1st Photonski Exhibit

I always believe that it is an artist’s dream to showcase his work! Photographers are no exceptions. Each one of us, in one way or another, aspires that our photos would appear in any media whereby people would appreciate our skills.

In the good old days, painters gather their work of art in galleries to exhibit their masterpieces in the prying eyes of critiques, the coveted patrons and to clueless ordinary observers. It was a sense of fulfillment. Nothing has change though. Even in the advent of advance technology whereby artists have more avenues to display their craft – printed media, Internet, and video, - we still covet the idea of displaying our pictures in a gallery.

And when the opportunity knocks on the door of Photonski group, believe me, there was a mixed feeling of excitement, jubilation, and some reservations. For most of the members they looked at it as a chance to showcase some of their beautiful and quality pictures. For some there was a feeling of reservations because they were not convinced that their works were at par with the rest. It was now the part of the Photonski officers and advisers to weigh the pros and cons of
opportunity.

It was hard and difficult decision and after a long deliberation and consultation with the pioneers of the group, we finally decided to go for it! We agreed to showcase the life of the Filipino hence the title “Buhay Pinoy”

We know that were running against time! We barely have 15 days to prepare – collection of entries, selection, preparation and logistics – and we still have to convince the larger member of the Photonski family to participate. When the final plan was announced to the entire membership last Feb 23, we were surprised with the positive response. Not only did we received encouraging messages from the Singapore members, but also words of full support from our brothers and sisters in the US and Philippines. All in all, we received 77 entries from at least 24 photographers, and we could have gathered more if we only have enough time to wait. Upon consulting with the advisers and officers, we closed the submission and then load the entries in a

restricted Photonski web site. Now, it was the judges to decide which entries would be displayed in the exhibit.

Yes there was optimism from some quarters. We did not discount their opinion about the quality of pictures and the selection process. Instead, we listened to their suggestion and carefully considered it when we come out with the final pieces. We valued every input; after all, it is the group’s name that will be at stake.

Friday night!

With the printed pictures ready, it was time to get the frames. One by one, each beautiful work of the photographers were carefully mounted and labeled. Then we displayed them on one corner and checked for flaws.

I could not help myself but gleefully watch the pictures. It was a delightful feeling! Finally, Photonski will be conducting its first Photo Exhibit at the Gallery of Fort Canning here in Singapore.

Sunday, March 11. The day of reckoning has arrived.

The Photonski officers and the advisers – Tonton & Lito – arrived at the Gallery early. We were all dress in business attire and were obviously sweating with anticipation. Each one was unusually quiet and was standing on one corner. Deep inside ourselves, we were not sure how the audience would receive our work and how would they criticize the pictures. But the worries slowly fade away when the first salvo of audience gave approving remarks.

That was the cue. It gave back the confidence among the Photonski members and little did I know - all of them were already talking with the visitors.

We received various praises and comments. Some pictures draw potential buyers with the intention of using it for commercial purpose. Other pictures attracted the attention because it gave a nostalgic Filipiniana feeling on the audience, while other pictures simply made them smile. There were few that made lesser impact than the rest. This, I believe, is an avenue that we need to improve significantly.

What was more important… we received several invitations from various large Filipino organizations to do exhibit – including in our very own Philippine Embassy.

At the end of the day, everyone was glowing with happiness. We know that our hard work paid was rewarded handsomely with potential exposure in the near future.

Exhibit Day

I arrived at the Gallery of Fort Canning at around 12pm. I was quite ashamed that I came late and was not able to help. I know, Bong and Glenn came an hour earlier just to setup the frames, and they were the ones who arranged the pictures and ensure smooth flow for the viewers. Anyway, I called up Glenn this morning and explained why I cannot come early.

A good news greeted me when I stepped into the Gallery. Glenn was smiling and informed that Metrobank was interested with my picture, and would like to know the price. I was dumbfounded. I initially thought of giving it for free but Bong politely disagreed. He said that if I give it for free, the value of the pictures would depreciate significantly. I saw the point of Bong, so I gave an initial price of $100. Glenn suggested to increase it to $200 because the buyer intends to use it for commercial purpose.

Minutes later, I meet the prospect buyer, the General Manager of Metro Bank Singapore. I was elated when he told me that the picture captures the essence of the Overseas Filipino Workers and particularly likes the title of "Bagong Bayani". He told me that he would like to display the picture in the Branch Office at Lucky Plaza. When ask for the price, I told him that we will give him a formal quotation in his email address. He smiled, shake my hand and said that he will be expecting it.

I was really really happy!!!! Hehehe... I didn't expect that my "ugly" picture could catch a buyer.

Later in afternoon, Lester arrived. He meet with Glenn and Bong, and the rest of the Photonski officers. He congratulated us for the good effort that we put up for making the Exhibit possible. He also gave us some tips, particularly on choosing the pictures (many entries didn't pass his taste), and reminded us to be more careful with the selection. When Glenn opened up the issue on pricing, Lester reminded us to protect the copyright of our work and should not hesitate to price our work handsomely. He suggested a price of $300 or more for my "Bagong Bayani" work.

Hehehe... this one good news! My ugly duckling would fetch $300. Yes!

* * * * * * *

Many more Photonski member arrived and everyone was having fun sharing what they've done during the past few months. Aside from a casual smile and shaking of hands, I didn't spend long time with them. Not that I like rubbing elbows my my colleagues, it just that I have a more interesting agenda at hand.

There were so many pretty ladies around and I couldn't resist the temptation of flirting around. Bong and Glenn, when they saw me, just smiled and whispered "scout for TFCD!". And fortunate enough, I found three potential candidates: two nurses from National University Hospital Francesca & Edi, and a lady named Liezl.

Among the three, I like Liezl the most. She's a singer and performing with a local band here in Sg. Not only she's pretty and beautiful, oh boy, she got the body every man would die for. She's daring, confident, and definitely she's hot! She even make fun of me saying that I would certainly melt when she poses naked in front of me. I just smiled and kept my comment in myself. Hah! I'll get my last laugh during the photoshoot.

I can't wait for that day...

the entries

Friday. Crunch time!

It was already past 10am and yet there was still no response from Edsel and Franz. So, I called Glenn and informed him that there will longer be changes on yesterday's tally. And for the remaining 6 slots, I suggested that the officer will pick from the 33 stand-by entries.

Five officers participated in the straw vote and decided for the last 6 pictures to complete the 30 entries. Glenn and Bong, then proceed to Conota Photo Lab to have the picture printed. They didn't wait for the prints because they still have to report back to office. Later in the afternoon, Blenda asked me a favor to pick up the prints. I will have to bring it to Tampines for mounting. I agreed but told them that I will be late because I still have to meet Tolitz at 7pm.

When Tolitz knew that we will be mounting the pictures, he was so eager to join and help. But I advice him to go home and rest. He was having a fever that time and I was worried that this may get worse and could cost him to miss the Exhibit day. Heis much more needed on the exhibit day itself for the media interviews, than helping us mount the pictures.

I arrived at Tampines at around 8pm. We clean up the frames and started mounting the pictures. Then one by one, we clean them up and arrange it in one corner. It was tiresome but we all had fun. "So this is how to prepare an exhibit", I told myself.

And as the framed pictures increased in number we mounted two sample frames on a stand. While watching it from afar, I felt satisfied and happy. I just realized that the "ordinary" web thumbnails were actually beautiful pictures when printed and mounted in large sizes.

We finished mounting the pictures at around 2 o'clock in the morning. I counted 22 frames - 8 frames short. Blenda then informed me that two pictures from the second group were not printed because the files doesn't have enough pixels to create a good quality of large print. And the last 6 will be printed only on Saturday.

We then agreed to get 1 more entry from the stand-by and another late entry from Arjie.

Canon 24-105/f4 L IS

"In every goodbye, there is always hello", so they say. Yes, I believe it!

