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Special Air Travel Post
After a few airports and around 15k images on several projects I’m back on solid ground-not to mention stable internet connection.
Some planes and airports shot during my run around…. click for larger…
Another fave shot from Xiamen airport. It’s truly incredible how they let me shoot the planes.
A high ISO EF 50mm f/1.8 capture of the tail bathed in airport lighting.
Ground crew checking for a flat…
Nanjing International Airport. Smoke stack shot?! This was located directly infront of windows from the passenger boarding area and yes, shot through glass.
One of my favorite shots of the set. Shot on the tarmac and very surprisingly the security are very lax with photography.
Xiamen International at the taxi cue waiting for my turn even if Mainlanders still do the cut in line thing.
Inside an airplane full of Chinese businessmen waiting for take off.
Hong Kong International shot through glass.
Finishing Off This 2 Part Series
Part 1 is here.
The 2010 Taipei International Flora Exposition (2010 Flora Expo) (臺北國際花卉博覽會) opened on November 6, 2010 and ran until April 25, 2011 in Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China. It is garden festival recognized by the International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH / IAHP) and is categorized as an A2B1 horticulture exposition. It was the first such internationally recognized exposition to take place in Taiwan, and the seventh of its kind to take place in Asia. It is located near Yuanshan Station. The Yuanshan site will re-open to the public following renovations (Estimated date- September 2011).
All photos: Canon EOS 7D+EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM. Originally captured in RAW, converted and processed to Tif file in DXO Labs and saved to Jpeg in Photoshop CS5 for upload.
Quezon City, Philippines
Night time HDR with 3 exposures, manual mode. Shot RAW and converted in Photoshop CS5. Click to view large.
This memorial at the intersection of Tomas Morato and Timog Avenue was erected in memory of the Filipino Boy Scouts and scout masters who died in a plane crash in the oceans of Bombay, India on their way to the 11th Boy Scout World Jamboree in Marathon, Athens.. The incident in July 28, 1963 was considered one of the most horrific involving a plane. With a total of 62 passenger of which 24 were members of the Philippine Scouts and 22 of them just teens. There were no survivors and only 5 bodies were identified by next of kin.
This particular area is named Barangay “Laging Handa” (Tagalog for “Always Prepared”), the motto of the Boy Scouts of the Philippines and many of the streets are named after the 24 scouts that perished. Today, the Laging Handa area has become an entertainment hub for folks living in Quezon City and surrounding areas.
Pictured here is the round monument with the recent addition of the obelisk with the statue of Tomas Morato, the first Mayor of Quezon City. The street on the left top corner is Timog Avenue intersecting with Tomas Morato starting from the right top corner.
Its too bad all that electrical and cable TV wires crisscross across the frame.
Another frame slightly from a different angle. 5 seconds single exposure, no hdr, captured RAW and coverted in Photoshop CS5. Click to view large.
Cebu City, Philippines
Built in 1972, the Cebu Taoist Temple is inside the Beverly Hills Subdivision. It was built by Cebu’s wealthy Chinese community at a time when temples were non existent. The temple holds several deities in multi-level Chinese style architecture within the vast compound. As the photos are proof, the temple is as colorful and clean as it can get. Much of the Chinese temples in Manila are the exact opposite.
The Taoist temple is open to worshipers and non-worshipers alike but must abide by a set of rules. Silence is definitely on the top of the list and photography is only allowed on the exterior but not inside the temple. Even the finer details near the doors and roof details are off limits to shutterbugs. For kids who like to side step the rules there are security guards around the premises who will whisper the rules.
The images below were shot handheld in a drizzle. 3 different exposures were captured as the sky was a washed out white with 1 exposure. So, to keep things short, all the RAW files were thrown into Photomatix and batch processed for good measure.
The entrance way to the temple. No cars ares allowed inside.
The grand view of the Taoist temple emerging from the entry way.
The main building. There were more tourist than worshipers that day.
The main building's front view. Remember, follow the rules: silence and only exterior photography.
Details
A view of Cebu City from 300 meters above sea level.
Shooting a photographer shooting the Taoist temple
The temple is not accessible by foot-rent a car or hire a cab. Make sure the driver waits until you finish or it'll be a long walk down.
Boljoon, Cebu, Philippines
Boljoon Church or Church of the Nuestra Señora Patrocinio de Maria is the oldest remaining stone church in Cebu. Built in early stages of the 18th Century.
