The beginning of the Dover Forest transformation 

In October 2022, there were news releases/coverage on the upcoming development of Dover Forest on Straits Times (ST) and Channel News Asia (CNA) news. There would be around 3,000 Build-To-Order (BTO) flats to be built in the eastern half of Dover Forest. This project was launched in November 2023, groundwork has now begun with boards coming up, fencing up around the Dover Forest West in January 2023, the beginning of Dover Forest transformation has begun.

Dover Forest West will soon be cleared for its upcoming BTO flats development, it’s the beginning of the Dover Forest transformation. 

Exploring Dover Forest with the Canon EOS R10

Before I went I went on a guided tour led by Chua Chin Tat to explore Dover Forest in October 2022 with the Canon EOS R10 that I had for review at the time. I was continuing on from my earlier documentation of Dover Forest with the Canon EOS R7 camera in August 2022. 

Chin Tat had been a strong advocate to preserve, protect, conserve and document Dover Forest. When I went for the guided tour led by Chin Tat, I learnt more about the history, nature and wildlife of Dover Forest. This may not be a big green space, however it has grown and transformed into a green space for wildlife, it’s also a green belt in our heavily built-up urban landscapes. 

Inside Dover Forest, we can spot former remnants of a kampung (a.k.a. village) that used to be there. In the very near future, they will be gone forever from our physical environment, maybe we can view them in a digital environment. 

If you take into consideration that Dover Forest is a secondary forest, that is not too big land size, tucked in between some pretty heavy built-up urban housing, schools and transport nodes. The forest, the tall trees, canopy, and wildlife residing in Dover Forest, is quite rich and diverse. 

Here’s a bird’s eye view of Dover Forest, some folks have commented that this looks like Central Park in New York City. What would this view be like when the BTO project is completed?  

Dover Forest Exploration and Documentation Collection

More photographs of my Dover Forest exploration and documentation collection can be found inside my Flickr album – Dover Forest/Clementi Nature Trail. 

In the coming years as part of Dover Forest transformed into a public housing estate, I would continue to document and update the changes of both public housing landscape (Dover Forest West) and the other remaining green belt (Dover Forest East) and the Clementi Nature Trail. 

Balancing a country’s growth and national development versus protecting and preserving green nature spaces in Singapore can be a very delicate and tricky situation for people on both sides of development/growth and preservation/conservation. 

Just another of my ongoing small and humble efforts to photograph and document old places and changing/disappearing landscapes in Singapore with my visual stories, photographs and videos. My humble Dover Forest exploration and documentation collection, I hope my works can play a small role and contribution, and I would continue to photograph and document, whenever I am able to.

If you like to know and understand more about Dover Forest, please visit https://doverforest.sg that is created and maintained by Chua Chin Tat. 

* A TGH Photography x Canon EOS R10 Explorer Series Production * 

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During the journey leading up to this launch, I do have a lot of thoughts, feelings and emotions, behind the scenes in producing and publishing my second photography zine that couldn’t really go inside there, I wanted to share some of them here below. 

What is my second photography zine all about? It’s a lot more than just sweat and tears 

The motivation and story behind my second photography zine came about from some personal crisis in a middle of an ongoing global pandemic situation. There were a series of situations that took place in 2021, I won’t be going into detail anymore. In a nut shell, I spiralled down into a rabbit hole and I have to find my way out and up. 

My second photography zine has a unique and special theme – photography therapy theme, heading to the outdoors, nature, photography walks with friends, all forming part of my route to recovery. 

On a side note, if you are interested to read and know about my lengthy rantings, you can visit and discover my articles on this TGH Photography and Travel portal/blog and TGH Technology and Business portal/blog (where I write and publish personal articles as well)

Why do I write and publish a zine, and not as a book?

I decided not to go in an official book format/style, I would like it to be a bit less formal and a photography zine allows me to explore and test it out further, my photography zines are my building blocks towards a more formal visual story telling style book down the road.

“Nobody is going to buy your book/zine”

A feedback/comment that I heard previously, both a constructive and brutal harsh feedback/comment in a capitalist world that we live in. This is also on me to constantly improve my writing, style and types of visual story telling projects. 

We are living in a goldfish memory world that probably has only a 1-2 minutes attention span, glued to videos and driven by social media flaunting, or only looking at article headline and not reading the full article/story. 

Let’s bring back the world of reading, not just online, also reading from a physical book/magazine/zine again, in a world driven by internet and social media. We are also supporting fellow creatives and writers too! 

Question: Where can I purchase your second photography zine?

For my relatives, friends, supporters and followers from outside Singapore, my second photography zine is available for purchase on the MagCloud. For those living in Singapore, you can also order from MagCloud platform! 

As for my family, relatives, friends and supporters in Singapore, I would need to speak to local publishing/printing company Grenadier Press, and print them for the local Singapore market. I have yet to finalise how and where I am selling them. I might have a chat with my regular photography shops and place my zines for sale at the local Katong Square lifestyle and vintage market held every first weekend of the month.

Acknowledgements 

There are a number of people that I would like to sincerely thank them from the bottom of my heart, from being there for me when I was at the rock bottom. I wrote a pretty lengthy acknowledgements inside my second photography zine.

