Photography, Wanderlust, and Starting Anew: 2013's Year in Review

2013 has been a whirlwind year! For starters, I began delving deeper into my photographic interests... ...discovered a love for isolating objects...

...found the joy that comes with giving a gift of portraiture...

...and challenged myself conceptually with self-portraits.

I embarked on projects that included total strangers...

...and bit a little bit more than I could chew with trying to tell a dozen stories...

Most significantly....I GRADUATED!

...but first indulged in more than just a little bit of wanderlust by visiting the Dominican Republic...

...and Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Malaysia...

...and various islands in the Caribbean too...

Finally satisfied with my traveling, I plunged straight into the real world with a big job and big city to tackle...

...I made new friends I couldn't be more thankful for...

...and reunited with old friends in new environments...

...and in the end, I couldn't even count my blessings if I tried. Here's to a phenomenal year and a new start to 2014!

A Christmas Wish: 50mm Prime Lens

After learning the basics of photography with my Nikon D3100's kit lens (18-55mm f/3.5-5.6) for the past year, I decided it was time to upgrade my equipment and branch out. After talking with a few other friends and doing some research online, I thought the best next step would be a prime lens, specifically the Nikon 50mm f/1.8G! I requested the lens for Christmas from my family and my wish was fulfilled! I had a fun day trying out the new prime lens and comparing it with my zoom lens today.

Some delicious macarons from Bouchon Bakery - hand carried by yours truly for my grandparent's Christmas gift!

For those of you who don't know, a prime lens is fixed at a specific focal length (thus, also called fixed focal lens). My zoom lens goes from 18-55mm, but my prime lens is static at just 50mm. This means that you have to actually move closer and farther from your subject to get the right framing - it's a challenge to be constrained in this way, but supposedly it also helps you to develop a photographic eye and to be able to frame things in your mind before you look through the view finder. The quality of the lens is often much better, and the aperture on this prime lens can go much lower (f/1.8) than my zoom lens  (f/3.5 minimum). The lower the aperture number, the more light that can come in and the shallower the depth of field. This is perfect for shooting in low lighting which was something I was really looking forward to!

A great practice field was our Christmas tree. My mom has long foregone the cute kindergarten macaroni ornaments we made years ago & instead has curated a musically themed Christmas tree complete with various instruments, bells, speakers, etc! Below is a comparison of a similar shot between the prime lens and the zoom lens. Note how the low aperture of f/2.2 on the prime lens allows for a bokeh effect with the Christmas lights in the background, but also helps to increase the shutter speed.

Prime lens: f/2.2 aperture // 1/80 shutter speed // ISO 1600

Zoom lens: f/5.3 aperture // 1/50 shutter speed // ISO 1600

One thing I really like is how I don't need to be as concerned about the background of my subject because of the depth of field. In the background of this image there's a boring staircase, but I could be in a nice little studio for all you know!

The 50mm prime lens is also often turned to for portraits, and I can see why! It's easy to have your subject stand out, and the extra aperture stops help with making the background blur aesthetically. 

As a final note, I've made all my purchases (camera body, zoom/kit lens, prime lens, and other accessories) through Amazon, and each product has always come perfectly packaged and protected. I highly recommend it as a supplier!

[Stop #11 - 16]: The Caribbean

Not to be outdone by my post-graduation trip, my family insisted on taking a Caribbean cruise before I moved to New York. This trip was actually the last time our entire family would be able to do a vacation together since I was starting work and my brother was going to law school. So with only 5 days in San Diego after getting back from Malaysia, we were jetting off to a Carnival cruise boat in the Caribbean to start our adventures! Stop 11: St. Thomas Magen's Bay - frequently voted as one of the Top 10 Beaches in the World! Still not sure it was as good as Sihanoukville, Cambodia though!

Stop 12: Barbados - Had a chance to do a trip throughout the island to see all the various farms and plantations! The island was lush beyond belief and green for miles

Is it just me or are there monkeys in every country but America? Not fair...

Stop 13: St. Lucia - Probably my favorite port of call on the cruise. We hopped off our boat onto another to do a catamaran ride around the island. I fell in love with the cities hidden in the hills - the colors of the houses popped brightly against the foliage

Stop 14: St. Kitts - We had the opportunity to ride on an old sugar train where we ate sugar cake as we took in the island

Stop 15: St. Maarten - I had the chance to bust out my waterproof camera yet again and couldn't believe what a clear aqua-like color the water was! Even though both my dad and I look hilarious in the picture below, I love how happy we look

Stop 16: San Juan, Puerto Rico - Our final stop on the cruise where we stayed an extra day to explore the city. Partially because of the extra time and partially because of the city itself, this was my favorite part of the entire trip. I loved how there was a historical aspect embedded in the entire city - every street carried such a story with it!

It was also a great opportunity to try some delicious food at local restaurants. The cruise provided 5 meals a day of ridiculously decadent food, but it was nice to break away and try something authentic! We went to La Boveda de Triana and had an amazing seafood paella during our dinner along with other dishes of charizo, squid, eggplant and manchengo cheese, and more! The next morning we went to Cafeteria & Rest. Mallorca to get pastries - some filled with raspberry and some filled with cheese. Nomz all around!

With all of that, I bid my family goodbye and flew directly from Puerto Rico to JFK airport to move into my new home! What a trip. What an adventure.

And Christmas Begins!

Exactly one year ago, I flew to Rochester for the first time with my brand new DSLR in hand. After so many years of making my cousin Linda and her family fly out to California, it was time for me to give a visit to upstate New York for Thanksgiving! In many ways, one year ago was the start of my photographic journey. It was during this trip one year ago that I realized how much I didn't know about my camera and started fueling the desire to learn more. This year I returned and finally got a chance to experience the freezing yet beautiful weather and experience my first Christmas tree picking. Of course, I had the best time forcing my three gorgeous "nieces" pose for thousands of photos too.

Let's be real, Ben did all the work hahah

My favorite photo of today!