I let go of my Canon 17-85 lens last Monday with heavy heart. And if not of the fungus, I may have dispose of my Sigma 70-300 too. That was a goodbye to one of my precious things.

Now, I have to embrace a new hello.

I have been scouting for a lens during the past two weeks, and the item that I was looking for was the walk-around Canon 24-105/f4 L IS. This is an expensive lens and twice the price of my old Canon 17-85, but the quality is far better and the range is more flexible for street photography.

I initially thought of buying from Rick of TKFoto but with his price of over $2200, I changed my mind. Nick of TCW offered a much lower price at $300 less for cash transaction, but there is a catch. The lens is a "gray" set hence there is no local warranty, so I decided not to risk. Lords Photo also gave me a price at $2050 but cash only. Sam of Cathay Photo gave me the optimum price at $2100 and can be purchased with 12 months installment.

When I left Cathay Photo shop, I was smiling up to my ears. Hah! I now own my dream lens.

final 30

Good thing there not much work in the office. I have more than enough time finalize the exhibit entries.

I started to sort out the result from the judges. I called up Goryo to confirm his selection and discuss with him his proposal of adding subtitles to each pictures. He suggested some titles but remind me that the panel will still have the final say.

Then I called up Tolitz and discuss his selections and the merits of each pictures. We had fun as he rated each picture. If the entry was far way off, we murder the evaluation and then ends up laughing. But if the picture is good... we just sigh and said "I can do that too". We had fun and all the time we enjoyed the process of rating.

Minutes later, I received the selection from Marc. He also provided a method how to tabulate the selected entries and how to pick up the top 30.

When done, I called up Tonski. He answered softly and responded that he will just return my call because he was in a meeting. He later send me a text message stating the first 10 entries that should qualify. When I asked him why only 10, he responded that that he cannot make judgment on the rest entries because of time constraint. He was, at that time, not available due to work related emergencies.

Next was Santi. He too was busy and beg off the task. He suggested to look for a substitute. After discussing the matter with the officers, the name of Raph comes out. I immediately called Raph and gave him the URL link to judge in behalf of Santi. Raph, was very efficient. He gave his rating in less than just two hours.

I called up Franz, and we discuss the merits of the entries. His concern, which I agree, was that... most of the pictures does not reflect our exhibit theme. I explained to him that we may no longer follow the original theme but rather focus on the pictures that reflects "anything" Pinoy. We didn't finish the evaluation because my boss walks in the office. I have to put down the phone lest my boss would notice that I was doing off-office work.

Later in the afternoon, the selection from Lester came in. Same with Tolitz, Tonski and Raph, he didn't complete the 30 selection. He explained that the rest was just too off mark and should not qualify to be included in the exhibit.

Past eight in the evening, I already have the initial result of the selection. Six entries tied at the top spot and these were all voted by the judges as their best. These entries comes from Roselyn, Felimon (2), Rey Tuazon, Francis Yanga, and Marc. Then comes the second group composed of 18 entries with at least 4 votes from the judges. Next is a the bulk of 33 entries with at least 2 votes from the judges.

I advised the officers of the result and ask them to wait for the votes from Edsel and Franz. Glenn agreed and told me to recalculate the tally tomorrow morning.

Whew! we now have 24 final entries and additional 33 on stand-by.

fungus

When I bid my Canon 17-85 lens goodbye, I was also preparing myself to let go of my first lens the Sigma 70-300 f/4-5.6 APO DG Macro. Yeah, correct. I was letting go of my two lens and the main reason was to raise funds for a replacement walk-around-lens. I already had a buyer for Sigma lens and we agreed to meet at Starbucks right above city hall MRT this afternoon, but there was a big problem. There was a fungus on the rear element of the lens.

Goryo advice me not to let go of the lens on a bad condition lest I ruin my name. He reminds me that the photography community in Sg is just small. Later in the afternoon, I met Tolitz at the Raffles City mall. He checked the lens and agreed with the advice of Goryo.

