Mr Triston Yeo
“Formally trained in Finearts through the Art Elective Programme, majoring in Theatre Studies at the National University of Singapore, Triston has always been attracted to the creative realm. Distilling years of experience in traditional and performing arts, Triston has since chosen photography as his vehicle to push the boundaries of art.
As a commercial photographer, Triston has worked on a wide range of projects for various MNCs, statutory boards and educational institutions such as Pontiac Land, Bank Julius Baer, Credit Suisse, Changi Airport, Maritime Port Authority of Singapore and Insitute of Technical Education. He has also worked with various tourism organizations such as the Sri Lanka Tourism Bureau, Hungarian Embassy, Thailand Tourism Board and Laos Tourism Board, seeking to bring out the hidden beauty of these countries through his photographs.
The challenge of photography is not in recording an image as it is. A fineart photographer seeks to explore the aesthetics of a scene and tastefully translate it into a piece of art. Triston constantly works to see beyond the obvious, to include only the necessary. This guiding principle sometimes sees him climbing for hours just to capture the setting sun against layers of clouds, from the top of a mountain. Currently, Triston is one of the resident artist of the first fineart photography gallery in Singapore, L2 Space.
His constant pursuit of Fine Art Travel Photography has seen Triston being accredited as a Fellow of the Master Photographer Association of UK. The Master Photographers Association is the only trade body in UK exclusively accrediting full-time professional wedding, portrait and commercial photographers and alongside with the Photo Society of America, it is one of most recognized trade association in the world.
Besides fineart photography, Triston strongly believes in the power of photography as a medium to raise awareness of key issues in different countries around the world. His passion has seen him travel to the refugee camps between the Thai and Burmese borders, teaching photography to the young adults and youths, while chronicling their stories through his lenses. With his compelling photos, Triston reaches out across borders to raise awareness of the plight faced by these refugees.
Together with his team from Theredtree Pte Ltd and the support of Canon Singapore, Triston embarked on The Rice Project – a movement that used photography to bring attention to those still recovering from the tsunami that devastated Sri Lanka four years ago. The project kicked off with a photography competition that required participants to submit a photo essay on the theme of "Living". Instead of cameras or cash, the prize was a 10-day photo expedition to distribute rice in Sri Lanka and document the living conditions of its people. Purchasing 16000 kg of rice, the team distributed rice to the refugees in Batticaloa and Trincomalee, two of the worst hit areas in the east.
Despite the suffering, Triston sees hope in the perseverance of the Sri Lankans. In February 2009, a photographic exhibition was held in Singapore to highlight the plight of the Sri Lankan people and to raise funds for Habitat for Humanity (Sri Lanka). The proceeds of this exhibition went into the restoration of homes for the refugees most affected by the tsunami. As the land restores itself, The Rice Project encourages others to visit and discover the natural beauty of the island's wonders for themselves.
Together with his team from Theredtree Pte Ltd and the support of Canon Singapore, Triston embarked on The Rice Project – a movement that used photography to bring attention to those still recovering from the tsunami that devastated Sri Lanka four years ago. The project kicked off with a photography competition that required participants to submit a photo essay on the theme of "Living". Instead of cameras or cash, the prize was a 10-day photo expedition to distribute rice in Sri Lanka and document the living conditions of its people. Purchasing 16000 kg of rice, the team distributed rice to the refugees in Batticaloa and Trincomalee, two of the worst hit areas in the east.
Despite the suffering, Triston sees hope in the perseverance of the Sri Lankans. In February 2009, a photographic exhibition was held in Singapore to highlight the plight of the Sri Lankan people and to raise funds for Habitat for Humanity (Sri Lanka). The proceeds of this exhibition went into the restoration of homes for the refugees most affected by the tsunami. As the land restores itself, The Rice Project encourages others to visit and discover the natural beauty of the island's wonders for themselves.
Another project keeping Triston occupied is "Make Every Child Count – the Unseen Angkor Children". Despite being an UNESCO site with hordes of tourists visiting Angkor Wat daily, Siem Reap is ironically one of the poorest regions in Cambodia. 1 out of 7 children in the region does not live beyond the age of 5 due to poor sanitation and malaria. Most of the villagers do not understand the health risks of drinking from puddles of rainwater and even fewer recognize the need for malaria medication. Together with Dr King Gan from Melbourne and the rural health medical health team from the Angkor Children Hospital, Triston and his team work tirelessly to raise funds for simple structures like wells and water-filtration canisters, while constantly enlisting people from the world over to visit Cambodia and educate the villagers about malaria and other preventable diseases.
Being acknowledged as one of Asian Geographic's Best Photographer of the Decade, educating budding photographers is another of Triston's personal missions. Through photography seminars and photoclinics, Triston aims to share the knowledge he has accumulated over the years. Currently, Triston works closely with Canon on travel photoclinics, bringing people to less-travelled countries such as Sri Lanka, Laos, Hungary and Bhutan. Travelling to a country that is less developed or commercialized often enhances one's visual experience while widening the photographer's perspective of the world.
Being acknowledged as one of Asian Geographic's Best Photographer of the Decade, educating budding photographers is another of Triston's personal missions. Through photography seminars and photoclinics, Triston aims to share the knowledge he has accumulated over the years. Currently, Triston works closely with Canon on travel photoclinics, bringing people to less-travelled countries such as Sri Lanka, Laos, Hungary and Bhutan. Travelling to a country that is less developed or commercialized often enhances one's visual experience while widening the photographer's perspective of the world.
"There are no trade secrets. By sharing, one is constantly improving and moving on to learn new things. Appreciate the environment, appreciate the people and share their lives with everyone," says Triston Yeo.”
