gion

If ever I get the chance to go back to Japan, I would love to see Gion again. It's the location setting of one of my favorite books, Memoirs of a Geisha, so it was a special moment to see it in real life.

I like how that one woman was walking fast against the flow, and outside of the railing.

Reminds me of the Grand Budapest Hotel.

My favorite shot of Gion, and of Japan. I love how the light here simply glows.

I didn't see it at first, but when I looked at this photo after months, I realized it looked like a painting. It's like the people were perfectly stationed and positioned at where they are :)

hey sally

Dear Friend,

It's been four months – the longest I've been away from this blog. Things have been the same, and not the same for me. I don't know if I'm able to go on with the details. I guess I'll just try anyway..

On film photography

A noticeable lack of updates here on the blog, and also in shooting. I've stopped shooting film during weekends or shooting casual daily life. Although I bring film and camera during out of town/country trips, I usually spend three rolls at most. 

I haven't had the time to stop and think about why I've cut down time on shooting. I don't think I've lost interest because other people's works keep me inspired on a regular basis. I get inspiration from other people every now and then. I guess the amount of inspiration is just not enough to get me moving to shoot for my own. And there's nothing wrong with that, I know.

On writing

Writing these days is absolutely hell. I've been documenting systems for years in my work, and I still think they are all pieces of shit that no one reads. Writing for myself, on the other hand, is torturous. I'm always hard on myself. Expressing my thoughts in writing just always feels depressing and stale. Reading my old posts, even just the recent ones, makes me nauseous. They are always tacky and unorganized. I'm glad to be able to write at this moment, but do note that my stomach also churns at the feel of it and it feels so dragging.

Life in general

• I can count in one hand the number of books I've read this year. I don't know, maybe I'm just really out of it.
• Graduate school is unexpectedly interesting, although I still have moments of doubt and weakness. 
• Sometimes I think of moving elsewhere and trying something else. All in mind, never in action.
• I still think I'm doing good in life, in the grand scheme of things. But I also feel that it is more difficult to live now with all the rage I feel when I stumble upon news about current events.
• I'm spending money more than I should

my first roll of redscale film

It was my first time to shoot redscale film even after shooting film for four years. I'm telling you, I'm not experimental on things. I've said this before, I'm sure. I do things, and when I see that the way I do them works, I will stick to it for as long as I can.

I never bought any redscale film for a simple reason: I don't dig the red-stricken photos. So, it was only sensible that I spend my hard-earned money on films that I already enjoy or aspire shooting with, than on film that I'm not interested that much.

Good thing that last December, my Emulsive Secret Santa got me a loot of film photography goodies with a roll of Rollei Redbird in it. I've asked around the #believeinfilm community in Twitter (basically a bunch of awesome, helpful people) and researched a bit about it before popping it into my Minolta X-500 (my latest acquired SLR camera!)

Redbird was fresh and rated at 400, but to consider that I was going to shoot the other side of the film where there is a lot less of transparency (hence, the red tint), I shot it at ISO 100. Now that I've tried it, I was proven otherwise. I enjoy seeing the results :)

I did not know I would like seeing red and yellow until I saw them on my own photos. Ahh, science <3

And to add more fascination, I also got this awesome bluish tint on some of the frames. I'm trying to remember the settings I shot them with so I'd take note of it for my next redscale film. I really like this blue wash :)

If I get the chance to shoot with another redscale film, I would probably spend shooting the entire roll outdoors, in landscape and architecture, where there are a lot more details and shadows to play with.

In the end, I'm glad I get to try it. On a normal shooting day, I would enjoy more the actual shoot than seeing the results. But with redscale, it was the other way around. Variety is good, sometimes :) Note to self.

simple

Yikes, I know.

I haven't posted anything here in two months. But let's be honest, my mind wasn't into this blog anymore since the last few months of 2016.

What happened then:

• I didn't renew my then domain, grewlegs.com
• I quit being grewlegs.. because I can lol
• I started over with a new pseudo, harayaphoto on Instagram and nowharaya on Twitter

No reason in particular. I guess that's how I detoxify in the virtual world, get rid of everything completely. One thing that only makes me a bit sad is that, although I've been vocal on my former blogname that I'm growing tired of it, I didn't give any proper goodbye to the few people who knew that domain. I simply disappeared.

I remember one person sending me an email, wondering where the blog has gone.. It was only one person, but I didn't think someone would go out of their way to hunt me.

So, if you've been following me before, and still following me now, I sincerely thank you for sticking around..

Well, we're here now in 2017, and let me tell you, this year is tough.

I've allowed some changes to take place, and as a Taurus, boy, you don't know how we hate change. 3 years after my first attempt, I've decided to go to graduate school again.

And then probably only 2 weeks later, I was surprisingly offered with a new position in my company. I was given only a few days to decide if I'm going to take it or not. Going back to school is already a big task in itself, what more juggling it with a new job?

In the end, I did take the new job with eyes closed.

Gradually, studying and working on a new path took away the time I used to allot for the things I enjoy: reading, writing, taking photos. And even telling my usual, nonsensical things here or in Twitter, I had no time for.

But lately, I've been feeling it.

The need to do the simple things again. But if they were the simple ones, why did I have to let go of them first?

..things I ask myself.