A look back of August...
Finding inspiration in the little things.
Quite the busy month, but hoping to keep up with the monthly mashup!
Keep shooting kids!
Recently an old high school friend extended an invitation to an open house that she was hosting. Having noticed that I haven't seen her since high school and was curious as to what she was up to these days; all I know is that she's been creating some intricate art, so I knew I definitely needed to see her and catch up. I brought along my trusty EDDC (every day carry camera) and off I went. She had moved to the outskirts of the city and into the canyons. It was about a 40 min drive from my place and I couldn't help but notice that the environment has changed drastically. One would think why move to such a quiet and what seems to be a deserted area? I soon found out why. It was a beautiful drive through the winding roads of the canyons, and one can find such solace through silence. As I arrived at her humble abode, the house was surrounded by many trees, and a big front lawn with a bonfire pit. The main house was a shade of light blue and to the right of it a small red barn house. The house to the right of hers had a couple of horses running around and people were gathered around petting the horses.
As the sun went down, I made my way through the little red barn; it seems to be where her artwork is located and also her small studio and workspace. There seems to be something magical in the air when you walk through the door; so much warmth and positivity. As this feeling came over me, I knew I had to get some photos of her artwork. She creates what she calls and also the name of her business, "Vibe Catchers." These Vibe Catchers incorporate ancient principles of sacred geometry, Feng Shui, and crystal healing. Basically, the places in your house can have negative energy, therefore you can place these Vibe Catchers in certain areas of your home to balance out the energy of the room. Each dream catcher, chandeliers, jewelry are handmade and carefully crafted by hand. I was absolutely taken by surprise of what she creates. She puts her heart and soul into each art piece.
I was drawn to a particular bracelet she made with Tiger Eye; a metamorphic rock with a golden red-brown color with a smooth luster. I questioned as to what her insight is on Tiger Eye. Tiger Eye represents power and prosperity. It radiates power from within. As the elders of old would say it's your solar plexus; it's the yang energy; to make things happen from within oneself. Moreover, I am truly happy and grateful that I had the chance to catch up with her and to show support to what she has been creating. She's a sweet old soul and I'm glad she is shining her light and sharing her gifts to the world. I wish her much happiness and success to whatever she is striving to achieve.
Keep on vibin'!
To see more and purchase her artwork, Visit: Vibe Catchers
“...the start of a relationship is not the high point that romantic art assumes; it is merely the first step of a far longer, more ambivalent, and yet quietly audacious journey on which we should direct our intelligence and scrutiny.”
Minolta 55mm f1.7 Although an underrated lens, it produces its own unique look.
This weekend I had the pleasure of attending and witnessing my cousin getting hitched. To me, weddings have always been a fun time with family, food, and laughter. Although by no means do I consider myself wanting to be or consider myself as a wedding photographer, I did enjoy taking photographs of my cousin and his newly wedded wife. This also meant that I had the chance to try out more of my recent purchase; the Minolta 55mm f1.7. As I stated from my previous post, the lens tends to capture images quite softly, yet I don't mind since it gives the photo that unique vintage look that you would expect from an old lens.
The Minolta lens continuously proposes to give me a challenge of focusing manually and I like it. What helps significantly in manually focusing with this vintage lens is the Fujifilm's focus peaking, but with subjects moving around consistently it's hard to have those subjects continuously focused and at the same time keep a steady hand to snap the photos. It is frustrating since most of us have been so dependent on autofocus. I can think back when technology was not this advanced and only film cameras were available. Photographers didn't have focus peaking and certainly they didn't have instant gratification of checking and seeing the photos right away on an LED screen, so I really can't give an excuse as to why the photo is out of focus.
Moreover, like a seed that has been planted beneath the soil, it must have consistent attention in order for it to be nourished and be cultivated. Just as love is a relationship between two people, so is my relationship with photography. It has its moments of major and minor successes and setbacks. But with discipline and tenacity, in time, it will flourish over the long term.
I enjoyed taking photos of these two lovelies and wish them the best.
Trust the process and keep shooting away kiddos.
