Recently we held a photo outing at Taman Negara Endau-Rompin (Selai entrance) in Johor. This is a special outing where series of basic photography talks followed by practical sessions were conducted especially to guide friends who were new to photography. This is a no-profit effort where everyone share the cost, including the instructors and fasilitators.

I never been to Selai. This place was proposed by the Director of Johor National Park Corporation (Perbadanan Taman Negara Johor). The accommodation was sponsored by Taman Negara Johor & souvenirs by Nikon Malaysia. A total of 53 people involved in this project. Many came from Pahang and Kuala Lumpur. There were also participant from Kedah, Johor Bharu, Perak & Kelantan.

We gathered a Taman Negara office in Bekok (the small town before Selai). A total of 11 4WDs (excluding 4WDs from Taman Negara) were needed to transport all of us. The journey from Bekok to Lubuk Tapah, the name of place where the chalets was located, took 1 hour through palm estates, Orang Asli settlements and jungle.

Getting ready to board 4WD to Lubuk Tapah

The convoy.

Arriving at Lubuk Tapah. dR Ali is giving a quick briefing.

How the chalet/hut look like. I would say, it is comfortable for two persons. Not three. No attached toilet.

Upon arrival, we were treated with steamed tapioca (ubi rebus) & anchovy condiment. Heaven!!

Mr Fakhrul (Taman Negara official) giving the welcome speech & safety briefing.

The first official event was a basic photography talk by dR Ali & basic macro photography by Emran Tamil. The very next day we were tested with downpour. But many were undeterred by that challenge. They went on shooting bugs, flowers & rapids. Kudos to you guys!

On the second night I gave a talk about landscape photography. And few of us spent the night trying to shoot star-trail. I realized how difficult to find a correct exposure and it was time consuming. On the last day, majority went hiking to Takah Pandan. I didn’t go. Thanks to the late sleep for the star trail…..so instead, I shot the landscape nearby.

Then I went to sleep.

After lunch, we had a simple closing ceremony and a group photo.

We hope everyone enjoyed the photocamp. We need not to pay hefty amount of money to learn photography & to have more friends.

See you guys in the next NPC.