Pie: portrait session

A few weeks ago, I asked my sister Pie and sister-in-law Nina to pose for me for some outdoor portraits because I wanted to experiment on a few things. They were both great models and didn't mind being my guinea pigs.:D And we came up with some really great shots, too. This is the first installment from that mini photo session.

Pie has been such a big help in my business the past few months. She helps me during event shoots and helps me with archiving, downloading, etc. Oh, and she's also starting to be interested in photography so I just might also be getting myself an assistant photographer soon.;)

Pie is a bit shy in front of the camera, so it was a bit of challenge to make her feel comfortable on an outdoor shoot. I think she great though and I got what I wanted--some nice relaxed outdoor portraits.

Pie loves comfy flat shoes. She has dozens of them at home.

Kim and Kaitlyn: baptism and 6th birthday party

March 8, 2008
Santuario de San Antonio
The Peninsula Manila

This was my first shoot for the month of March. And no, despite the venues, it wasn't a wedding. It was the joint celebration of baby Kim's baptism and older sister Kaitlyn's 6th birthday. And what a grand celebration it was!

First stop was the baptistry at the Santuario de San Antonio. The ceremony was attended by a few of the family's close friends and relatives.

Here's Kim in her lovely colorful dress before the start of the baptismal ceremony.

The baptismal gown.

Kim slept through most of the ceremony.


Then we were off to the Peninsula Manila, to celebrate Kaitlyn's 6th birthday, where the number of guests tripled. The theme of the party was High School Musical, and one thing I realized is that every 6-year-old girl today knows the words to the songs from the movie.

Some souvenirs for the baptism guests.

Can you believe this cake? This was Kim's cake, while Kaitlyn had her own cupcake tower just across the room.

The birthday girl looking happy at her party.


One of the party hosts leading the little girls in a sing-and-dance number to a song from High School Musical of course.


Finally, a shot of the birthday family (minus Kim, who was already upstairs sleeping).

Please don't forget to visit the online album of Kim and Kaitlyn's celebration.

Russell and Thet: Wedding

Before I proceed with my March events, please allow me to backtrack for a bit and write about one of the December events that I haven't posted yet.

I was second shooter to Kix Tavora at Russell and Thet's Malate Church wedding on December 22, and the thing is, I almost didn't make it. I was running a fever the night before so I texted Kix that I couldn't shoot the wedding. I think the universe had a funny way of telling me that I needed to be at that wedding because the whole telecommunication system in Metro Manila chose that night to go haywire. Kix never got my texts (or so he says.:D), and I kept getting messages from him about the venues and the call time. I had no choice but to suck it up, take a couple of Ibuprofens, and drag myself to the wedding. And I am so glad I did!

Take a look at some of my favorite shots from the wedding. (And yes, I did survive the 12 hours or so of grueling work because Kix and Bim Teocson (with Gen) were so understanding, they let me take a few breaths every once in the while, and didn't mind that I disappeared for a couple of minutes when I couldn't take the cold in the reception venue anymore.)

Thet's lovely gold bridal shoes.


Thet's guitar was a nice touch, but I really loved her bouquet, too. But then again, I could be biased because I also had yellow calla lilies for my own bridal bouquet.;)

Some more details.

The groom looking very dapper while waiting for the ceremony to start.

I love this series. I was able to take photos of Thet before the door opened for her.


Then I had to run so I could capture this.

After the ceremony, we went across Roxas Blvd. to take some Manila Bay portraits.


Kix was kind enough to lend me his flash trigger so I could use his lighting set-up, too.

Braving the Roxas Blvd. traffic.


Some of the AMAZING details at the reception.


These are my two favorite shots of the day. It's a wonder I was able to take shots of the father-daughter dance that were in focus considering my vision was blurred from being teary-eyed.


After the very emotional father-daughter dance, the couple decided to lighten things up a bit by singing a duet in lieu of a first dance.


Edit: Please click HERE for the online photo album!