Cecille's Despedida - 24April2009

Our despedida party to Cecille at Ice Cold Beer. All the best to our friend and colleague, Cecille, who will be moving to new company -- with a big pay cheque! As she said, and we will accomodate, she will spend another treat to us once she gets her first salary :-)

Apologize for the photos! Ang daming may magandang camera sa grupo, pero kahit isa walang may dala!!! Kaya pagtyagaan ang kuha from the cell phone!!! Hayaan mo Cecille, sa susunod siguradong meron ng magandang picture -- basta treat mo ulit he he he he!!!

Congratulations to the winning team! 68 bottles (real consumption is 48 bottles) of San Miguel Beer during the happy hour. Set nyo na kung kailan natin iinumin yung 1 case of SMB na napanalunan natin ;-)

A Strobist in the Making - Studio Photography

I just got my muslin backdrop, a reflector and a 580EXII flash. I didn't want to have too much hassle in the setup of studio lights, so I tried using two flashes: the 580EXII as master and my old 420EX as a slave. Here are the test shots from the upcoming strobist :-) The models will not complain if the shots turn out bad. I'm satisfied with this initial attempt for studio portraits, though there still are improvements to be made.

Photos taken on April 19, 2009 at my home.

Destination: Malaysia

While I have been shooting pictures for a long time, this is my first attempt to travel with sort of better gear: tripod (thanks to my good friend Felimon who kindly lent his tripod), wireless shutter (new gadget I got that will be put into test) and of course, my Canon 40D with 24-70L lens.

Putra Jaya: The Modern Malaysia

I never expected a place in Malaysia like Putra Jaya. This is a very well-developed city, with very nice landscaping comparable to other beautiful cities in the West. A 30-45 minute drive from KL, where the Malaysia's new government offices are located, I would say that I'm impressed with the development done in the area. Here are the sample pictures I took in Putra Jaya.

Here is one shot that I wish I had a TS lens so I could capture the building architecture a lot better. Will put the TS lens in my Photography "Wish List" for now :-)

Next Stop: Petronas Twin Towers at Night

The weather was not good at that time, a bit foggy up there so you could see sort of smoke coming from the lights of the tower.

Here is an experiment photo, post processed merging 3 shots of different exposures. I must admit that I'm not an expert in getting this very nicely as the result doesn't look really exceptional. I will try again next time.

Another item to be added in my wish list: either a Full Frame camera (5DMarkII) or a 16-35L Lens. I need to have a wider view so the view will not be cut. As my friend Felimon suggested in his previous comment, FF or a wide lens. Hmmm, tough on the pocket hu hu hu!!!!

All photos were taken on April 11, 2009. Thanks to our good friend, Jojo and Marcy, for accomodating us in their house. Pasensiya na sa abala, pare !

A view from the top

It's really refreshing to look at the Singapore skyline from the top of the Swiss 'Otel (Equinox). The Esplanade Theater ('the Durian') looks like the eyes of a fly, magnified. It's nice to be at the top!!!

View from The Bund, Shanghai

A great view at the Bund, Shanghai. Trying to capture a great shot without a tripod, in a cold night. I am pleased with the outcome, though it would certainly be a lot better if I brought a tripod with me. Getting a nice night shot of the skyline is truly satisfying...