Playing around the pool

I borrowed an Olympus Stylus Tough this weekend and had a blast taking shots underwater,  if only I wasn't having more fun with my niece and nephew, I would have taken more shots.  After a few minutes in Photoshop, I got the shots below.

I really am digging underwater shots.  Hopefully I could put this to more artistic use. :)

rb

What 2 years of Blogging has Done to Me

Honestly, I haven't really made a lot of improvement in my pictures (technical aspect), but I think my pictures from the last 12 months have more emotion, and means a lot more to me.  I think that's because of the efforts that I have made to make those pictures that meant more than the actual image.  Wether it's going on a crowded bus for a 10-hour drive north to take photos of a tribe, or going out and shooting goddesses in a meadow, or going to the US and seeing great architecture like the one above.  It's the journey that I have taken and the effort that I have put in to capture those images is what  I remember when I look at them.

Last year I listed down my favorite posts of my first year.  This year I'll list down my most favorite photos from the last 12 months not because I think they look nice, but because they remind me vividly of how I took them. 

The Elderly Ifugao Woman

25 hours total travel time, in a cramped bus where the only way to sleep was to lay on one side with your leg by your chest. That wasn't fun at all, but after this old lady smiled at the camera, all of that went away.  This was the only time she smiled at me, and I cherished it.

And the Winner is.....

This one was sweet, not because the photo won the contest, but because this kids in this photo has been using this and the series of pictures in their Facebook and profile for promoting themselves.  I would like to do more of these for deserving, unknown to the general public athletes.   I already won long before I entered the contest.

My First U.S. Bass

Now, this was really sweet.  Got this guy on my first cast.  What a rush.  This won't probably happen again so I better save this photo for the archives.

Fog, Fog and More Fog

This to me is a great photo.  Took me 2 days to learn and apply the fog in Photoshop, so that added more meaning to it.  Once I perfected it, I was able to apply that to the rest of the set in less than a few minutes per photo.  This was also the first time I started visualizing the shot on paper, rather than just imagining it in my head.  That helped me make the right set up for editing later.

One Lucky Shot

Got this with one shot.  Amazingly....lucky.  Couldn't have asked a better shot than that.

A Soon to be Model

This had to be the best news I have ever had.  A couple of months from now, she'll be in my arms.  She's such a beautiful girl that daddy already have so many plans for her first photo shoot.  She's the most wonderful thing I have ever received, and my wife and I can't wait to see her.

I have had so many changes in my life the last 12 months. I hope my 3rd year of blogging will document it better, with hopefully, more posts than the last 2 years combined.

rb

7th Month - Mother and Child

She's almost 8 months now, and I just had her 7th month picture taken. It's been a hectic few weeks.  I hope I can take another photo this week or the next for her 8th month, so I could at least be on time for once.

I took a step away from the usual "tummy" shots I've been taking.  I guess I wanted to focus more on her for this month.  It's not just about the baby, it's also about the one carrying the baby, right?  I think this photo is very meaningful to me. Out of the 20 or so shots I took, this was the only one that looked like they were talking and having a moment. It's like mom telling her baby to smile for the photo. :)  It  was just for a few seconds and I'm glad I was able to capture it.


rb

An Incredible and Inspiring 18-year Photography Project

Photos copyright Darcy Padilla

I stumbled on this yesterday while looking for some inspiration on a project.  This has got to be the most touching set of pictures I have ever seen.  It's about the life of a mother's experience through poverty, addiction AIDS and death.  This is also a story of one person's (the photographer) documentation of one's life unadulterated, and true to the very essence of the word. I would tell you the story myself, but it is best if you see it for yourself..

ALthough I got a little depressed after reading her story,  I can't say enough about the dedication and commitment of the photographer.  Here she documents someone else's life through everything.  I couldn't imagine how hard it would have been for the photographer's last set of photos in September of 2010.  I thought that she told Julie's story very well, while showing the world how life really is in this side of society.

rb

A Tribute to My Inspirations

Having a pregnant wife at home means less time shooting/blogging and more time cuddling and checking out the latest baby movements, which I like.  I haven't gone into a hiatus yet (maybe in 2 months time), but future posts will be short and maternity/baby related.  For now I'll leave you with some of my favorite photographers and their blogs to read.  Some I have featured here before, and some new for you to read.  This gives me more time to rub my wife's baby bump and play music to my baby. :)


John Keatley

I absolutely love this man's work and the way he lights people.  Subtle but with impact.  Love to read his blog too. 