No choice, I decided to cancel the transaction. I believe I have to clean up the lens first before I could dispose of the item.

huh!

entries for selection

Tuesday

With barely 6 days to go before the exhibit day, I am very very much worried. Who would be? We still have not come up with the final selection among the entries.

This morning, Tonski informed us that the initial entries were already posted in the website but warned us that it may not be complete. When I checked it, indeed, there were couple of entries that were not posted. I immediately informed Tonski about the discrepancy and ask him to rectify the matter. Tonski, during time was too tied up with work, ask me a favor to modify the page. He gave me the user account and password.

That night, I burn my candles and made sure that I have posted all submitted entries and removed all glaring identifications.

Six hour later - 2 am the following day - I submitted the final 77 entries to the predetermined judges: Marc, Lester, Edsel, Santi, Goryo, Franz, Tonski, and Tolitz.

Do you want to see the entries? hehehe... shhh.. heto basta wag lang maingay..

http://www.photonski.com/weekly/entries/all

bye 17-85 IS USM

When I love a thing, my personal belongings, I had the tendency to keep it long after its shelf life or usability. I value my "treasures" in life and make sure that I kept them in pristine condition. Would you believe that I still have my grade school report card that has a star on it? I kept it together with my notebooks, sketchbooks, poems, love letters, love cards, boy scout badges, band pins, honor ribbons, tickets to concerts, pictures of love interest and my most valued items - my diaries of 1983-1999.

Now I am old, the items I considered my treasured things are my camera, lenses and camera accessories. True to my old style, I kept my things on pristine condition and regularly clean them every weekend.

And the idea of selling one item was simply not my style. But, there's always a first time for everything, so they say. After four months of contemplating, I finally decided to let go of my Canon 17-85mm/f4-5.6 IS USM lens. It a hard decision, but with two instance that the lens failed me - first at Angkor Wat and second at Chinggay Festival - I have no choice but to salvage some value on it. I sold it to an American guy named Mark at $800. I basically lost $300 and six months more of warranty.

Huh! that was a hard decision.

bagong bayani

I am one of the prime movers for the Photonski Exhibit, but frankly I still don't have an entry. It's ironic that I am the one who actively push every member to participate yet I have none yet. Well, I am not alone though. Tonski and Tolitz doesn't have an entry too.

So the three of us decided that today, we will scout for good pictures at the Botanic Gardens. We heard that this place has been the favorite hang out of Filipino during Sundays, and we thought that we could get some pictures that could depict "Buhay Pinoy" in Sg.

I arrived at our meeting place - the Lucky Plaza - an hour early than the two guys. So I use the time to practice taking pictures at the people around. I was particularly interested on capturing a beautiful angle of a Pinay who is making a money remittance. I thought it would be an easy task but after taking more a dozen shots, I realized that it was harder than a fashion show shoot. Gee, capturing the right position at the right angle and at the right mood was really challenging. The movement of the hands - passing of the remittance money - was very fast and I could barely freeze it in my photo. Worse, the subject often times looks at the camera and smile. This spoils my objective of taking a candid picture.

An hour later, Tolitz and Tonski arrived. They too tried to take a shot at the remittance center but, like me, they couldn't make it with long lens. Tonski tried a different approach. He changed to ultra-wide lens and came near the cashier. He waited for awhile and when he saw an old Pinay giving money to the cashier, he readily take a snap. The resulting picture was really nice. The angle was good - almost fish eye rendition - and the mood of the subjects were very natural.

Desperate to get a good picture, I changed my attention to the SSS center.

I took few sample shots at different angle and studied the result. When I found one good angle, I stood there for 15 minutes and waited for the right moment. I was watching two ladies reviewing an SSS pamphlet and when they raise it (thus displaying the word Overseas Filipino Worker), I immediately lift my camera focus it to the paper and click the trigger. I did not use a flash to avoid attention but still the ladies saw me and throw me a dagger look. Hehehe.. I slowly move away to preclude trouble.

