I don't know if it was the butterflies in my stomach or the growling of my tummy in anticipation of A&W that kept me up all night. The proper thing before a major shoot is to have adequate rest and go to bed like a good girl by 10pm, but there i was laying in bed staring at my ceiling waiting for my alarm to go off. The shoot was all the way in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and i had to catch the 7am flight without any sleep.

The original idea of the FHM Upgrade Girlfriend shoot was to have a series outdoors - picnic on the fields, followed by lounging by the pool and a dip to cool off from the scorching noon sun. But security guards of the area made a last minute demand for a big sum of money to use the location for a shoot. Oh well, with a brilliant photographer, art director and stylist, you could turn any location into an awesome shoot. Let's go with a homely girlfriend, i'll tease you on the kitchen counter, lay over the dinning table and flirt with you as we sit and talk ;)
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I'd like to thank everyone who had a part in the shoot, and for featuring me on my birthday month :D

I grew up with A&W's famously addictive root beer float, coney dogs and curly fries. But the last outlet of A&W in Singapore closed a couple of years ago :( What better way to end a shoot then to head straight for some nostalgic, highly satisfying A&W grub :)

Still regretting not smuggling some curly fries home, i wait to board the 7pm flight back to Singapore. Finally, i get to get some rest...completely satisfied ;)
 
 
Getting off the plane, I didn't realize how small Semarang's airport was till I got inside. It's so small it took me a couple of seconds to get to customs. Looking out for my checked-in luggage was easy, just walk a few meters past customs you're at the conveyor belt . Literally - belt in singular tense. The entire airport has only ONE belt!

Travelling to the outskirts of Java, Indonesia with a high fever and tonsilitis was just a mess. I spent most of the 4 days wincing in pain, and trying to contain the intense nausea that came with the tonsilitis.

Gorgeous costal Semarang is a small town, and I was so surprised to find such great talent in this little known place! Jossy is Semarang's most well known photographer and not only is he talented, he was such a gem about me being sick and unable to shoot for 2 days. He was completely accommodating and I feel terrible and apologetic that I could only manage a super short shoot. But for what it's worth:
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Tenashar www.tenashar.com
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Tenashar www.tenashar.com
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Tenashar www.tenashar.com
 
 
Jay and I head down to abandoned, restricted army barracks. When it's 34°C outside, and you're in an enclosed hangar...it's bloody BLOODY warm.

We went into the shoot thinking we were gonna do a fashiony pretty dressy shoot, but the thin little kimono Jay brought with him was a billion times more appealing in this weather.

I know kimonos are normally worn with the bow at the back, but what the heck, let's just have it in front.

Abandoned army barracks...didn't mean much to me till i got there and laying against the walls meant laying against green disgusting moss which got all over me, and carefully avoiding the spiders and cobwebs. We finally found an area of wall which was half decent and still allowed us to make use of the natural light. No lighting or reflectors were used for this shoot.

I think Jay's just pure genius, we're definitely gonna do more shoots together :)

Oh, uploading a couple of photos from this shoot got my facebook page suspended for a full hour!
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Tenashar www.tenashar.com
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Tenashar www.tenashar.com
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Tenashar www.tenashar.com
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Tenashar www.tenashar.com
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Tenashar www.tenashar.com
 
 
I know not many girls would say ok to going off to Hong Kong or anywhere outside their country with someone they've never met. I had my best friend make me watch a bleedingly long video on Human Trafficking. But what the hell, i think i profile people well enough from a couple of exchanged emails to make decisions. Before i decided to live my passions of photography and modeling, i was a broker for a handful of years, so profiling people kind of became second nature to me. But no, i'm not giving a thumbs up to girls going off to different countries with strangers in hopes of a photoshoot, please don't. I take calculated risks, and i research too much before i pack my bags.

One man's meat is another man's poison, my grandfather used to say. Well that's apparent when it comes to art. People of different countries and cultures have varied views on what they consider ideal based on the influences around them. And i'm open-minded enough to understand going to Hong Kong for a photoshoot would mean more 'cutesy' asian poses, so i tweaked my artistic preferences for this photoshoot ;) I think my photographer Samuel Lee did a great great job, thanks Samuel!

Oh, i overdosed on bubble tea with tapioca noodles in Hong Kong by the way.
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when a hotel provides you with the ugliest polka dotted orange couch for a shoot, open your aperture to as wide as you can and kill the ugly couch by blurring it all ;) Tenashar www.tenashar.com
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Tenashar www.tenashar.com
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Tenashar www.tenashar.com
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Tenashar www.tenashar.com