Monday, February 23, 2015

The Chinese Photowalk



Belated Gong Xi Fat Cai, everyone! It's that time of the year again when everyone wears red, buys tikoy for the family, Chinese or not, and gives money (placed inside a red envelope called ang pao) to their godchildren pero yung totoo, papel lang ang laman ng ang pao with the following short message: mahal na mahal ka ni ninong/ninang. LOL. Anyway, a few days ago, I decided to have a quick respite in Davao. It's been a while since I went home. I almost forgot that it was a declared national holiday on the 19th, so I joined the rest of the gang for a photowalk, to make my short vacation an interesting one.

Fuji Film became our major sponsor for this year's Chinese New Year photowalk. We were given a chance to try their Instax Mini8 and Fuji Film XA2 cameras for this activity. I got excited because I have been eyeing Fuji Film to replace my three-year old bulky DSLR camera.

Prior the activity, we were briefed by Fuji Film's newest ambassador, Ate Jojie about our itinerary and the theme of the photowalk - celebration. The best photo shall win an Instax Mini 8 camera. Our itinerary includes the four arches of Chinatown, Lon Hua Temple along Cabaguio Avenue, and anything goes in between. #Kaladkarin #Spontaneous

Lon Hua Temple's facade.

Peace Arch.

It was my first time in Lon Hua temple, even if I'm a long time resident in Davao. Like any other Buddhist temples in the country, no one's allowed to enter inside the sacred place if one's wearing a skimpy attire. Good thing, I wore long pants during that time.


Inside the Buddhist temple.

Another view of the temple.

This room reminds me of a scene in a Korean movie or telenovela. Hmmmm.

But first, let us take some groupfies (group selfies):

First world friends: Chamee, Mark, and Glen. These photos were captured using an iPhone 5.

The photowalk continued as we explored Davao's chinatown. Unlike Binondo, Davao's chinatown is relatively bigger but instead of the mouthwatering authentic chinese restaurants that line up the main streets, industrial warehouses, thrift shops, and automobile accessories stores dominate the main thoroughfares of Davao's chinatown.

Behind the scenes near the Unity and Prosperity Arch:



Kids.

The kids and Ate Jojie.

Don't block the driveway. Photo taken using my iPhone.

The photowalk was fun. I also had the chance to explore Fuji Film's XA2. And I have to tell you this: IT WAS LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT! Although, I had struggled for the first ten minutes of using it because I wasn't accustomed to its new interface. I still need to master its buttons and functions to maximize its functions, but other than that, it didn't fail me. Actually, all photos (otherwise stated) on this blog post were taken using Fuji Film's XA2. The camera is compact but produces high quality photos. Well, the photos speak for itself.

This is my entry for the contest. 

Chinese lantern.

In the end, Ate Jojie decided to ditch the theme and just focus mainly about celebrating Chinese New Year in Davao. I wasn't expecting my photo to become one of the finalists to win an Instax Mini 8. I was *this* close for winning the grand prize, but the photo wasn't Davao enough, albeit the perfect color and composition (ehem ehem). Hahaha! But anyway, congrats Madie for winning the photowalk contest!

We really love Instax Mini 8 and XA2. Woohoo!




Kudos to the awesome officers of Davao Bloggers Society for organizing this photowalk activity. Special thanks to Fuji Film for sponsoring our photowalk, Tori Grill and Caitlyn's Dimsum and Diner for our dinner.

My short vacation in Davao was actually fun.

PS: Here's a video blog about the activity, made by Ate Ria. Enjoy! Can't wait for the outtakes though.

PPS: Don't forget to read Miss Litratista's review of Fujifilm XA2!


6 comments:

  1. Happy New Year Renz! I have a Nikon D90 and it's been 3 years since I had a hand on that. My iPhone's point and shoot feaures are quite enough for my liking. But hey, that Fuji Film XA2 is really something that I could consider!

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    1. Gong Xi Fat Cai Chester! Haha. I just find DSLRs bulky. In this day and age, I need something that is as compact as a digicam but as powerful as a DSLR, or more powerful in that case. Kaya ayun, magiipon na ako for a new camera coz I know it's gonna be worth it. Hehehe. And it's about time for an upgrade. :)

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  2. Ni hao ma! :) Love love love the blog! :))

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  3. Hey, I'm currently looking for a camera that is convenient for travel and captures high quality photos. I'm having a hard time deciding which brand and model to buy (I'm not an expert obviously and I solely rely on blog reviews :)) However, I want something that will last me for years. Not sure if I should go for a DSLR or the Fujifilm camera featured here? You mentioned that this is more powerful than DSLR? Hope that you could share your thoughts and help me decide. Thanks a bunch! :)

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    1. Hi reindrops! XA2 is a really powerful yet handy camera, plus you can transfer your files to any bluetooth-enabled devices. Although I decided not to buy one since my DSLR is still working plus I have LOTS of lenses, making it harder to decide whether if I'll buy a new camera or not. Haha!

      Hope this helps.

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