brosigonzales.blogspot.com

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Among Other Things

Stuff [Hobbies] [which I did very, very well]
I Miss Doing [due to other priorities]

[All photos in this post are JPEGs from scanned old analogue prints]

Am a sucker for Static Scale Modeling.

- An A-10 Warthog [in 1/48 scale], a favorite of mine -

I liked [it's such a cool combat aircraft] it so much that I ended up
purchasing 5 kits, and applied different camouflage finishes for each kit.

The Benz below is one of the only car [by Tamiya] kit I made.

[I sold it to my gay cousin, who gave it as a gift to his boyfriend.]

My robust armor collection are all in 1/35 scale.

Below is an American WWII half-track w/ anti-aircraft guns.

Below is a 1/48 scale F-22 Raptor by Italeri.

My displayed kits are all gathering dust,
in the Bulacan house where I grew up in.
Below are some 8-wheeled vehicles.

Below are few Tamiya Snap-on Battery-powered

toys which I airbrushed w/ different colors.

It's a hobby I used to take very, very seriously [Used to spend on all the latest airbrushes, compressors, professional hobby tools -> custom tweezers, special hand brushes, putty, Gunze paints, special fixatives and the like etc. etc ]and, if I might add - I became pretty good at it.

I love German WWII combat vehicles - soft skinned armor [as in half-tracks],
and heavy armor [Tiger Tanks, Panthers, and the like - Real Bad Ass Dude!!!].
Above is a Tiger I.

Nowadays, it's just too time consuming for my comfort. Just too busy now. Did purchase, last year, 1/32 scale Vietnam-Era Phantom [long-nose] by Tamiya, from Lil's Hobby Shop at Mega Mall. When will I assemble it ? Can't say at this point.

The photo below is that of partly finished military scale models,

[all 1/48 scale aircraft] still hanging on my old bedroom wall.

A few finished combat aircraft are properly displayed [and also gathering dust] in the den [that's pastel portrait of my mom on the background].

- An American WWII P-38 Lightning [the night fighter version] -

- - -

BTW, I taught myself how to play the violin - years ago - and become good enough [after a couple of years of practice] to widow tunes. [Had a chubby girlfriend once {Cecile N.}, who I freguently played for] [That was memorable.]

- Beside Jay Cayuca -

Pic was taken in a glossy mag's [where I used to work] studio.

Violin ->now long gone - Unfortunately, it was stolen -

Chubby girlfriend ->now long gone too - No, she wasn't stolen.
But my heart was - Yuk - Sobrang Cheesy !!

brosi gonzales

Now, back to the my sports feats -

4 Ms

No-Look Portraits Taken w 35mm Film

Martha, Mighty, Misha, and Monette

Just a few memories from my good ol' days of Film Photography - - -
[These JPEGs are from scanned analogue prints]

- Martha R -

seated on a garden swing, and sucking a lollipop

- Mighty M -

fidgeting while seated on a rattan chair on the driveway

- Michelle V -

seated [giggling] on a flower box on her porch

[Hand colored the print]

- Monette R -

posing beside the window of her living room

[Hand colored the print]

[Notice the scratches and smudges on the print surface]

- Eye Like -

brosi gonzales

Mga Mag-ama

Six Fathers - Three Daughters -Three Sons

[In the Sports Setting]

[Thematic posts allow me to mix/match, and share, old and new images]

Father: Noy Jopson

Daughter: Mikele

Took this photo last August of 2010, at the Iron Man Triathlon at Cam Sur

minutes after Noy crossed the Finish Line.

He finished 3rd Overall in the Pinoy Elite category.

[Mikele, then 2 years old, is turning 6 this June]
[Noy, hope to see you at the next Iron Man at Lapu-Lapu City!]

Father: Larry Fonacier

Son: Liam

Took this photo after TnT had just won the PBA Philippine Cup Championship at Smart Araneta last January 29. Larry won the Finals MVP award.

[Don't know Larry personally]

Father: Mr. Tan [forgot his first name!]

Daughter: Rochelle

Took this photo at the recently concluded

Exterra Triathlon Weekend at Liloan, Cebu.

Introduced myself to Rochelle after she had just won the 5K Event,

a day before the Sunday Triathlon.

[Met her dad too]

[Rochelle is a med student at Cebu Doctors]

Father: Raoul Recto

Daughter: Robbie

Took this image way back January of 2011, during the UAAP Women's Softball Tournament Matches held at the UP Diliman Campus.

Robbie had just taken a bad fall during a match vs UE,

and was in tears as her dad carried her to the sidelines.

[Fortunately, for Robbie, the injury looked worse than it actually was

- A few days later, she was up and about again - ready to play]

[Fortunately, too, for me, this photo won 3rd Place in the UAAP Photo Competition {on-line category} and I got a few Gs as prize money]

Father: Bong Ravena

Son: Kiefer

Took this photo after Kiefer won his [correct me if I am wrong]
third UAAP Junior Championship w/ the Blue Eaglets, way back 2010.
This was at the Araneta in Cubao.

