One of the problems with a digital SLR camera, which uses interchangeable lenses, is that dust can build up on the sensor. Though Canon 400D has it's own integrated cleaning system, it's still not fool proof against stubborn dusts. I noticed my photos had black spots on the left corner when shot using slow shutter and aperture with bigger f-value. Of course, I panicked. I didn't realize this piece of equipment needs that much care and attention. My friend at the photo club promised to help me bust 'em. But our schedules won't meet so this thing has been tormenting me for quite some time. I found the video (embedded below) by chance and decided to give it try. The big mole in my photos are now gone! :)



P.S. Don't forget to clean your camera bag too! Read this for more information.

Labels: photography

Here are some additions in our bag:



And here's what I got with 12" extension tube on top of 50mm f1.8. Light source? hehe... hand-held flashlight from the supermarket! *LOL* Used a DIY lightbox (made by my wonderful husband) as diffuser in the first two pictures. Hubby love the tubes very much! He's starting to brush up on photography tutorials. yeepee!

(ETA: I forgot to mention ... got the idea of the ring shots from digitalphotographer forum. ^_^)





Yeah, I was just a wee bit depressed when I composed my previous post. And now, I'm happily in-love with photography once again! *LOL*

Here's hubby's labor of love... :)

Labels: photography

More photos from our trip last June with friends at Balay Indang. Mostly from my 50mm 1.8 lens. With little tweaking using Itty Bitty actions.





















I've been struggling for weeks contemplating on the next lens to buy. Photography IS an expensive hobby. At times, I've thought of selling the DSLR all together and get another point and shoot camera instead. Hay buhay... kulang pa ang bonus para sa mga lenses na yan!

Labels: photography, travel

I thought bum days are over, but they're not!

I reported for work this morning, happy and contented with my 2-month-long rest (2 weeks bed rest + 45 calendar days of maternity leave). First thing upon arrival, went to the HR and filed all the medical claims, SSS reimbursements, and leave forms. Because of my ignorance with these matters, I got SUPER confused with SSS benefits vs our company's medical benefits. I thought I should get more. Not contented with HR's explanation, I searched for friends in my YM list (both friends and colleagues) and made some clarifications. So it turned out, there weren't really any problems with the claims. but but but... We're entitled to 60 days maternity leave for normal delivery and miscarriage, not 45. Yan kasi sabi sa akin before. Buti nalang tinanong ko ulit, otherwise sayang yun 15 days. It's my fault actually coz I should have read the employee handbook carefully. And it was really so stupid of me for not clarifying earlier since it's an obvious conflict with what's posted on SSS website (which is so me... oo lang ng oo). Anyways, 60 days is what is indicated in the labor code. Hence, bum days extended. :)

What I missed - photo club's Food Photography demo/practice session held last July!!!!! ARGH talaga!! I've been looking forward to this for a long time! Sayang talaga! They covered a lot of topics including how to use reflectors, framing, and the like (which I so wanna learn)! And of course, the chibugan after the shoot. Perfect timing sana coz our ninang who owns a restaurant was asking us to take photos of their dishes for menu folio. :(

What to look foward to - (1) photo club's Travel Photography demo/shooting session. yey! (2) company's badminton tournament - well, I really don't intend to join since hello, hindi naman ako magaling. But my colleagues were convincing me to participate coz most of them will be playing too. And ehem, I need to lose weight na rin so GO na rin ako. Beginner/Novice level lang naman kaya kahit pa-cute lang sa court ok na. *LOL* Hubby will be in charge of training me (if time permits). Sana di ko sya mapahiya. *LOL*

