Itching to press the shutters again

Did you know that hello in Dutch is "Hoi"? If you find yourself in Denmark, don't be offended when someone calls your attention by saying "Hoi" because it's like our native "Hoy" only more respectful.

Just opened my flickr account which I've been ignoring for the past months and I think I want to indulge myself again with my former hobby (or what I commonly refer to as my Insanity).



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Jumping ship, joining the bandwagon, whatever...

One day I just woke up feeling that I need to get a DSLR. Yup... you've heard it right. This analogue, old school, vintage camera lover is set to join the "other side". But please don't get me wrong, I still love the smell of film and the gritty mechanical parts of an analogue cam. Being the sentimental person that I am, even though I have limited budget the thought of selling my old cams is something that I just can't bear. I feel like they have been a part of me and my long journey in becoming a photographer of sorts and I am proud that I took that bumpy road.

Here I am, ready to take my skills to the next level. If you're wondering what camera I'll be buying, after much thought and deliberation I've decided that I'll go with the Canon 450D. It's a pricier than other entry level DSLR but I feel that I'm not in the "entry level" market anymore. I want to invest in my craft and by so doing I'll have to go with a camera that will give me more artistic freedom in terms of features and capabilities.

Hopefully, I get to post pictures from my future DSLR soon. I can't wait.

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Caleruega Church in Nasugbu, Batangas

Camera: Vivitar UW&S
Film: Fuji Sensia 200 (Cross processed)

Is there a more peaceful place on earth than that of Caleruega? The place is just so serene and relaxing. If there is a perfect place to collect your thoughts and connect with your spirituality, this is the closest to "heaven on earth".

Here is a detailed introduction about Caleruega church:

The chapel itself is replete with symbolism. Its façade is a reproduction of the original chapel in Caleruega, Spain. Its hut-shaped roof is in remembrance of the temporary sheds that the apostles wanted to build for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah during the transfiguration (Mt 17:1-8). The seal of the Dominican Province of the Philippines is depicted in stained glass in the upper portion of the chapel’s façade. The seven grapevines entwined in the steel doors of the chapel not only portray Jesus as the vine and we as branches (John 15:5), but also symbolize the seven sacraments. The main altar is a carved tree trunk representing the “stem of Jesse,” mentioned in the Book of the Prophet Isaiah: then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit (Is 11:1). The tabernacle is a gentle reminder of the burning bush through which God revealed Himself to Moses in Mt. Sinai (Ex 3:2). The birds carved on the communion table are representations of God’s providence in Matthew 6:26: Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, neither do they reap…and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. The stained glass depicts the Transfiguration of Jesus witnessed by Peter, John, and Luke. With Jesus are Moses and Elijah, two significant instruments of God in the Old Testament (Mat 17:3).

If you're planning to go on a respite anytime give this place a chance. It only costs Php 25 to enter the vicinity and the ride is only 2 hours from Manila and 40 mins away from Tagaytay.
Here are some more pictures from Caleruega:

Top 10 Most Viewed Photos in my Flickr

I'm taking pictures of everything to remind me of the place that's so perfect for me...
-The Starting Line "Left Coast Envy

It has been a great 2008 year in photography for me. I purchased some cameras, traveled to many places and last but not the least, started this photoblog. Thanks to everyone who has been supportive to my craft and hopefully you've enjoyed looking at this pictures as much as I enjoyed taking them.

#1 #2 #3#4 #5 #6
#7 #8 #9#10

Love Images

Christmas is just a couple of days away and I really don't have any Christmas themed posts that I can think of but maybe this post can be related to the holiday spirit. I came across a photo blog called Le Love (I think it's translated as "of Love") and from the title itself you'll pretty much have an idea what the pictures in this blog is about. To connect the point I'm trying to make, Christmas is about Love... it's not about gifts or presents and other material things that we want. With the recent unlucky streaks that I had, I realized that I'm still lucky in a way. I'll be spending the holidays with the people I love and that to me is the most important thing to have.

