big girl decisions

So last week, we went house hunting...

Although we sure picked a weird time to do it. It was raining small animals because of a typhoon. It hadn't stopped raining all night so water was everywhere. But we promised the broker that we'd meet with her (and we were giddy to see the house) so we braved the rain.
It was not exactly a house house. We found a pre-selling condominium near the place where the boyfriend and I work. I was adamant at first because I know zilch when it comes to real estate. I was raised in "the suburbs". But when I saw the place, I actually saw ourselves living in it. I looked at the boyfriend and saw the same. He loves it as much as I do!








We've been together for almost 6 years now so this is a really exciting time for us. It's a weird feeling, really. I feel so... grown up. :)




When we stopped by Ikea in Singapore earlier in the year, we fell in love with the place. The best thing is, they have showrooms on the 2nd floor! So we took a bunch of pictures. I didn't realize that our future home would look so much like those little rooms.












If you haven't figured it out yet.... Yes, we bought a condo unit!
Ahh the paperwork is crazy. I let the boyfriend talk with the broker about money matters. I just know I would space out once we talk about downpayments and balloon payments. Ugh. You can talk to the boyfriend about that, I do not have the necessary attention span for all that. :))
Exciting times for both of us, yes. We have already decided how to decorate the condo. I just hope we don't jinx it!!

Diana's Last Salute to Summer

Summer had never been my favorite weather. The perfect weather for me can only be described as "gloomy". I'd love to look outside and see overcast skies then feel the cold on my skin. The kind of weather that would make you, nay, force you to stay at home.

But this year, I found myself wishing that I'm on the beach, just lounging and watching people play in the water or sunbathe. I don't know I guess I just wanted to see and feel a bit of sun.

I've recently acquired a new film camera, the Diana F+ and a bunch of accessories. I got lucky when I was camera hunting online.









When doing test rolls, a sunny weather is always the best option, especially if your film camera does not have "special quirks" that can help you shoot in low light conditions (like selenium cells and that thing inside the LC-A).

So I was thankful when I finally had the opportunity to test the Diana. Brought both the LC-A+ and Diana to the beach with me and snapped away. I was only able to use the Diana with a 120 Superia 100 film and the 55mm wide angle and close up lens.



Some lessons learned (which can also be useful to you, dear reader):

1. If you're using the 55mm wide angle lens, go ahead and take the mask off. Go on, don't be scared. Shoot mask-free! the vignettes would be more pronounced and you'll see your lens' full wide angle-ness. You won't see it my test shots though because I used the 12 shot mask. No need to put that mask in; you're still going to get 12 shots out of your film.

2. Embrace the sun. I've read so many first time woes about the Diana lomographs being too dark or underexposed so I lathered up on sunscreen and braved the heat. I got 8 out of 12 shots perfectly exposed (the others that didn't make it were indoor shots with no flash) which is actually more than I expected. So yay!

I was also able to find a Diana Exposure chart off the internets. I'm currently trying this together with the 35mm back for the Diana. Probably a good idea to load a film with a higher ISO so you have a better chance of actually seeing results. One of the most common reasons why a lot of newbie lomographers get disappointed is their own expectations of the medium. Film is always a trial and error thing. Yes, it can be expensive especially now that there are a lot of apps out there that can modify photos as you please. But I always go back to film because of the satisfaction that I get when I "do something right." It's just different. :)

So that's my first roll of Diana lomographs. I hope I get to finish my test roll soon so I can share more lessons I learned throughout the process. Yay film!

Of Photographs and Unexpected Meetings

I have always been a fan of Carina Santos' work and was pleasantly surprised when the beau said we'd go to her exhibit's opening this Saturday. So with just a few hours sleep, we hauled our butts off to Blanc, Manila Peninsula to gawk at Carina's art and (finally) meet the artist herself.



Carina lets us peek into her personal life through photographs of herself (most specifically, her feet), stitched faces of her family and also shares with us some bits of history with cutouts from books and magazines (like the three XOs). Much like Joseph Cornell's boxes, the pieces evoke nostalgia, a stirring of one's rememberance, be it the audience's or the artist's own.



Collages had never been one of my finer crafts (mine always look so disoriented) so I have HUGE respect to people who can actually collect ordinary objects and turn them into art.














































And I finally got to meet Carina! Yaaay!



I think a lot of the Tumblrfolk went to the opening and it was fun to see all these wonderful people in one place to support Carina. It really was heartwarming.

Speaking of Tumblrfolk, I had been wanting to see all the friends that I met through Tumblr. And I was so glad I finally got to meet all of them at the opening! Who would've thought we'd bump into each other here...



Jaime + Fatima and Shinji + Jel

So from the exhibit, we found ourselves in the middle of chaos at the Fete dela Musique Rock and Indie stage at B-side, Collective in Malugay, Makati. I remember asking myself, "how in the world did we end up here...?" and realized that yes, they told me they're playing amd yes, it's for Fete. I know... I was too excited to comprehend we were going to a rock fest. Hah! So we went there and listened to The Strangeness.









And some shots of the Fete people:












Oh hey it's Myrene! (the boyfriend was fanboy-ing at the time)




We had to go home early that night. But for the short time that we spent "meeting" people, I'm pretty happy and I couldn't have wished it any other way. :)

hello my name is ashton dwyke

I'm almost 6 months old and have recently learned how to roll over on my tummy.

Nowadays, I like looking at myself in the mirror.




My aunt's iPad is pretty awesome. I can stare at myself for hours aaand take pictures as well!















See you around, internets!!

(the kid really DID take all these pictures by himself. haha!)

a treat for sore feet

I must have had an inkling, a premonition if you will, that we would be getting ourselves lost in Singapore last weekend. I wasn't even worried about what clothes I should be packing. Heck, no. Loose fitting shirts, a couple pair of shorts, some unmentionables, and I'm good to go. I was more worried about what shoes I would bring.

For somebody who doesn't like dressing up that much, shoes should be the least of my problems, right? But hey, like I said, I had a premonition. And yes, it came true.

The minute we decided to walk from the train station to our hostel (which was my idea of adventure. hah!), I thank my lucky stars for my decision to stash these babies in my bag:







These are, without a doubt, the most comfortable ballet flats I've ever worn!

Aside from being ultra comfortable, The Shoe Room gives you the option to customize your own perfect little flats. Just follow the steps and wait for the SMS. And I must say, they have superb customer service. Abby Medina, the shop owner was so kind to accept my rush order and got the flats delivered the day before our flight. Our flight was a Saturday and the couriers only deliver up till Friday. I was really surprised when the guards told me that I have a package waiting for me. The two pairs were done in less than a week!!

With that kind of service, coupled with quality work without the high price tag, I say that I would be buying more flats from this shop. And yes, you're feet will thank you for it. Why opt for flipflops when you have this classier alternative?