Getting Up Close And Personal With Tourists At The Merlion

I set out on a mission recently — to take up-close and personal photos of tourists and visitors at Singapore’s Merlion.

I never visited it voluntarily.

Navigating this area was always a means-to-an-end; whether it’s on a run, or trying to weave our way through the swarms of hapless tourists toting huge DSLR cameras speaking in incomprehensible languages and posing in strange ways.

Being thrust here in the apex of tourism (in Singapore) was an exercise in observation.

Getting so close in photography forces me to slow down, observe and pay attention to the nuances of how people interacted with a famous tourist landmark and the lengths people would go to get a great and (hopefully memorable) shot in a foreign place.

Which brings me to a startling conclusion:

Tourists around the Merlion area have several peculiar poses when trying to take a photo with the Merlion.

1. The good ol peace sign

2. Trying to look like they’re drinking water sprouting from the…