around the country in nine hours... or so (part ll)

Okay, time to cerita cerita pasal my mamat and I merantau satu Asia Tenggara Singapore untuk cari photoshoot location punya pasal, guys!

(But sebelum I start this entry proper, I should probably clarify that I am referring to the outdoor photoshoot that we'll be doing with Zakaria Zainal, and not the 2-hour complimentary photoshoot that comes with our package with Bliss Photocinema and has to be taken on event day. That one, kita memang dah establish yang kita akan ambik the photoshoot at the place where we first met, which is Temasek Polytechnic.)

Okay, we've actually identified some outdoor locations from various photoshoots done by various local photographers but we didn't want to impose ourselves and ask photographers for their list directly so we had to take a long route (literally) - Google for possible locations then drive down to the locations ourselves to assess their suitability.

Oh, actually kan, we've already identified one location that we really really really really really like but alas, kita tak tau kat mana it is exactly and too malu to tanya the photographer :/ So if anyone knows where this location is, enlighten us please!

But in the meantime, kita terpaksalah depend on Google - the list of recommendations that you can find on the world wide web very banyak and very panjang one okay! You know, when I did the initial round of research over the Internet, I was surprised to see Matilda's House amongst one of the possible photoshoot locations:

Aiseymen bedah... Sungguh menakutkan!

Okay, okay, I know the whole story about the tempat being berhantu might be rumours only (and apparently it'll be turned into a clubhouse soon?) but I can't help but be influenced by the stories because of the way the house looks ok! *shudders*

Apparently some couples go for photoshoots at the infamously berhantu Old Changi Hospital too????? Errrrr... thanks but no thanks. Both my mamat and I ada lemah semangat sikit when it comes to the supernatural so kalau terjumpa dengan Casper the Friendly Ghost pun belum tentu kita boleh take it. So... forget it sudah lah eh.

Anyway, the plan to recce photoshoot locations was tentative actually - we didn't know whether the haze would chill the hell out but it went down to 100s by the time weekend came so once my mat came back from collecting his side punya invitation cards from Larkin JB, we set off on our little adventure around Singapore. Whoop whoop!

Before we set off, we knew we had specific requirements for our choice location due to the nature of our photoshoot (which also rules out concrete backgrounds, which I prefer):

- Must be very spacious

- Must be located in a private and ulu area

- Preferably open fields with short grass

- Preferably comes with a gravel path

- Preferably no lalang (No actual reason, we just don't want lalang haha) 

Took 3 hours on Saturday and 6 hours on Sunday to complete the journey but it was worth it ok. At least we now know which locations we'd like for our outdoor photoshoot!

Armed with Google Maps and a 1.5litre bottle of mineral water, we went to Punggol area from 4pm to 7pm on the first day since we didn't have much time till the sun sets and Punggol is the nearest location to my place.

Please click on images to enlarge them for better viewing!

Punggol Field

Our 1st location for Day One was a field in Punggol. Spacious open field with nearby flats and skies that can be used as backdrop. There is a roundabout in front of the field so you can park your vehicle close by. The downside - there were several construction workers and trucks when we were there and one of the workers told us that they'll be closing up the area in five minutes. So we took some pictures, accessed the area and left in a span of five minutes. There is a possibility that the area will be closed up for construction in the near future so we decided this was not the best location because of the uncertainty! Plus, with the workers and flats nearby, it won't be as private as we would like.

Punggol Waterway

Both of us didn't feel strongly about this location although there were nice structures that we can make use of during the photoshoot... and we might be able to get nice shots against the... river? Haha. Found the location a bit boring actually, and we're not sure where the nearest parking is. We parked illegally by the side of the road on that day to assess the location and took pictures before quickly jumping back into the car. So, next!

600 Ponggol Seventeenth Avenue (near Marina Country Club)

We like this location! Very pretty and ada gravel pathways. Also ada trees and bushes and the skies which we can use as backdrop. I'm sure the skies here will look pretty amazing during sunset and make for a nice cosy background!

