Climb Every Mountain. Is it worth it?

     Frederick Mount invited me to another photo op.  Knowing what he does, I expected another enjoyable night of going through abandoned buildings and another good talk.  Boy, was I in for a different experience!

Double Trouble

     I've had so much available time for the past weeks but my laziness struck me again.  Good thing I got so bored with nothingness that I finally got my butt out of bed to take some photography of my aesthetic.


    When I learned about using a snoot on flash, I had an idea and took trial shots to test it out if it works.  Unfortunately, I don't have those pics anymore.  But the idea remained in me.  Today, I got to execute these ideas and finally got to use my speedlight.

Gamers Night: When too many fun stuff collide.

     I know I have not posted anything for some time. But I have taken pictures once in a while. Some of them really worth writing with pictures I'm proud of. But some events have gone ahead that need to be posted first.

     But here's the thing: I'm not really good with people and spontaneous shooting. Almost all the shots I took needed work, and still I'm not too happy after all. And these shots are "moments" which can not be redone.

Lens Caps and some Yelling

     Last part of "Let me do it right this time" was just half of the last day I spent in Seoul (to take photographs).  On my quest to get a replacement for my lost lens cap, I got a bit more lessons on the street that I wasn't really prepared for.

Blame It On Lack Of Research

     So I talked about giving-in to macro photography on my last blog and took some pictures of a bottle's bottom... with a lot of blah blah blah.  I also kept mentioning that I don't get much interest out of it despite putting a lot of effort in every shot.  I also talk about using extension tubes.  There's the problem!  I used them without reading much on how to use them.

Macroteers!

     I was never fond of macro shots.  Most of the times, I get sick of Facebook pictures of close-up shots of flowers with cheesy captions in it.  People like them a lot!  I don't!

A Short Video

     It's been a while since I made a short video.  A friend of mine is a serious videographer and has been trying to get me to work with him, but I always refused.  I'm scared that I actually end up embarrassing myself.  I have a camera.  I can video edit.  But I never really worked for someone with this.

Let Me Do It Right This Time part 6

    This is the last set of pictures I took from this place.  My little adventure in Buk-Ahyeon, abandoned area for improvement.  From night shooting of the places the group spotted, to shooting indoors of other houses for the first time, then going on top of roofs for a panorama shot, to shooting in the alleys in daylight, to  shooting indoors again but in another area (and daylight), and now, just a couple more shots I took on the street while leaving this place.

Let Me Do It Right This Time part 5

     Part 5 of my still long-winded blog about this place.  It's daytime.  No more light painting.  And more challenging scenes for me.  I'm not so good with day shots, but I have to make the best of it.

Let Me Do It Right This Time part 4

     Part 4 of the long-winded photography session I had on this location.  This time, it's daylight

Let Me Do It Right This Time part 3

     This is the third installment of the story.  I have written blogs about coming to this place but failed to take pictures.  But this time, I took as much as I can.  From the first part walking around, to the second part going inside abandoned houses, and now on rooftops.

Let Me Do It Right This Time part 2

     This is part 2 of my blog about me finally getting some work done on the abandoned place near Ahyeon (아현).  A little lazy and a bit overwhelmed, I'll keep the "less talk, more pictures" theme for the rest of this particular story.

Let Me Do It Right This Time part 1

     With so many pictures and so many things that happened within less than a 24-hour session, I have to divide this article.  Otherwise it'll be a very long read (I almost forgot no one likes that anymore).

     I was upset about last week's meeting with Fred.  I was very disappointed with myself.  What I hate most is that I'm becoming one of those people I resent: All Talk People.  So I have an excuse.  I work alone.  I can't perform as much with people around me.  And yet, I claimed I feel comfortable with Fred.  Well, I still hate what happened.  And I owe it to these photographers I've met to come up with better pictures than my test shots.

2nd Meet With Fred

     I got a mail from Fred (the Urbex guy) to meet on Sunday evening for re-shoots.  That's why I ended up in Gunja the night before.  The plan was to take a few pictures on Saturday night, sleep in Gunja, get to the location hours earlier to pre-shoot, then get into serious business when Fred arrives.  Well, it was just a plan.

Follow My Path: A walk on the streets of Gunja

     Gunja Station. I've been here a few times. There's a cheap place I could sleep in whenever I'm close by. But whenever I come here, I go straight to the motel. No roaming around. No scouting. No photography. In fact, I might come here after a long night's session. But I'd be too tired to venture out. I found this place dull. That is, until I took a cab (I almost always take the subway) and found myself in the middle of the busiest area of this place. There was life after all! Since I could be a regular here, I searched for places to eat first. It was easy. So I started looking for interesting subjects. It was night time. But I'm not in the mood for cityscapes. I found myself looking at subjects as an individual instead of the whole picture. It makes street photography easier for me.

Follow My Path: A walk on the streets of Taereung.

     Lugging my gear the day after meeting Urbex photographers, I felt like I did not accomplish much.  Sure, I've taken some pictures.  Sure, I have some mental notes.  Sure, I've learned some by watching them.  But since I was used to taking pictures alone, yet was on a group that night, I felt like I have not done what I was meant to do... take pictures.

Close Encounters of the Real Kind

     On one of my earliest blogs, I talked about meeting a group of people regularly doing photo-walks in Seoul.  I had a blast with them during my first time.  The problem is I was more interested on talking to them first, taking photos second, and never really observed them or how they work.  It's been a year now (I think).  And this same group announced another photo walk.  But this time, they have subjects that I'm very interested in, lately.  The group I joined before were a bunch of street photographers.  This time, it's different.

Flash vs Flashlight

     Ok, so I got a speedlite.  Big whoop!  I never thought learning about flash was this hard.  I read people say it's easy.  And I had a couple of shots using it.  But really, it's mostly frustrating.

Ahah! I found you!

     On one of my blogs, I mentioned about birds chirping and screeching and mocking me outside my window.  I also mentioned that I had the opportunity to capture a beauty, but failed.  Well, that event kept bugging me.  Beautiful as their songs may be, I couldn't stand them when I don't see them.  I look out my window and see nothing but trees.

Urgent Call: A plea to the animal rescuers

     June 23, 2012.  7:00 a.m.

     Walking down from Bukahyeon-ro (북아현로) towards Ahyeon Station (아현 역), exit 2, where a huge part of the right side of the road is flattened, I was taking pictures of a traffic guy.  Colorful uniform, glowing stick, old hair, but plump and younger-looking face, like a Santa.