Here are some of the visually passionate images you can see from Le Love. :)

Ten things you can do to improve interestingness and increase chances of getting into Explore

Most photo enthusiasts have their own flickr account. If you are one of those, you might be familiar with the term Interestingness and Explore. Basically, Interestingness is a term used on how "interesting" your photo looks. If it garners enough attention then a lot of people will view it or add them to their list of favorites. Then your picture will make it to the "Explore" section of flickr where only the "best or most interesting" photos are included. If you're are new to flickr and would like to know how to get your pictures to that "elite" stage, here's an article written by one of my flickr contacts kevindooley that discusses on how to do that.

I know that some of you are going to yell that Flickr "interestingness" and Explore are silly things to worry about, and that's fine... But for those interested in how it works, let me run down a quick top 10 list.

Caring about getting into Explore per se is silly, because Explore has a big random component to it. However, Explore is important because it is the only "signal" we easily have about how "interesting" the photo is. Flickr doesn't give us the actual interestingness number so Explore is a good way to know it must be pretty high.

Why does interestingness matter? If you get happier the more people that see and appreciate your work, then you care about interestingness. Beyond your contact network, the vast majority of Flickr views come from search engines. Flickr has a zillion photos, so if you're photo isn't Flickr-interesting, people will never see it come up in the search engines.

Ten things to do to improve Flickr Interestingness:

1. Take good photos.

2. Have a good network of contacts who will view and comment and fave.

3. Post to at least one group, but don't post to more than five for the first few days. During the first week, posting to lots of groups hurts; after the first week, it helps.

4. In first week, don't post to more than a few award groups.

5. Have notes.

6. Have map and camera data. If you block camera data, or use film and don't add the camera meta data, you'll be penalized, A LOT. There's thousands of film people or people who don't want to give up their "secret settings" who can't figure out why they can't get into Explore... This is it!

7. Have a title and tags and text that people will search for, as that drives search engine traffic.

8. Don't upload too much per day. Maybe 3 max? If you upload more than 3 per day it not only hurts interestingness, but it taxes your contact network. It also means any given photo is de facto seen by less people, since most contacts only look at last 1-4 photos.

9. Be active. If you give significantly less than you get, it terms of views, comments, and faves, all of your photos will be penalized significantly.

10. Challenge yourself. There's a lot of competition when it comes to grabbing people's limited attention. Take interesting photos!

Your Photograph of the Year

Christmas is just around the corner but in these times when financial crisis is written all over our credit cards and wallets, is there any other way we can buy the stuff in our Wish list (like a new lens kit or camera bag) without having to shell out cash? Well, here’s an idea that you might want to try: Participate in photo contests! It's fun, exciting and most of all, it's also an opportunity for you to challenge yourself to get that photographic creative juices flowing. We all have our share of our precious images just lying around the corner of our hard drive that’s waiting to be put it into use.

I'm currently rounding up my best pictures so I can join PhotographyCorner's 2008 Photograph of the Year contest. PhotographyCorner and GetData is giving away $11,500 worth of prizes! Some of the prizes include Epson Stylus Photo R1900 Printer, Digital Holster 20 Camera Bag courtesy of ThinkTankPhoto, Joby Gorillapod SLR-Zoom and more. Just take a look at their website to see the rules of the photo contest, how to submit a Photograph and the complete list of prizes waiting for the lucky (or talented) winners.

Start browsing your My Pictures folder or your Flickr account and send in your best photograph. You'll never know, your entry might just win the top prize and more importantly, the coveted title of 2008 Photograph of the Year! Sounds nice right? I personally would like to have that in my portfolio.

This contest is also sponsored by MyPicTales, ColorRight, SmugMug, BigBlackBag, ThinkTankPhoto, Mpix and Daymen.

The Day The Waters Stood Still

the day the waters stood still
Originally uploaded by me!

I've been getting some rave comments in my flickr account with this picture. I don't know if it's because of the timely title because The Day The Earth Stood Still opened in the theaters just a couple of days ago but whatever the reason is I'm quite surprised it's getting so much attention. For those who are curious, this is in Harbor Square in Manila where the Manila Yacht Club is located. I used my Lomo Holga camera for this shot loaded with Fuji Provia Film.

Converting Over/Under Exposed Shots to B&W

I've mentioned in my previous post that I convert my Over/Under exposed shots to black and white when it's not possible to adjust the exposure through Photoshop or Lightroom without totally ruining the colors of the image. I won't be able to detail how I mixed it up through my photo editor since I can hardly recall the exact amount of adjustments I made with contrasts and brightness etc. There is no really exact way to do this but to trust your eyesight and your vision on how the picture should represent the image you have in your mind. You also have to consider that not all pictures converted to B&W will yield nice results. There are pictures that are really made to be seen in color. Below are some examples of the images that I converted through black and white, to the left is the original picture and to the right is the black and white conversion.