Thank you very much from the bottom of my heart to the following folks that played a significant role/part in my second photography zine that you might or might not have known: Chef Keith, Ryan Cheng, Isaac Ong, Wendy Kong, Michael Tay, Sue Fang, Tiffany Ngan, Belinda Tan and Fernando Gros.

What’s next in 2023?

Till my next photography project in 2023, which form and type should I embark on? A new photography book from my list of personal projects, a visual story book on my travel or a new set of photography zine? 

Last but not least

Last but not least, thank you from the bottom of my heart, to my family, relatives, friends and supporters who believe, trust and supported me in my photography and personal journeys, writing over the past decades (and still counting).

I have my fair share of criticisms, making (I lost count) mistakes in my personal life, professional career and from running my own small business. There are also people who look down on me (who doesn’t have them in your life?). We have to take it on our chin – learn from mistakes and life lessons, change, adapt, adopt and improve.

It’s not perfect, there’s always room for improvements, my photography business, personal photography, writing, publishing photography books, photography zines and I can only get better.

Thank you once again, for joining and following me my visual storytelling photography adventures over the years!

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Time to finish up my photography zine  

I started working on my second photography zine some months back around June/July 2021. That was a work-in-progress, there were delays, distractions on my part, facing writer’s block and no creative breakthrough. 

As I was reorganising and replanning my works for my run-in during the final month of the year 2021, I told myself, it’s time to finish up my second photography zine and getting it ready for the zine/book launch in January 2022. My theme for my second zine revolves around nature therapy, great outdoors and photography therapy, thus I am returning to nature and great outdoors.

Return to Nature and Great Outdoors

Most recently, I went on two treks to the Old Jurong Line / Sungei Ulu Pandan Park Connector, I brought 2 different groups of friends there. Time to work on my Old Jurong Park Connector article. Not only have I rekindled my passion for trekking, enjoying and relaxing, I am also chasing sunsets, they can be pretty dramatic and epic at this time of the year.

What I want to do and where I want to explore/trek in December 2021

• Bring like-minded friends on treks, returning back to the days when I used to lead photo walks previously
• Go with like minded trekkers to explore more nature and outdoors 
• Bird photography at Sungei Buloh 
• Old Jurong Line / Clementi Forest / Dover Forest exploration and documentation for my article 
• Jenal Jetty / Rower’s Bay / Yishun Dam / Seletar district 
• Mt Faber and Labrador Park (history documentation)
• Chestnut Nature Park (continue my nature exploration)
• More places to be added at a later time

Some of those destinations would most likely have extended trekking adventures in order for me to have a more extensive photography documentation and exploration. 

How should I go forward with writing and sharing my trekking adventure stories?

Although I have been writing regularly on my trekking adventure stories, I am considering different approaches on how to go about doing it, how much information and photos to share. 

Should I consider the following points below:

• Go on travel/trekking writing approach from point A to Point B with route map added, directions etc? 
• Consolidate and update my previous trekking/exploration adventures e.g. The Green Corridor, Old Jurong KTM Railway Line?
• Input more history behind my trekking adventures whereby there is a bit of history behind those places?
• Should I do a coverage on Singapore’s many Park Connector Networks (PCN) routes?

It’s a food for thought, any new approaches to my trekking adventure stories would probably start in Q1 2022. Stay tuned!

Keep on trekking, keep on exploring

As the Chinese saying goes, “千里之行, 始于足下“, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. I want and I have to keep on trekking, keep on exploring, not just in my photography (both business and personal), my travels, my other business developments and also in my personal life too.

Sometimes, I have to walk alone. 

Sometimes, You’ll Never Walk Alone.

The post December 2021 – Return to Nature and Great Outdoors appeared first on TGH Photography and Travel Portal/Blog.

I love the great outdoors, nature and wildlife, not just back home in Singapore, traveling around the world, trekking, climbing mountains, national parks, enjoying the beauty and tranquility of Mother Nature. Getting inside into nature, rainforest, surrounded by tall lush trees and its canopy, I enjoyed forest bathing therapy with my photography setup, capturing the lush greenery and wildlife. 

From the mountains, to the rainforests and oceans, Earth has many beautiful and amazing natural environments that we need to protect and preserve. While I am unable to visit all of them, I am blessed and mesmerised by some of the destinations that I left my footprints behind.   

As I started to get more conscious of my travel and carbon footprints over time, I have also witnessed more natural disasters taking place in other parts of the world and they are not getting smaller in magnitude and size. All these gradually push me as an individual to think again on my types and levels of consumption in this current world that we are living in. I am also looking at businesses, from famers, manufacturers to service providers (e.g. travel agencies, accommodation) on their green eco-friendly models and practices. 

We need to prevent, stop and reverse the damages that we have already inflicted on our planet Earth, now this is the time for ecosystem restoration. We need to stop exploiting nature to restoring and healing it. Only with a healthy ecosystem, can we improve peoples’ livelihood, counteract climate change and prevent the collapse of Earth’s biodiversity.

Every individual on planet Earth has a role to play, no matter how big or small, you can be a part of #GenerationRestoration and make a difference, for your family and loved ones, and to Mother Earth, for the sake of our future generations. 

When we are able to safely travel again once the global pandemic is under control, I would continue to seek my travel photography adventures to the great outdoors, nature and wildlife destinations around the world with green eco-friendly models and practices. 

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