What I will be missing - visiting blog sites and photo sites at work. HAAAY! They're all blocked! Though I could still read posts from bloglines, but I won't be able to view the images. Never mind nalang, what's the fun of reading without the photos? And no downloading na rin since file sharing sites are also blocked. Though I can still get through if the freebies are hosted on individual servers. Oh well, I guess it's a sign that I should focus on my work and stop wasting time on non-work related stuff. Just as I wished. Well, I think it will only be difficult at first but later on things'll go back to normal. That's what I call cyber-withdrawal-symptoms. *LOL* I've been detaching from these addictions gradually over the past few months and I think I'll get over it soon enough. Don't get me wrong, I still love blogging, love taking photos, love digiscrapping. But I guess it's setting my objectives straight so that I focus on the goals I want to achieve rather than the things on the side. One word: output. Oh anyways, I was talking about blocked sites right? *LOL*

You might be wondering if being idle (from work) bores me? Surprisingly, no. I never run out of things to do. And believe me, my things-to-do list is still very long so 60 days is really far from enough! *LOL*

(ETA: Aggie! this, this, this, this, this, this are tickling my senses... baket ba ang cu-cute neto? mah god! na-addict na naman ako.... *LOL*)

Labels: blabs

A bit late but better than never. Here's the last installment of my Maya Kitchen story.

The last day of class was handled by Madam Rory, the big boss of all the people at Maya's. She's also the editor of various Maya cookbooks which I've been collecting ever since. It's their usual call to let Madam take over on the last day coz our final assignment was to come up with our own menu and cook our own dishes. She did the judging based on how we conceptualized, wrote, and executed the menu. By the way, the food we prepared for presentations during the past 3 days went to her stomach pala. Fini-filter muna siyempre ni Teacher Imee... yun mga good enough to look and eat lang. *LOL*

As usual, the first part of the class was lecture. Madam just gave a round-up of what was covered during the first 3 days and a little bit of know-hows.


Before we started with actual cooking, the team leader from each group was asked to draw from a pile of folded paper. The thing written on the paper's the subject for the main course. We got chicken while the other group got pork. Various ingredients were displayed on the table and the menu should be based only on what's available. It was a bit of a challenge to work in group as there were many voices and preferences. One of the obvious differences was Girls VS Boys. While the girls were focusing more on planning the menu according to what was on the book, the boys were already doing their own thing. *rolling of the eyes* Planning was another thing, actual cooking skill was another thing. Anyways, here's the menu our group came up with:

Appetizer: Salad with Sherry Wine Vinaigrette dressing (Light)
Soup: Cream of Carrot Soup (Heavy)
Main Course (with Carbo): Roasted Tarragon Chicken Stuffed with Tucsan Rice (Heavy)
Dessert: Mango Pandan Gelatin (Light)

While the guys were busy with these...




The girls were doing this... *LOL*




The other group finished early, while had to wait for a long time for the chicken to cook. We were told na pag sa contest, roasting a chicken/duck/whatever is a big no no daw kasi matagal maluto.


Madam didn't wait for the chicken anymore so our presentation included an empty plate when she did the tasting :(



Finished product....




By the time we ate, the lettuce was already soggy and the soup was already cold. But in fairness, everything was yummy. Love your own ba? *LOL* I heard Madam was all praises with other group's pork teriyaki din. Sayang hindi namin natikman. *LOL* Anyways, masarap man o hindi, the essence of this activity was the put the wisdom of menu planning in practice. Taste can be improved later on with practice and experience.

Overall, I'm so grateful for deciding to go on with this course. Aside from the free cookbook (with Madam's precious signature), Maya apron, and chef's hat, I gained a lot of knowledge and a lot of friends. I'm still far from being a good cook, but at least I'm a wee bit better than before. My short term goal is for hubby to give me a perfect 10 in future taste tests. *LOL* But seriously, I have a whole new attitude towards cooking - it ain't just a chore! Could you imagine I spent more than 8 hours in Powerbooks last week digging through pile of recipe books? THAT serious! Pero siyempre barat ako at hindi pa rin ako bumili. Ang mamahal kaya ng mga cookbooks! *LOL*

Labels: cooking, food tripping, wifey diaries