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Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves

Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves

galaxy-z-fold4-photography-review-malaysia Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves

One of the things that I have always wanted to do with a smartphone is take it to one of Malaysia’s caves and try some smartphone photography.

Well, my wish came true as I managed to try the Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves of Mulu National Park and Niah National Park in September 2022.

Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves

First, the Galaxy Z Fold4 has been known to be a business phone due to the folding screen, and no one imagined that it was also packed with a powerful camera system.

I love challenges, and when I was told I had an exhibition spot at the Kuala Lumpur Photography Festival 2022, I wanted to make it count and be remembered as it was my first solo photography exhibition.

david-hogan-jr-photography-exhibition Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
My first smartphone photography exhibition was at Kuala Lumpur Photography Festival 2022.

I’ve always wanted to exhibit my photography, and in recent years, I have been toying around with several phones for my smartphone photography in Malaysia.

Yes, you heard that, and smartphone photography is here to stay, no matter how you look at it, so I’ve had a significant headstart from the early days of the Galaxy Note 1 (Nov 2011).

Back to the Galaxy Z Fold4 review – I booked a trip to not one but two UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Malaysia, the Niah National Park and Gunung Mulu National Park, both in Sarawak.

I spent five days at both national parks using my Galaxy Z Fold4 to capture as many photos as possible, ranging from landscape to macro and low-light cave photography.

What is low-light cave photography? If you have been inside a cave, you would know it is one of the most challenging places to photograph, regardless of whether you use a DSLR, Mirrorless, or smartphone.

Therefore, I tested myself to see if this could be achieved when several people told me it would not turn out nice; the photos are below.

smartphone-photo-exhibition-malaysia Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
A closeup of my prints at the exhibition. The soft copies are featured in this article below.

Low-light Photography with the Galaxy Z Fold4

The photos below will be placed by the names of the caves, and each of the pictures was taken with the Galaxy Z Fold4 and minimally edited before printing on photo paper for my exhibition.

These are the original soft copies, which I have resized for this article. Note my name, number, and camera used to photograph. Note: Please click on the photos to see the full-size image.

Deer Cave at Mulu National Park in Sarawak

The following four photos are taken inside the Gunung Mulu National Park Deer Cave. Please note that I used the Galaxy Z Fold4 Smartphone for all my photos below.

The Deer Cave is one of the national park’s hero caves and one of Malaysia’s most visited caves.

If you have never been to this part of Malaysia, I highly recommend it, especially if you love the outdoors, caves and plain nature.

samsung-galaxy-z-fold4-photography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
Water falls from the main cave chamber, around 100 meters high.
mulu-caves-photography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
Exiting the main cave chamber, you will pass several waterfalls from the cave ceiling.
mulu-national-park-photography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
The Sarawak Chamber is the largest cave chamber in the world, inside the Deer Cave.
mulu-national-park-smartphone-photography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
Can you spot the person wearing blue in the photo inside the Sarawak Chamber?
Clearwater Cave at Mulu National Park in Sarawak
The Clearwater Cave is one of the most beautiful caves I have visited because a fast-flowing river about 10 meters wide runs inside the cave system at the Mulu National Park.
To get here, one must climb 200 steps and slowly descend until one arrives at the Clearwater River. The following photos show the caves’ river system, taken with the Galaxy Z Fold4 in night mode. Clearwater Cave is also known to be the ninth-longest cave in the world, and I just learned this.
malaysia-cave-photography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
Entering the Clearwater Cave from the top. Notice the person in the photo and the bridge on top.
clearwater-cave-mulu-photography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
The underground river runs at the bottom of the cave.
galaxy-z-fold4-nightography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
Clearwater Cave’s underground river is about 10 meters wide. I photographed it with my smartphone placed on the bridge for 7 seconds.
unesco-malaysia-cave-photography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
Another interesting view of the cave river. Photographed handheld for 7 seconds.

Wind Cave at Mulu National Park

Below are four photos of the Wind Cave near the Clearwater Cave system at the Gunung Mulu National Park in Sarawak.

