Binging on Gilmore Girls & K-Dramas

So, Gilmore Girls has a new season, "A Year in the Life". Back then I didn't really watch Gilmore cause always missed it when it aired. So recently decided to binge on it from Season 1 before I watch the latest. 

I really love TV shows from this era. Don't know if it's an age thing, but it just hits differently then current TV shows. Currently at Season 4. I watch mostly while I do other things, duk tengah kupas, potong bawang ke, sambil lukis ke, e.t.c...

So I binge like 2-3 episodes at one go. In the meantime, there are a bunch of other series that I watch as well but leave hanging. And get back to it whenever I feel like it. Sometimes I forget the storyline. But some series I tend to like really binge watch from start to finish. Depends on how hooked I am.

We have Astro at home, tapi tak tengok langsung now dah ada Netflix as well as Disney hotstar. But might wanna cancel subscription for Disney cause we don't watch it as much. 

Have watched quite a number of Korean series. They make some really great series. I even did a few digital paintings based off the screencaps of them. 

Vincenzo

Goblin

The Uncanny Counter

Hotel Del Luna

Been a while since I've did these kind of digital paintings. Realistic-ish. I started doing them when I watched Hotel Del Luna, was in love with the cinematography, the ambience. It was soooo beautiful which made me want to repaint the scene. 

Anyway, gonna end this here. Need to rest a bit and hopefully feel better soon. But will try my best to keep on posting on this blog on a daily basis.  Share with me your fav series, might watch it as well! Aight, byeeeee. 

Much love,

Was once an influencer, and why the hiatus?

Featured in some magazines and newspaper about blogging and photography

Okay, so thought of answering this question here cause it wouldn't be enough in just one tweet. 

How did you become an influencer dulu2 and why did you take a hiatus afterwards. Answer only if you want to. Thankss!!

Tapi yg ni wajib jawab, where do you derive your art inspiration from

— Queen Lychee (@lycheerambutan) February 12, 2021

Will answer this in parts. 

 "How did you become an influencer dulu2..."

The influencer bit, I'd say happened because of MySpace. I was one of the earliest people to have signed up to MySpace. Either it was below 500 or 5000 users at that time. And before they had the option of customizing the top friends list, I would automatically be there on most, especially for those in Malaysia. 

Also back then I did a lot of artsy self-portraits, which at that time not many Malaysians did? And also my profile picture was a moving GIF. I kind of liked experimenting a lot before others did (cause I was a loner nerd at  home with nothing else better to do). And the computer and Internet was my go to place to express my introvert-ness. So with all that combined, I guess people took interest in what I do.

I did manage to influence quite a number of people to actually get a camera and start taking photos. Which in a way was quite an achievement? So yeah, one thing lead to another. I started with the blog Budu & Belacan.. went up up up...

But.. in reality, my life was kind of in a mess. I still was very active after my divorce. So, then years after, I met someone... and at that point I thought, I should focus on my personal life, PRIVATELY. Prior to that, I used to share EVERYTHING about my life. Which kind of backfired. People started talking on gossip boards, making assumptions about my personal life. It bothered me a lot. I don't blame them though, cause I did put myself out there for public scrutiny. 

"...and why did you take a hiatus afterwards"

So, decided to just get off of the Internet one day. Deleted all my social media accounts, art accounts, blogs. Everything. There wasn't an option to deactivate back then. Just remove. So I did. Gone for a bout 3 years or so. Then in between got married, didn't really announce it, got pregnant, only announced when I gave birth. Many were quite surprised, was like, wait.. when did you remarry? 

If anyone notices I don't really share photos of myself or family these days, don't share much about my personal life other than daily struggles with art and my usual emotional mood swings. I feel that some things is best kept private. 

Then after much consideration and discussion with my husband, decided to make a comeback, as I wanted to do business from home, so thought that it was good to make a reappearance. So this is when I came up with Creep & Cream, a clothing brand for kids tees

My return was mostly for business. Only later that I started making it slightly more personal and now it's mostly about art. Which brings me to next bit of question:

"where do you derive your art inspiration from"

Fairy tales. Story books. Alice in Wonderland. These stories I grew up with as a child, influenced me a lot. And being bored at home, I always came up with things to occupy myself. Always played with my mom's make up, dressed up, acted in front of the mirror, imagined I was a Disney princess, sang, and all that. Then as I became a teen. I continued on expression myself, through drawings and poetry. It was only later on, when I got my first digital camera, I started doing self-portraits.. 

