In the beginning…

Well, maybe not “the” beginning, just “a” beginning.

It was probably around 2007 that I began to pay more attention to what went into the frame, to what it was I was taking photographs of.  Prior to that it was mostly point, click, “look, isn’t that pretty??”  Most probably weren’t pretty at all, but family and friends always say “yes, it is”  –  In 2007,  somewhere amidst the generic photos, there began to emerge a few that stood out, and I think that I was seeing things, the things around me, differently, and in so doing I was capturing them differently, light was beginning to take on lifelike characteristics that would change how everything looked, and how everything could be captured on a few thousand pixels.

It was now not so important to capture every detail, but just the ones that would help tell the story, using light and dark, contrast and brightness to illustrate an idea, a concept, a feeling…  It was time to pay more attention to the composition rather than just the subject.

I decided to take a look back at the photos I took ten years ago, to see what, if anything, was worth sharing.  Most of the images I took were family oriented, so those didn’t count, but I was experimenting, looking around me and trying to capture something out of the ordinary (ordinary being the family photos, nothing captured can compare to even the ordinary of professional photographers, much less fine-art photographers).

I even tried my hand at pointing the camera at strange people, out in public, although I was still much more comfortable pointing at non-human subjects, those that might not complain or make a fuss.

And its also the year, I did my first Photo-Walk, not what would really be considered a photo walk, but myself, my brother, Andre, and two friends, Nikhil and Naseem.  We went for a drive “over the river” up to Wales estate on the West Bank of Demerara and I think up to Windsor Forest on the West Coast of Demerara, stopping every now and again to take some photos.

That photo-walk was somewhat of an eye-opener as well, in a relatively short distance, there was quite a lot to see, and a good variety of subjects and scenes to photograph as a result.

This isn’t a retrospective of any kind really, just taking a look at some photos with an eye that has had a decade of shooting, and processing them anew.    They were all shot on a bridge camera, or an advanced point-and-shoot camera, the Canon PowerShot S3 IS, a 6 Megapixel camera with a 1/2.5” CCD sensor, so there’s not a lot of post processing I could do without delving into the realm of editing.

Back then I was mostly all about colour, vivid vibrant popping colour, so the monochromatic versions (BW) you see are how I see them today, not then.

I chose ten images to illustrate what I had accomplished that year, I don’t think I would have found very many, if any, more that are worth sharing.  I hope you enjoy a few.

All the images were reprocessed, and cropped.  Click on any image to see them in the Gallery.


Boats at Better Hope

Once in a while, I’m fortunate to be on a PhotoWalk with some fellow photographers, last Sunday was one of those days, and while I think my total take in terms of absolute exposures for the afternoon was about 30, I think I came away with about three photos that I liked, and more that are usable, and that’s a good percentage for me.

This one I chose to share as a blog post rather than in the group album, in which I have shared two others 🙂


Boats at Better Hope – 17-3100  |  Canon EOS 60D, Sigma 10-20mm  |  2017


Click on the image to see it in the Black and White Gallery in the Collection.


© Photograph copyright to Michael C. Lam, all rights reserved.

Exposed Coast

Being on the northern coast of South America… I suppose that’s what we have… an Exposed Coast… facing the mighty Atlantic Ocean.  Luckily for us, hurricanes never seem to come close to shore here… Smile


Exposed Coast – 13-0514  |  Canon EOS 60D  |  Sigma 10-20mm  |  2013


Click on the image to see it in the Gallery.


The Sea

Every time I say something about the Sea, I have to wonder how many people think about the fact that what we see beyond our shores is not a sea, but an ocean…  but it would sound really silly calling the barrier the Ocean-wall.

Anyway, back to my fascination with the sea (or ocean) and our coastline, here’s a photo 🙂


Sea – 16-2637  |  Canon EOS 60D, Sigma 10-20mm  |  2016


Click on the image to see it in the Black & White Gallery along with many other Black & White images in my collection


At Day’s End

I don’t want to be the one telling you a story in words, I want to be the one telling you a story in a photo, but who’s story is it?

Are you seeing and interpreting the scene in the same way I do?  Does it matter?

The photograph as it was taken tells one story, what that story is may be entirely up to the viewer, after I have processed it, there are some subtle and some not so subtle changes to the finished image (not edited, nothing has been taken out or added), in this manner, I hope to direct the line of thinking in a certain way, whether it works or not is another matter, but in this way I am interpreting the scene my way, and lending to it my feelings; how the viewer sees it is still up to the viewer.

Many people take scenes literally, others concoct long tales based on the elements in the frame,  others may just have an emotional reaction but not know precisely why;  if it affects you, then I am happy.


At Day’s End – 14-3289  |  Lusignan, East Coast Demerara  |  2014


Click on the image to see it in the Gallery along with other images in the Black and White Collection.


Between 15 and 50

There’s much that could be said, but little that I feel like sharing.

In the meantime, enjoy a photo that has my mind crossing space, time and emotions.   I’ve also included this into the extended Oniabo Collection.

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Canon EOS 60D  |  Between 15 and 50  |  February 2016


Click on the image to see it in the Gallery

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2015 Deck – Week 28

I’m about to mention some things of which I am quite ignorant about, so anyone wishing to clarify, extrapolate, correct or otherwise educate me on it are welcome to do so.

I usually like to say something about the photo I am presenting, so here goes:

On the coast of Guyana, we see large shipping vessels (trawlers) heading out to sea for fishing, some smaller boats do so closer to shore (but often out of sight us of land), we see men (and women) cast-net fishing, we see some fishermen using rods and lines, and there are likely more methods than I know of, but one type was explained briefly to me because of a photo I took in which I was trying to identify the craft/vessel/device being used by the fisherman, this was the pin seine method.

Pin Seines are usually about 6 feet high and vary in width, the seine or fishing net usually carries a mesh size of three and a half inches or less; the seines are usually pinned to vertical stakes/poles, they are set up at high tide in the intertidal zone (between the tide lines/marks).  When the tide ebbs, fish are trapped in the nets and retrieved by fishermen.

One method of retrieval is by using what is locally called a catamarang, not to be confused with the more stylish catamaran.  The catamaran is a double hulled boat, while the only resemblance to the “double” part that I’ve seen on catamarangs has been the two long boards lashed/secured together forming the base of the vessel.  The catamarang basically consists of the wooden base which is about  14 to 18 inches wide by about 7 to 9 feet long (I haven’t measured one as yet), with a central wooden box the width of the base by about 2 feet long and about 12 to 18 inches deep (high).  It is operated by the fisherman kneeling or standing with one leg upon the base and pushing across the mud with the other leg, the central box is used to store the catch.

Seeing them skim across the top of the water/mud is usually impressive to me, probably because I’d be afraid to try it myself.

All that just to show you a photo of a fisherman returning to shore with his catamarang (and a few fish that are unseen) under a dappled sky.


Canon EOS 60D | Sigma 10-20mm  |  1/160s, f/9, ISO100


Click on the image to see it in the Gallery.

2015 Deck – Week 27

My fascination with the seawalls continues.

Almost every weekend, I stop somewhere along the walls… sometimes never taking a photo, just walk along the wall, or to the water’s edge for a few minutes.

Sometimes I take photos that never see the light of day, but sometimes there’s one that falls just into the type of image that I like taking, processing and sharing.


Canon EOS 60D, Sigma 10-20mm  |  10mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO 100


Click on the image to see it in the Gallery along with other images from this year’s Deck Project