One bright, shining moment

June 5th, 2011 No comments

 

I wonder if strike-anywhere
matches will work on
a bridge that I’ve crossed
a year ago after we helped
build a regime. We were sent
home, and left forgotten.

- June 5, 2011

Categories: Other Stories Tags:

Nagbabagang Lupa

June 4th, 2011 No comments

“Walang bulaklak sa burol ng dukha,
pawang natabunan ng biro at luha,
sa ilalim ng lupa’y nilugmok ang bangkay
diyan nagmumula ang tamis ng halaman”

mga unang linya sa kanta ng Patatag noong 1985.
Noong panahong nasa rurok ang pakikibaka laban kay Makoy.

“Pulutin mo ang punlong may bahid pa ng dugo
ipahid ang basang tela sa sumabog niyang puso
alaala ito ng mga luha alaala ito ng nagbabagang lupa”

ang panapos na linya sa kanta ng Patatag noong 1985.
Ngayon ay bibigyan daw ng Full Military Honors si Makoy.

————
June 4, 2011
Paranaque City

Basura

June 4th, 2011 No comments

The garbage collectors come stealthily
like thieves in the day.
But once in a while they blow their horns,
an unmistakable reminder
that it is Saturday.

—————-
June 4, 2011
Paranaque City

Categories: Family and Me Tags:

Himlay

May 30th, 2011 No comments

patak ng ulan sa gabi,
sabay ng kalmadong kulog,
uyayi sa pagtulog.

————————
- May 30, 2011 (Paque)

Categories: Family and Me Tags:

I *heart* Film Photograpy

March 19th, 2011 No comments

I love film photography, and I share Rasmus Rasmussen‘s top 5 reasons for loving it:

1. No Chimping

By not being able to check every picture, immediately after shooting it, you can focus on what you are about to photograph, rather than what you just shot. Less chimping means a sharper mind, and keeping a sharper mind will make for better images. Plus, if you chimp too much around actual living subjects, chances are they’ll lose patience and get tired or annoyed.

2. Frame Limit

Because you only have relatively few frames per roll of film, people tend to concentrate more on getting the shot. This is in sharp contrast to the digital mentality of clicking away and trying to sort through the results later. If you only have a limited number of shots, you’ll want each one to be as good, as it can possibly be.

3. Random Elements

This is especially true for those of us who enjoy playing with Holgas, Polaroids, box and toy cameras. With these, there’s always a chance that something strange and wonderful will happen to your picture, such as light leaks, vignetting, colors that are slightly off and so on. Very often, these random elements will add beauty and uniqueness to the final result.

4. True Black and White

It’s easy enough to desaturate a digital photo in post processing, but it’s really not comparable to shooting in black and white. I love film grain in B/W photos, but if it’s digitally added, it just doesn’t look right. But more importantly, if you know you are shooting in black and white, you can keep it in mind when composing your shot, to get the most out of any contrasts and shapes in the frame. Something that’s easy to forget if you’re shooting a digital color photo, which you may or may not convert later.

5. The Romantic Factor

Have you ever heard the sound a Hasselblad makes, when its curtain shutter goes off? It’s a wonderful, thick sound. How about the feel of a metal lever against your thumb, as you manually forward the film in an oldschool rangefinder camera? The slight resistance as it advances to the next frame. Ever had that doubt, that you might have positioned the number in the little red window a little too far to the right? These are all romantic reasons for loving film photography, and I am a sucker for them. There’s just something magical about these mechanical devices.

So there you have it. I’m sure there are more reasons to love film photography, just as there are reasons to love digital. This is just my personal top 5 list. Yours might look different, but you’ll only know if you pick up a camera and get to work.

Click on the links below to view my film Photo Albums on Facebook:

Canonet Album:
Photos taken with a 1969 produced (by Canon Japan), CANONET QL17 35mm Rangefinder.

Monochrome World:
My adventures in black and white film photography.
1972 MINOLTA Hi-MATIC F with Rokkor 38mm f/2.7 lens | Lucky (Black and White Print Film) ISO100

Mga Kuha ni Kala:
Shots taken with a compact view finder film camera, Minolta FREEDOM Zoom 125. Her name Kala is the brevity for the filipino word Kalayaan, or Freedom in English.

Oly 4 U:
Moments, events, things and people…captured by Oly. Oly is my little Olympus µ[mju:]-II ZOOM 80. A compact viewfinder film camera, with a fixed 35 mm f/2.8 lens and an active AF system.

LOTA’s Weltanschauung:
My adventures in film photography using a vintage compact rangefinder, 1972 MINOLTA Hi-MATIC F with Rokkor 38mm f/2.7 coated lens. Meet my little friend, LOTA!

My Happy Adventures with FE:
This album is my happy experience of capturing moments and images with an old Nikon FE with 55mm f/2.8 micro-Nikkor lens.

Categories: Sports and Hobbies Tags:

Happy Seventh Birthday, Maia!

February 14th, 2011 No comments

May God bless and keep you always
May your wishes all come true
May you always do for others
And let others do for you

May you build a ladder to the stars
And climb on every rung
May you stay forever young
May you stay forever young.

May you grow up to be righteous
May you grow up to be true
May you always know the truth
And see the lights surrounding you

May you always be courageous
Stand upright and be strong
May you stay forever young
May you stay forever young.

May your hands always be busy
May your feet always be swift
May you have a strong foundation
When the winds of changes shift

May your heart always be joyful
And may your song always be sung
May you stay forever young
May you stay forever young.

HAPPY SEVENTH BIRTHDAY, OUR DEAREST MAIA!
We love you very much, -  Amah, Mommy, Kuya Pax, Kuya Maui and Ate Bebing

Categories: Family and Me Tags:

MSU on my mind

January 7th, 2011 No comments


Sitting on a tee mount
at the golf course,
while the cool breeze
blows over the grass
and carries the smell
of new cut grass
right at you.

My Man, to feel the fresh dew,
the wonderful smell of grass,
and the glorious sight to behold
will blow your mind.
MSU campus will stick
to your memories – like roaches
that you always keep,
to fumble and look for
later.

- criocksz –

Categories: My Mindanao Tags: