Broken Blade

Let me see if I can make sense out of myself by talking to myself.

Me: What have you been doing?

I: Work, of course. Office stuff.

Me: You’re not shooting any new photos?

I: Actually the previous Sunday was our church’s anniversary and I took a ton of pictures.

Me: You did? Where are they?

I: You can see them here by clicking this http://juson.org/gallery/20100822cos

Took me a while to process all those stuff. And today, I shot more than 100+ photos of our church workers. You can see the gallery here http://juson.org/gallery/20100829cosworkers/. Most of the photos are unedited and unsharpened for web viewing yet.

Me: That’s quite a lot. Did you get paid for that? People think that taking photos is easy stuff. I know of a lot of photographers who spend long hours tweaking their photos and hoping their customers like them. Did you get at least some appreciation or something?

I: Nope. I didn’t get a single cent for all that and I don’t really mind. I consider it as part of my “learning experience”. I get to photograph a lot of people and learn what works and what doesn’t. I’m hoping that doing all these for them and for myself will make me a better photographer. I always try to take a moment before I shoot a photo, ensure I get everything right before I click the shutter and then spend hours (wishfully less) in the “lightroom” to improve everything else.

As for appreciation, some people do acknowledge my work and that’s all I need. If they don’t like my pictures, well, too bad. I’d try better next time.

Me: What’s lightroom?

I: Lightroom is the opposite of “darkroom”. You know, during film days, people process their photos in a dark room. These days, with digital, lightroom is the equivalent of processing your photos on your computer. There is also a software called Adobe Photoshop Lightroom that I use to improve my photos.

Me: Ah… good stuff. Would you ever consider becoming a pro later?

I: Maybe when I stop consulting. I love photography. I just can’t get enough of it. There’s so much to learn and improve. No wonder you see a lot of really excellent photographers out there. Visit http://1x.com to see absolutely superb shots. I’m also a frequent visitor of http://kenrockwell.com where I get no-nonsense advise on photography. I subscribed to http://digital-photography-school.com/ where they give a lot of great tips in making good pictures.

Me: Wow! That rocks, man. Your photos aren’t too bad but I’ll bet one day your photos will rock the world, eh?

I: Well, that’ll be great but I’m not aiming to rock the world. At the moment, I have only one simple goal for every picture I take.

Me: What simple goal?

I: When somebody’s heart melts upon seeing a picture I’ve taken I know I’ve met my goal.

Me: Define melt?

I: Well… touched, inspired, broken, enlightened, you know all that good stuff. “Appreciated” is another word. That’s all.

Me: Cool. You’re already breaking my heart but I do understand what you’re saying.

I: Thanks. This is getting too long already eh? Are we done yet.

Me: Yes, we’re done. Thanks for the interview hah? Can we do it again in the future?

I: You’re welcome. Sure, let’s do it again, Me.

Ciao.

Hehe… now this one is a lot of fun.

Though I didn’t get to travel out of town during my vacation I got to practice my target shooting instead, which was mighty awesome.

Kuya Roy practiced with me and Joshua learned to shoot at Jethro’s target range at Filinvest, Alabang. The range officer taught us techniques in handling, aiming and firing a .45 caliber pistol. I was amazed at how his technique significantly improved our shooting accuracy. Even Joshua learned to fire the pistol very quickly.

Click on a photo to zoom in. Click on it again to zoom out.

Now I’ve got one more thing to look forward to on my next vacation.

Today is Singapore’s National Day. They will be having a huge parade in the city this afternoon. There’ll be a lot of people there but I’m staying home and just watch the festivities on TV.

Update 2010-08-16

I was supposed to post this photo last 9-Aug but for some reason I forgot to do so. Took the photo from my balcony.

I’ve been extremely busy for the past couple of weeks in the office and elsewhere. I actually just arrived this morning from Manila after a 2 week vacation leave. It has been a very eventful period.

Before I left for Manila 3 weeks ago, I conducted a photo seminar for my colleagues in the bank. After the seminar, I gave all the participants three puzzles that should lead them to well known landmarks at the central business district of Singapore. Their objective was to solve the puzzles and take pictures of the correct landmarks. The winners are those who solved the puzzles and took the best pictures.

I enjoyed producing the puzzles. It was my first try to create puzzles especially in the form of poems ala the Da Vinci Code. Here are the puzzles and if you’re familiar with Singapore, try to guess what I’m referring to in each puzzle. They can all be found within the CBD; all within walking distance.

First puzzle – this one can be confused with another landmark

Friends near and far in me they abide
Secure in thought, in comfort they called
With brilliant lights I beckoned
From my towering fortresses that stand behind

Before me is a calm yet ancient river
Brought forth by the mighty guardian of old
Take me and my friends with you
But beware of the one who behold

Second puzzle – this one should be easy

I am cruel, I am wicked
My powerful arms are second to none

You come beholden by my thrill and fancy
I will grasp you until escape is nowhere found

I will toss you up and smash you down
I will swing you forth until your eyes gouge out

You will kick and scream but none will come to rescue
Until your mind is splattered, your vision dazed

Yet foolishness takes over and your strength regained
In my embrace once again you craze

Third puzzle – most difficult to guess

Alone i stand in bustling midst
My limbs raised unto the sky
In earnest I pray for my children
Their love and remembrance my cry

In my womb I carry their kin
Slumbering eternally in quiet and peace
Your birth I cherish, your dreams I fill
Till Apollo’s light turn to dim

My colleagues couldn’t believe I could write a poem. Neither did I until I finished all three. Not too bad (maybe?)

For the photos of my colleagues and the results of the competition, check them out here: http://juson.org/gallery/db20100722

Update 2010-08-16

Answers to the puzzles are as follows:

Puzzle 1 – Fullerton Hotel
Puzzle 2 – G-Max Reverse Bungee
Puzzle 3 – Civilian War Memorial

Nanay and Tatay came to visit me in Singapore a few weeks ago and they willingly became my “models” for my study of studio lighting in my apartment.

I used a cheap black cloth for my background and setup my SB900 to shoot through a white umbrella. Used my Nikon D90 and Nikkor 60mm.

I learned several things in this exercise. First, ensure my cheap background cloth is ironed thoroughly Ye, I can fix it in Photoshop but I’m too lazy. Second, I cannot fully rely on the camera’s screen for the exposure. As a result, Nanay is a bit overexposed but Tatay’s exposure, IMO, is spot on.

I will need to practice and learn to tweak my lighting some more.

In any case, I love both photos since they’ show my two most loved ones on this planet.