Month: January 2023

Studio Moments for 2023 Pre Purchasing

             Hello 2023. The 50 watts bulb for the cheap softboxes just came. Price is like 5 dollars per bulb, around 500 Philippine pesos. I tested it to see if it will work compared to continous light Yungnuo. I am having struggle to complete my budget for this small studio. My purchasing month will be march and before I can use the studio for projects it will take time, for now let me show you some of the pictures the studio can produce pre purchasing of equipment. #Hardtimes.

I took my Video light and plugged the softbox. It looked like shit.

But lets still check on how the lights would look based on a wall background rather than a Cloth or paper backdrop.

NIKON COOLPIX SB5100

Nikon Sb5100
Nikon Sb5100

I used 2 cameras for testing, the Nikon point and shoot sb5100 and my Oppo Reno6. Oppo has good exposures while the old Sb5100 is kinda struggling with the Auto Focus so I had to take a number of shots just to get something in focus.

In monochrome
In monochrome
Underexposed Photo using Coolpix SB5100
Underexposed Photo using Coolpix SB5100

Old Nikon Cameras can still produce good images but you can tell the developments from modern coolpix cameras that sb5100 is very old. Last photo for the Nikon Coolpix.

The light was received okay using the coolpix but not as good as newer Coolpix cameras. My exposure meter was right on the middle not overexposed but just right.

OPPO RENO 6

The Oppo Reno6 had better exposures but the quality is much more less in terms of texture and pixel. The technology and Ai of the oppo produced better looking pictures but with less quality.

I had fun with the Oppo its focus system was better and it was just tap tap tap. A very usable device to take decent portraits for Social Media and blogs. Who needs a Bridge and a point and shoot?
“I still prefer point and shoots though. Shhhhhh….”

Mobile Portraits is fun. I am not into portrait photography but sometimes I take photos of family and friends. It is not my forte but it is also a fun style or type of photography. Taking portraits is also one of my lack in terms of photographic imaging and style. I am planning to venture in depth with this style in the future. Portrait photography is also the unescapable image for everybody wants to be photographed and be seen in a rectagular space or square. It brings memories or maybe just pure vanity.

I can’t post family portraits here or portraits I took cause it feels weird to post family pictures specially if it is your family. I can post maybe some simple portraits just for reference on how I take portraits. One is landscape square and one is a traditional portrait.

 

PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHY NAHHHH!!!

Some say that cropping is done not on the joint but I just think of it this way, do not crop out of context of your shape. That is my simple rule but if you do not like my rule then shit. I suck at portraits. I just prefer to crop in context of the shape. A round face must be contained what is within that round face must be expressed. It is that simple cropping rules can go to the trash bin but most of the times cropping rules still fit with my technique I just don’t like thinking of it. 

SELF PORTRAITS

Self portraits is just selfies. It is challenging and fun and so the only thing I can do with it is to practice my posing, my gestures and my directing as per models. To know how to direct a model is to slightly know how it works.

So to end this blog is to just say lets hope this studio goes somewhere in the future and produce good photographs to be published and be seen by the people who supports it. 

Mosquitos Feast On My Body

The mosquito Scenario.

Here we are after working out and doing some wanna be ‘kung fu’ moves I sitted in meditation and the mosquitos approached my body and went to feast. I let the mosquitos feast on my body for a couple of seconds then warned them for a good afterlife. The mosquitos agreed. The drank and feasted for their very last meal.

What is a mosquito? it is an insect that is very popular in the world, it is silent sometimes deadly with the right immune system, it is not harmful but a weak body system these insects might cause a deadly disease. I like mosquitos it makes you feel like part of an evolved kind of species, looking at these little insects getting drunk on your blood is like a vampiric nostalgia. What is a vampire? who knows maybe some vampires are mosquitos pre evolution, are vampires real? I think so.

WHAT DO I FEEL WHILE THEY SUCK MY BLOOD?

Them sucking my blood feels like it is natural. I am sometimes the prey, it humbles down the being, it makes us think life is a cyclical thing, sperm to dust. In the middle is being a host of nutrition for insects. Yum yum yum , Nom nom nom. I feel weak but not really it is like giving, the problem is when they get drunk of blood they no longer fly away. They stay like a greedy insect too drunk to move away, and so I swat them with my palms.

I took my towel and killed a number of them laid them down to see their corpse ready for disposal. Do I care about these insects? not really but they are part of nature that I think maintains the balance of our ecosystem. I heard that in my science class before, even fungus is that important, decomposing the dead. Talking about vampires and decomposing dead feels like this is getting darker. Luckily my towels are white. So lets arrange these insects into a beautiful pre burial ceremony I mean pre ‘disposal’.

AFTER THE MOSQUITOS WHAT ELSE?