We especially like the fact that it is located beside Marina Country Club because we can at least tumpang our car at their carpark and buy drinks from the 7-Eleven near the Marina Country Club's entrance bila part haus or lapar. This part penting okay!

But this location didn't make it high on our list in the end because it is not that private as well - when we were there, there were one or two cyclists kehulu hilir and around four to five men were spread out across the stretch with their fishing gear.

Also, this is not exactly the wide grassy field kind of area that we're looking for. There were patches of grassy areas, some even with lalang lalang lah, but there were also construction equipment around and the areas might be... I don't know, dangerous? We liked the place, just that we didn't like it enough.

Punggol End

We didn't set out to see this location actually - my mat and I have this habit of randomly driving into roads at places we are unfamiliar with just to see where we end up at. We were going to drive out of Punggol when my mat saw an unfamiliar road, we took the turn and ended up at this location.

We liked the location from first look! Pretty nice patch of land with gravel paths and grassy areas beside the Outward Bound Singapore (OBS) office. I was concerned about it not being private since it's just sebelah the OBS office but it looked deserted (since it's the weekend) so we can risk it if we want to, I guess.

The downside about this location is that it's not besar... might turn out boring because not much space to play around with. Kalau kat situ, kat situ jugak.

Seletar Area

Another one of the locations that we accidentally drove past when randomly taking an unfamiliar road. Remarked to my mat that I've seen the architecture of the abandoned bungalows in one particular pre-wedding photoshoot but we both agreed this is definitely not the location we'd consider.

(I was actually staring at the picture for some time after we left the location to see if I captured anything peering out of the windows lolololol penakut haram!)

It was going to turn dark after that so we called it a day and went to watch Now You See Me after that. Nice plot, nice cast, but we thought the ending macam jarring ah... The Prestige is much much much better, I feel. Go watch if you haven't! And don't read spoilers beforehand, please!

So, yes. Anyway. We ventured out to further locations the following day and started much earlier at 11.00am. First stop! The highly popular Hyderabad Road / Canterbury Road, which is located near Hort Park.

Hyderabad Road / Canterbury Road (near Hort Park)

Lovely place!!! Definitely a strong contender. This place is pretty huge so we can move from spot to spot in case the background or surroundings get too boring after awhile. Some spots are pretty wide open, some are more secluded and more intimate so we thought this will be a great location for our photoshoot.

The roads there are very narrow though, so must be careful when you drive up because there might be another vehicle coming in the opposite direction! We encountered that twice and my mat had to unlease some mad sempit driving skillz haha... oh, also saw a couple having their bridal photoshoot there! Haha. Wanted to wind down the window and scream congratulations but I chickened out in the end because the girl was massively frowning under the hot sun and I was scared I'd agitate her hahaha.

We also wanted to try and find Alexandra Park which is apparently nearby to look see look see but couldn't locate it on Google Maps so we gave that a miss. We're not particularly interested in parks (or beaches, for that matter) so didn't think it'd be worth making the effort.

51 Fairway Drive, Bukit Timah Saddle Club (beside Riders' Cafe) 

Another strong contender that both us really liked!!! I've seen this location used in many local photoshoots and it seems like a very popular choice amongst photographers and couples. Very spacious area and can be pretty private and intimate if you take pictures at the belakang side. The front side not so, because the front side faces The Riders' Cafe (which means there is an F&B option nearby where we can grab drinks if anyone gets too thirsty! There's also The Marmalade Pantry).

Oh, there's also the botak botak trees that will look very nice dalam gambar! My mamat very rude okay, dia cakap that pokok kena pergi Yun Nam hahahahahaha.

Kalau itu pokok boleh berbual, kau memang dah kena maki, budak.

Lim Chu Kang Road

We heard (and read here) that there are some parts of Lim Chu Kang Road that can be used for photoshoots but we couldn't figure out which part it was!!! Decided this location is definitely out of the list because the area we went to was surrounded by grave sites and it'd be super duper disrespectful to have a photoshoot there :/

Lim Chu Kang Rural Centre

I read about the Lim Chu Kang Rural Centre (Neo Tiew HDB Estate) here and here and was very curious to see the site! It didn't fit our requirements but I wanted to check it out for the fun of it... never know lah kan. Was quite disappointed to see that the site dah kena fenced and locked up now :( My mamat kept saying that the site is now used for army training zzzzz ye lah ye lah tau lah, abang askar.

