My Day In 50mm

Well, not exactly 50mm, since on a camera like mine it becomes 80mm (see crop factor). Sometimes I wish it could be wider, like Gelsen's Sigma 30mm f1.4.

Back to the story, yesterday I decided to bring my camera and nifty-fifty to work. Gelsen and I were supposed to do a photowalk on our way for lunch, but bad weather sort of changed our plans. We were still able to take some pictures, but to maximize my camera I just took photos of the things I saw in the office. Random stuff that is.

I'm beginning to love this lens again. It's really small and light, plus the bokeh and colors it produce are just awesome. I just wish it could be a bit wider.

Anyway, please check out my gallery here. I didn't bother do post processing, just resized and posted them right away. I feel like I could do more damage if I altered some of the settings.

What Is This For?

Front of the box.

Back of the box.

There are so many weird things from Japan, this one included. I was with Gelsen and Raphy this afternoon at Saizen, a new Japanese thrift store in Robinsons Galleria, when we saw this thing along with other toys. Toys for kids, that is.

If you look at the pictures carefully, it's a duck that supposed to be worn like a condom. Why? I have no clue. I'll leave that to your imagination. Oh, there were also man-boobs on sale there.

Thanks to Raphy and his mobile phone for the pictures. And even with these weird stuff on sale, Saizen is still worth a visit, with lots of bargain items available.

Hodgepodge

One tiring week. That's how I describe the past few days, and I'm not even sure why. Apart from celebrating my birthday last Thursday, I can't think of anything that makes this week different.

So instead of creating individual posts, I guess for now I'll combine everything in just one writeup. It's like combining my stories for the week.

"Shuttered" Vision

Shutter shades. I just don't get them. Mom brought home some from Singapore, and I can't believe I actually tried to wear one. Mom actually gave Roxanne a red pair.

Grandma, mom, and Roxanne wearing shutter shades.

Asides the weird eye wear, mom also got us some pasalubong. Mine were a nifty Casio G-Shock Gulfman and a new camera/laptop backpack.


By the way, the pictures above were taken from Solihiya in Greenbelt 5 last Monday. Solihiya is a restaurant that serves Filipino cuisine. Besides the great food, you also get excellent service and a great view of Greenbelt 3.


This one on the other hand was taken outside Greenbelt 5.

Car Trouble

The auxiliary fan of my car went kaput, and thankfully I had some time to have it repaired last Tuesday. Thanks to the guys at L.E. Gallego Auto Parts for taking time to repair my car (although it was quite expensive since they had to replace the fan). So in case you're in the Blumentritt area in Manila and are having some car trouble, check them out.

I would also like to thank Mandy' Car Wash and Auto Detailing, located a few blocks away from L.E. Gallego. Not only did they fix my bumper, they also did a great job of cleaning my car. I have never seen an engine that clean, and my engine was really dirty to begin with.

Fiery Birthday

My birthday was the usual. I went to work and had a little drink in the evening. What makes it memorable is what happened a few moments after midnight.


As you can see, those are firetrucks. Yes, a fire broke out in our area, thankfully it wasn't near, but the sight of firetrucks piling up in front of our house was enough to give us some scare.


Sorry for the grainy pictures, they were taken with a phone camera.

Mall of Asia

We never get tired of SM Mall of Asia. I was supposed to meet up with the JETS, but they left a bit early, probably exhausted from joining the International Coastal Cleanup Day. I wanted to join them on this one, but I had some conflict with my schedule (which didn't materialize anyway, too bad).

Mall of Asia's silent observer.

So instead Roxanne and I just enjoyed the ongoing sale. We also chanced up on KC Concepcion, who was promoting her new album.

Another Loss

Rabeh Al-Hussaini of Ateneo is just insanely good. La Salle lost for the third time to bitter rival Ateneo this year, and if they don't win on Thursday, the blue side of things will get the crown.

Ateneo really has the edge this season. As they say, the guy with the biggest stick usually wins. Having Rabeh in the Blue Eagles' roster is like that, with spikes to boot. I hope La Salle's big men can boost their confidence come Game Two.

I guess all I have to do is keep the faith. Animo La Salle!!!

Nifty Fifty

I miss taking pictures, I mean, I miss going places and just shooting away. It's either bad weather, too much work, or just plain laziness (sometimes sleeping all day is just too much to resist). My plan for today was supposed to be a solo trip to Manila Zoo, my 400D was really screaming for action, it's been inside a makeshift drybox for weeks. But as luck would have it, it was raining since yesterday and my body was screaming for some sleep.

So to kill the itch, I grabbed my 400D from the drybox and bonded it with a familiar friend: the Nifty Fifty. It's actually an alias to the 50mm f1.8 lens (regardless of brand). It's cheap (around PHP4000.00), but performs well, especially in low light. Sometimes, I find its colors more vivid than my other more expensive lenses. Although not intended for macro work, it can still produce some nice closeup images.

It's actually one of my first lenses (the other being the kit lens), and for a time I extensively used this lens, until I invested in my first professional lens. It's a really fun lens, and it really trains you to compose and zoom with your feet. And the wide opening can produce some really nice bokeh.

The faucet shot above inspired me to use this lens again. I was in the bathroom doing... maybe it's better not to go into detail on that one. Anyway, I was in the bathroom when I noticed this mundane faucet (which is actually leaking) and I had a mental picture. I decided to include the watch and the lens cap, just for fun.

Hopefully, I can go on a real photo adventure again soon.

Macro With Wedding Rings

Jhen loves giraffes. And thanks to destination wedding photographers Mimi and Karl, I was inspired to do something similar. They may not be the best macro wedding pictures (hey, they were shot using a makeshift setup in Jhen's office), but at least we had fun trying to become wedding photographers for that day.

Thanks again to Jhen and Don for letting me shoot these sacred objects. More pictures here.

School Spirit, The Adidas Way

I really couldn't pass up on this one. I'm a sucker for Adidas apparel, especially if my school is on it. I think it's for a local version of the Basketball Is A Brotherhood campaign. It features La Salle and rival school Ateneo. There are shirts, caps, and several kinds of jackets. I got the game jacket. I was actually one of the first to grab this item, they were just unloading the goods when I passed by their store.

Excluding my PE uniform back in the day, this is the first time i bought clothing with "La Salle" written on it. I always wanted to buy something La Salle, may it be a jacket, shirt, or something else. Now that Adidas is sponsoring the Green Archers, I guess it's time to join the bandwagon.

I really like the jacket, well maybe except for two things. First, like most Adidas gear, it's quite pricey. Second is the weird "Asian size". I'm usually an M, but for this one, i got it in XL, and the fit really feels awkward, at least for me. I had a hard time choosing the right size. But I'm still happy with it.

Now all I need is a ticket for Sunday's game.

Macro Attempts

I haven't seen Kung Fu Panda yet, but the main character is just so adorable that I had to get one from McDonald's (as part of their Happy Meal). Turns out this toy inspired me to shoot some macro.

I don't have a good macro setup, basically I just rely on my G5 (since I don't have a dedicated macro lens for my 400D), an old desk lamp, and the LED of my old K750i. I actually took pictures of this rig, but decided not to post them since I think I can still do some improvements on my work.

Anyway, you can check the rest of the gallery here. Pardon me if they're not the best, I'm still learning.

Mini Turtle

Writing source codes suck, and this little resin turtle kept me company last Thursday. Just one of those weird things that I want to share.

Happy Mother's Day

To my mom, Happy Mother's Day! Enjoy your new Buddha.