I think what is next is a great deal of debt, not having a high income and lacking projects for years since covid 19 and the 2018 – 2019 mix up and the studio rent. 4 to 5 digit debt in dollars and 6 figure debt in pesos. If I can manage to pay everything that I doubt will happen due to economic projections I will just endure the debt and sell whatever. I still have money to survive but not enough money to do things. My 1000sqm Studio vision might be a long game after all.

Anyway that is it, this is another post for the month of january. You can comment below on what type of photography you want for febuary. I am thinking of doing some glamour and portraits but paying for models that can do things correctly might be costy. There are people who would pay me to get photographed but not really professionals, shooting aspiring models might work but I think practicing the wrong things might halt the 150k formula. less than 10 a year will do. What I mean about less than 10 is you can practice the wrong things but not enough to fuck up your art. Music school know how.

“It is not how long your practice it is how you practice.”
-1st violin Miss Anon from Paul  

MID SHOOTS < 10 == PROPER PRACTICE 

Do not think about Facebook Think Meta

JUST THINK META!

JUST THINK META!

What if Facebook sucks ??? Just think Meta… Your cognitive dissonance will disappear. Facebook is not a perfect company. Employees are kind of corrupt but I am sure you do like the idea of a metaverse under your most hated or loved platform facebook.com. So what do you think is the solution ? Just think Meta.  I do know that some people have developed attachment issues with their profile. It is like breaking up with your meta self. Well appreciate rebooting daily. Some PC’s do shut down its system daily. Just develop that.  I hate facebook but I am still grateful to facebook. 

Is it broken forever? I doubt it. 

Internet is Hacked!!! My Website is Now just a Social Page

I decided to make my website a social media type of page. Way it works is it looks like a social media page but without the connectivity and user database. It is just filled with links from other sites and my own work. This will help me achieve a high page count without the hassle of creating lots of articles.This is a downside for my website but I hope this helps me in creating value in this broken internet of today. Hope it gets fixed soon. My hosting company double charged my bank, I am not hating it happens sometimes when people are hacking the internet purposefully.

Press Release : Jan 1, 2023

www.martinbelgica.com
will no longer use Facebook as a publish platform. All photos, images or anything using my name as Majos Belgica or Martin Belgica as a photographer is not me. From the date of Jan 3, 2023 I no longer use the facebook platform for this website and others or anywork connected to this website and my name. I do not conduct any business or transation on facebook as for my photography and media production starting jan 3,2023.

p.s
Majos Belgica

New Year FIreworks 2023

Happy new year everyone. 2022 was not a blast but a transitionary phase extending 2021 post covid paradigm to 2022. Now that it is 2023 the question in my mind is what will be this year? My plans this year is to open the Majos Studios for work and fund it for film and photography jobs. I basically need a couple of million pesos to make this happen with an estimated quarter of a million annual expense. Where will I get the money? I still do not know where to get it based on current economic demands and situations. Photography has been challenged for the past 3 years, everyone seems to be doing photography for fun and imagery is evolving into a more metaverse metafi type of way. Images are no longer for the moments but for the rarity and aesthetics. This is a downside for me for I prioritize the moments over the quality of the photo, or is it me being lazy.

THE CHAMBA EFFECT

I like the chamba effect it surprises me and increases my sensitivity towards my photography, sometimes a good moment is just nearby, getting your camera ready to shoot is a fun feeling. In a photography most of the time the value is seen in post rather than during the shoot or during the capturing of moments. A lot of things are happening during a shoot that your mind cannot precisely see value, even if you write everything down and create the image piece by piece in a studio, values starts to emerge during post. The contemplative effect of processing for me made me realize that as a fact. I may be wrong but my style of photography taught me that.

Exploring the chamba effect this 2023 will be lessened due to me opening up a studio. This will be a challenge for me for I need to think of ways to create value not based on what is happening but based on what will according to my fixed sets of elements inside a small studio. I am thinking to start with the glamour project but that could lead to women and dating. I read some glamour photography books but it doesn’t hit me well, I feel like Paparazzi photography is a better thing to do, chasing celebrities is fun. I wish myself luck on this Portrait photography studio project. I will post a full tour of the studio in the future.

THE STUDIO

The studio ideally will be composed of 2 50sqm apartments but I can only rent 1 as of now. 1 studio will be for portrait photography and the other will be for music and video production. My longterm plan is to purchase a property and make it a production studio. The studios will be small but in time I hope I can get a 300sqm to 500sqm place where I can do my photography and get higher paying projects. as of now this is just in my head and 10% on paper and assets. Let us see what will happen.

NEW YEAR 2023

All I can say is this New Year 2023 will be a hard one and full of handling errand such as purchasing, budgeting and getting things together so for now lets just look at the fireworks and hope for the best.