#RipCurlProTerengganu | Thank You Very Nice!

by Daniel Chiam

The Rip Curl Pro 6-Star Asian Surfing Championship at Batu Burok beach, Terengganu has finally come to an end on Sunday (2 December 2012). It was indeed a prestigious event that has sparked the interest of many in the sport of surfing within Malaysia itself, and also opened the eyes of the world to the beautiful waves that Terengganu has to offer.

The weather was in great condition for the past 3 days except during the final showdown when it started raining, but at the same time created a much perfect condition with more waves for the surfers to catch and performed their skills.

The crowd turned out was great, especially for the the first 2 days where a lot of the local surfing fans came to support and witness the best of Asian surfers in actions. The crowd was lesser on Sunday morning because it was a working day for the state of Terengganu and somehow it effected the amount of people that turned out at the beginning of the day. In the late afternoon, tho it was raining during the finals, there are a lot of people show up who are taking  shelters along the booths area to witness the surfers giving their best to rise up as champion.

Other than the competition itself, there is still a lot more things that's going on during the 3 days event. There were a few booths to play games and to win some merchandise from Rip Curl and also from one of the sponsor, Fanta drink. Free Nestle Drumstick ice cream were available the whole 3 days! I have eaten countless ice cream *heaven*, haha oh so nice! There were also a surfboard artist there; Laura who did a splendid job drawing cute characters to decorate the surfers' surfboard, surf clinic where you get to learn how to surf, and many more things going on in that 3 days!

Laura the surfboard artist

The fun part for me and some of us bloggers is the process of taking photos of the surfers in actions, where all of us have the smallest zoom lens if compared to the photographers who showed up for the event with their gigantic and super long zoom lens. We had to go further into the water just to take a few good shots and the surfers needed to wait for the right wave in order to get a better ride, they waited and so are we. It was really an experience that I will forever cherish.

Samuel from seraphsam.com

It's really not easy to take photos of the surfers in actions okay! Most of the time we just had to give up because the scorching hot sun and the tide was too strong. We have tried our best and I know I have have did the best I know how. Hopefully I can do better for the next surfing event (if I ever get to be invited to one again). I'll try to upload as soon as possible all the photos that are with me. At the moment, here's some teaser from Rip Curl Pro Terengganu 2012:

Anyway, here's the Rip Curl Pro Terengganu 2012 Competition Results:

ASC Men’s Open Division

1. Made Darmayasa (IDN)

2. Garut Widiarta (IDN)

3. Andre Julian (IDN)

4. Sandi Selamat (IDN)

ASC Longboard Division

1. Arip Nurhidayat (IDN)

2. Tipi Jabrik (IDN)

3. Decha Sithidej (THA)

4. Khairil Doje (MLY)

ASC Women’s Division

1. Jesse Hong (TWN)

2. Yasnyiar Gea (IDN)

3. Diah Rahayu (IDN)

4. Salini Rengganis (IDN)

ASC Master’s Division

1. Tipi Jabrik (IDN)

2. James Hendy (ENG)

3. Decha Sithidej (THA)

4. Yasuo Hirana (JPN)

Bodyboard Division

1. Ibrahim Shiman (MDV)

2. Syed El Hussain Syed Atikullah (MLY)

3. Ali Javeed (MDV)

4. Hatta Affendi (MLY)

*MDV: Maldives, JPN: Japan, ENG: England, THA: Thailand, TWN: Taiwan, IDN: Indonesia, MLY: Malaysia

The contest was clearly dominated by the surfers from Indonesia, and it was Bali's Made Darmayasa's first ever wins in ASC Men’s Open competition at the Rip Curl Pro Terengganu. I have to admit that the Indonesian surfers are more aggressive and very good at catching the right waves. Congrats to all the winners!

Made Darmayasa (in yellow). Photo courtesy of ASC Media

Only three Malaysian surfers that made it into the finals which is Syed El Hussain Syed Atikullah, Hatta Affendi both for the Bodyboard Division and Khairil Doje for the ASC Longboard Division. 

I was rooting for our female Malaysian surfer; Brenda Lee who only manage to qualified until the semi finals. She has fought a good fight but was unable to catch the right waves most of the time and had to settled in the fourth place during her final heat.

Brenda Lee after her final heat in the semi finals.

Rip Curl Pro Terengganu 2012 is a great significant for all the Malaysian surfers as it is the highlight needed to expose and share with the whole of Malaysia especially about the beauty of surfing the waves. It might not be a popular sport yet in Malaysia but with the on going support and publicity by media, state tourism and also the Malaysia tourism, I believe that one day we can have as much great surfers as other countries have and that we Malaysia too can be a place for great surfers from all around the world to gather and have a good time at the beach and on the Malaysia's waves.

Thank you again Rip Curl Malaysia for inviting me for such a prestigious event and also the great hospitality during the event. See you again in Rip Curl Pro next year perhaps?

PS: "Thank you very nice" was the catch phrase used by the commentator throughout the event and it just stuck in everyone's head, haha.

