soon.



When I cross this crate, it means the walk has become a hike. I love hiking. Lately I've developed a bit of a routine. I'll hike to the top (I didn't even have to stop and catch my breath last time) then jog back down. I can be back home in a half hour.



We get to the steep part. Actually one of several steep parts. But this one's the worst. I need to slow down here. I'm sorry if I didn't pay as much attention to you here. It's just so steep that's all I can think about.



There was a Buddhist tent and rituals here for the longest time last year. It was after the typhoon in August. They called it the "peace and blessing" meeting to "reduce disaster." I'm glad it's gone. Now there's just this gate. There's a shortcut on the right. It'll eventually end at a temple. I really wish people didn't feel the need to go to these places.



You asked me if I missed Cappuccino. I do, especially at times like these when I'm hiking. I hiked more when I had Cappuccino. I never felt like I exercised her enough. I sometimes wonder how she is now. That's not an easy topic to wonder about. I put it back out of my mind.



The lights turned on at about 6:00. Sometimes when I hike I form words in my head as if I'm writing a blog post. Or I just process through things without words. I guess I can't really tell my mind is working except that it always feels clearer afterward. As if the trees, road and sweat moved the clutter away.



Haha, Cappuccino always took this path while I took the one on the left. Otherwise she was really good about sticking by my side. She loved hikes as much as do. I got to let her off her leash and let her run on her own. She never caused any problems. Because she was scared of other people she'd just hurry past them.



We reach the top and rest here for a moment to enjoy the view. I love how simple things like hiking can make me feel better. As if I get my little injection of accomplishment. OK, time to head back down. As soon as I get my butt off the ground!



It's silly but I always feel a little nervous when passing under these trees. They make creaking noises in the wind, as if they're ready to fall over any minute and bury me underneath them.



Hehe ... I'm really tall. (Not). Oh do I wish I was taller. I really think it would have taken me less time to learn how to be confident if I were.



It's starting to really get dark now. Good thing we're almost back to civilization. Just a few more turns in the road and we'll be there. Not that I'm not enjoying the hike. But my mind has already moved on to what I'll eat for dinner.



I don't think I'll ever get tired of taking walks with you. Some people listen to their iPods when they exercise. I've only wanted to do that when I'm running on flat terrain to distract me from my misery. When I take hikes though, I never think to bring my music. I don't want to be distracted from what's around me.



These lights are a florescent white. We must be getting closer. Our pace quickens a bit here because there's construction workers working on the the temple to our left and sometimes they yell out "hello." I really dislike that. I never answer them. I also avoid looking at them.



We've crossed the grate and officially returned to civilization. This also means we can slow our pace. We're almost home. I think I could live in this area happily for a long time.



These steps say "home" for me. It's funny, I've stopped wondering about certain things in my neighborhood. Like why this apartment complex is decorated with Christmas lights year round.



Home sweet home. I've enjoyed the walk. Let's do it again sometime soon. Maybe tomorrow.

The Science of Presentations

I've been learning about presentations lately. Since I'm "into" design and visual ways of communicating, the principles of effective presentations: more visuals, less text, no bullet points, are easy to understand. It amazes me how many people don't know about this stuff. Here's a great talk about presentations. It's a little long (17 minutes) but will change the way you do presentations from now on.
The Science Of Presentations

View more documents from Kevin Gee.

My cliff notes:
*People receive information in two ways: auditory (hearing) and visual. The most effective presentations will combine auditory and visual means to present information.
*People can only receive so much information at a time, some scientists say our "working memory" can only handle seven "pieces" of information.
*If people are reading text, they are converting from visual to auditory information. So if people are reading text on a slide, they are no longer listening to the speaker.
*Slides should contain primarily visual information. If there are words, only use a few.
*All the information should be "cohesive." So take out anything that's extra. A few words on a white background is effective.

Interesting stuff, eh? :)

Confessions of a controlling wife

I believe it's generally recognized that women can be controlling of their men. In fact, I think that's a major cause of discord between a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law ~ deep down they both want to control the same person.

Now, I already have a personality that tends to like control. I grew up on a dairy farm ~ my siblings and I took turns running the business. I'm deeply independent and opinionated. But I'm also well versed on the scriptures and reasons why it's good to let the man be the head of a household. So I try to reign my controlling-personality in. But sometimes it still gets out. Like in the following cases:

*I cut out the translation section of my husband's Advanced (English-learning) magazine because "it's better for him" and "he doesn't need it."
*I told my husband he had to go to church on Sunday when he didn't want to for good reason (it was the all-church annual celebration which tends to be long and boring). I offered his home church as a possible alternative. He decided to go to church with me.
*I told my husband I would absolutely not to go small group anymore if he didn't drive. This was after an hour-long commute home on a rainy night. (I've already broken this "ultimatum.")
*I guilt-tripped my husband into coming to a Bible study (he translates for my class) on a Friday when he was taking the GMAT the next Tuesday. Later I got food poisoning that Friday and couldn't teach. I wondered if I was experiencing God's holy judgment.

And I won't include any more because I already look really bad. Fortunately my husband laughs all these things off. But even if it doesn't bother him, it bothers me. I am trying to improve this aspect of myself. Consider this public confession part of the process.

Overboard

I'm afraid I've gone a little overboard. Yesterday Mr. C and I were sharing before our weekly prayer time together and talking about how for both of us, we've gone a little overboard. Me with this photography thing, Mr. C with preparing for the GMAT (and previously, the TOEFL). One thing Mr. C said really struck me, he said he wondered if my whole "obsession" with photography (in the sense that it's negative) wasn't partly his fault. It's true I do have A LOT of "me time" while he is studying that I've filled with doing things in photoshop, learning or reading photography-related blogs.

In a way, we both look forward to getting out of this slightly unbalanced period of our lives. For me, I think that will mean (albeit slowly) developing a photography style and even more a new way of living with me. For Mr. C it'll mean finally taming the beast called G-M-A-T.

Mr. C's moment of freedom will hopefully come tomorrow (Tuesday, afternoon) as he takes the GMAT for the second time. Please pray that he does get a score he can be satisfied with. We're praying for 680 or above, but will accept however God leads with the score.

For myself, photography has not only been a creative outlet but also a means to understanding more about who I am and becoming more confident in my individuality. Just as not everyone has the same photography style, so does not everyone have the same "living style," or personality for that matter. That's what photography has taught me. So while photography may need to become "less" in my life, I hope I become more ... more aware of myself, more confident in who I am, more confident in who God is, more uniquely me.

In some ways, that sentence above seems horribly selfish. I mean, only in my world am I the center of the universe. But I think another thing I'm learning is that only when you are more of who God meant you to be can you be more of a friend, or wife, or daughter to those you love. That doesn't mean you'll always please those people. In fact, you won't. But that was never the aim in the first place. Please God, be true to yourself.

So I'll continue learning and growing in photography, with some limits set in place like no photoshop or blogs on Sunday. But even more I want to become comfortable and confident in who this person called Lisa is ~ the person, not the photographer. I'm developing a character, not a brand.