In Mono

They say black and white film is great for portraits and for portraits only. This might be true in a way because when you look at a B&W image, you tend to focus more on composition and detail instead of being overwhelmed by colors. For the same reason, I find it easier to shoot using black and white films. I don't need to have a subject that's full of color, all I worry about is framing my shot in the view finder once I see something that is worth shooting. Black and white is also a scapegoat and last option for me when I have colored pictures that are too under/over exposed and cannot be repaired using Adobe Lightroom, I just convert it to black and white and the problem is solved.

Water Bearers

The picture shown at the left is entitled as "Water Bearers" which I took using my Holga camera. I'm proud to say that it was included at HolgaBlog.com's The best Holga Photos from Flickr-November 2008! I feel honored to be included on that list because as a Lomographer, it's always nice to see your work be appreciated by other people. This comes as a surprise to me because I felt there are other pictures in my photostream that looks much better than this but I guess beauty is relevant and such an abstract thing to quantify.

LOMO Tips on Shooting with the Holga #1: Sunny days are the best days

As much as possible shoot during a sunny day. Overcast skies and indoors are not really conducive to Holga shooting since the Holga has a fix shutter speed of 1/100 (the length of time that the aperture stays open). But if you like shooting using colorsplash flash and always have a tripod beside you then by all means shoot in ambient or minimal light.

In my experience of using this camera, most of the best pictures I've taken were shot when the sun is high up in the sky. If you want the colors to pop-out and have crazy vignettes on the sides (like the image on the right), then daylight shooting is the way to go.

Patience is a Virtue

In life, we always face adversities here and there. Often, our patience is tested to its limits but these are the kind of moments that define who we are as a person. Being the result oriented person that I am, I want to see the fruits of my labor ASAP and when I don't I get impatient and sometimes disheartened. Fortunately enough, I'm too persistent just to give up. Maybe this is what patience is about. Patience is not necessarily just about waiting or being passive and not do anything but to keep going even if the way is tough and slow.

Photo notes: Unintentional underexposure made the image look like it was shot against the sun. Here is a classic example of a "happy accident" that is described in Lomo culture.
Camera: Olympus XA2
Film: Elitechrome 100 (Cross-processed)

Morning View

Morning View

I browsed my folders for hidden gems that haven't yet made my flickr account and I found this picture. I like the composition of colors in this picture. The hues bring a sense of cold breeze but the light in the horizon fills the picture with warmth. A scene perfect for a morning view.

Camera: Olympus XA2
Film: Kodak Elitechrome 100

Do Not Buy CASIO Digicams!

How can something made in Japan be as crappy like CASIO digicams? More than a year ago, I asked a former officemate of mine to buy me a CASIO EXILIM EX-Z700 when she was in Japan. The cam was quite good aesthetically but quality wise a lot is left to be desired. Lately, we experienced white horizontal lines and overexposed shots in the images that we took. After researching on the internet I found that there are a lot and I mean a LOT of people who also has the same problems with their Casio digicams. I also found out that not only the EX-Z700 has this kind of problem but even the most recent models that Casio released to the public. Yes, this problem can be repaired by changing the lens mechanism of the camera but wait there's more... repair costs around $100 which is more than the actual price of the unit! So i guess, that's not an option I'm willing to take more specially knowing that after a year I'll have the same problem all over again. If you're lucky and you've encountered this bug before your warranty expires then take it to the nearest Casio branch but I'm sure you'll be back there in no time.

I still can't believe why Casio, a Japanese company known for their excellent watches, has not made any changes to the design of their cameras. If you're planning to buy any CASIO Exilim line of products (EX-S10 EX-S880 EX-S770 EX-S600 EX-P505 EX-FH20 EX-F1 EX-V8) I advise that you read other reviews before purchasing this half-baked cookie. The market is sprawling with better products so do your homework first before shelling out hard earned moolah for a tin can.

