Model Shoot: Skylar and Racquel

I was again invited by my friend Jay for an X-deal photoshoot at the Brisbane City Botanical Garden last October 17, 2010. My model mayhem account has not yet been activated so I cannot make any casting call.

  

The shoot was supposed to be done at the Roma Parklands, but because there was an event, we were forced to move to another location. And because of this change in venue, one of our models got lost and went to the Botanical Gardens in Mt. Coot-tha instead. We will be shooting two models this time! Awesome!

First model to arrive was Skylar, a Thailander. After Bellizza, our MUA for the day, has done her make up, we immediately shoot her while waiting for the other model to arrive. Know what? she reminds me of a famous singer in my home country in some of her pics.

Next up, Racquel! Sun was setting fast when we started to shoot her. Since we were only using a reflector for this shoot, we had to shoot fast and transfer to different locations for the ambient light.I was not able to take a lot of pictures of Racquel but I hope the few selected ones will be good enough.

I still have a lot to learn! Posing, catching the model's attention, composition... and a lot more! And I think this is a good start for me to hone my skills.

I used my Nikon D300 and Nikkor 70-200 f/2.8 VR1 for these shots.

If you would like to view more of my set, plesae click on the links below:

Skylar

Racquel

Cheers!

Joey

Don't Touch my Birdie"

"Don't touch my birdie...
 Resist Temptation please...
 You don't have to grab my birdie...
 Just call it and it will come"

I have not really thought that birds would be good subjects and it's not very often you see one. You might need to travel just to watch birds. Heck, even the "Maya's" are not that visible nowadays.

But when I arrived here in Brisbane, it was one of the first things that I have noticed here. Lots of birds fly freely here, even the crows, cockatoo and lorikeets which we'd only see in Cartimar. You can even see bats hovering in the parks here, and there are plenty. The following pics which I shall be posting can bee seen in parks, and I have not even tried searching  forests or jungles.

Noisy Miner. It's a Maya with a mask... Agree?

Australian Kingparrot (Juvenile)

Blue-faced Honeyeater

Rainbow Lorikeet

Australian Raven hunting for meal

Cockatoo... and it's not caged!

Australian White Ibis... or the "Wet Ibis"?

Australian Pelicans at a nearby Fishport

What is a Kookaburra?
Hmmm... Remember that commercial?

Most shots were taken using my Nikon D300and Nikkor 70-200 f2.8 VR1.

If only I can get hold of the Nikon TC2.0 EIII...

I wonlt be able to post all of them here, but if you liked my pics, please click the link below if you would like to some more...
Joey's Book of Birds






Cheers,

Joey

Caught in its Web

Back in Philippines, I am only familiar with the "gagambang bahay" (commonly seen in houses) , "tatalon" (small jumping spiders),"gagambang kuryente" (from those Meralco cables), "gagambang totoo" (for gambling), "gagambang bato" (those big, strong looking ones) and the dreaded "gagambang hari" (which I often see in our comfort room). I can still remember when I slipped on my shoes and felt its tentacles tickling my foot.   

"Tatalon"
My first try at insect macro using a Nikkor 55mm f/2.8 micro AI-S lens.

But when we arrived here in Brisbane, I suddenly appreciated the beauty of these spiders. Spiders here are colorful and have nice patterns. And they come in different sizes. Armed with my Nikon D300, a Nikkor 18-55mm kitlens on reverse adapter and a plastic party plate used as a diffuser, which was taught to me by my friend Carlos, I always try to take pictures of these spiders as much as possible. Here's some of the spiders I have taken so far:

Lynx Spider

Lynx Spider on a Blood Iris

"Humped Spider"
At first glance I thought this was just a small dirt.

"Green Jumping Spider"

"Tent Spider"
Its web is built like a tent which houses this spider.

"St. Andrew's Cross"

If you would like to check out some more of my spider shots, please visit my collection. This link also shows other insect macros I have taken.

Insect Macros

Hopefully, I can add more pictures in this collection. And I'd like to get some shots of those red back and funnel web spiders.

Cheers,

Joey

Photoshoot with Kim and Hayley

Last October 2, 2010, we had a photoshoot with two lovely models, Kim and Hayley, at the Art Gallery grounds in Brisbane . The shoot was arranged by my friends Jay and Edgar. It was an X-deal where in the models would pose for us for free in exchange for our photos. A good way to us amateurs to hone our skills in photography.

Although raining on that day, we still pushed thru with the shoot. We just have to try Jay's new purchases, a reflector and a Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8. The shoot lasted until 7PM as we would like to capture the beauty of city lights

(Behind the scenes shot with Kim posing while Edgar and Jay are taking pictures with Hayley, with Dee (Make up artist), waiting for her turn)

Kim was a bit shy at first, being new to modelling, but she definitely gave me the best photos for the night. Here's some of the photos of Kim:

One of the first photos I took of Kim

One of my favorites. I loved to bokeh here, which match Kim's dress

I just love the expression of her eyes here

Hayley is the exact opposite of Kim, more outgoing and playful. 

And that is Jay's reflector! It just adds to the feel that we are in a photoshoot...

I just love her eyes in this picture

Credits as well goes to our MUA, Dee Waugh. I hope I got her name right.

Equipment used for the shoot:
Nikon D300, Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 and 2-Nikon SB900 using Commander Mode. Both flash on Manual setting.

Other pictures may be viewed at my flickr account...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joeyvaldezjr/

Cheers,

Joey

Welcome to the World of Blogging

I am a photography enthusiast and I created this blog mainly to share my photos. I am new to this blogging stuff and I was just inspired by my friend's blog, so I decided why not try it out as well.

I will try and post my fave pics here from time to time and hope I can maintain this site. I am mostly interested in doing macro and ladscape shots but lately I have been trying glamour/fashion shots. I have also been hooked into bird photography.

I hope you'll enjoy viewing my site

Cheers,

Joey