7/31/08

Whatever happens, I’m sure my year will have a sweet ending. On Dec 6-16, 2008 I’ll be traveling in Mindanao, taking all I can from Zamboanga to Davao!

(Map based from Eugene Villar’s Lakbayan.)

I got my roundtrip tickets from Cebu Pacific for P3,000! And we’re thinking we can stretch P7,000 pesos for 11 days. Call us crazy but we’ll make it work. We are the Ultimate Kaladkarins!

Mindanao or Bust!

7/30/08

This is a very late post and I apologize for not having any entry for the past week. It’s just that my requirements for school and my duties at work are all piling up.

These are some of the images I gathered on a recent photowalk I had with some friends. We started off at Hidalgo at noon and finished off at CCP for dinner. Man, that was a long walk.

Dumadaan -  This was shot along the busy road of Hidalgo where hawkers, vegetable sellers, roadside eateries and photography specialist coexist in harmonious anarchy.

Pattern -  Smack in the middle of Hidalgo Street, Quiapo.

Payong -  The Quiapo Church is an undisputed character, commanding presence and irrelevance at the same time.

Laundromat -  At Escolta, a woman brings a wee’s worth of laundry. Have water, will wash.

Canon System, Kodak TMAX 400, D-76

MANILA or BUST!

7/23/08

It gives a different mood. Suddenly, it’s not summer anymore.

Husky

There’s A Trail

7/21/08

The first time I went to Calaguas Island in Camarines Norte I told myself that I would go back. And indeed in less than 2 months, I found myself seated near the boat’s bow getting splashed by the relentless waves. The sun was beaming gloriously and it promised to give us an awesome weekend.

Calaguas makes me happy. We have found a happy beach.

Mahabang Buhangin

Remnants

Perfect

I will be back!

Calaguas or Bust!

7/17/08

Rain is pounding on my window
Like an unwanted visitor
Resented, unwelcome and obtrusive
But still it pounds.

Hello milk tea.

7/9/08

A minor, but immediate errand came up one static Sunday afternoon. It was that kind of Sunday where you’d just prefer to curl up inside your room and think of nothing. Do nothing.  Interruption.

So I hesitantly picked up the keys to my car, went back to my room get my camera and then hied off to nearby Megamall. My sudden sojourn as expected was uneventful except for the dead rat I encountered and photographed. In the midst of the dead-rat-stench I was still deciding whether the bloody rodent looked better on the left or right side of the frame. After some serious thought, yes serious thought, I figured it looked better on the left, leaving some negative space on the right.

Hit and Run

And with that, I resumed what would be a very bland afternoon.

7/4/08

This is my pinhole camera. And I made it all by myself.

Well, not exactly since my girlfriend, Irene, contributed a lot in the construction process.

It’s a 6″ x 8″ x 4″ box made up of illustration board I bought from National Bookstore. I chose to use to construct it black side out for aesthetic reasons. Doing that, I had to spray the white interior with black enamel so that if ever light leaked inside, it wouldn’t bounce off the bright surfaces which would aggravate the situation. The lens is made from a portion of Coke tin can, perforated in the center with a regular sewing needle.

It snugly fits a 5″ x 7″ photo paper which I use as a paper negative. My exposures usually begin from 1 minute to about 15 minutes. More than that I decide not to shoot.

I already have some negatives and positives to show. I just have to have them scanned. Hmmm.

Scanner.

7/3/08

Today I passed by the Lomoembassy at 146B Jupiter Street, Makati City and got myself a long-awaited Holga 120 CFN.

I really love the square format. I love square photographs. I think it’s partly because we see rectangular photos all the time.

I’ve been wanting to shoot 120 film for the longest time and initially thought of going for a Yashica Mat. But I promised myself to only get a TLR after I acquire my own lightmeter. So the Holga is my compromise for the mean time.

It’s so light. And portable. I’ve already consumed a roll and I hope to finish 4 more before Saturday so I can have them processed by Digiprint.

Indeed it’s so refreshing to shoot with a fun toy camera after all the mechanical nitty-gritties of the SLR. But, well-thought, well-composed and exposed black and white frames seem promising.

Holga or Bust!

7/1/08

Low-light shots taken with Tri-X 400. Grainy, grainy grain.

Slant

Nuclear

Eruption