Ferdz Decena

Gamet Gatherer (Olympus E-PL1, Lumix 20mm, F1.7, 1/1250sec, ISO 100) She goes by the name of Che. I saw her along with her friends from afar on my way behind the impressive rock formation of Kapupurawan in Burgos and had to look closely. They were gathering a Gamet (or Nori for Japanese), a red edible seaweed which is part of Ilocano’s diet as they make these into soups, scrambled egg ingredients and other delicacies. It’s also a big industry here as they export them in Japan. Che and her friends thread the sharp coral rocks and the waves in Burgos every morning till noon to gather these Gamet as it is their source of food and income. Shot with an Olympus PEN E-PL1 and Lumix 20mm pancake, I made sure I have a Circular Polarizer attached to lessen the light coming in so I could shoot wide open at F1.7 here since it’s close to noon already.

Tomas Leonor of Step Juan (Olympus E-PL1, Lumix 20mm, f1.7, 1/30sec, ISO 200, Pin Hole Art Filter) Challenged on how he can help a group of 60 children with cancer on a visit in Batangas, he did what little he could do – walk. Artist-Environmentalist, Tomas Leonor , has very little in possession so last year he decided to walk to generate awareness and funds for children with cancer. From Pagudpud, he walked about 475.5km to Matnog, Sorsogon in a period of 48days with only his rickshaw Karl (inspired by walking adventurer Karl Bushby) as companion. For this year, 2011, Tomas will continue his walk in the Visayas region for Step Juan Bai , a 56 day journey picking up from where he left off at Allen Bicol to Boracay Aklan starting April 4, 2011. This afternoon, I caught up with Tomas after his Presscon at Philippine Children’s Medical Center and had an informal chat about his Step Juan Bai project.

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Lucinda the Civet Coffee Gatherer (Olympus E-PL1, Lumix 20mm, f1.7, 1/250, ISO 400) This is Lucinda, a Civet Coffee Bean gatherer in Talisay, Batangas. Every morning, for half a year, she and her husband would wake up before the sun rises and traverse three mountains, including Mt Malarayat in Batangas to find the precious fecal remains of the Civet Cat. These cat poop are then processed to become the world’s most expensive coffee, the Alamid Coffee . Here, Lucinda shows a four hours old cat poop with coffee beans in the forest of Mt Malarayat.

Olympus E-5 field tested at Nagsasa, Zambales So I let my little powerhouse Olympus PEN E-PL1 take a rest and take the new Olympus E-5 DSLR out into the wild. It was a fun weekend trip to Nagsasa in San Antonio Zambales and I get to expose this camera to the elements. And all I can say for now is that if you are looking for one rugged DSLR camera that can withstand the outdoors, this one’s it.

It’s the last day of Lakbay Norte 2 and we’re currently waiting for our Cebu Pacific Flight back to Manila. The day is pretty slow and some of the sights are already familiar, like the Paoay Church and lake and empanada In Batac. The new place for me of course is the newly restored Malacanang of the North . It’s been an exciting 6 days up north and as expected, there are always something new to see which I’ll definitely go back to. In the meantime, I’m yearning to go back home and sleep on my own bed.

Like I always said, the north always had a lot in store everyone I go back here. The weather was a lot friendly as we finally saw the chalk like rock-formations of Kapurpuran in Burgos against a blue backdrop of the sky. We also visited a salt making facility and the famous biscocho in Pasuquin . While we did the Sand Dunes last year, doing the sand boarding is still as fun. Our last night up north ended with some songs, drinks and games.

Patches of blue sky and sunlight shone through the clouds today while we were at Adams . It’s a province up north that I’m glad to have finally set foot since I’ve been wanting to visit the place. We had a trek to Anupig Falls, got to taste some ants and ant eggs and sip some local wine. There were uneventful lapses on our way to Laoag but all is well at the end of the day.

Stormy has been the story of Lakbay Norte 2, even from our way to Kapuluan Vista Resort Pagudpud from Sta Ana Cagayan passing through Buguey and Claveria. I was able to observe the Minagdaklis (caribaryo shell gathers) in Buguey . At Claveria , I promised to return to see the amazing rock formations at Lakay-lakay Lagoon. Hoping to have a good weather for the coming days still. In the meantime Kapuluan charmed us with great hospitality from the owners and their great food.

The rainy weather continued to delay us on our second day of Lakbay Norte 2 but it didn’t stop us from visiting Palaui Island which reminded me a lot of Batanes. The afternoon gave us time for an extended snooze then a sumptuous meal from the night’s host, Eastern Hawaii Resort . Like Sun City Resort the night before, they used to be exclusive for Mainland Chinese Nationals but now are opening for the local crowd.

It’s the first day of the second leg of Lakbay Norte 2 and we immediately faced a delay in our itinerary due to the unforeseen weather conditions up north that delayed out flight for 4 hours. Nothing much has been seen since we arrived late at the sights. But the hospitality of the Cagayan people really shone through on our town visits on our way to Sta Ana Cagayan . Here’s a shot I took on the road of a tractor carrying a small sari-sari store to be transported elsewhere.

Old Panutsa Lady (Olympus E-PL1, Lumix 20mm, F1.7, 1/25sec, ISO 400) They say they eyes is the most important aspect of a portrait. It has to be clear to show the expression of the person in the picture. But the question is, does it always have to look straight at you? There are times the eye contact can mesmerize you but looking away can also paint another story. Here’s a photo of an old lady from a Patupat Factory in Pangasinan organizing a pile of panutsa (sweet brown sugarcane delicacy). Shot with the Olympus E-PL1 with the 20mm f1.7 Pancake lens just a few minutes apart, one photo is looking at the camera and the other one is looking far away. Which do you prefer?