Getting my own personal shoot done is ALWAYS a gift to myself. The studio is always buzzing with shoots and edits for our clients. It is rare I get to shoot just for my own pleasure. I gave myself a gift this morning, working together with Putri, an aspiring dancer.

Of late, I have turned to Elinchrom for my lighting needs. These powerful Swiss-made strobes allow me to shoot at f/16…something I couldn’t achieve with small speedlights. I am falling in love with the Elinchrom, using the small Quadra for all my wedding shoots. It is not the case of Nikon vs Elinchrom, it is different tools for different kind of work.

Back to Putri…here are some of my favourite pictures from this morning. Four hours just flew by when you are having fun with four different sizes of softboxes, beauty dishes, grids, reflectors. It’s like taking in pure oxygen when I get to play!

Thank you so much for all the well wishes via Facebook, text messages, emails, Twitter. Social media has a way of overwhelming us which push the big 39 to the forefront of my thoughts this week. I can see age as just another number but I would prefer to see it as a marker of my life’s journey. What does the “39″ marker tell me? I’ve been asking myself.

Well, I am at the half way point of my life, if you take the average life expectancy of a Malaysian man. I reflect on what I had done in the first half and more importantly what I should do in the second half.

“Today’s shit, tomorrow’s fertilizer.” Read a note from a friend some years back when I mired in the the lowest point of my life. When I was drowning in a pool of shit, the note did little to lift my spirit. Yet years on, I realize how true this is. Definitely learn more from my failures than my successes. I am such a late boomer. My grades soared in the last two years of university. I got into photography in my mid 30s…and it took me a few years to figure out what I want to focus on. A wise friend encouraged me with Bob Bufford’s book Half Time, “Louis, whatever the score is, the game is decided in the second half.”

There are three things I want to do better in my second half.

FOCUS. That means I will be saying no more than I say yes. Devote my time, energy and resources to what truly matters. Can’t chase 10 rabbits at the same time! As a creative, the abundance of ideas is both a blessing and curse. God, I need wisdom to reign in the creative juices. The focus of my early career was building my personal success. Now, I want to build a great & successful team so the ideals of Louis Pang Studio can live on after I am gone. It’s gonna be a lot harder than the first half.

FORGIVE. This is a tough one. Patience is never my strong suit. The people that truly matter are the ones who love me and want the best for me well after I cease being a photographer. Gotta rebuild the broken bridges and strengthen the ties with them. I should live and be the best I can be for people that truly matter, not getting easily offended & distracted by those who don’t.

FAMILY. When I started shooting weddings five years ago, all I wanted were going places. What better way to announce how “successful” you are than being busy and on the road all the time. Why should I be obsessed with impressing people? Today, I crave for more time at home & in the office. I love working with our team of fabulous people. We inspire each other to go further. You have to be in my office to see how amazing this bunch of people are. Work has brought me to many beautiful and luxurious places, yet after a long day of shoot when I lied in bed staring at the four walls, I long to be home, on my bed with my wife.

The clock is ticking and the second half has just started. Not sure how well I’ll do, so help me God!