The Rookie Blogger

December 5, 2011

Boracay Adventure

With Cebu Pacific’s piso fare deals, I was able to get my butt to Boracay. This paradise island is considered to be one of the best tourist destinations in the Philippines. My friend booked me a cheap flight to Caticlan for November 25 and I got so excited. I enjoyed the flight to Caticlan because before the airplane landed on the airport, the pilot showed us the Island of Boracay. Even from afar, I can see the white sand stretch of the island.

When the plane landed, the first thing I noticed is a simple clean airport, quite different from the Mactan-Cebu International Airport that is crowded. The cost of transportation from Caticlan to the Boracay Island is reasonable. Arriving in the island is not that classy because there is no difference between the port of Cebu and their port in terms of looks. We traveled for a couple of minutes from the port to our hotel.
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We arrived in our hotel early afternoon and the first thing we did was taking pictures near the beach. The sand of Boracay is certainly one of the best I have seen because it is very fine. Majority of the people I saw are foreigners so I was already expecting that the prices of meals and other stuffs are staggering.
Later that night, we walked along the white sand beach where some parts are well lit. Restaurants and bars are lively during the night where we saw a couple of live bands performing in different locations. Because none of us drinks alcoholic drinks, we ended up ordering expensive fruit shakes that tastes terrible.

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November 9, 2011

Photowalk with my Sony Alpha Friends

With my new Sony α33, I went with some of Sony Alpha Cebu photographers to take photos in downtown Cebu City. It’s a nice experience to go with photographers that has the same brand with my camera because I can borrow some lens if I need to take photos that is way beyond the capability of my lens. Almost all of the Sony Alpha members have at least two lenses during the photowalk while I was only carrying one which is a little bit embarrassing. Another problem I have during that day is having no knowledge at all in street photography.



During that day, we agreed to meet in a fast-food chain near Basilica de Sto. Niño. We started taking photographs inside the premises of the Basilica and then moved on to Magellan’s Cross in which we saw other DSLR users taking pictures. Then we walked all the way to Plaza Independencia to continue taking photographs. Our endpoint was inside Fort San Pedro in which we took different kinds of photographs including our group picture.

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August 1, 2011

Visiting Bohol for the First Time

Bohol is one of the nearest provinces from Cebu and it took me 21 years before I get to visit this place. We started the trip with a one hour trip ferry boat bound from Cebu City to Tubigon, Bohol. It was a rough ride because of the bad weather but still, we arrived in our destination safely. From Tubigon, we went straight to Loboc to have some lunch in their famous floating restaurant and their food looks and tastes good. After eating lunch, we went to Carmen to see one of the best natural wonders of the world – the Chocolate Hills. The Chocolate Hills has been the icon of the province of Bohol for the past century. The 360-degree view of the place is one of the best scenes I have seen so far. Our last destination for our first day of the trip was the town of Ubay situated northeast of Bohol. I was shocked to see an airport in the Municipality of Ubay because the town is not that populated but they said that the airport was closed a long time ago.

The next day, we ate our breakfast and then traveled straight to Valencia but we stopped over Jagna to buy one of Bohol’s delicacies, the Calamay (Kalamay). We went to Valencia’s spring resort to eat our lunch. We stayed in this spring resort for almost two hours before going to Sagbayan Peak. Sagbayan Peak boasts one of the best views of the Chocolate Hills. The place has also a resort, large statues of my favorite cartoon characters, and a butterfly sanctuary. We only have few minutes to take some pictures of this picturesque place because we have to take the 4:00 PM ferry boat back to Cebu.


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June 13, 2011

Dolphin Island Resort in Misamis Occidental Aquamarine Park

One of my unforgettable experiences was going to the Dolphin Island Resort in Misamis Occidental because for the first time in my life, I saw and touched real dolphins. It has been my wildest dream to touch one of these mammals because I only get to see these creatures in National Geographic. Some of my friends saw live dolphins performing in the Manila Ocean Park that is why I am so jealous and desperate to see one.



When I saw this dolphin rescue center in the internet, (yes, it is not a typical dolphin theater wherein you can watch dolphins performing) I immediately searched for a flight to Ozamis City, Misamis Occidental because I want to see these creatures. Luckily, the airplane ticket of Air Philippines Express bound for Ozamis City only costs 900 pesos (from Cebu and excluding terminal fee) that’s why I booked a flight instantly.





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February 21, 2011

Sony 50mm f/1.8 Review

For just $150+ I already have a new Sony lens 50mm f/1.8. After I bought my Sony a300, I was already hoping to buy a portrait lens because the lens that came with the camera produces generic quality photos. After taking few shots with my new portrait lens, I am very satisfied with the image quality it delivers because, for just a small amount of price, I can already shot professional looking pictures. These are the sample photos I took.

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I just tried taking pictures of people until I learned that large aperture captures lots of light. After reading tutorials about photography in low light conditions, I began taking pictures at night. I tried taking pictures of landscapes and obtain satisfactory results. After I got bored shooting mountains and cities at night, I aimed my camera to the night sky and I was amazed by the results. Even though there are lots of pollutants in the air, I still obtained pictures that contain hundreds of stars that I can’t even see with my naked eye.


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