Now that I no longer have my studio. Married, staying at home with my kids, I still have the urge to express myself, but photography is no longer an option, so I started drawing more often, started from doodling.

And I had a phase were I doodled on wood. Then got my Samsung Galaxy Tablet, started dabbling with digital illustrations, paintings. And lately have been doing a lot of photo-realism, kinda brings back the memories of my photography days. 

There you go, I hope it answers your question dear Naddy! Thank you for the question, you just gave me content to write in my blog. Yayyyy. Alrite, will end this here. Bye! ~ Sue Anna Joe

Pemenang Jiwa

الْجُمُعَة

07 RABIUL AKHIR 1438H

Setelah sekian lama menanti, Anna nak umumkan pemenang bagi Pertandingan Puisi Belantara di Antara Jiwa. Terlebih dahulu, Anna ingin mengucapkan terima kasih kepada Siti Aishah Mohammad Razi, Mohd Fariz Abdul Rahman, Sura Zakaria, Mohd Faizal Zakaria, Suria Zakaria dan Nur Azalea Rusni yang sudi menyertai pertandingan ini. Terima kasih juga pada yang turut menyebarkan perihal pertandingan ini di Facebook.

Dan pemenangnya adalah... 

→ SURIA ZAKARIA ←

Hening malam bintang merata

Menata sinar tersuluh jiwa

Namun kelam gelap gelita

Tertanya tanya bilakan bercahaya?

Kau susuri belantara jiwa

Berselirat, sesak terasa

Mentari terik menjengah jua

Tetaplah teguh menjadi perkasa

Jalan bercabang buat kau terpana

Terus melangkah tuntuni jiwa

Pekikan ia pada yang Esa

Hanya Dia yang Maha Sempurna

Karya oleh,

 Suria Zakaria ©️ 2016-2017

Tahniah buat Suria Zakaria. Puisi ini terpilih kerana dapat menyampaikan apa yang Anna sendiri rasa ketika membuat lukisan ni. Pada yang pernah mengikuti dan membaca penulisan Anna di blog lama, Budu dan Belacan, banyak luahan hati terutamanya mengenai konflik diri. Anna masih lagi, mencari diri. Jatuh seringkali, bangkit jarang sekali. Banyak yang perlu dilawan, banyak yang perlu ditawan. 

Setelah lama menyepi dan menghilangkan diri dari dunia alam maya, sekarang Anna dah kembali. Tapi jujur dikatakan, bukan mudah hendak bangkit. Rasa kecewa, kesal, seringkali hendak mengibarkan bendera putih, pasrah pada kegagalan. Selama Anna hidup di mukabumi ini, rasa seolah banyak masa yang telah dihabiskan dengan sia-sia. Tapi Alhamdulillah, masih diberi nyawa untuk meneruskan hidup di dunia yang sementara. Ditemukan dengan seorang yang mengejutkan dari tidur dan mimpi indah yang kosong. Realiti itu pahit, tapi pahit itulah ubat. 

Waktu tengah gah, rasa macam merendah diri, tanpa disedari, ego itu melangit, sombong dan meninggi diri. Itulah mainan dunia, godaan nafsu dan tewas dengan bisikan pawana. Terlalu mudah dikaburi dengan perkara yang memakan diri kerana lemas dalam nikmatnya. Lama-kelamaan, hati yang asalanya bercahaya, menjadi kelam. "Hening malam bintang merata, Menata sinar tersuluh jiwa, Namun kelam gelap gelita, Tertanya tanya bilakan bercahaya?" Suria Zakaria (2016). 

Apa jua sekali pun. Hidup mestilah diteruskan. "Kau susuri belantara jiwa, Berselirat, sesak terasa, Mentari terik menjengah jua, Tetaplah teguh menjadi perkasa" Suria Zakaria (2016). Sakit macam mana pun bila jatuh, kena bangun dan jalan. Tak larat nak jalan, merangkak. Tak larat merangkak, mengesot seperti suster ngesot. Hahaha. Harap ada yang pernah tengok Suster Ngesot, kalau takda.. aku gelak sorang-sorang je la. Hmm. 

Nami Island
25 November, 2015

Jadi macam mana ni nak teruskan perjalanan hidup yang sementara menuju yang kekal? "Jalan bercabang buat kau terpana, Terus melangkah tuntuni jiwa, Pekikan ia pada yang Esa, Hanya Dia yang Maha Sempurna" Suria Zakaria (2016). Berbalik padaNya. Segala sesuatu yang kita lakukan kerana Allah. Bukan untuk yang lain, bukan untuk memuaskan diri sendiri. Manusia tidak akan pernah puas. Tak terkejar kepuasan dunia.  