Three hours later, we leave Lucky Plaza and proceed to the Botanic Gardens. We move around to check for beautiful spots but didn't got one. Instead, we befriend some Pinays who gamely offered us food and drinks. They are nice and jolly to talk with. We enjoyed their company too much that we eventually forgot to take more pictures. That's why we left home with no pictures from the Botanic Garden.

We parted ways. Tolitz went home at Geylang while Tonski proceed to Jurong.

After we announce to the entire membership that we will be conducting a photo exhibit on Mar 11, we were flooded with suggestions and reactions.

Among those who are very loud was Francis who insisted that conducting an exhibit at this point of time is very premature. His line of argument was that an exhibit should showcase the best of an artist or for this case, the best of the group, and should have a "Wow" effect to the viewer. His concern was that if we do it prematurely, we may leave a bad first impression and would not be healthy to the group.

I tried to explain that this exhibit is not a high profile event. In fact, the audience would be just ordinary Pinoy who may not appreciate what photography is all about. I argued that we taking this opportunity to let the Filipino community in Singapore knows that there is an existing photography group that is 100% pinoy. More than that, we would also like to gain experience of how to conduct an exhibit. But, Franz didn't buy my arguments. He called me in the phone and expressed his objection on the event.

Most pioneers - particulary Marc & Edsel - endorsed the exhibit and strongly suggested to proceed with the activity. According to them, this is one chance for Photonski to gain public exposure and experience for an eventual grand exhibit. Well, after the emails of Marc, Franz started to tone down.

It was also Francis who insinuated that he may not be worthy to submit an entry because the original member and the award winning members are submitting. Marc, immediately cut him, and cleared that any member can contribute whether he/she is a newbie or pioneer. Franz, being a gentleman, apologized saying he didn't meant it and was just jesting.

Despite of all the criticisms and negative comments, I salute the officers and advisers for maintaining their composure. Glenn had been calling me over the phone almost everyday to check the status of the gallery, and was actively canvassing for frames and stand. Bem and Charlotte, on the other hand, was busy making follow up of the entries. Honestly, I was a bit ashamed because I could not help them for the logistics because of my work schedule.

Anyway, we still have a week to pull a miracle. This will work, I know!

game over

Last day!

I already gave up all hopes that Kelly would release me to CA without the necessary liquidation fee. Lai already told me yesterday that CA is not willing to pay for any fee for my release. Robert on the other hand, informed me this morning that if I opted to join CA by myself without the necessary clearance, they would charge me 25% of my salary for the past 2 years!

Damn! that's a lot and lots of money and I cannot afford that.

Late in the afternoon, I went to Kelly office and meet Shemaiah and Robert. They explained to me that as of today, I have no choice but take the status quo. Meaning, no salary increase, same benefits, and only six months contract renewal. They understood that I am about to loose over $1500 salary differential if I drop my plans of going for direct contract with CA.

Robert understood my predicament. He acknowledge that May last year, I gave up the opportunity to work with Starhub and a salary of $6k on the premise that Kelly will help me gave my PR. He noted that we have a verbal agreement to finish the contract and after that, he
will let me go. But, he said that our verbal agreement may not hold water because I have a signed contract with Kelly with specifically prohibit me from joining CA in the next three months after contract termination.

Shemaiah who was fully supportive of me promised to help me to get a perm job from another company. She asked for my updated resume so she can profile it immediately.

I felt sad, but I have no choice. I agreed to the status quo. I left the Kelly office with heavy heart.

Tsk tsk tsk... I just lost $1700 monthly increase!

deceit

Peps,

If ever you will see me walk out when Jared is around, please understand. I just don't want to see the guy again. Not only he put me in trouble for so many times, he didn't value the friendship that I showed to him. You all know how hard he hit on me on the forum yet I just ignore it and even tolerated him. I fully regret this allowance.

Several weeks ago, someone name Cool Carlos tried to solicit my opinion regarding Jared. He insinuated that Jared is a "pinoy guy with an attitude" and even provide the Jared's Flickr site.

