Long weekend getaway: Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar, Bagac, Bataan

A month or so ago, Jen, Lyn, Ate Noemi and I planned to go out on a trip at the end of August. We then booked a room in Pamarta Bali Resort in Morong, Bataan. Then came the day of the trip. When we were already in the car and about to leave, they said that we’re dropping by Las Casas Filipinas, thanks to my cousin, Lyn. What a pleasant surprise!

Below are the pictures of the first stop of our trip. Since we have old style houses as background, I thought photos would be nice in black and white so some of the photos were taken in monochrome setting. Unlike my previous posts where I uploaded the jpeg preview directly (except for a few that were cropped before uploading), I enhanced most of the RAW files first in photoshop for this post. Mainly, I adjusted the exposure and brightness and edited the noise. In some photos, I already liked the exposure so I just saved them as jpeg without adjusting anything.

Aside from my 18-135 mm lens, I also brought my 50 mm f/1.8 and took some photos in wide aperture. 

It was so much fun taking photos of my friends while they were goofing around.

But they can also do serious pose from time to time. :)

One of the difficulties I experienced while shooting was since it was so bright (we arrived at around 10am and left at around 1pm), it was hard to view the photos to check if they have correct exposure. And yes, some were overexposed. Aside from that, I changed the lens many times because I wanted wide aperture in portraits but it’s difficult to take wide shots with a 50mm lens. I also noticed that I wasn’t able to take enough photos of the landscape. I should take note of that next time I travel.

Trying sports photography

The conference we have been organizing since around February was finally done and after almost two months of non-stop work in the office, I finally had the chance to grab my camera again and take some pictures. Watching and taking pictures of Shakeys V-League has long been in my plan and so I checked the Facebook page and saw that UP’s game vs University of Batangas is scheduled at 12:45 pm that Sunday, July 26.  So I went there and bought a ringside ticket. 

The seat I got is relatively ok for taking pictures. I was seated not that far from the net so I can have good framing of the spikers. However, when the game started, UP was in the court to my right. My location then was not ideal if I wanted to take photos of UP spikers so most of the photos I got during the first set were of the players of the other team.

Below are some of the shots I took during the second set.

This was the first time I took photos of a volleyball game and I was still familiarizing myself with it. I was not able to take that much photos because, aside from watching and cheering from time to time (couldn’t help it), I kept on checking whether I got a nice framing or whether my shots were focused correctly. Anticipating the action of the players was not a problem since I know volleyball but still I found it a bit difficult to focus because they move too fast. So although I promised myself I will watch only the first game, I stayed on for the next one: UST vs College of Saint Benilde. UP won against University of Batangas, by the way. 

These next two shots were taken during their warm up.

Here is a picture of the UST team with their coach before the game started.

Meet the team captain.

Now, the second spiker.

                                                                                                                                                                                  

Here, the front row players positioned themselves in preparation for blocking an attack.

UST won in the first set.

I wanted to stay longer and finish the game but I had to leave already. If only I don’t have other things to do I would have stayed for the game of ADMU. When I checked the photos at home, I thought there is still much to be improved like the focus. I can also try shooting from lower box next time.

Japan Study Tour

Last July, I joined a study tour in Japan sponsored by the Japan Foundation with two colleagues (Frieda and Karen) and one professor (Dr. Reyes) from our college. Our first stop was Kyoto, where we visited a nearby Toro archaeological site that was discovered in the 1940s and the museum which features Yayoi artifacts and culture, the era to which the ruins belong.

The first floor of the museum contains replicas of rice granaries and tools used in food preparation during the period. Our professor explained that the rice granaries were very much similar to those found in some parts of Northern Luzon.

The next picture shows how the structure prevented rats from climbing into the granary.

   

This area also allows visitors to somehow experience the kind of life during that era. Visitors can try planting rice and threshing the harvest.

Since I don’t have a tripod, I just looked for a flat surface where I can place my camera and used the timer to take pictures of us four.

It is in the second floor where the artifacts and other archaeological display are located. We’re lucky because we were accompanied by our Japanese professor and she was able to translate the descriptions for us.

The next day, we took the Shinkasen (bullet train) on our way to Shizuoka to participate in the 20^th Young Scholars’ Conference on Philippine Studies at the Shizuoka University. Aside from its speed, another interesting thing about the Shinkansen is the accuracy in its time of arrival and departure.

After the conference, we went back to Kyoto. We had some free time and were able to go around the nearby shopping district. Again, I wish I had a tripod because the place was ideal for night photography because of the lights and it was very safe.

Another thing that is difficult not to notice is how clean the streets are.

The following day, we went to the Kyoto Manga Museum. Visitors, however, are not allowed to use their cameras inside the museum.

Outside is a small cafe with nice drawings by the customers (I assume).

We also visited the Nijo Castle that was built during the Tokugawa period. Again, cameras are not allowed inside.

Adjacent to it is a beautiful garden.

I again set the camera in timer mode and was positioning it on top of a flat surface when a guy volunteered to take our picture. I wish I was able to get his name so I can mention it here.

Then we went to Ginkakuji Temple. It was summer when we were there but it was raining the whole time and it was always gloomy. I wonder how the place would look like when the flowers are in bloom. 

It was a very informative tour and I wish I was able to take more pictures. Like package tours, study tours have fixed itineraries and our schedules were tight and I don’t want to delay everyone so I just took pictures whenever I can.