As the name says, when you reach certain parts of the cave, you feed a strong gust of cold wind that makes your hair stand. It’s a wonder how the wind travels in the caves.

The Wind Cave at Mulu tends to feature some of the best stalactites and stalagmites I have seen in this part of the world.

For some reason, I found my old article on the Wind Cave at Mulu Park from 2009; therefore, you can see some of my old photos of the caves.

wind-cave-mulu-photography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
Stalactites and stalagmites joined over millions of years, some 10 meters tall.
galaxy-z-fold-4-photography-malaysia Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
The walkways inside the Lang Cave are cleverly planned, where you make a loop and exit.
samsung-galaxy-low-light-photography-malaysia Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
Various angles of the stalactites and stalagmites provide exciting photography opportunities.
samsung-galaxy-z-fold4-nightography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
The walkways in the cave often look like an Indiana Jones movie set.

Lang Cave at Mulu National Park

The Lang Cave is probably one of the most beautiful caves in terms of its unique formations, stalactites, and stalagmites, which have formed over millions of years.

And the fact that lights are used carefully to highlight them makes them even more beautiful to photograph.

lang-cave-photography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
The reverse view cave mouth of Lang Cave at Mulu Park.
nightography-malaysia Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
Water droplets on a stalactite were photographed handheld in normal mode with a seven-second delay.
cave-smartphone-photography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
The unique stalactite formation looks like an alien photographed handheld in normal mode.
lowlight-smartphone-photography-malaysia Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
Different tones and highlights are photographed in normal mode.
samsung-photographer-david-hogan-malaysia Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
Water streaking down a stalactite and photographed in night mode on the Galaxy Z Fold4.

Niah Caves at Niah National Park in Sarawak

The Niah Caves, located about an hour’s drive from Miri, are also being selected as another UNESCO World Heritage Site for Sarawak. This stand-alone cave is also spectacular.

The fantastic cave mouth and the fact that one of the oldest living remains of a prehistoric man in this region were found here are worth noting. You can read my 2015 article on Niah Caves in Sarawak for more. I went there unexpectedly on a quick two-hour trip.

smartphone-low-light-photography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
The main cave entrance at Niah is seen from inside the mouth.
niah-caves-photography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
A glimpse of the Trader Cave at Niah. Notice the red dot in the centre, which is a person.
cave-photography-malaysia Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
The Niah Cave exit was taken on a reverse angle with the Galaxy Z Fold4.
galaxy-z-fold4-photography Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
Inside Niah, a cave opening is seen at the top.
There are 21 photos in total taken inside the five caves of Niah and Mulu National Park, all photographed with the Galaxy Z Fold4 smartphone.
Each photo you see here has also been printed on photo paper and is 18 x 12 inches. It will be displayed at the Sarawak Tourism Board office in Kuching.
Smartphone technology has improved in recent years, which shows that low-light photography is fine, especially when using a newer smartphone.
My objective was to challenge myself to capture photos inside the caves without a tripod and see how well the smartphone performed. And to my surprise, I was very impressed with the outcome.
 
Most people will review or use their smartphones to take portraits, landscapes, or other street photographs, but those are a dime a dozen, and every other person seems to want to do that.
Hence, my unique choice to feature cave photography in Malaysia, which no one would think of; by now, I have set the benchmark so high that my next project will be even more challenging.
For the record, I have visited many caves around Malaysia in the last 15 years and also wrote an article about 8 caves to visit in Sabah and Sarawak in 2010.
malaysia-smartphone-photographer-david-hogan-jr Galaxy Z Fold4 Photography at Sarawak UNESCO Caves
That’s me, David Hogan Jr, a smartphone photographer from Malaysia.

Conclusion

There you go, my actual photos taken with the Galaxy Z Fold4 Smartphone, and each of the images above was exhibited at the Kuala Lumpur Photography Festival 2022 from 23-25 September.

Again, thank everyone who came and supported my first solo photography exhibition. My topic for the next photo exhibition will be much more challenging. Once again, the photos you see above were taken with a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4 smartphone and at two UNESCO national parks in Sarawak, Malaysia.

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