My mistake, my stupid mistake,.. I answered his email and agreed with him. All I wanted was to tell Carlos that even if Jared has attitude problem, he is nice and okay in person. I even exulted Jared for his skills and talents in Java, and put an ending that "That what friends are for". If I overextend on concluding that Jared has less than a handful of friends, that I admit was a careless analysis.

By the way... when I send the email to Carlos, I called up Jared through the phone and inform him about my write up. My intention was to tell Jared that someone was hitting him and I was there to stand for him.

Then two Sundays ago, someone informed me that I have offended Jared and for that I need to ask for apologies. Clueless, I tried to pick up the pieces of what I have done during the past days... but being a friend, I didn't wait for an answer, I immediately send a text message of apology. The following day, I got a call asking me if I already called Jared and ask for apology? I could have done that - pick up the phone and apologize. But the caller said a parting word that gave me a wake up bang. The person on the other line told me that I was trying
to project a good image at the expense of a friend.

I just kept my silence, and suffered mental anguish for the whole two weeks. I couldn't fathom why my email reached Jared. Then today, I witnessed a heated arguments on several threads at PinoyITdotSg yahoogroup. Cool Carlos and Maximo Reyes were the common denominator that eventually lead to the expulsion of the two in the group. It turns out, Cool Carlos and Maximo Reyes were the alter ego of Jared.

I was so naive! He is not a friend but a sick guy. How deceitful is he to assume someone's identity and bully himself. He lift his chair and didn't care if he was already hitting his friend.

I am remorseful that I ever consider him my friend.

Jorge

P.S.

Here's the email that offended Jared and he said I need to beg for his "forgiveness"

Cool Carlos wrote:

Date: Wed, 31 Jan 2007 23:08:34 -0800 (PST)
From: Cool Carlos
Subject: Re: [pinoyITdotSG] Re: OT: FHM Girl Next Door
To: Jorge Nathaniel

<!-- DIV {margin:0px;} -->

Hi Jorge,

Hehehe, serious ka pala talaga sa photography. Bakit naman "sad to say" na photo buddy mo sya? Paano ka napahamak dahil sa kanya? Nilaglag ka ba nya sa bangin? hehehe just kidding sir ah.

Hmmm, maybe I need to correct you if he has less than handful of friends. Baka nga pag tinawagan ko 'to hindi na ko kilala nito sa sobrang dami ng fans nito eh. Dito lang sa SG maraming connections yan, small world lang talaga.

Anyway sige, baka pumasok na rin ako sa photography. Thanks

Cheers,
Carlos

----- Original Message ----
From: Jorge
Nathaniel
To: wxb102_rocks@yahoo.com
Sent: Thursday, February 1, 2007 1:20:46 PM
Subject: Re: [pinoyITdotSG] Re: OT: FHM Girl Next Door

Hi Carlos,

Thanks nga pala sa comment mo on my post about FHM.

Mukhang kilala ko na yung "pinoy guy with an attitude" and sad to say... he is my photo buddy. Nabasa ko kase sa thread ":Looking for Jared was Re: Group Subscription Rules" at na deduce ko lang ng siya nga yata ang
tinutukoy natin.

You are right, he really has an attitude and for several occassions, napahamak na ako dahil sa kanya - sa clubsnap, sa photonski, at maging during fashion shows. Sa photography group namin, we all acknowledge na may BIG ATTITUDE problemtalaga ang taong ito at alam ng lahat lagi na lang na kick out sa mga yahoo groups.

If you know him in person, mabait naman siya - just don't let him write at magbabago ang personality nya! hehehe... kidding! He has a touch of briliance basta Java ang pag uusapan. He is also "good" in photography, at kasabayan ko siya when I started. Kasama ko siya sa mga photo shoot (at lagi ako napapaaway).

