Penang Top Female Photographer Win Win Chew

Penang Top Female Photographer, Win Win Chew’s assignments have taken her all over Asia, shooting people, places, and exciting foods (magic mushrooms included).

Win Win’s dream is to travel with her doggo Blackie.

Many pet lovers have the same dream, just you and your pet going places to experience an adventure together.

Before the pandemic, Win Win’s assignments were short of breathless to me.

She carries up to 15kg of gear depending on the assignment, and that’s a lot of heavy lifting.

I remembered my old canon with two lenses that I took to Hong Kong, Macau, and Zhuhai, just a little bag – maybe 5kg and I was suffering quietly.

Most people see the travel photos and go Awwwwwww.

Behind the scenes is a challenging story.

Travel writing and photography are glamorous.

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However, few readers realize that the team (writers, photographers, and crew) needs to jump-start to start traveling and shooting the moment they land.

Jetlag and time zones are the biggest challenges.

As Win Win sometimes needs to cover inflight shots, sometimes she doesn’t get to rest during the flight.

Once she landed in Mauritius (wee hours Malaysian time) for an assignment, the friendly host didn’t understand it was just their dinner time.

It was a struggle for her and her writer to stay awake as her host piled them with food and told them, “The night is still, young ladies!”

Wearily, they only wanted a quick meal and head to bed.

Win Win told Dory, “We need to have early starts for work the next morning!”

She has experienced extreme weather typhoons in Jeju, summer heat in Australia at 45°c, and Vietnam – climate and weather are manageable.

There is nothing more challenging than a tight timeframe + time zone differences

Let’s learn more about our Penang Top Female Photographer as she narrates her travel tale and tips to Smart Dory.

I freelanced for the food and travel magazine, Foodsion from 2013 – 2018.

My outstanding photography work for the Georgetown Heritage Festival in 2015 got me spotted by Air Asia’s Magazine team, travel 360.

I was hired as their freelancer from 2015 – to 2018 and turned full-time for Air Asia from 2018 until today.

Above all, Win Win Chew is all about – Creating Win-Win Situations

1 Dorm or private room?

I would rather sleep in a small storeroom-sized room than a dorm because I am a light sleeper, I am loud when I move around in the room, and I snore loudly when I am exhausted!

I can’t sleep peacefully when I share a room with strangers, either.

I will be easily woken up when there’s someone just checking in the middle of the night.

I will stay awake for the rest of the night, OR I will be automatically alerted when someone is near my locker!

Since I always have to wake up super early in the morning for all my assignments!

I have to tiptoe and be quiet.

I need a peaceful rest for a full-energy day!

2 What are your packing essentials for a solo trip?

Sunglasses and sunscreen lotions.

Sun is my best friend for a good photo.

I am always out and running about shooting whenever the weather is good!

My essential medications include flu, fever, and diarrhea, or any minor discomfort, so I don’t need to wander out alone at night to buy some meds.

Techwise – power banks and rented portable Wi-Fi dongle.

I rely on Google Maps and Google Docs and must communicate with the office often.

I need to make sure my phone always has power.

Muscle relief oil is a must—it is good for long-distance walking, sore feet, and tired shoulders from carrying heavy equipment in a backpack.

I also carry a clean XXL-size rubbish bag—a raining poncho—as a temporary cover for my equipment. It helps separate my worn and wet clothing from clean, dry clothing.

3 How much do you plan vs. how much do you leave up to spontaneity?

If I have limited annual leave and a limited budget but am still desperate for a trip, I would say a 90% planned trip.

On the other hand, if I have a good number of annual leave and no worries about spending money, I will revisit a certain place or go off spontaneously.

4 Do you call yourself a traveler or a tourist?

I like this saying, “It is never a place but a new way of seeing things.”

It is a journey, even though I hated the tour guide having to drop us at the duty-free plaza for 2 hours.

Or how I love to observe the morning buzzing life at the muddy and smelly local fresh market.

