Today is 9th of August and it is Singapore's 60th National Day and the SG60 campaign to celebrate as a nation had been running for quite a while since start of the year with discounts and perks that are 60 related such as 60% discount off regular price, coffee sold at 60 cents, etc.
This year is a little different for me but I am pleasantly honoured as my team is hired to capture photos for the Paiza group (annual spending above 500k Singapore dollars) for Marina Bay Sands which you can see from the background that was setup in the event ground. Hopefully this will not be the last that my team get hired for such an event.
In the past, I have been involved in national day celebrations in many ways from taking part in marching contingents while I was still a student, being part of the main organizing committee when I was serving the army and of course as an audience be it part from either right at the celebration venue or in front of the television. And this is why national day holds a special place in my heart due to my various forms of involvement.
To enter the event area, you must be a Paiza member of MBS or working staff of the event. And I was given this All-Access Pass for going in and out of the event area for setting up and executing what I need to do. And that backdrop in the cover photo is where I am operating.
And here is how I setup my work space to capture beautiful photos for the people that come in for the event. 2 large strobes are setup to ensure we light up the whole backdrop well no matter how big or small the groups are. I manage to finish my setup early and started touring around the event area.
Right beside me is Ring and Win booth where guest can toss rings and accumulate points to exchange for the Stich or Pooh Bear soft toys that are hung around the booth.
There is also a row of claw machines with nice soft toys that are in red and white to denote the nation's colours. And I heard from my assistant whom is helping me photo print outs that the claw machines are a 100% guaranteed catch unless you missed the gripping location. A really nice gesture by the organizers.
Simplest game I saw, where one just simply roll a small dice 3 times to see how many points they can chalk up and from the points table, one will be given a prize based on what they rolled. A booth just to make everyone happy.
There are many other booths at the event location but I did not manage to visit everyone of them but definitely everyone can bring back something from each game booth and I am certain about it.
The dining hall setup with loads of chefs and live stations for guest to enjoy a sumptuous dinner which included steaks, crispy prawns, roasted meat and many more. A very grand setup for people to dine and also view the live telecast of the National Day Parade. Well thought and definitely make it an enjoyable session for every guest at the comfort of the ballroom.
There is also a viewing location for the fireworks which is accessible to the guest but unfortunately due to my work there, I cannot be going out to that area to view the fireworks but limited to the view from my work location.
Though I am only limited to view the low height fireworks, still an awesome sight to behold. And when the fireworks draws to a close for the parade, my work also wrapped up and many guest went back with happy faces through the 6R print outs we gave them.
Closing
It is really a joy to be part of the celebrations and honoured to be hired by one of the largest hotel in Singapore, hope that I can be hired once again next year.
And because it is Singapore's 60th birthday, wishing my country a prosperous year ahead as we charge through the global economy uncertainty together as a nation. The 60 years did not come easy and I am thankful for our founding leaders and also the current government for working tirelessly for the people.
Majulah Singapura!
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