When you do what you love the most, the word work assume a different meaning, closer to passion than producing or delivering. My trip in this island came just after 4 weeks of an hard going project, cycling an average of 180/km everyday and taking at the same time images of a unique riding adventure. I was tired however when I started thinking about the Penang Photography project I could be only excited.

I had a fantastic trip in Penang and a great time visiting George Town, the food capital of Malaysia. I was up and down the island visiting the best attractions and at the same time looking for the top spots.

Below you will find a map with some of the top spots in the island and the best time to visit them

Penang Photography – What gear

I was really undecided on which gear to take with me. I wanted to do some trekking in the Penang National Park and my Sigma 70-200 would have been an ideal companion, although on the heavy side, for some bird photography

I would have visited many street food places and cafes. A small camera would have been less intrusive, maybe a mirrorless. I do not have one and I asked few suppliers if I could get one for a testing period but, due to the limited length of time, it did not work out.

I usually take with me few lenses to cover the most of the circumstances. See the free Travel Photography Gear Guide for more information. At the end I decided to fly with a limited amount of gear (I was still quite tired from the cycling trip).

For my Penang Photography project I ended up taking:

Nikon D600

my old lady, nice and light camera

Nikkor lens 24-120mm 1:4

it would cover most of the photo opportunities except the ones with low light

Nikkor 50mm 1:1.8

A quick lens to cover the interior. It’s also very small which means less intrusive

Penang Photography – What subjects

I am not a food photographer but I could definitely start a new career here, on condition I could eat the dish afterwards LOL

Tons of details in the cafes, better with a quick lens and a great depth of field

Landscape, plenty of opportunities in George Town, on the hills and in the Penang National Park

Enjoy this beautiful island

Accommodation

There is a simple decision, the location. If you are after the best food selection stay in Georgetown. There are lots of hotels and backpackers places around, really a wide selection. I booked in the Armenian House, straight in the Armenian Street (Lebuh Armenian) where most of the wall graffiti are (like the one on top). Super convenient also for restaurants and cafe, plenty around. I loved the architecture of the building with an awesome historical facade and an old time central yard.

The breakfast is not to call back home about, either a sandwich or a cake with your coffee and juice. However that was really more than enough considering all the food I had during the day 😀