Artisan Coffee

I did a photo shoot for Artisan Coffee back in August. Artisan Coffee is a very popular coffee chain up north. Famous for its coffee, the company has grown from its Artisan HQ outlet in Petaling Jaya and expanded with its Artisan Coffee Bar in Bangsar Village II. The photos in this series were taken in their PJ branch.

Artisan HQ is an ideal place to chill out. If I want to sit in a café for a chat with friends or simply unwind in solitude, Artisan HQ would be one of my top choices. Other joints I would consider are LOKL, Tous Les Jours, Acme Bar & Coffee and Three Little Birds.

The café has a very laid back ambiance that seems to slow down time, even when the place is filled with the customers chattering away. Maybe it has something to do with the high ceiling and the large windows. For some reason I feel at peace and seemingly lost in my own world with my companions when I’m there.

There are two floors at Artisan HQ but the upper section is usually closed in the day. You can order some food if you are hungry, but the star of this place is the coffee. If you are craving for some sweets, there are some cakes from Feliciously that would definitely satiate your sweet tooth.

You can watch the baristas work their magic at the bar area and chat with them to learn more about coffee brewing. The bar reminds me of my pharmacy lab work days, though I don’t recall my pharmaceutical preparations emitting such fragrant aromas. Except maybe when we were making cocoa butter suppositories.

The bar was ideal for taking photos. Good diffuse light spilled from the large windows, illuminating the bar area with ample ambient lighting. The barista Ahmed was my model of the day. He looked totally badass with his majestic beard and piercing eyes.

Several of these photos have the honour of being featured on Artisan Coffee’s website.

It was a fun shoot and it also further piqued my interest in coffee brewing. Not exactly the best state of mind to be wandering around Artisan HQ where they have a corner selling brewing apparatus and coffee beans.

I am glad I managed to squeeze in the shoot despite my whirlwind schedule during my short trip in Kuala Lumpur. Big thanks to Matt for coordinating and making this possible.

For the gear heads, this series was mostly shot on my Nikon D700 with the 50 mm f/1.4 G lens. Some of the wider photos were taken with the Leica M8 mounted with the Voigtlander 21 mm Color-Skopar f/4.0 P lens.

Ahmed sharing some tips with us in the first shot. Many thanks to Ahmed for being such a sport. We basically got him to be our impromptu model and he was more than happy to help. He was also dishing out advice on how to improve on coffee brewing.

We finished off the shoot with a posed shot of Ahmed. Don’t let the intense look fool you. He is a friendly guy with a passion for coffee. Say hi to him if you drop by and chat him up if you are keen to learn more.

If you are in Petaling Jaya and want some good coffee, check out Artisan HQ at Jalan 13/2, Seksyen 13, 46200 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.