"Seize the day, Caper Diem"

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Rip Curl: Sun, Sand, Beach and Shades

by Daniel Chiam

Olla people, updating live from Terengganu! If you've been snooping around here long enough then you'll know that I will be at Batu Burok, Terrenganu for the weekend to cover for the Rip Curl Pro's Malaysia first ever 6-Star Asian Surfing Championship! It's happening from 30th November till 2nd December. So if you are nearby, do drop by for this happening event!

Just for this this event, I have raided the Rip Curl's fitting room just to find something nice from them to wear on the beach, enjoying the sun, listening to the ocean's wave and checking out girls in bikinis :D

It's blardy red mate!

I really like the fabric of Rip Curl's t-shirt. It's soft, thin and very comfortable as a beach wear. Especially with the sun trying to burn you up, a normal cotton t-shirt just makes it even warmer and you'll easily sweat but that's not the case with Rip Curl's t-shirt.

Checkout the awkward smile mate

You can even feel it when the breezing wind is blowing at you because of the thin fabric. It is just an awesome and soothing feeling; a full body experience with nature. I'm also checking out their shorts and was hoping that I can buy one for my future island or beach trip, haha. They have a lot of good looking pants but I like this particular one. 

Hmm should I buy the pants or not....

Just to let you know, Rip Curl is an Australian brand and their sizes are one or two size bigger for Asian. I was trying out size XS and S for all the shirts here, that's why you can see my tummy and how I tried my best to suck it in to make it less obvious, haha.

Freakin' awesome pants

Anyway, I am very much looking forward for the event later in the morning. I'll try my best to update it at night and letting you in on what's going on in Malaysia first ever 6-Star Asian Surfing Championship. All the best especially to our Malaysian surfers - Brenda, Semmy and Bryan Ng.

All the hair, beard and mustache for #Movember

Shades are crucial to protect the eyes from the sun, to look cool and to steal a few glimpses of the people around you, hahaha. I am so ready for the beach and also to surf the wave (if I got the chance)!

"Seize the day, Caper Diem"

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Men, Make-up & Concealer

by Max Law from MaxMayo.com

Photo source

Please don’t squirm after reading the title of this post. :)

Men cosmetics is becoming a commodity nowadays. If you’re not working in the showbiz or the fashion industry, the idea of men wearing make-up in daily life might still be very alien to you. For Malaysian men, it might be even more so.

“Should men wear make-up?”. Well, that’s a subjective question.


Why Men Make-up?

“Make-up” means applying substance onto one’s face in order to enhance or to alter one’s appearance. In a generation where physical look is important and physical attractiveness is highly valued, it’s natural that men are putting more and more effort into maintaining themselves.

From my experience of browsing resumes and searching for interview candidates, I can honestly tell you that everybody always prefers the “shinier” looking ones, albeit the rest of the candidates display the same qualification & skills. #TrueStory

In reality, not many men gets 8 hours of sleep everyday. Unless you’re genetically gifted, you can’t run away from under eye dark cycles, puffy eyes, acne and dull skin.

But, how does one still look great with all the crazy schedule and timeline? (Yes, now think of male celebrities). And it’s true that we really expect you to look fresh and all during the job interview. :)

Men’s cosmetics were invented to address this new need of men. Technically speaking, they “fix” the imperfection of reality.

Before and after. Photo source

Male celebrities or actors are supposed to look perfect on-screen. So for normal guys, the question remains: how far would you go?

How Far is Too Far?

The common cosmetics for men to enhance their look includes foundation, concealer, bronzer and eyebrow fillers.

As a working adult man who’s not a make-up artist, I think a concealer is generally considered acceptable. It is very useful, and it’s that little trick that you can do to appear more lively and awake within a few minutes.

Well if you think even applying concealer is threatening your manhood, let me tell you what somebody once taught me: real men don’t need other people to tell them they’re men. :P #Quote

The Concealer for Men

The ultimate goal of concealer is to conceal your zits, dark eye circles, redness and sometimes acne scars.

You’re not going to apply concealer all over the face, and you just need a concealer that can do the job, so any brand of concealer is sufficient. You can even ask your girlfriend to choose and buy for you.

Here’s a useful guide about choosing the right concealer and how to use it:

So, are you ready to get your concealer? Haha!

Hope this post is helpful. Good luck :)

Checkout Max at MaxMayo.com and follow him on twitter @maxmayo for more updates and fashion tips! 
Max Law is also Nuffnang's Blogger of the month for September 2013!