They say that trends and different types of fashion come back in style or in the limelight every 20 years, but I don't think I'm ready to see Cargo Shorts, baggy Corduroy Pants, or Car Belt Buckles come back in style just yet. Calculating the years of when those were in style, it seems to be about right that they do come back soon...Oh the horror! But not all that come back to trend is bad. You can see this with the younger generation's resurgence of interest and in purchasing Vinyl Records and Record Players. I went to see a friend recently talking about how she was going through her closet and found a loose knitted sweater that her mom had gave her years ago. When she first received it, her first impressions..she'd never wear something like that. Although, now she found it deep in her pile of clothes, and decided to wear it as we were out on the town. Maybe our tastes change or the old trends just keep on cycling through. With that said, many of us now have been rummaging through the garage of our family's heirlooms, vintage stores, Craiglist, eBay, and many other marketplace platforms to find those rare goodies. As this is a blog with photography in mind, those rare goodies are those infamous film cameras and old manual focus lenses. With the rise of demand and the scarcity of these goodies, comes the rise of higher prices.
I wanted something a bit unorthodox at least for me; to pair an old manual focusing lens with my Fujifilm X-E2s, but at the same time I did not want to give up an arm and a leg just yet. What if I actually hated the manual focusing involved without the option of autofocus? Therefore, I decided to research what would be a good lens to purchase without breaking the bank. I came upon the Minolta 55mm f1.7. I purchased the lens via eBay and it arrived within a couple of days.
When I first held the lens and inspected it, I was taken back to how great the build quality was; the pictures that the seller provided did not give it justice. The focus and aperture ring was smooth to operate. The lens itself is weighted; you can tell this is stainless steel and is going to be sweet to hold with a camera body; good ol' Japanese ingenuity and quality! Now to operate this lens with my X-E2s, I purchased the K&F Concept Adapter via Amazon. The lens including adapter set me back a whopping $64. That ain't bad at all! I slapped that baby on together and into my X-E2s. I was overjoyed with using the lens, I do enjoy that it makes you slow down to really compose your shot and trains your eyes to focus on the subject and what you're trying to portray. As humans, we have depended so much on technology that it almost becomes a crutch and often we blame technology for the error, at least I know I do. So by using this lens I can take accountability that if the focus is off or focused in on something else, I know it was definitely my fault and not the camera's.
Another element that adds to the user experience is the challenge of shooting the focal length of the lens. It is a 55mm lens slapped onto APS-C sensor. Correct me if I am wrong, but I'm guessing the field of view equivalent is 88mm. It can get some great portraits, but the real challenge was to be more creative when using it in street photography and in my daily use as my main lens. Furthermore, to my surprise, the images that came up were beautiful. The images do come up softer compared to the Fuji X Lenses, but I honestly do not mind it. It gives it its own unique look and the colors come up quite well without being too much contrast. The bokeh it produces can be quite creamy as Milk in Milk Tea.
Are we talking about Milk Tea or the Lens? The Minolta 55mm f1.7 producing some creamy bokeh.
Moreover, at first I was hesitant with using a vintage lens with only manual focus, but the Minolta 55mm f1.7 has taken me by surprise. The build quality is built like a tank and the image quality gives it a nostalgic feeling. Lastly, I love how it challenges me to manually focus and depend on myself rather on lenses that have autofocus. I'm happy I purchased this lens for it is truly a joy to use. With that said, if you want that nostalgic feeling of using old lenses without breaking the bank or you're in a slump with your photography and need a challenge, I invite you to trying out the Minolta 55mm f1.7 or other vintage lenses for that matter. It might just surprise you with what pairing you decide to do.
Stay cool kiddos.
P.S. The photos below are edited to my liking ;)
“When you wake up in the morning, tell yourself: The people I deal with today will be meddling, ungrateful, arrogant, dishonest, jealous, and surly. They are like this because they can’t tell good from evil. But I have seen the beauty of good and the ugliness of evil, and have recognized that the wrongdoer has a nature related to my own – not of the same blood or birth, but the same mind, and possessing a share of the divine. And so none of them can hurt me. No one can implicate me in ugliness. Nor can I feel angry at my relative, or hate him. We were born to work together like feet, hands, and eyes, like the two rows of teeth, upper and lower. To obstruct each other is unnatural. To feel anger at someone, to turn your back on him: these are obstructions.”
