The Cave Experience

Because I ended my Sith training

"In the cave go you must... Remember your experience in the cave" - Yoda.

In the serenity of Darkness, only ambition will guide you

To end a Sith/Jedi training one must experience the cave

It was an ad-hoc decision. A friend was in need and I wasn't really doing anything. About 10 hours before departure, he called on his facebook timeline. I took the bait and only during our journey towards the destination did he tell me what I was going into. Having to wait with the only information I had was just outdoor, I started planning and packing to remember that I will need batteries for my flashgun... Arghhhh... And having old sets of batteries, speed charging is a big no-no!! Done all the packing and necessary kisses to the wife, I jumped into the car towards force Friday to bring havoc at the crowd of maniac Star Wars adult fans who lines up to buy toys. With that short stop done, we then returned to our journey... towards Merapoh, Pahang Darul Makmur, Malaysia.

The last but most exciting team of runners

The assignment we had was to cover a trail run marathon where the highlight was a 35 million years old limestone cave with a stream in it and I was to be stationed in that cave!! 
Wooooooooo!! This was really out of my environment and definitely comfort zone!! I started counting my batteries... hahahahaha... All other things did not matter because my late father thought me outdoors years during my youth but photographing inside a cave is a real new thing for me. Plus, I didn't get the chance to do any research because I had to conserve my batteries in a clubhouse full of lunatics - LOL.

The 1st shot

Upon reaching, we were greeted with sleepy faces that just woke up from their slumbers. We had a brief meeting of our assignment and was promised a sneak view of the places that we need to cover/stationed. With time flies and we had to cover from the registration, I knew real well that everything was going to be a jumping act hence the sneak preview will be cancelled. Well, can't blame anyone as the whole event was new to nearly everyone and the organizers (who were the locals with no outside sponsors) were doing this for the very first time.

These are one of the times I thanked my years into wedding photography where nearly everything was a jumping act!!

My cave heroes

Though it was a jumping act, having a team of circus folks really helped everything out. The team I had to work with was nothing far like I was. Everyone will hit you but nothing was meant to hurt you - LOL sounds so wrong. Special thanks to my hero and a great guide who helped me in so many ways, with transportation, with my gears, my food and especially saving my day coz I only had only one set of flashgun batteries and two from the set fell into the murky waters of the cave where it what was near impossible to find he did it with his head lamp!!

Stationed for the runners to have a photoshoot - Photo from Marathon Mohan of Singapore

The event kicked off at 5am sure made our sleeping hours cut short and arriving at a near total darkness of the first stop where we departed using a pickup the runners however arrived faster than expected. And so instead of having to cover other points of the race, we were moved to our main objectives - the cave. We arrived at the cave about 6.30am and we had a fun time communicating with the echoes and having a torch light was a bliss. I just couldn't resist myself to capture its beauty. With the light from the video chap, I took every opportunity. I did not make it to a 9 exposure HDR as the top 10 runners were close by. I stationed myself from near the cave entrance making my way towards the center of the cave as the runners goes by. Sitting in the cold breeze cave all the way till the last batch of runners came through about 2pm. I had a good time making the runners to stop for a photoshoot then suffer them to run in the waters (as was instructed by the organizers) on their way out of the cave. A few of them actually grabbed my EP 7 Stormtrooper helmet for their photoshoot and after the last batch of runners came through, I had to crawl my way out of the cave for about 200 meters where they later played with the waters towards me!!

Finishing line food featured roasted lamb!!

Food was wonderful during the run and runners compliment that all around. The runners were allowed to pick fruits from the locals' trees and devour them and at the finishing line they were given roasted lamb with freshly opened coconut water. And the runners had no complains of the run other than to have more caves and a 100km run next year. Congratulations to all the runners from us - the team of crazy photographers.

A definite MUST event for runners and a sure repeat for me next year... And a week later, I joined my first run... 5k under the hazy moon...

Running my 1st 5k run with lights and craziness. Photo of Electric Run's FB page

The serenity of Darkness

Because I ended my Sith... & To end a Sith/Jedi training...
ISO 800
f8
Available light
3 exposure HDR

In the serenity of Darkness..
ISO 800
f8
Videographer's light
Manual 7 exposure HDR

The 1st shot
ISO 800
f2.8
Single Shot
Videographer's light
Noise removed

The serenity of Darkness
ISO 800
f3.5
Videographer's light
Manual 5 exposure HDR


Signing off
Daddy Rain
2015-09-29 @ 2131