'Tua Pek Kong' Photo

Photographer’s Note

The words 'Tua Pek Kong' is a pronounciation translation of Chinese dialect in Hokkian tongue to mean 'big uncle grandfather'. It is closely associated to Buddhism faith. I used this title as locally, people use it to call and identify this place.

As you stroll along the Rajang River and the Central Market of Sibu, you will not miss this Pagoda landmark as part of the heritage called Tua Pek Kong Buddhist temple, one of the oldest in Sarawak.

I had found great difficulty in trying to get a clear shot of the perspective due to so many additions and extensions of low buildings around the Pagoda. And I thought composition would be difficult in this frame. What do you think?

But it was a bright and cheerful day and what a better way to highlight freedom and harmony than a quiet photo? The color mix coupled with deep blue sky attracted me to snap a shot here. This Pagoda and temple is managed over the past decades by a committee and funded purely out of charity and donations by local community. Sibu used to rely heavily on river transport mode when there was no road network and airport was limited to 27-passenger aircraft of propeller-type. Therefore, to arrive Sibu, the first thing in sight would be this temple (and Pagoda in recent years).

It is a proud statement to make here on this : Even though Malaysia is declared an islamic nation like Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iran or Middle-East, what makes this difference is the religious diversity. Since independence, Malaysia's constitution allows practice of multi-religiuos faiths. So far, it is thriving peacefully with some minor hiccups now and then, here and there due to politics, but the local communities find no problem to live and share harmoniously in daily life.

Earlier post of church+temple and Island Road showing harmonious co-existence of church and temple as religious worship freedom in Sibu.

Thank you for viewing and reading. Regards, Bill

ribeiroantonio, gunbud, Matthew-Watt, noborders, jusninasirun, kpav, ChrisJ, rabani, Truja, cfreire, bakes888, fanni has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

ribeiroantonio (21975) 2008-02-29 18:44

It seams to be a very nice temple. The colours are very good and the POV too. I have been to Miri. How far is this town from Miri?
Antonio

siamesa (13239) 2008-02-29 18:58

Hello Bill,
What's a fantastic picture! These colours please our eyes and our hearts.Congratulations, friend and have a weekend like your photo, lively and colored.
Regards
Maria
:)tomorrow

gunbud (28163) 2008-02-29 19:36

Hi Bill,
The brilliant blue sky contrast wonderfully with the lush green trees that make a vivid frame for the lovely pagoda that is seen in all its marvelous intricate details. The colors are very clear and sharp.
Regards, Tom

Matthew-Watt (4467) 2008-02-29 21:39

Hi Bill,

The brilliance in this photo is derived from the great variety of colour. That is one thing SE Asian streetscapes provide plenty of – colour. This colour, combined with some lush foliage and attractive blue sky is a good recipe for a pleasant photo. If I look closely I can see that much of the colour is actually provided by the passing truck; without that inclusion it would be a completely different photo. The off centre, towering pagoda is a beautiful sight, the vertical composition its presence provides defines your photo.

Matt

mehmetemin (7217) 2008-03-01 0:16

Hi Bill
beautiful colours and contrast.wonderful composition.well done
Mehmet Emin

noborders (14201) 2008-03-01 0:41

Amazing photo, Bill !
Not only the great colours, but such an urban scene in Sarawak, Sibu has an air of city here and I (probably wrongly) imagined it as a small town...
Personally I like the truck in this photo, I prefer this kind of composition rather than the regular, perfect "postcard" but I know that many would differ...
Best regards and have a great weekend,
Cath.

saigon (5519) 2008-03-01 2:19

bonjour BILL.
un bien jolie temple que tu nous presente la!
une lumiere parfaite dans cette image la!
amitiés....aldo.

markstaples (15670) 2008-03-01 2:31

A nicely composed shot with good perspective and nice vibrant colours. Nice work.
Best wishes
Mark

Burberry1 (6041) 2008-03-01 7:43

A very good, pure photo!
Great tones, exposure and quality.
A nice piecie of the town.