 

Oh, we actually thought of dropping by Kranji Reservoir which was near the vicinity but we couldn't figure out the route even with Google Maps so we left. It wasn't an important location for us anyway (Not that excited about reservoirs) so not really a loss.

Open Field at Woodlands Drive 17 
(opposite Singapore Sports School, 1 Champions Way) 

I loved this location very much!!!!! I'd think this location fits our requirements very well - super spacious open fields, can use the skies as backdrop, ada gravel path and even though it is opposite Singapore Sports School, the field is pretty deserted during the weekend, save for the lone kite-flyer when we were there.

There's also a nice garden-ish place located on top of the slight hill at the side of the field which we saw when we drove past (and confirmed by my mat's brother who went there before for his longboarding sessions) but my mat and I were not really in the mood to hike up in such hot and hazy weather so we gave that a miss.

Unfortunately my mat doesn't like this location as much as I do so... :(

Oh, we actually went to Sembawang Park after that in hopes that we will locate the open field that I saw online here, but we couldn't find the field in question in the end. So we left for Begonia Road... for a special reason!

Begonia Road (near Seletar)

We dropped by Begonia Road before heading back to Tampines because I really wanted to see one of the few remaining merry-go-rounds in Singapore... and decide whether we can incorporate it into our photoshoot hehehe. Had a little bit of fun reminiscing on the merry-go-round and swings - you can see my mat happily swinging on the swing if you click and enlarge the image above hahahahaha.

(Wish there was a see-saw!!! So I can redo this to my mamat hahaha)

We also wanted to check out Seletar Airbase initially but we knew from the get go that our photoshoot won't be able to fit at such a lcoation and didn't want to waste time applying for permission - so we gave this location a miss. The location looks really pretty in pictures, though! Some samples here and here and here.

Tampines Eco Park

Very nice location as well!!! Large spaces to utilize, and ada stone benches and lalang lalang and pokok pokok and its ranting ranting as well as that wooden (?) pacak pacak things bersepah at the side (no idea what they are) which we can use for the photoshoot.

The plus side about this location is that our photographer is very familiar with it (he has done a few shoots in Tampines Eco Park - sample here)... and we ourselves are very familiar with this location too! Because this was the location where our Orang Kuat couple Nani and Poji had their outdoor photoshoot heh heh heh.

The park was relatively quiet when we went on Sunday afternoon but there was the occasional jogger or cyclist while we were there. Still not sure if this is the one for us... we quite like the place but we're feeling 50/50 about it.

We've also briefly considered going for our photoshoot at Pulau Ubin but... nah~~~ I don't exactly have fond memories of Pulau Ubin from our first (and obviously, last) cycling trip with my primary school friends a few years back and it's not as private as we'd like. Actually any place yang ada big groups of people and possibly ada all the rules and regulations and pantang larang nenek moyang is a no-no for us, which also explains why we ruled out Botanic Gardens and not that excited or interested in parks and reservoirs.

The above list of locations is not exhaustive, of course - all you have to do is do a Google search and you'll be able to get lists of possible locations which are suitable for photoshoots in Singapore. Ada banyak tau! Of course the easiest way is to ask your appointed photographers, dorang mesti tau banyak tempat punya.

Okay, I think that's pretty much what I wanted to say lah hor. 

Photoshoot location only, also talk so much hahahahaha.

Oh, but before I end off yet another panjang lebar entry, just want to say that if any of you all you all ada any outdoor locations that you think might fit our requirements and willing to recommend, please be informed that my mamat and I are more than happy to welcome all suggestions :D

Ok lah, jumpa lagi di lain kesempatan kawan kawan! Sekarang nak gi dinner with our orang orang kuat yayyyyy happy weekend guys!