Here is a bit from Wikipedia- Boljoon Church shows old and intricate carvings and bass relief. It is in a pseudo-baroque rococo style. The interior is decorated beautifully. It has a main nave, a transcript, and twenty-eight pillars which support the walls. The walls are as thick as the pillars which are two meters thick and made of mortar and lime. A communion rail with ornate silver works was stolen from the church.
The Boljoon Church is the oldest remaining original stone church in Cebu. In 1999, the National Historical Institute declared it a National Historical Landmark. The following year, the National Museum declared it as a National Cultural Treasure.
It was raining that day and the church was closed. And through good graces it was just a slight drizzle and a few exterior photographs were made. Just by chance, there was also a Japanese funded excavation going on at the church grounds. It looked like a grave yard dig as there were a few skeletons in the burial position.
Boljoon town is about an hour and a half away from Cebu city proper along the main highway. The church can be reached by car or bus. Since there wasn’t any visible address on the church gates here are the exact coordinates 9° 38′ 0″ N, 123° 29′ 0″ E and satellite view from Google Maps.
Do click on for a larger view of the photos.
Scenic Boljoon National Highway in front of the church
Exterior of church-the museum is located on the 2nd floor of the building.
Entrance to the museum and list of priests from 1692-present.
Stairway(beautiful hard wood set in stone structure) to the second floor.
Excavating an old grave site in front of the church.
A closer view of the site.
The Streets of Hong Kong
All photos shot in the Causeway Bay area of Hong Kong Island.
Night Time Shooting at Fontana
A family trip to the casino-vacation hotspot, Fontana located in the Clark Freeport Zone is well, not so hotspot once the kiddies go to sleep. The running around and banter stop with silence taking over immediately. The only thing to do- strap on the Canon unto a tripod and go fishing for a shot.
As you can see, this place is better to shoot than for some rude partying. Even the casino is a bit on the bland side. Do click on the images for a larger view of what boredom can bring to shooting a night time exposure.
Shot details: 7pm, Canon EOS 50D, 10mm, f/7.1@30 sec, ISO 100. Captured RAW and converted in Photoshop CS5.
During the day though, with the kiddies, the US style water amusement park is a pretty fun place to go. Except, they don’t allow any food or beverages into the park and do have US style airport bag checks just in case your sneaking in some-even if you have little kiddies that need bottled water. It’s a quite a drag but then you can have all the food at their sub standard US style fast food restaurant. Aside from all the unnecessary rules it was a fun experience and the life guards posted everwhere were excellent-made the fun filled day safe. The photos did turn out pretty nice though… do click for a larger US style view. 
The entrance beckons... on a weekday.
View from the bridgeway into the park.
EOS 50D wet and wild-check out the water droplets.
Captured around 5:30pm. It was a beautiful magenta hue everywhere.
Week-Ender 82
The 2010 Taipei International Flora Exposition (2010 Flora Expo)(臺北國際花卉博覽會) opened on November 6, 2010 and ran until April 25, 2011 in Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China. It is garden festival recognized by the International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH / IAHP) and is categorized as an A2B1 horticulture exposition. It was the first such internationally recognized exposition to take place in Taiwan, and the seventh of its kind to take place in Asia. It is located near Yuanshan Station. The Yuanshan site will re-open to the public following renovations (Estimated date- September 2011).
Although there had been worries about attendance at the expo, the Taipei mayor noted that with the steady increase in attendance since opening, he was no longer worried. On December 15, 2010, the Expo welcomed its 2 millionth visitor, and on January 5, 2011, it welcomed its 3 millionth visitor. By February 5, 2011, total visitors had reached 4.18 million, with a single day record of 91,676. The popularity of the festival has affected tourist numbers at other popular tourist locations in Taiwan. The expo passed 5 million visitors on February 25, 2011, and reached another single day record of 150,000 visitors on February 27, 2011.[10] By the time the Expo closed on April 25, 2011, over 8.9 million visitors had entered the park, surpassing the original 8 million visitor target. - Thank you, Wikipedia
All photos: Canon EOS 7D+EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM. Originally captured in RAW, converted and processed to Tif file in DXO Labs and saved to Jpeg in Photoshop CS5 for upload.
Watch out for Part 2 of this post- coming soonest.