[Am glad to know the Ravenas - Bong, Mozzy, Kiefer, Thirdy, and Dani]

Father: Calvin Abueva

Daughter ? - Oops! - I meant Son: Calvin James

Took this photo after San Sebastian had just won the PCCL cahmpionship

[dethroning the Defending Champs, Ateneo Blue Eagles]

at the Arena in San Juan, last December.

[At first glance, the child looks like a girl, but actually the child's a he]

[Calvin's first born, Calvin James, was about 6 months old at that time]

brosi gonzales

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Get Smart

Be Smart, Be Crafty

[Nurture Creative Habits]

- Portrait -

- My nephew, Inigo "Nace" Gonzales -
I took this image with 120 medium format Kodak color negative film
using a Mamiya film camera.

Gotta be smart on-the-spot all the time if I want to come up with consistently good, and hopefully, great images 24-7, -- wether I'm in a laid back one-on-one portrait shoot or out there on the playing fields trying to freeze athletes in action, or just trying to get a decent group shot of some rowdy, uncontrollable team that's still feeling the euphoria of a championship. Gotta be constantly aware of elements around my subjects - from the most seemingly insignificant white or red thermos lying on the ground to little pieces of trash [I hate clutter], that can be a visual irritant, in an otherwise nice group photo --- to the reflections, [one can call them hotspots] on a basketball court that, if deftly used [composed w/ the main elements ->the subjects] can make an otherwise "generic" group photo look great [basketball pic below]. [Notice how the 3 hotspots/reflections {behind the guys}on the court, greatly enhance the image]]

I like to be CRAFTY [love that word]. It has that smart/intelligent/artistic ring to it. It might even suggest that "I-will-always-find-a-solution-to-that-artistic-problem" attitude. The more commonly used word SMART has similar connotations to me. Anyways - -

- True Colors -

UAAP Season 74 Softball Runners -Up

The [Fighting] UP Lady Maroons

Notice the "gradation" of light. How one controls exposure to "paint"
backlit subjects
[tough to manage but can be dramatic when properly angled]
is a matter of discretion - decided on-the-spot.

Being very observant of one's surroundings, elements here and there - foreground, background, people passing by --> The nuances of light, and how it "paints" my subjects [Does it bring out the textures I like or does it hide them? /How do I position my subjects optimally so they get the BEST lighting afforded by the sun, open shade or what have you? ] How do I downplay clutter when it is unavoidable? --> Not to mention, getting my subjects to loosen up - let them "let down their hair", so to speak - so their actuations become real, and not contrived. Yes, my mind's eye is constantly processing stuff whenever I'm in a shooting mode - I repeatedly imagine and visualize images way before I even press the shutter - And when the elements are about to fall into place - instinct and timing take over - - - Click!

- Soccer Rush -

Again , Nace Gonzales [same guy in the first photo above].

I took this during a DLSU Football Team [under Coach Hans Smit]

tryout/tune-up match, weekend last, at the Rizal Memorial Pitch.

I say - love thy work - & - love thy family.

Point is, it helps to nurture creative habits, or though processes [for lack of a better word] that will eventually help one craft well composed [not necessarily perfect] pictures consistently. It takes time, it takes discipline - it takes practice - and when you get to hone that repeatedly - you'll be surprised at the results.

- Panalo Pre ! - Champion !

That's my pal [and neighbor] Badong, the chubby guy in the middle holding the trophy. To Badong's left is Oca, and behind Oca is another friend o' mine [and also my neighbor] MacMac. Don't know the others, but,no matter -it's all good.

I recently witnessed them win a championship in a simple local inter-village league [held at Hillsborough Hills in Sucat] a few days ago.

A simple snapshot ? No way bro!

It's a well-crafted, on-the-spot, quickie, group shot - my kinda photo.

Feel na Feel Pa !

- and last, but not least -

- Black on Black -

[Taken w 35mm Color Negative Film - using available light]

L - O - V - E I - T ! ! !

brosi gonzales

Weekend # 6 - Part 1

Souviniers From a Softball Championship

February 11, Saturday

Rizal Memorial Stadium

Adamson Lady Falcons' Sweet Sweep

I'm a photographer, not a writer. I don't do game analysis or game recaps - I just share my images, make a few comments, point out a few stats here and there.

From now on, I'll greatly reduce the size and number of JPEGs I release per posting - due to tech issues, as advised by blogspot.

Anyways, let me share a few JPEGs from the last game of the UAAP Softball Tournament where the Adamson Lady Falcons swept ALL their games, winning the Championship outright after their W vs UP's Fighting Lady Maroons.