Travel Day: From the Island of Bohol to the Province of Pangasinan

Early Morning Nature Trip: Touring Brgy. Busao

It was the last day of my four-day stay with the Namoc Family at Brgy. Busao, Bohol and I was still tinkering with the possibility of extending my sojourn by filing an additional leave and re-booking a flight from Tagbilaran City straight to Manila. But alas my prolonged absence from the office would equate to piles and piles of work that needed to be done upon my return, so I decided that it was best to just stick with the original plan

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Excerpts from the Gilon-Gilon Street Dancing at the Bangus Festival 2011

It was not as extravagant as last year's Festival of the North, but the Gilon-Gilon still gave Dagupeños a lot to cheer about amidst the obviously growing political war among their city officials, spearheaded by the Mayor and Vice-Mayor themselves.

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Jump Shots at Patar, Bolinao

Summer heat has now fully shifted to high gear, a good thing though that I've been spending my May weekends cooling off. First week, I was at Surip, Bani for our office unit's summer outing; second week, I was at another unit's summer outing (sabit lang) at Leisure Coast Resort; then after that its two straight weekends at Patar Beach, in Bolinao with different set of friends, just chilling with a bottle of Tanduay Ice in hand, what more can I ask for, right? :)

For the moment, let me just share some of the most unusual jumpshot photos I took of my friends during sunset at Patar :)

I know... hindi siya jumshot, the jumpshots after the jump :D

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Michelle + Oscar: My First Solo Wedding Coverage

Yeh boy!... I finally experienced how to be a true wedding photographer, and let me tell you that was one great experience I can really learn from. It wasn't like the typical weddings that I've been to where preparations are done in hotels, the ceremony held at large chapels with adequate lighting, and the reception at restaurants where there is enough room for photographers to roam around and find angles, nope, I had none of that here, this one is what you may call a good old-fashioned 'Kasalang Barangay' where everyone within a 10-mile radius of the bride and groom's home is invited, so just imagine how cramped it was but I still need to use my 50mm because of insufficient lighting.

This wasn't exactly the setting that I was hoping for for my first coverage, especially that I'm just starting to learn the basics, but hey, its family, I was asked a favor and at the same time I just can't stand it if they pay for a low-cost photog who can't really shoot... yep, I've seen a lot of those people , so why not me, its not gonna be as good as Nelwin Uy's (sobrang layo), but hey atleast its free... :)

The cover for an 8x8 coffee table book type album

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from UK, with Love....

Today I received my very first post card from abroad and I'm just so thrilled about it that I need to share it here /XD

/blush It was sent to me by my good friend Micamyx when she was in the UK and though she's back here in the country prior to the delivery of the card, just seeing London in front of the post card and reading the first line 'Greetings from UK! =)' , parang gusto ko na bang tumambling :)) ganun pala feeling, sorry, its my first time to receive one, kumbaga, virgin pa ko sa ganyan :P anyway, her message reads:

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Revisiting Tambobong Beach: A Paradise Hidden at Dasol, Pangasinan

Exactly a week ago from now, I was lying in the sand napping at Patar Beach in Bolinao. I was there for a formal pre-nup shoot and what a way to relax after a long tiring day than to just lay down lifeless in the sand, breeze of ocean air cooling my body, and the sound of waves gently crashing into the shore gives off a very soothing sound almost like a lullaby. It was my second time staying at Patar Beach in the span of four weeks and I was thinking I should do it more often. Almost everything I need to have a perfect weekend was there, cheap cottages to sleep in, convenience store for food and the quiet surroundings. But the things that seems to bother me is the rough sand and ocean floor. Hmmmm well given that it's still one of the better beaches in the country, lying in the rough sand made me remember Tambobong Beach.

The Hidden Paradise that is Tambobong

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Super Moon Phenomenon: March 19, 2011

Yesterday, there was "supposed" to be a super moon phenomenon where natural disaster "should" have occurred. Well In fact there was a super moon last night, the time when the moon is closest to Earth by something point something meters and while people still being paranoid over the recent destructions in Japan, they kept on convincing themselves that this natural occurrence is a premonition to another devastating natural calamity. Come on now, it was just a full moon, it happens every month, sure the tides are going to be high but that's about all the moon affects things on Earth.