Either way, I would find myself immersed and learning something interesting about that place.

I would love to experience the cultural difference.

5 Do you prefer hot, cold, or temperate places?

Cold! I can’t function well over 30°c.

Plenty of times, I have to work under the super-hot summer heat.

In Taipei, just ten steps from the Hotel entrance to our tour bus, my shirt is already wet!

In summer in Vietnam, women are wrapped up like mummies during the daytime and only active after dark!

Had super contrast weather in Australia, I had nice cozy weather of 14-21°c in Melbourne and a crazy heatwave of 42°c in Bendigo, Australia, just 160km away from Melbourne.

6 Do you prefer walking, public transport, or private vehicles?

If the weather is good, I love walking.

If I want to taste the life of a specific country, I will take public transport.

If I am carrying my equipment bag and have limited time to travel, I will appreciate private transport

7 What’s been your scariest moment?

During one of my assignments, oh my, jerking up a few times from my nap in our 6-seater SUV, we realized that we had a crazy hell driver speeding at 160kmph.

He was tailgating big trucks up and down along the winding curves of highways in China!

Me and my colleague. I really thought at that moment that this was the final assignment of our lifetime, so I buckled up and prayed hard that we would arrive safely.

I remember someone at the front passenger seat told him about his driving behavior, and he just stared at that passenger and took his eyes off the road to ask, “Are you afraid of a fast car?”

8 What has been the most exciting food or ingredient you’ve tasted?

“Wild Matsutake Sashimi” definitely blew my mind off!

I was on this Wild Mushroom Market Kunming assignment in China.

One night, we must cover a five-course wild mushroom and fine fungus dining!

But mom always says, “all mushrooms are poisonous when they are raw!!!”

How could this be?

Oh No!

At that moment, I had Matsutake Sashimi for the first course (gulp), and I was already planning how to faint gracefully if I had Mushroom poisoning.

That night, I ate the most varied, most beautiful/weird-looking, and some of the most expensive mushrooms and fungi ever!

9 Which country makes the best coffee or tea?

Any Fresh Brew Masala Chai in India and Vietnamese Egg Coffee (Ca phe trung) in Hanoi!

I tried to find good Masala Chai locally, but sadly, the taste is not similar to that in India.

Hanoi’s well-known Cafe Giang’s Egg Coffee should be on every coffee lover’s bucket list!

Even non-coffee lovers will fall in love with it.

Instead of regular milk foam, it was replaced by whisked egg yolks!

The ultra-creamy foam doesn’t taste the egg and stiff, strong Robusta coffee.

10 How do you manage to carry all your bags by yourself?

You should bring one carry-on backpack, one multipurpose sling bag, and a good lightweight wheel suitcase for check-in. Never overpack your bag, and you should also bring a pair of good walking shoes.

Usually, my heaviest stuff is my camera equipment, chargers, and batteries for my working assignments.

Hence I don’t have the privilege of bringing all the clothing and thinking about what to wear later; I have to check that country and plan my clothing well.

Luckily, I am not too afraid of cold; light jackets and scarves greatly help.

WinWin Quote:
“I wish my eyes were my camera so I don’t need to carry my heavy gear everywhere!”

In summary, after speaking with lady photographer Win Win Chew, SmartDory is inspired to travel more, take better photos, and be challenged to look at photography differently.

Win Win not only shoots travel, but her food photos are also nothing short of scrumptious and make Penang Food Bloggers die of envy.

I know I will learn a whole lot more than I ever learned in school, architecture, and construction all put together.

Thank you for sharing your story and journey – as always

“People who love to eat are always the best people.” ― Julia Child

Your life will change surely – am I up to it, are you up to it too?

Above all, I know that I will be more compassionate about life.

Look out for the next feature of SmartDory Travel Girls.

If you want to be featured or know of a single woman traveler who fits the bill, share the story, love, and write me.

XOXO

Dory