SM Mall of Asia (MoA) At Night

I practiced taking pictures at night (again) at the SM Mall of Asia (MoA) Esplanade. This place is packed with people! There are some rides that kids would definitely love to try. There’s also a fountain that is lit with colorful lights and a Ferris wheel at the far end of the MoA Esplanade.

There are kids inside large balloon balls playing on the swimming pool. The MoA Esplanade also has a zip line and there are a lot of mime artist on this part of Manila Bay. There’s a carousel and similar rides. I’m expecting that the number of people visiting this place would double in the coming months. I sure hope to visit this place soon to take more pictures.

By the way, I used long exposure (f/11 to f/18), slow shutter speed (6 seconds or more) and my Benro tripod in these pictures.

Technorati Tags: SM Mall of Asia Esplanade,MoA At Night,Night Shots

Ayala Triangle Gardens At Night

I never knew that there is a very nice park situated right beside the Makati Stock Exchange. Last Saturday night, I took the time to attend to the Make It Makati Photo Contest. The permit mentioned the streets that we could take some pictures and it never mentioned about the Ayala Triangle Gardens.

I was on my way to Sen. Gil Puyat Avenue from the Peninsula Manila’s famous fountain when I saw a well-lit building on the other side of the road. I saw that it was a park and I asked the guards if the permit covers the area. He read my permit, got my name and reported it to his comrades. He then gave me the go signal to shoot inside the park.

This is the second time that I went at night to take pictures of a park. The first time was with Plaza Rizal in Pasig City. Well it’s totally a different experience taking pictures at night. I have to use my Benro tripod because I can’t hold the camera steady for a long time. I’m very thrilled at the pictures that I got. I’m planning to take a picture of this park at daytime (probably this coming Thursday) before the Make It Makati permit to shoot expires.

I Google Ayala Triangle Gardens and found out that in the last quarter of 2010, it was fully developed with facilities such as bakeries, café and restaurant. I was thrilled by the beauty of this garden that I forgot to check out these places to dine.

One of my favorite shots in this garden is the one that shows the Ayala One Tower in the background. The picture shows a vertical light of well-lit portion of the building.

Technorati Tags: Ayala Triangle Gardens,Makati Avenue,Makati City

Night Shots

I practiced taking pictures at night using my Canon EOS 1100D together with my Benro T600EX Tripod last night at Plaza Rizal. I was there around 12 midnight and it’s still full of people. It made me comfortable taking pictures.

This is Guzman. A famous place for lugaw, mami, lumpia and other street foods. It’s located along Sandoval Avenue opposite Villa Alegre Subdivision.

I tried the Bulb Feature of my DSLR. According to the manual, it’s the best setting whenever we take fireworks or we wanted to capture the light of vehicles to have the “light-saber” effect on pictures. I actually got the concept and I’m pretty happy with the results. I can now take pictures of vehicles at night although I still need to do it in a very congested street for me to capture both the red and white lights. It would be very helpful if I could be on a higher elevation like a hotel or mall.

It’s been 6 months since I purchased my Canon EOS 1100D from SM Megamall and I can say that I know my camera better now. I’m also proud to say that I’m taking pictures using Manual settings 90% of the time. Right now, the things that I’m planning to buy, to improve my photo composition, are external flash and the umbrella with stand (diffuser and reflector). Other than that, I just need to take more pictures and improve my composition.

I actually made a promise to improve my composition first before upgrading my lens. I’m also planning to attend more photo contests, workshops and photo-walks. I also became a member of the Pasig Shutter Bugs – a group of photography enthusiasts in the Pasig area. I haven’t attended a meeting or workshop by the group yet, but I’m hoping that being a member of a photography group would further improve my skills. I’m also encouraging you, my readers, to give me feedbacks on the photos that I’m posting here on this blog.

With all the tips that I’ve get, I’m pretty sure that I’ll improve my night shots, glamour shots, and landscape shots. Give me 6 months more and stay tuned to this blog.

Villa Alegre Subdivision, Pasig City

Pasig City Museum

Plaza Rizal

The main gate of the Pasig Cathedral (Immaculada Conception Parish Church).

Technorati Tags: Night Shots,Villa Alegre Subdivision,Guzman,Pasig Cathedral