Drum Tao: Block Rockin BEATS!

When I first heard of Drum Tao, it was during the height of my playing the game Osu! Tatakae! Ouen Dan! A Taiko Drum Rhythm game for the Nintendo DS. Ever since, then I have watched several videos of their performances on Youtube.

Workshop: Studio Lighting

Last July 21st, on a very soggy and soaking wet Saturday morning, through floods and unrelenting rain, with my stubborn insistence to push through with it, at the reluctance of my colleagues, with Mr. Dale Sta. Rosa‘s tutelage, we had our first studio workshop. And one which I do believe is something we all we’re in much need of.

Unfortunately, due to the inclement weather that day, only 5 of us made it that morning alongside Dale and our model for that day, Floe.  I owe both of them greatly for coming in spite of the weather.

Photo: GakkenFlex 35mm TLR

Last January, I got to visit some friends in San Francisco and got to see the sights.  My designated tour guide through my stay, D-chan, to my giddy excitement, pulls out a 35mm TLR (Twin Lens Reflex) film Camera. HOOO-LY CRAP~! I thought it was an actual Rollei or a Yashica. Turns out it was a builders kit that came with issue #25 of “Otona no kagaku magazine” (Science of Adult), published by Gakken.^[1] So it’s not as fancy as Lomo’s Lubitel 166 or those really fancy TLR’s yet it STILL IS a basic but fully functional 35mm film camera.  When she told me it was a kit that came with a camera, I asked her to take me to where she got it. Mozied over to Kinokuniya in Japan town and picked one up. Of course I didn’t get to put it together while I was there.

Photo: Canon EF 85mm F1.8 USM

As I expand my photo hobby from landscape and travel to portraiture, I notice the great limitation of my current lens line up. Make no mistake that my Sigma 18-50 F2.8 is a very versatile and excellent piece of glass, it does however lack quite a bit on the far and narrow end. With its tightest end sitting at 50mm, it’s at the minimum focal length for portraiture. As I found out in the model photography workshop I joined over the past weekend (more of that on another post), 50mm is the widest you can use for portraits.  Anything wider would have you taking photos of your girlfriend looking bloated and distorted. 

What the Water Dragon has in store for the Metal Rooster

I’m not one to rest my laurels on predictions, fortune telling and lucky horoscopes. But it doesn’t hurt to get a bit of emotional boost and inspiration to read what they have to say about oneself. So here’s what the Water Dragon has up its sleeve for the Metal Rooster this year.

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The Rooster is one of the few zodiac signs, that will feel an extraordinary lightness and lift in strength, and this will allow him overcome even the greatest difficulties in his path. The main thing for Rooster is a goal and an idea which he should strive to achieve, otherwise his activities would lose their meaning, and he risks just staying in a place in his development. In addition to absolute leadership inclinations, great ambitions in the year 2012 of the Black Water Dragon will require from him the ability to communicate, work in teams, actively and quickly respond to problems and be more attentive to close ones.

Gear: Crumpler The Haven M

I consider myself a photo-hobbyist and I never leave home without a camera.  And lugging around a purpose built camera bag doesn’t really quite cover practicality since I usually either carry my office backpack or a messenger bag for my daily go-bag. As you’d imagine, I just stick my camera in there. Now for protection, I picked up a neutral grey colored beannie hat where I stick my camera, be it the GF1 or the 400D.  One other purpose of the Grey beannie hat is that I use it as a white-balance sheet. (trade secret right there). Thing is, it doesn’t really provide that much protection other than keep it warm like when I wear the beannie on my head.

Solution: Crumpler’s The Haven. It basically is a compartmentalized and padded sack for your camera. Comes in Small, Medium and Large. The Medium sized one comfortably fits my 400D with the Sigma 18-50mm F2.8 lens and then some other accessories in its main pouch. It’s also got pockets outside which can hold SD cards, lens caps and cable. It works more like a bag organizer with your camera in mind. Stuff it with what everyday camera needs you can, just stick it into your day bag and voila~! Your everyday bag is now also a camera bag. AND it comes in gray!!  But it also comes in different colors.

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