While we were in Langkawi, each of us had our own pool for our rooms. How cool is that? We would always have arguments… like he said, why don’t you come to my pool. And I was like no way man. I’m not getting in your filthy pool. Get your skinny ass over to my pool and get it all dirty with your dirty dirty body and then Tane was like, okay.
While in KL, we visited a few different mosques. One of the ladies from the Ritz-Carlton was with me and all women need to wear these cloak things. It’s one of those strange religious things that never make sense to me. I know Islam is a fairly patriarchal system, so I think little subtle requirements like this keep females a bit more subservient and less by forcing them cover themselves.
These sorts of situations are perfect for a strong HDR treatment. I am always impressed by the way some interior designers choose to decorate and light their interior spaces. When you really crank up the HDR, it gives it a bit of a “fantasy” feel where you are not sure if it is real or make-believe. I like the tension between what is real and what is not real.
One day, we jumped out on a boat to go through the archipelago to visit some floating markets. These places are totally unique and they sell a wide variety of things, only half of which I can identify. Some of the veggies and fruits and stuff look a little sketchy, so they are definitely the sorts of things you need to prep and cook well when you get home.
Welcome to a very different Machine Elf creation! All my latest ones seem to be my favorite, but this one definitely gives a new perspective on the cinematic quality and storytelling of fractals. This creation was incredibly complex and took about a month for the visuals and another month for the music from Joshua Ryan. We’ve been collaborating on this one forever and now it is finally ready for release!
This creation explores how incredible complexity and the fabric of the universe could possibly be boiled down to a few combined fractal equations. I’ve always been fascinated by the fabric of the reality around us. Maybe it’s just math, or a higher order of mathematical formulas that collide with different sorts of energies. It’s really hard to say, eh? All these Machine Elf creations explore different facets from the same jewel of the reality that is being built around us all the time.
To see all the Machine Elf videos on YouTube, check out the Machine Elf playlist.
Also, we’ve put a few of these Machine Elf creations in 360 for a cool VR app called TRIPP. If you have an Oculus Quest, Go, Rift or Playstation VR you can download TRIPP which features guiding experiences to make you happier, calmer and more focused. Grab that here.
For more Machine Elf creations, including physical installations, check out the website: https://the-machine-elf.com/
What an amazing place to watch the sunset. Malaysia is a brutally hot and humid place, so any chance for a swim is welcome. This is the pool there at the Ritz-Carlton and, even better, we jumped in the pool right after a fun cocktail-making class. Some of those bartenders seem to have such a good time. I think it would be an awesome job, but I don’t think I could do it and keep all the drink recipes straight in my mind…
While we were on the tour across Asia, we ended up in Langkawi at the Ritz-Carlton where they put on a sunset mixology class for us. Man, bartenders really get into all this mixology stuff, and I have no idea what the heck is going on. They explain these esoteric mixes with such authority… I have no idea if it is total BS or if there is actually something to it. I think it’s probably a lot like healers or people like this… there are a lot of charlatans, but there are actually a few people that know what they are doing. I think this was one of those occasions!
Here’s a very fun interview I recently finished… I just skimmed it and I had some pretty good quotes! 🙂
For today… how about some of the best of… Malaysia!
It was fun to hang out with my friend Liz in Malaysia! We visited this mosque and they force women to cover their hair and other parts that may be enticing to men. I suppose that is the reason. I’m not a Muslim or anything, but it does seem a bit weird to suppress the human form to reinforce a mutually agreed-upon fiction. Anyway, after this, we went out with the team and had an amazing meal, sans silky self-sheeting.
Here’s a cool video I hope you like! While I was on tour across Europe a few years ago, I would give art talks at different Ritz-Carlton hotels along the way. One of the gentlemen there that helps run the show, Nick Teare, asked me if I’d be interested in making the video for the new Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection. It was a very fun project! I ended up with about 22 iterations before we finally ended up with what you see now. If you end up staying at some of the Marriott Luxury locations, you will probably see this video playing in your room on a loop! Also, a big thanks to Sam Mehrtens for composing the music!
If you’re headed to any Muslim country, I always recommend you go visit a few mosques. They are great for photography and generally very interesting places. You don’t have to worry about dress too much (well, don’t wear shorts) because most of them have a little station in the front where you can put on the appropriate garb.
Here’s a little video I made for my friend Jose in Porto, Portugal! You can find his //photo tours here/..
It was fun to go back to Kuala Lumpur after being gone for over seven years. You still can’t go wrong with a photo of the amazing Petronas Towers and the KLCC area. This one I tried shifting the temperature over into the Incandescent area. This is a good trick to try for a few of your cityscape shots. When you go into that area (called Tungsten in some white balance settings), you get this cool Blade Runner kind of feel.