As I am working towards my current goals and as I grow older, I have realized that the world will impose their views on me. I have encountered some individuals who might not see eye to eye with my vision and even hear some condescending or negative words. An initial reaction for me would be to respond defensively; it's a constant battle with myself to react positively or negatively. Although, just as a bird is singing its song, the bird does not have a care in the world what you think of it; if you find its song beautiful or if you find it repulsive to be waking you up at five o'clock in the morning, the bird will pay no mind and will sing all day long. I resonate a bit with the bird; in other words, I believe the only purpose of doing the things that I do is to satisfy what my soul is yearning to create.
In addition, the words above are from one of the greatest stoics that has ever lived; Marcus Aurelius's words resonates to this present day. He depicts that there will always be individuals in life that will act wrongly towards us. But instead of being defensive or acting wrongly towards them, we must accept that human nature will always be this way.
To further elaborate, the wise Roman Emperor states that we all have the aptitude to control the thoughts that harbor in our own minds. We can either let the negatives detract us and steer us away from our soul's calling, or we can choose to let it go and live our lives with full intent and power.
Moreover, Marcus Aurelius implies that the greatest failure we can have is to have anger towards each other and to turn our backs on one another. We all have our strengths and our flaws. We are human beings born of the same flesh and have struggles and challenges to overcome, therefore why act wrongly towards one another. Instead, we must lift each other up with our actions towards one another with understanding and compromise. We must support one another with however each individual wants to evolve to be the best version of themselves. Only then the world can be a brighter and more beautiful place to exist in.
Until next time kiddos!
Travertine Summer Party 2018.
Recently, I've been carrying my edc camera attached to my hip like my life depended on it. I've been taking photos of my daily runarounds and realized the photos are piling up and I have to find a way to share these photos. I thought to myself how about a monthly mashup/overview of the photos I have taken and post them on here. Going over the photos I have come to the conclusion that I love food and food loves me; grateful for the food that nourishes the soul, mind, and body. From here on, hopefully more mashups to come.
Stay cool kids.
Without further ado...the July Mashup.
With the heat in full effect this summer, it is meant for some great drinks, great food, and great people. This month, I had the pleasure to be around inspiring individuals summer-ing around. Held at the beautiful Blinking Owl Distillery in Santa Ana, CA; the sun shines on the copper stills and reflects a beautiful glow to the space.
Entrepreneurs and like-minded folks gathered around exchanging and sharing ideas over cocktails concocted by Blinking Owl Distillery that will cool you down like a cool summer breeze, and alongside Electric City Butcher's juicy and flavorful Yakitori and Burgers. Moreover, I am thankful to exchange words with such individuals for I am reminded to stay focused and stay hungry; stay hungry towards accomplishing the goal...not the burgers and drinks ha.
As much as the heat has been making me miserable, I cannot deny that summertime has it's own magic and is to be appreciated.
Take a trip to Santa Ana.
Summer-ing in Santa Ana.
Death by coffee or death by no coffee? I’m on the fifth day without having coffee and I never would have thought it would be this bad. As much as I love coffee, I’m really diving deep in quitting it at least for a period of time. There are many benefits to coffee such as getting that extra pump for the gym, cleans the bowels and gives that extra kick to finish a job in the afternoon or even late nights. Although, I researched more about coffee and there are many downsides to it. Paul Chek is a great resource and you can find many of his videos on YouTube. He lists that coffee is a fungal attractant and your body is more susceptible to fungal infections, can cause constipation, it has a drying effect and dehydrates your body, and it stresses your immune system.
As a wise man once said...
Who are you loyal to?
Are you loyal to yourself and your well-being?
In short, I miss coffee and the ritualistic nature of it; waking up in the morning and making myself a cup to read a book before hitting the iron in the gym, going to coffee shops and getting shit done, socializing with friends. Coffee is like crack in a cup that I can say that I have been addicted to for about 5 years now. I’m having major withdrawals; major migraines and mental fog. So for now I bid you farewell and goodbye coffee…until next time.
Recent pics from coffee adventures with the EDC.
