Siem Reap

Cambodia, left the impression to many as a war torned country. My first visit to Siem Reap, however left me with pleasant impression of this culturally rich yet under developed country.

Poor as it portrays, underaged touters as young as 4-5 years old trying very hard to sell off their products like hand made fans, scarf and Tee-shirts, postcards etc... this is their way of making their living.

Well, what lures me to Siem Reap? 2 hours flight away from Singapore? Bingo for those who mentioned the awesome temple ruins - The Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, Ta Prohm. These are 3 of the most desired areas for avid photographers around the world.

Absolutely no regrets, with your camera gear in hand, shoot to your hearts content (I did that, and i am happy with it!) The only drawback is the weather, scorching Hot at 37-39 degree ..

Brought my Canon 300D & 400D bodies, Canon IS 24-105mm L, and a Tokina 12-24mm wide.

Tokina is not bad, but i think i will be much happier with Canon 10-22mm wide .. if i have the extra cash to purchase it.

Weather change is rapid as this few months are rainy season. It could get quite dark at times. At few instances, often i find myself gearing up ISO to 400/800 with wide f stop at f4 to steady my shots. (so that i can use handheld with IS and don't rely too much on tripod). Anyhow, here are some of my shots with 24-105mm.

Above shots are all taken with tripod, 400D + 24-105mm Canon L lens. No post processing, editing are being done.

Below are shots taken handheld ..