Making the leaf

This is something that I entered in a photo contest. Sadly, it didn't win but I'm still proud of it. Anyway, here's a walk-through of how I did the shot after the jump.

YongNuo RF-602

Ever since I've started using my flashes off-camera, I've always been on the look out for reliable trigger/receiver sets for my speedlites. Suffice to say, I have tried a lot of methods -- even utilized my on camera flash as a master and using ETTL mode.  

Here's the thing: I've never been a fan of ETTL. It's like having 2 drivers taking control of a single car. When using my flashes off-camera, even when I'm outdoors, I've always used Manual because it's something I found that I have a lot of control over. Never been fond of setting the +/-EV on my flashes and what not. I'd rather go from 1/8 to 1/4 power. I found that it made the most sense to me. 

BTS for John Keatley's shoot with Jake Locker

Jake Locker Photo Shoot With John Keatley from John Keatley on Vimeo.


I just love watching BTS videos for photo shoots. You get to learn a lot from lighting to how the photographer interacts with the subject/client. In this video, John Keatley shoots a renowned football star Jake Locker. It's admirable how he gets to talk to the guy and make him laugh and keep him interested in the shoot. This is really awesome.

Chase Jarvis chats with Penny DeLosSantos & Foodista.com's Barnaby Dorfman

I love Chase Jarvis' Creative Live. He just brings in guests from various fields of photography and I get to learn a lot for free. He's brought in Zack Arias, Jasmine Star and a whole bunch of other guys. This time, he's talking to food photographer Penny De Los Santos and the images are just amazing. 

I'm not a food photographer, but it pays to learn a lot from other fields of work to broaden your horizon. You get to learn how other photographers think and how they approach their subjects. So if you haven't seen the video yet, go check it out. It's almost 2 hours long but I can guarantee you it's worth your time. :)

New blog, new host

After months of not being able to update my blog and maintain my server, I have finally decided to use blogspot's service. It's free and very much SEO friendly, and it's hosted over at Google's servers. I guess there are some drawbacks when it comes to functionalities and customization... but I can live with that. Blogspot provides the basic stuff that I need.

The photo above was taken over at Manila Bay at around 5:30pm. I initially planned on taking some portraits of my friends with that backdrop but that plan went south when we saw a whole bunch of people watching the sunset and there was no way of getting that portrait done without getting those people in the shot. Well, we gotta do what we gotta do.