He has less than a handful of friends - close friends - and we stick not because we agree with him but because of the contrary. Slowly, binibigyan namin yan ng advice na mag hinayhinay kase nadadamay ang iba pang pinoy sa Sg. We are hopeful that this guy will eventually be a "better person". That what friends are for, di ba?

Wish us luck.

Thanks

Jorge

wxb102_rocks wrote:

Hi Jorge,

How many years have you been shooting? Just curious, cause I really
saw some "FHM Material" shot by some "pinoy guy with an attitude" here
in Singapore.

If you want to see his works I can send it to you privately.

But honestly you got some cool snapshots here. ;)

Cheers,
Carlos Lamiguin
Senior AJAX Developer/Project Manager
RIA Technologies
"Some Like it Hot"

--- In pinoyITdotSG@ yahoogroups. com, "wackoyacky :)"
wrote:
>
> pero much better naman compared last year, last year walang FHM
material as
>
in! mapamukha or mapakatawan alang-ala, at least ngayon madaming
magaganda
> at sexy ahihihihi
>
> On 1/30/07, Jorge Nathaniel wrote:
> >
> > hehehe... sa totoo lang, napaka hirap humanap ng "FHM material"
dun sa
> > mga contestants nila. Out of 100, less than 10 lang ang may "K"
> >
> >
> > Kasmot > wrote:
> > kanais nais, mapang akit at yummm... masarap! inyo na ho yung
> > ewan..., bakser at nakakatakot. . awoo!!! nyak!nyak!nyak!
> >
> > --- In pinoyITdotSG@ yahoogroups. com
, "EA
> > TANK" wrote:
> > >
> > > pwede n ko sa "malulusog" at "hmmm" :-)
>
> >
> > > On 1/30/07, ToReRo wrote:
> > > >
> > > > hmmm... sir.. kung kame ang kukuha? magkano? =D
> > > >
> > > > On 1/30/07, Jorge Nathaniel > 40yahoo.com> >
> > > > wrote:
> > > > >
> > > > > peps... apologies for the off topic. pa comment & critique
> > naman sa kuha
> > > > > ko:
> > > > >
> > > > > http://www.photonsk i.com/sons_ of_jorge/ FHM_Caltex
> > > > >

>

---

Food fight? Enjoy some healthy debate
in the Yahoo! Answers Food & Drink Q&A.

beautiful pinays in sg

Trying to shed off some scales of sins, I attended church service this morning! Good thing, I didn't burn when I entered the worship place. hehehe... just kidding. Honestly, I still do go to church at least twice a month. It used to be weekly but a sinner like me, always had a tendency to go wayward. I am just thankful that He really loves me because despite of walking a sinful life, He had always pulled me back to light!

The sermon was nice as it was appropriate for my current dilemma - forgive your enemies even if they cut you short. I admit, I still bear the pain and anger of what happened to me yesterday. But upon hearing the Word, a soothing feeling crawled onto my heart and release me from my resentments. It was a nice feeling and it was fulfilling. Now, I could start my week with smile and optimism.

I meet some friends after the church service. As usual, Che and some friends were there and so as Arjie. I was on my way out when I saw Carlos together with his colleagues in lifegroup. They told me that they are going for a photoshoot this afternoon with Arjie, and... ask me if I could join. I was hesitant at first but thinking that I have no schedule activity for the day, I decided to join with them.

We reached the place at around 4pm and immediately setup our external flash gun for a CLS configuration. Well, we were not that lucky today. Our setup didn't work as planned so we modified the set and position our models near the window to make use of ambient light. After some test and ensuring the right aperture settings, we started the photo session.

It was fun! I shoot 12 beautiful ladies and 3 handsome gentlemen.

I didn't feel any bored nor tired and all I could remember was the excitement of getting the models on the right mood and angle. I admit, it was challenging to take good shot for models who never had experience with photo sessions. Nevertheless, the day was fruitful and memorable.

