On the Road 1

[PICTURES TAKEN WHILE DRIVING, AND THERE'S TERRIBLE TRAFFIC]

Youll get only one chance to take this picture per car (unless youre a fucking salesman who knows how to adjust odometers to fool used-car buyers)  

The arrogance of pinoys. Kung kayo ang boss ko, babagsak talaga ang kompanya/bansang ito.

I think this hotel relies now on tourists who dont know better. Some walls in this building are grimed in dirt.

Abandoned building?

Nice-looking Jollibee store. Even the mascot is correctly placed.

Blackberry Bold 9800 takes unremarkable but serviceable photos. 

UP Chapel

Havent been back here in a while. (About 10 years if we dont count the baptism of Raya and JP).

Used to work in a computer shop nearby. Back then it was the first computer shop in the campus to offer network gaming, and probably the fastest dial-up :-). That shop helped me in many ways during the rush of term papers and projects. And the Church, although i dont believe in an interventionist god, is a good place to find quiet, to sit down in one of the pews from time to time. Except for the sound of pipit birds, it's just very peaceful in the whole area.

Today, there is this interesting fan installation:

And cross seems to have accumulated a small amount of bird poop since its last cleaning. (What type of wood is this?

UP Chapel is a landmark. 

With faith or with. 

In favor of organized religion or against. 

Photography Workshop with Daemon Becker

And so i finally attended a formal photography seminar. i chose the one sanctioned by UP, also after seeing the portfolio of the facilitator (daemonbecker.com) and finding out that he owns a full-fledged studio in Mandaluyong (pioneerstudios.ph)     


This is Daemon:

I liked best the third day where we held class at his studio itself. And when we tested a setup proposed by joemcnally in one of his own workshops. Here is what we're trying to emulate... 

and here's what we got,,, again, another one with daemon... 

Not bad, eh? 
With probably more tweaking towards individual critiques of pics, some more proactive dispensing of solid tips (instead of waiting leads from us students with our mouths open), and then requiring the students to KNOW their camera before attending class (to save on time on the first day), the course would be perfect. He has the tools and the experience (even formal education), so he must believe onwhat he brings to dispense as lessons. Also with more confidence, the teaching will improve.
But even as it was last week, I would surely recommend the workshop to anyone who wants to learn studio. 
My prime takeaway indeed is in learning the various lights of the studio setup. It would sort of bring me confidence in actually renting out a studio, with several members of my family, to take portraits of each... and then probably one group shot.
I will do it within this month, and then finally improve on pathetic home studio lighting like this:

(the subjects here are prettiest though! :-) )

Thanks, Daemon. You have a future in teaching! I hope you really can assist a bit (for free. hehehe) when i rent pioneerstudios. the cheapest lang muna at 1500 before moving to the bigger studio:

thanks very much, and more power!

The ultimate penis envy in photography

Unless you shoot for National Geographic, buying a lens this big is pure unadulterated penis envy:

I own a semi-sized reliever of insecurity as well: 

And in a recent "Coaching Workshop Integration," I arrived in costume as a photographer. Among others, I explained that this lens will not make you a photographer. Instead it will just make you realize that it is not always about size. Most of the time, skill and technique have more bearing. This is my least used lens. Not ideal investment if you dont have the time to go bird-watching.  

A mosquito and a lady

[taken with just a point-and-shoot in macro mode. not bad]

Inside a corrugated box factory

The place is hot, noisy, smells paper-y.

Manual die-cut presses, a danger to anyone's finger. Not allowed to be sleepy.

There's the usual unavoidable dirt.

The machine must be continuously running. Someone must cover for someone's absence (under SL, VL, or EL).

Makes the cubicle dweller feel a bit thankful

Review: Lastolite Ezybox Softbox

Every time I get the chance, that is every time there is someone I can haggle, I purchase goods at Amazon.com then have the items delivered at a friend's hotel, for handcarry later to here, beautiful Philippines. 

Amazon sends me email inviting me to review my purchases. Spur of the moment, I write some reviews. Here is one sample for a softbox... 

The main selling point of this softbox is in the ease of assembling and dis-. It is perfect for the travelling hobbyist. This ezybox, plus a decent reflector, two external flashes (i use another 580 EXII to trigger the one attached to the ezybox), and then somebody to hold both implements, can make perfect pictures during family vacations. The pictures you can take shall be good enough to brag. 

The package includes the shoe-slot that fits 580 EX II, all the brackets needed, and then the blue lastolite case. The entire thing will easily fit in a backpack. 

Though sime might find the light from this box a bit harsh as a fill or main light on certain conditions. To resolve, you will have to make certain adjustments on the flash's power output and get the right blend of shutter speed and aperture. These cases call for many trial-and-error shots; could test the patience of you and your subject. For me though, Im finding myself using another tri-grip diffuser to diffuse the light more (very close the person's face or the product, just out of the camera view) on most instances. I've been using mine for almost a year now. If I can do the purchase over again though, will just save and wait for the 24 x 24" size (this was out of stock the time I made my purchase).

Sample pictures lit by the softbox…

Perhaps more important is to get the basic rough lighting/shadows that you want...

Then just finish it up with Photoshop...