Ten Legal Commandments of Photography

Ten Legal Commandments of Photography

I. Anyone in a public place can take pictures of anything they want. Public places include parks, sidewalks, malls, etc. Malls? Yeah. Even though it’s technically private property, being open to the public makes it public space.

II. If you are on public property, you can take pictures of private property. If a building, for example, is visible from the sidewalk, it’s fair game.

III. If you are on private property and are asked not to take pictures, you are obligated to honor that request. This includes posted signs.

IV. Sensitive government buildings (military bases, nuclear facilities) can prohibit photography if it is deemed a threat to national security.

V. People can be photographed if they are in public (without their consent) unless they have secluded themselves and can expect a reasonable degree of privacy. Kids swimming in a fountain? Okay. Somebody entering their PIN at the ATM? Not okay.

VI. The following can almost always be photographed from public places, despite popular opinion:

* accident & fire scenes, criminal activities
* bridges & other infrastructure, transportation facilities (i.e. airports)
* industrial facilities, Superfund sites
* public utilities, residential & commercial buildings
* children, celebrities, law enforcement officers
* UFOs, the Loch Ness Monster

VII. Although “security” is often given as the reason somebody doesn’t want you to take photos, it’s rarely valid. Taking a photo of a publicly visible subject does not constitute terrorism, nor does it infringe on a company’s trade secrets.

VIII. If you are challenged, you do not have to explain why you are taking pictures, nor to you have to disclose your identity (except in some cases when questioned by a law enforcement officer.)

IX. Private parties have very limited rights to detain you against your will, and can be subject to legal action if they harass you.

X. If someone tries to confiscate your camera and/or film, you don’t have to give it to them. If they take it by force or threaten you, they can be liable for things like theft and coercion. Even law enforcement officers need a court order.

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I don't really know if this is applicable to our country but there's not a lot of merit in trying to argue your way out of trouble by using the "rules" above. Why? Simply because what's fair game to a photographer might not be to the owner of the subject being photographed. That's why I opt to use my XA2 in street and indoor photography since it's unobtrusive and it takes picture fast.

Something to Rave About

All Star
Originally uploaded by brix99

I'm so stoked to find out that my SLR Minolta XG-1 camera is actually not broken! I went to Mang Dong's camera repair shop in Quiapo because my Yashica Electro35GS died on me. I also asked him to check my Minolta which I thought has a sticky shutter problem but when he yanked the film advance crank it suddenly got fixed! I got to try my XG-1 on our trip to Liliw, Laguna and just going around the house taking pictures of common stuff like my pair of chucks shown in the picture. I'm ecstatic with how everything looked when I received my CD from Digiprint. The lens is sharp, the exposure is spot on and the pictures were awesome (well, in my eyes all my pictures are). I also have one more thing to rave about, my Yashica is healthy again and better than ever with it's light seals fixed and the viewfinder is clearer now that Mang Dong also took time to clean the insides of the camera. Now that I have 5 cameras working like magic in my depot, i'm faced with a difficult decision on which to use. It has become a normal thing for me to bring 2 to 3 of them every time I go out of the house. GF seems to be very understanding of the "situation" and lets me use her bag to carry my babies with me (love her so much). :)

My Dream Pet

awww
Originally uploaded by golfpunkgirl

I'm just in "awww" of this picture. I've always dreamed of having a British Bulldog as a pet. I like how ugly they are and the way they walk is just so awkwardly cute. :)

Adobe Lightroom: A Photographer's Bestfriend

Yesterday, I downloaded this great application, yet again from Adobe, called Lightroom. It functions a lot like Photoshop but it caters more to the Photography fanatics. Unlike PS, It has a non-destructive way of editing your images so you need not to worry even if you've edited your picture files a gazillion times. I wasn't a big fan of editing pictures 'coz I felt that it kinda defeats the idea of being into analog photography but I guess I've embraced the idea that there's no harm on doing some adjustments as long as it's not so much to alter the picture completely. I've done some contrast adjustments in my monochromatic pictures and it looked really good. I've always wondered how some people in flickr and lomomanila attain rich contrast on their B&W pics but now I know why (cheaters!). If you can't beat 'em join 'em! :)

We've All Been Here Before

We've All Been Here Before
Originally uploaded by brix99

We've all been here before
and felt how life is like a pendulum.
Back and forth we go,
we let time pass us by.