A lot of people were told to stay indoors before dark, but I was at my friend's house drinking tequila til 11PM (guess I was indoors :D ). During the drive home, I didn't actually notice the difference in size of the moon but it sure was bright that you cannot really look directly into it, or it was just me? :) I also noticed that there was a multi-colored halo surrounding it, so after I got home at around 12MN, I grab my tripod, set it up on the balcony, and charan! see photo below :D I thought, this wasn't a premonition for a natural disaster, but a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see something beautiful :)

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Bangus Festival 2011: Schedule of Activities

Banderitas?. ‘Check!’ Summer Heat? Check! Festive atmosphere? Check! It’s almost that time of the year again when the City of Dagupan celebrates its annual BANGUS FESTIVAL for 2011! A month-long festivity highlighting Dagupan as the country’s Bangus (Milkfish) mecca. It attracts thousands and thousands of tourists and every year it seems that the crowd just keeps on growing, as the festival itself becomes bigger and better.

The first Bangus Festival was initiated by Mayor Benjie Lim way back in 2002 to coincide with another festival, the Pista’y Dayat (Festival of the Sea). It garnered worldwide attention in 2003 when it earned a place in the Guiness book of world records as the ‘Longest Barbecue Grill in the World’. The Festival usually starts at the first week of April and last until May 1 (Pista’y Dayat).

Personally, I’m really excited for this year’s celebration as the so-called ‘Father of Bangus Festival’ is back at the helm. I was a bit disappointed though after seeing the logo for this year. Comparing it to the previous logos, there’s no ‘FUN’ in it and it even looks more kinda like a logo for a party list running for a seat in Congress. But hey, that’s just me and the logo :D , I’m sure this year’s festival will be better than ever before as the activities will be held back in the main streets of Dagupan City where it truly belongs.

I’m inviting everyone to come and join us in celebrating arguably one of the biggest festivals in the country. To come here, you just ride a bus (Victory, Five-Star, Santran, De Leon with Wifi, etc.) that says DAGUPAN. To look for a place to stay, go to google.com and in the search box, type “places to stay in Dagupan City”, sounds simple, right? For anymore questions, just simply leave a comment :) You can find the complete schedule of activities below after a few of my shots from last year's parade, please try not to be disappointed with the shots though :D

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Pre-Nup Shoot for Gummy and Potchi

Just sharing my first pre-nup shoot that I did last weekend for my friends "Gummy Bear" and "Potchi". Well technically its a Pre-pre-nup shoot since we're scheduled for Bolinao the next weekend for the actual shoot and this is a sort of a 'test shoot' if you may :D . Just to try out different poses and of course, build chemistry so we'll all be comfortable with each other during the actual shoot. With this, I guess I'm a step closer, though still a million miles away from my idol, Nelwin Uy :)) . It still baffles me how he does his PP, is it the saturation? sharpening? or just simply the shot??? hmmmm... I guess I'll just learn along the way :)

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Portraits: The Cai Collection

It's been ages since my last post and if Mica was here, she'll be telling me "oi! Mag update ka!" :)) Well I have a very reasonable excuse naman for my backlogs and that is because I'm finally doing what I set out to do. I'm living my life to the fullest and have been squeezing every bit of activity that my weekends and vacation leaves can accommodate and I guess blogging just didn't make the list. Cause seriously, I'd rather stuffed my camera rather than my laptop inside my backpack during my trips. Can't have them both though, that would be a backbreaker :) excuses excuses... :))

Anyhoo, one my recent trips was at Pampanga during the Hot Air Balloon Festival. I was with three other bloggers and a Pokemon. Darwin, the comically-dramatic one; the great and almighty Marky; Cai the diva and apple of Darwin's eye; and ofcourse there was Snorlax :D and as much as I want to elaborate further, this post is all about Cai and not about that trip. Cai recently started a weekly project entitled "project 52 looks" on her blog, PinkUrinal.com and with that, I finally have her approval to post my photos of her during our Bolinao trip. So Darwin, enjoy :))

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