Jadikan kebiasaan untuk menyoal diri "Aku buat ni untuk apa?" Kalau tujuannya kerana Allah, kita tidak akan rasa terlalu sedih dan kecewa bila tidak dapat apa yang diingin. Contohnya, pergi temuduga untuk mencari kerja, dengan harapan yang tinggi, sekali tak dapat. Nak mendapatkan zuriat, bertahun-bertahun mencuba tetapi masih tidak mendapat anak. Jika kita niatkan dan landaskan pada Allah, kita yakin ada hikmahnya, kita yakin ada yang lebih baik untuk kita. Mungkin tidak di dunia, tapi di akhirat kelak. 

Dengan itu, kita harus tetap bersemangat untuk berusaha walaupun gagal. Gagal tidak bermakna kalah. Jadikan kegagalan itu satu semangat baru untuk teruskan usaha dan berikhtiar disulami dengan niat keranaNya, bukan kerana manusia mahupun dunia. 

{Sue Anna Joe}

Pertandingan Puisi Belantara di Antara Jiwa

Belantara di Antara Jiwa

Assalamualaikum dan salam sejahtera wahai pembaca sekalian. Ya, di sini ada berita baik. Eh, ni dah kenapa rasmi sangat bahasanya? Hahaha. Anna nak hadiahkan lukisan "Belantara di Antara Jiwa". Yang ni special edition (dicetak atas brown recycled art card). Hanya ada satu sahaja ya. Bagi yang berminat nak memiliki lukisan ini, Anna menganjurkan Pertandingan Puisi Belantara di Antara Jiwa. Apakah yang perlu dilakukan?

• Menulis puisi berdasarkan lukisan Belantara di Antara Jiwa (klik pada gambar untuk melihat lukisan dengan lebih terperinci). 
• Tiada had patah perkataan. 
• Puisi hendaklah ditulis di dalam Bahasa Melayu. 
• Puisi mesti dikongsi di ruang komen entri blog ini. 
• Sertakan nama dan alamat e-mel.
• Tarikh pertandingan bermula hari Jumaat, 11 November 2016, dan berakhir pada hari Ahad, 27 November 2016, jam 10pm. 
• Pemenang akan dihubungi melalui e-mel dan akan diumumkan di blog ini.

Jika ada sebarang pertanyaan, boleh tinggalkan di ruang komen. Terima kasih!

{Sue Anna Joe}

Being Creative (Part 2)

Greenilicious Lime

Thought I elaborate a bit on my previous Being Creative post with a sample of one of my old work. This photo above was taken using a basic digital camera mounted on a tripod. Tools used: a green lime taken from my mom's garden, a digital camera, a bathroom hose to spray the water and a sharp metal object that was poked into the lime to keep it in place. Below is a rough sketch of how this photo was taken.

Behind the scene of "Greenilicious Lime"

So this sketch above is pretty much how the set up was. I set the camera on timer and kept holding that position. Looking at the finished result, one would assume I threw the lime into mid-air, when it was actually supported by a sharp metal that was poked into the lime. Because I used a basic camera, I wasn't able to set the shutter speed to freeze the moment, so I used the built-in flash. Usually I avoid using the flash, I prefer natural lighting, but in this scenario it was necessary to take the shot. If it wasn't for the flash, the image would have been a blur due to the motion.

I took several shots, and finally got one that I was satisfied with. Then, it came down to the editing. I had to edit out the sharp metal object. Besides that, the background was originally white bathroom tiles. Using Adobe Photoshop, I edited the white background and turned it green. And got rid of the tile lines as it was distracting. You see, when taking photos, it's important to focus on the subject and eliminate any distraction. If possible it's best done at the scene. A lot of people do this, easy example is during group shots at a cafe. There would be cups, plates on the table. So these cups, plates, e.t.c.. would be set aside so it doesn't appear in the photograph. However in some cases, it is impossible to remove certain elements, thus editing softwares just like Adobe Photoshop come in handy.

Tools in Adobe Photoshop such as clone stamp, healing tool, patch tool can be of assistance when removing such unwanted elements. For beauty shots, especially in magazines, these tools are used frequently, to remove blemishes, acne, scars, to make the skin look really smooth. These days, there are a number of phone apps that have this removal option.