Drew Gardner

I featured Drew here before, so make sure you check out his blog.

Bert Stephani

I love his blog and his behind the scenes videos.  Here's one for your viewing pleasure:

JoeyL

Yeah sure, he got really famous for his work on the Twilight, but don't let that fool you.  He's more talented (and younger) than you might think.

That's it for now.  We will be getting our baby's 4d ultrasound video sooner than expected, so hopefully I can post that next time.

rb

6th Month - Better late than Never

I know that technically its her 7th month, but this would have to do.  Why did I not have a photo of her actual sixth month? It's a combination of employee annual reviews, never ending home chores and laziness.  Anyway, here are some more photos. 

As always, click the pic to see it bigger. :)

I am Blessed

Meet Baby Sophie, the soon-to-be newest addition to the family.  After seeing truly amazing photographs from David Hobby to JoeyL, these photos have got to be the most heartwarming and breathtaking photos I've ever seen.  She is so beautiful, even in harsh light and a very low-res camera. She was very cooperative and even showed us her tongue while we were watching her (more pics and video coming in 10-15 business days we were told, I guess doctors don't prioritize editing as much as photographers do)

We're on the home stretch of this very exciting time in our lives, But I know there's another journey waiting for us when Baby Sophie takes her first peek at the outside world. 

It's a Girl!

It's been really tough to blog lately.  End of the year performance reviews are nasty, but I think having a pregnant wife at home makes it even harder to blog.  I'm late wit hthe 6th month maternity photo of my wife, and I haven't even made my 2011 photography goals.  But you know what, I'm not bothered about all that stuff as of the moment.  Because all I know is that I'm having a baby girl.

She had her chin up, and it looks like she was looking into the ray of light. That's modeling 101 for you right there, making the light work for you. :) I can't wait to see her.  I have my very own model in the making.  We'll be having a 4D ultrasound soon, so you'll see her soon enough.

5th Month - Curiosity

This is an overdue photo of my wife's 5th month of pregnancy.  She's almost on her 6th month which means we will know its gender by next week.  I'm not sure if I want to know by that time, wait until the 7th month 4D ultrasound or wait until the baby comes out.  All I know is I can't wait to see what 2011 has in store for me and my family. 

I hope everyone will have a safe New Year.

On Location Photography by Drew Gardner BTS video

Drew Gardner Workshop at Bert Stephani HQ Belgium from drew gardner on Vimeo.

 If you don't know who this guy is yet, then you better drop by his excellent site and blog now!  Drew is one of my favorite photographers and was the inspiration for the Mythology shoot I did a month ago.  I grabbed this video from his site, which is also available in Bert Stephani's blog, who himself is an excellent photographer and one of my faves as well. Drew had a on location photography seminar in Belgium (where Bert lives) and the video was a little behind the scene look at how Drew works.  Drew has done a series of photos with a forest theme which are absolutely my favorites.  Here's a  BTS video of some of his recent Forest shoots:


Drew Gardner Zebra Shoot Teaser from drew gardner on Vimeo.

You'll see in the video that he uses a fog machine, some big light modifiers and real animals (that's right, animals).  I love that look, but I don't have any of the above mentioned gear (not counting that he uses a $10,000++ phase one camera), so I just added my fog/smoke in Photoshop. Here's some more of Drew's forest photos compared to my Mythology photos:

Drew:

Copyright Drew Gardner

 Me:

Drew:

 Copyright Drew Gardner

Me:

 



Drew:

Copyright Drew Gardner

Me:

Okay, I know that my photos are way, way out of Drew's league (in all aspects), but the point is the lack of gear shouldn't stop you from trying.  After a few Photoshop "fog tests", I was happy with the results then applied it to the photos.  And besides, during the seminar in Belgium in the top most video, it seems that they just added the fog/smoke in Photoshop as well. At the end of the day, the only thing that matters is that you're happy with your results.  Have fun shooting!

Related:

Drew Gardner's Site and Blog - favorites are the Epic Fashion series, as well as the Fairy tale themed ones
Bert Stephani's site - very informative and very cool "strobist" related videos