Cheers to 2013

These are leftover beers from the last Beer Jelly held at Briggy Hall.  On the left is an Espresso Stout and on the right is the Winter Solstice.  Not exactly my favorites but it’s not such a bad idea to welcome the new year with good cheers over a couple of beers.  Happy New Year!

People Photos

People are always an interesting subject to take photos of and this post is all about their photos.  My professional work has blessed me with many friends and I always appreciate their presence and company.  At the same time, I’ve also been blessed with opportunities to capture a moment of their life and preserve it in a photo.  These are just some of the photos of people I’ve taken through the years and as far as photography goes, neither is there a single theme nor style present in all of them.  Perhaps I could simply refer to these as snapshots of people that I’ve encountered during those times that I had my camera along with me.  While I was digging through my files to pick out my favorites, I was reminded of the events which took place during the time that these photos were taken.  People photography may be challenging but also very much rewarding.

2012 Hot Air Balloon Festival

This is Daisy, the happy hot air balloon.  The yearly hot air balloon festival gets bigger and bigger.  They dubbed it “the weekend of everything that flies” and it’s always a fun day for everyone.  For events like these, a long lens really comes in handy.  A 70-200 or longer lens (prime or zoom) is a nice companion to have to get better shots.  For the budget conscious, both Canon and Nikon offer consumer grade 55-200/250/300 lenses with IS/VR for their APS-C DSLRs and they deliver pretty good results too.  We drove out early in the morning to make it in time for the balloon flying but didn’t stay around for too long.

Hiraya’s Christening

Last September of 2012, I was asked by a friend to take photos of her niece’s Christening.  Hiraya, the child, was baptised at Christ the King Parish in Greenmeadows Avenue.  It was a cloudy Saturday afternoon with occasional rainshowers.  It was a bit dark at the baptistry but fortunately the video team brought some lighting equipment to brighten things up.  A child’s Christening is a significant day for the child and the family because it marks the child’s entry into the Christian world.  In a certain way, it also sets out the path which the child will take as he/she grows up.  The family and the community are there to guide the child as he/she takes on this journey.

  

Christmas Figures

Christmas figures also make for good subjects to photograph and I found these two on top of the piano at home.  I decided to give them a wipe and put them on a table by the window for a quick snap and this is the result after a little post-processing in Lightroom.  Anyhow, Merry Christmas!

Spontaneous Christmas Break Getaway

  

Certainly not the most spontaneous of trips because this was earlier discussed but I basically classified it as tentative until it finally happened.  Before school resumes, it was good to have a bit of a getaway and the Sta. Rosa/Tagaytay area is always a good option for such an activity.  Left home around 4PM and bought goodies first at Rowena’s, early dinner at Bag of Beans and finally, window shopping at Nuvali.

I was a bit unsure about bringing the DSLR but I figured that I can always opt not to use it if I didn’t want/need to.  I only brought one lens and while f/2.8 isn’t the fastest of all lenses, IS comes in handy especially since I was just shooting static objects.  Most of the photos were underexposed as far as the camera’s meter was concerned.  Digital Cameras provide the advantage of CHIMP-ing to check for proper exposure.  Just looking at the LCD isn’t the most reliable way to check for “correct” exposure so knowing how to read the histogram helps too.

 

Pet Photography

Taking photos of pets is a little different from taking photos of people.  The general rules still apply but as far as perspective goes, it’s a little different.  Static pets make for good subjects for photography but it’s not always that they stay put and wait for you to take their photo.  More often than not, a cat or a dog would walk towards you the moment they notice that you have something in your hand aimed at them  Thus, sometimes a long lens becomes quite helpful.  Another tip which I’ve gotten from a guide book was that pet photos are usually better when taken from a low point.  This photo was taken with a P&S camera with the camera zoomed in, placed on the ground and set to trigger after 2 seconds.  If the photo was taken while I was standing up, it wouldn’t have looked as interesting as this.  Anyhow, this is Half Half, one of our cats.  He was a stray cat who wandered off into our garage and eventually became one of our pets.  He was a scrawny little cat when he first came around but he just got fatter and fatter.

Next time, I’ll try posting photos of our dog(s).  =)

Black and White Boquet

Last Saturday (Dec 22), I was invited to help cover a wedding of a friend.  Mike (the groom) is my friend’s friend so by virtue of affiliation, I was requested to help cover the whole thing. The other guy that he hired took the lead and I basically just followed after him, covering the other things that he and the other guys wouldn’t be covering.  There is no point in all the photographers trying to photograph the (exact) same thing from the (exact) same perspective.  The weather in Tanay, Rizal was a bit of a mixed bag:  the sun would shine, the clouds would come and the rain would fall.  Thankfully, there were moments when any of those conditions proved favorable for shooting.  While the EF-S 17-55mm is not weather-sealed and the 60D only has partial sealing, I never really bothered shying away from taking photos when the rain/drizzle started.  It was a simple wedding between Mike (videographer and businessman) and Glenda (pediatrician) and they were fairly on the older side (think 35-40) as far as age was concerned.  Being a provincial wedding, there were some traditions and superstitions that were upheld.  What’s more is that there’s an unwritten rule that you have to invite practically everyone in town at an event like this.

The photo above is the bridal boquet shot wide open at wide angle.  It doesn’t look very impressive in color so I ran it through a blue B&W filter and added some grain in Lightroom to it to make it more interesting.

Lens Lust and Full Frame

After going through a bunch of lenses, I’ve finally settled with two lenses:  a zoom and a prime.  The said lenses deliver the shots that I want and need for my purposes.  While that may be the case, I still long (or lust) after more exciting lenses available for the Canon system.  Unfortunately, I cannot afford an additional lens at the moment and it seems my camera bags were only meant to take in one body, one speedlight and two lenses.  I guess having too many lenses can be a bit of a bother too especially when you have to be on the go.

At the same time, full frame cameras are becoming more and more affordable.  I just checked a multiply site and found that the 5D Mark II and 6D could now be had for under 80,000 pesos.  Very good price indeed but personally, I’d still take the 5D Mark III for the speed and versatility it offers (the AF system on the 5D Mark II and 6D seem inadequate to me and I do need a reliable AF system).  With a full frame DSLR, I have two lens combinations in mind for a kit:  the first is a 24-70mm + 135mm (something which resembles my current setup on a crop) or a 24mm/28mm, 50mm, 100mm/135mm for a prime trinity.

Well, no money for any single one of those mentioned…so I guess that’s alright. =P

Marikina walk with an Ultra Wide Angle Lens

The EF 17-40m f/4L USM lens is the most affordable professional grade UWA lens from Canon.  I bought mine way back in 2008 and was used primarily on an APS-C camera which gives me an effective FOV of 27.2-64mm (close to a kit lens).  Being an EF mount, it means that it can be mounted and used on film and full frame SLRs.  Because I don’t have a full frame DSLR, the only way for me to fully appreciate its ultrawide-ness was to use it on my film SLR.  I have to say, wielding an UWA lens is not as simple as using other lenses.  These photos were shot around Marikina during one hot summer day when I decided to walk around alone.  As you can see, the carnival (perya in Filipino) was not yet open and you could take photos of all the rides and games without anyone else blocking your view.