For my brethren in Christ, here's your pics.

http://www.photonski.com/sons_of_jorge/Lifegroup

FHM - Sg version

You may not believe me but honestly, I am no fan of FHM magazines. I find the girls in the pictures too flawless and too perfect they would not exist in real life. The stories are also too exaggerated most of it was tailor fitted just to satisfy the machismo of a typical "non-performing" boys. Well, I am more of an "action" type and wouldn't settle for reading and daydreaming.

But today, I changed my opinion! Hehehe. Yesterday, I got a tip from a fellow photo buddy that the local version of FHM Girl Next Door contestants would be presented at the Caltex House. That's just great. The place was just a block away from my current assignment, and without second thought, I brought my gears with me. (Imagine an office guy with tie carrying a big black heavy backpack!).

I missed the opening because the show started exactly at 12pm. Work was just too hectic and critical and I could not leave my colleague until all the work were completed. I didn't miss that much, though. And according to my buddy, there's nothing to see anyway. The contestant were just introduced in groups of 10 and were just asked to pose.

Well, the contestants were still around... individually posing for the photographers and male audiences. There were several dozens of them and were all trying to get as much votes from the on lookers. Not all contestants were FHM material. Of the 100 ladies, I could count with only my hands that I think are worthy. The rest were sad to say, should join a Halloween party.

You think I'm kidding? Here's one sample. Ah... on the contrary, I'll not post the picture here. It's just too scary. Just follow this link instead:

http://www.photonski.com/images/135040

There were few who stands out above the rest - three to be exact. And as expected, all the photographers were like bees circling these ladies. At first, I tried to join them but I realize, there was no point taking pictures if there were people on the background. It would just ruin the photo. So I change strategy. I went on the backstage and befriend the organizers. Ako pa! I easily got access. Few minutes later, one lady came in to rest. I smiled at her and ask if she would like to get a vote in exchange for a pose. With no hesitation, the lady gladly poses and gave me a beautiful smile. After few pictures, I let her take her rest. I know she was tired and it wouldn't be nice if I bother her.

I just stayed on the backstage. I know, these ladies will eventually get back. And I was right! After 30 minutes in that place, I have taken pictures of at least 15 ladies. Of course, not of all them are good pictures. I could not refuse when someone would volunteer to pose, even if I don't like it. I don't want to appear picky. Anyway, i'll delete the pictures when I reach home. hehehe.

Here's my favorite FHM babe:

More pictures in

http://www.photonski.com/sons_of_jorge/FHM_Caltex

countdown 2007

Yep, I was alone in Singapore but I greeted the brand new year together with over a hundred thousand strangers at the Marina Bay. Countdown celebrations were everywhere. Sentosa got one and was ideal for the beach party goers, Vivo city for the young and yuppies, at the National Museum for the artistically-inclined crowd, Clark Quay for the "hot" party goers, and of course the Marina Bay for the family and general crowd.

I initially planned to stay at Vivo city knowing that Media Corp will be throwing in a party. For sure, there celebrities will litter the place and I thought, this could be a good chance for me to shoot beautiful people and be with the young crowd. There just one problem though. I don't have a ticket ( I didn't know I need one)... hehehe... so no choice I went back to the Marina Bay. Fireworks would be much spectacular, I console myself!

I arrived at the Esplanade at around 9pm. To my surprise, I saw an ocean of people sprawling all over the place from the edge of the breakwater up to the entrance of Esplanade. I was expecting fewer people because there was drizzle that occasionally turns to short rain shower. Huh! And I was late to get a good spot at the Nicolls Highway Bridge - you can even get through.

No other option left, I decided to go up the Benjamin Sheares Bridge. It's a good spot because it captures the Singapore Skyline but with one hitch - you need to walk/climb for over a kilometer. That's would be challenging if you carry a 15-kilo camera gears and tripod.

Well, the effort pays off. Not only I have taken beautiful and spectacular fireworks, I also captured beautiful photos of the Singapore Skyline.

Here's the sample of Singapore Skyline during the first salvo of fireworks.

More beautiful fireworks photos in my website...

http://www.photonski.com/sons_of_jorge/NewYear2007