"Seize the day, Caper Diem"

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Vivy Yusof Won the Baskin Robbins Ice Cream Flavour Election Campaign!

by Daniel Chiam

Vivy Yusof who won the Baskin Robbins ice cream campaign. Photo courtesy of Jess 

BURP! Excuse me. Ice cream overloaded. I was at the The Square, Publika for the finale of Baskin Robbins Ice Cream Flavour Election Promotion Campaign. As you all know by now, Vivi Yusof (proudduck.com) with her Pralines n' Cream flavour ice cream has won the campaign by you votes and you can find Vivi's flavour ice cream in the Baskin Robbins' menu for a year (till 23rd November 2013) and also free upsize with any Double Junior Scoop on weekdays from 10am - 3pm for a whole year starting Monday!!! Congratulation to Vivi =)

I won!!!!! Yayyy the whole of Malaysia will get a Free Upsize at Baskin Robbins in the whole of 2013. Thanks instagr.am/p/SX_l1yR6ur/
— Vivy Yusof (@vivyyusof) November 23, 2012

It was down to 5 bloggers with 5 flavours, 5 promises and only one winner. The other bloggers who were also campaigning are Hanis Zalikha with her World Class Chocolate and free toppings when you purchase double scoops ice cream, Kinky Blue Fairy with her Jamoca Almond Fudge and mini waffle sundae @ RM9.90+, KY Speaks and his Very Berry Strawberry and 31% off waffle berry sundaes, Sixth Seal with his Cookies n' Cream and buy 1 blast, 50% off the 2nd blast. Which is your vote?

Mynn from Red FM and Liang performing.

I managed to tried all of the ice cream flavours cause Baskin Robbins was kind enough to gave a free flow of ice cream to everyone who attended the finale that night. I do have to admit that I favor the taste of Pralines n' Cream, its really delicious! Can't really remember when was the last time I was so stuffed with that many awesome ice creams.

Anuar and Fareed eating like mad!

Talking about stuffed yourself with ice cream, there were also ice creams eating competition to determine who can finished up the most ice creams in the given time or finishes the amount of ice creams provided before the given time.

Our friend Fareed and Atika won the competition in two separate round and both are walking away with Baskin Robbins vouchers to be use for a year! Its a lot of vouchers! They were kind enough to gave us some of it, wooohooo! Thanks again guys!

Atika, Fareed, Anuar and me. Photo courtesy of Anuar.

It was really fun to meet some of the familiar blogger friends during the event. I kept seeing them queuing for ice creams, haha. All fun and ice creams - it really doesn't get better than this to kick-start the awesome weekend!

Group photo! Photo courtesy of Jess.

Baskin Robbins Malaysia Official Facebook Page.

"Seize the day, Caper Diem"

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Behind The Lens with Gregory Cheong

by Daniel Chiam

Yesterday I have the privilege to attend the 8th edition of Behind The Lens (BTL) at Ecoba Restaurant & Bar at Damansara Perdana. It was my first time attending it and its an event inspired by the similar concept of Inside The Actors Studio, where for BTL, it is a series of live interview with professional photographers and their award winning images. BTL is independently produced and hosted by Peter Tan, whose works is very well known in the industry as well. 

That night, instead of photography, we have the privilege to learn something new from the perspective of a videographer and also their works. The guest speaker for the night is non other than Gregory Cheong the creative director of Gregs Video Sdn. Bhd. Ever since I did my very first wedding video, I always have the desire to want to learn more about videography than just learning from my own observation. What better chance do I have but to listen and digest from one of the best in the industry. 

Yours truly and Gregs. Photo by Tian Chad.

I know very few about the man himself, but Gregs and his team did a lot of Indian weddings and apparently has been going all over Asia for their work. Gregs also showcases some of his production to all of us that night, and I was in awe with all of his wedding videos. It was beautifully done and definitely are love stories worth watching. 

To produce wedding videos from different cultural background, a lot of homework and research had to be done before hand, in order not to missed out on any important moment. Of course the demand and wants of the customers had to be taken into consideration also. Preparation is crucial.

The old age problem of photographer being in a videographer's frame and vice versa was also being brought up. Gregs suggested that both just had to communicate before the event started, tho sometimes it may work but often it just doesn't worked out as planned. So the best solution is, you just needed to be great in taking videos and be very good in editing it afterwards. 

Everyone who attended that night.

I've learnt a lot from Gregs and was just too many to share it out here. It was indeed a resourceful night and a night that filled with laughter too. A few giveaway from the sponsors was also being given out through lucky draw that night. I wanted the tripod so bad but my name was never being called, haha. Perhaps I'll have better chance in the next meeting. Yes, the next Thursday meeting will be on December 6 and it will be featuring Zung ThePhotoz. You can checkout the Facebook event created HERE.

Zung with yours truly. Photo by Tian Chad

I'm starting to like this BTL event, and all thanks to Tian Chad (TC) for bringing me along with him. It's really an eye opening event and it helps to boils up my interest in photography and videography as well. Hopefully TC will be able to be TBL's guest speaker one day and hopefully I will too, haha. There is still so much to learn and for now, I'm just enjoying that process of learning.

Me and the awesome Tian Chad.

On an additional notes, Gregs had officially launched Gregs Academy that night and is open to anyone who is interested in learning the arts of videography with him personally and also his team. You will be able to be apart of the team for 3 month to learn, to study and also to participate in their actual wedding shoot as your field work. The fee is roughly around RM7000+ for 3 month of life changing and experience filled  course with one of the most awesome production team in Malaysia. For more details do checkout the links provided below:

Gregs Official Website | Facebook Page | Twitter | Youtube | Vimeo

BTL Official Facebook Page | Twitter | Youtube

"Seize the day, Caper Diem"

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