Agnieszka

gracious (20017) 2008-03-01 9:18

Hello Lau,
Great shot of the colourful temple which included the few green trees under a bright sunny day!
excellent exposure and focus with great sharpness and details
many thanks for the informative notes
best regards
Tony

Miha2ou7 (4955) 2008-03-01 10:56

Hey Bill,

Love it, your part of Malaysia looks like um, a theme park, and I dont mean that in a bad way. A really good mixture of traditional and modern, with bright, vivid colors, perfect lighting and great clarity. Well composed, from a good point of view. Nicely done.

See you around

crckt (7100) 2008-03-01 13:40

Hi Bill,
Wonderful colors! I love especially the blue and green here. The temple architecture is also very nice.
Well done,
Shaeri

jusninasirun (10213) 2008-03-01 23:55

Hello Bill. Another colorful daily life scene capturing this temple. Nice shady rain tree is useful for town dwellers here. The whole composition is well balanced in the sense of perspective and colors. I like the towering pagoda against the beautiful blue sky. Useful anf informative notes complementing a pleasant image. Well done and best regards. Jusni

marzar (116) 2008-03-02 4:09

hi bill,
nice photo and good pov.
good clarity and wellcompsed.
welldone and thanks for sharing.
mario

qalila (86) 2008-03-02 4:25

hi bill,
nice photo and great colours.
good pov.
joseph.

Silvio1953 (42869) 2008-03-02 8:48

Hi Bill, fascinating view of lovely architecture with wonderful colors, very well done, have a good week end, ciao Silvio

kpav (5025) 2008-03-02 12:28

Hello Bill, very beautiful picture very clear and sharp with great light and colors. Nice informative note too. Thanks for sharing. Greetings,
Kostas

ChrisJ (70443) 2008-03-02 20:43

Hi Bill

It looks similar to the pagoda in Ayer Hitam (Kek Loksi) in Penang. Good colour, sharpness, & framing. Tfs!

rabani (9429) 2008-03-03 3:11

Hie Bill,
We all know there are many roads that lead to a destination and if we didn't do anything wrong to others, it shows the God we had in mind and the things we assumed to be divinely right.

You have a clean documentary here Bill. Well defined and expressive.

Regards
Rabani

Truja (4948) 2008-03-03 6:21

Hi Bill,
interesting POV that shows to the peculiar religious architecture and all the surroundings to us of the photography. It pleases to me the excellent definition of the image, the warm colors and the quality of the composition.

Best regards, Jordi

molla (6891) 2008-03-03 10:00

Hej Bill
So you showing us Sibus most famous landmark.
Ithink you manage to get a good picture of it and in the same time describe a bit of the hurly burley atmosphere that characterize this timber town. ( I my self came here by one of those hilarious riverboats from Kuching and as Borneo was burning everything looked hazy)
Anders (orang rambut)

Bluejeans (33081) 2008-03-03 10:13

Ola Bill ,
Que belo templo tem uma arquitectura fantástica, cheio de detalhes e cores , o contraste de cores ficou muito bonito , bom ponto de visão , parabéns !!
Um abraço Gonçalo

skippy007 (7343) 2008-03-04 1:19

Hi Bill,
Beautiful bright colours and contrast. Very well composed. Nice shot.
Regards
Santo

cfreire (11667) 2008-03-04 9:09

Hi Bill
A beautiful capture with excellent point of view and control of brightness. The colors are harmonic with great contrasts. Well done, regards, Consuelo

bakes888 (18353) 2008-03-11 0:57

Hi Bill. Great photo. Nice work with the colours in this shot. Good sharpness and detail also. The low POV shows the height well. Thanks for sharing.
Cheers, Paul.

Uhu (7436) 2008-10-10 3:47

Lively colors again. So merry-looking place, like it very much! Great photo, as usual!

fanni (8879) 2008-11-08 10:00

Hello Bill,
I just happened to browse on this photo while looking through your gallery. Amazing, beautiful colours, very good composition. The green trees, the high red and white pagoda and the blue sky make a very lovely, attractive scene full of sunshine.
best regards,
Elena

foozi (4735) 2008-12-13 2:33

Hi Bill,
such an excellent shot of the building. Beautiful and blue, sharp and clear.
Well thought shot with perspectives and indeed very colourful.
A very nice composition.

Regards,
foozi