This photo did require me to be creative. I had to think how would I make it as though as the lime was in mid-air. Wouldn't have looked nice if I held it. If I had proper equipment at that time, DSLR, studio lights, with either a green backdrop or green filters I could just throw the lime, and quickly snapped photos at a high shutter speed to capture it.

So.. what was that "sharp metal object"? Jeng, jeng, jeng...

Blackhead remover (image source)

Hahaha. Yeah I know it's kinda gross, but that's what I used bruh! So I used the pointy sharp end and poked the lime so I could hold it in position. And with the magic of Adobe Photoshop, it vanished in the final image. I would share the original photo, but I don't have it anymore. I can't remember when but this was taken yearssss ago.

Well that's about it. Just thought I'd share my creative process. Limitations should not limit you, it should be used to squeeze that creativity juices out of your brain.

{Sue Anna Joe}

Being Creative

Being creative is a part of survival. It helps us manoeuvre through our daily lives. Especially in challenging situations. I've heard people saying, "But I'm not creative". Nope, you're wrong, you are creative. It's just a matter of you being able to harness this power within you. When talking about creativity, people would most likely relate it to those, say who loves to draw. Create pieces of art. Or maybe, architects, graphic designers, fashion designers, and well you know those kind of people of do those kind of things.

Parenting, requires a high level of creativity. A mother with a kid who is a picky eater, would think of the different ways of trying to make their kids to eat. So she decides, instead of serving the regular looking bread in the mornings, the mom would make the bread look like it has a face using, using cereals. Arranged to have eyes, a nose and a smily mouth. Perhaps in a situation where the kid refuses to go to bed, the mom or dad would make up a 'factual' story such as, "If you don't go to sleep, you will forever be small, when everyone else is growing up", or simply just scare them "Haa, kalau tak tidur nanti nenek kebayan datang". The scare tactic is not recommended though. It ain't good for the mental health of kids.

Have you seen those survival guides on TV? I can't quite remember the names of the show, but there are a few. Not long ago, I watched this show, where there were two guys, one a chef, and the was one was a hunter, or was it a survival specialist. Well anyway, this episode I watched was filmed in Malaysia. They had to travel by a tiny wooden boat to a secluded area deep down in the swampy jungle. The hunter guy wanted to take water from the river. Somehow he lost the only cooking pot they had. So, the chef was of course furious, but he still managed to come up with a solution. He used bamboo to cook. He made holes and put in the shrimp they caught inside. And it actually made it taste better. And this is yet again, creativity. If he wasn't creative, they would have starved.

"Murder victim" (image source)

Teachers use creativity. How do you make students interested in their lessons? Read an article not too long ago, an English teacher from Sarawak, created a murder scene, and the students had to solve the murder mystery. He left 'evidence' with words and sentences, like puzzles. And so the students had to read and understand, and figure it out. Those who were able to solve the case, had the chance to take photos with the prop. One of them was a huge sized knife. I would definitely want to participate in that class.

For a person who love to take photos, creativity is an important tool other than the camera itself. I've been in many situations that I was forced to be creative due to the limitations I had. I started with a basic compact digital camera, a 5-megapixel Sony Cybershot. I did not have any special equipment, studio or lighting. I used whatever I had in my house as props or set up. For example:

1. The carpet became the background for my portraits
2. A bag, a skirt, a t-shirt was turned into a hat
3. My night lamp became my studio lights
4. The bathroom became my studio
5. I've even used garlic as a prop for one of my conceptual shoots

I did not have to invest in so much to come up with an interesting photo. All I needed was creativity. Without it, I would have just given up. Now that I am in the kitchen more often, I have to think of what to cook for my husband and son. It's quite a task of figuring out the menu of the day. And at times you just don't have enough ingredients based on the recipe. So, tadaaaa, here comes creativity. You have to figure out, what ingredient you can use to substitute what you don't have. You have to think would this go with that, would that go with this. And at the end of the days the lack of ingredients you had, actually made your cooking even more delicious. Nyumm nyumm nyumm.

We all are creative. We just don't realize it. Don't go "Alaaa, tapi saya tak kreatif.." Hello, hello wake up. Awak tu kreatif sebenarnya. Tinggal lagi nak menjana kuasa kekreatifan tu haaa. Terlampau kreatif pun tak elok juga sebenarnya. Yelah, sampai ada yang jamu orang makan dalam diapers la, mangkuk tandas la. Erkk. Hahaha. So make use of that creativity within you in your daily lives, but please don't go overboard. Moderation is key. It would be such a waste not to harness that power of creativity of yours. Now go be creative!

{Sue Anna Joe}