Top 5 at Zone V: October 2022 - Zone V Camera Club

The Top 5 Photos of October 2022

By Emman Araullo

After months of being limited to online activities, Zone V Camera Club members invaded San Pablo City, Laguna for an OTS (Out of Town Shoot) event which also culminated with a fellowship night, the first in 2 years. The theme was “Shooting Out of the Box” which challenged members to “break the traditional rules of composition”. The category was “open” which meant members could utilize any photography technique that they wanted. The only caveat was that the images needed to be shot from October 22-24 within the limits of San Pablo City. International members were also given their own set of guidelines so they can join the contest and enjoy the challenge and camaraderie that a Zone V OTS offers.

The 3 judges for the month of October are Regie Fernando who is the head creative artist and director of Imagesmith, a manila based multi-media outfit that primarily caters to commercial photography and videography clientele. He is also the owner and founder of the organization Pinoy Photography (PiPho). Francis Ansing, foubder of Shutter Adventures Co., a tour and travel agency for photographers. He is also a local influencer for several photography brands. Charming Baldemor, a photographer turned award-winning sculptor. She is also a social advocate for women empowerment and environmental sustainability.

The top 5 photos for the month are as follows:

#5 “Untitled” by Cha Pagdilao – Members Cup

Image during blue hour, ISO 200, f/11, 1/125, with AD 200 external flash.

Cha opens by saying it was “hard to break the rules of photography”, however, it was necessary in order to give justice to the theme “Shooting Out of the Box”. In order to do this, Cha inverted her image to be able to fill the frame. One repeated comment from the judges was how the subject’s head at the bottom of the image was awkwardly cropped out. When asked about this, Cha shared that “cropping the head of the subject was INTENTIONAL” – to break the rules of composition.

She further adds that “beheading the subject is something you can try if you want to add mystery to your image.” Club members were able to recognize the beauty and intent behind the image as Cha’s photo wins this month’s “Member’s Cup”.

#4 “Looking for Blue” by David Lim

This photo was taken above the fish market building. David says he knew he wanted to capture an eerie feel to Sampaloc Lake.

So, using a Nikon D850, remote flash and a lantern that reflects the light, he embarked on a sunset shot at the blue hour and came out with this photo.

#3 “Untitled” by Arlene Donaire

In shooting for the OTS with an unusual theme, Arlene said that she “knew, would, and wanted to submit a street photo”. She revealed that “dispensing with the usual rules of composition was actually difficult”, especially for her as she is “always keen on balanced layouts and correct exposure”.

Her image was shot near the promenade of Sampaloc Lake at dawn. While waiting for the rest of the club members to arrive for the sunrise shoot, she noticed the stall owners starting to prepare and the bicycle-rental guys passing by. Noting the theme, she decided to execute a purposely slow shutter shot of the early morning activity. The resulting image, she says, is as she envisioned it; she knew that a slower shutter speed at low light condition would create this strange effect. Edits done were bumping up the contrast and colors to make the image come alive.

Arlene shares that she “likes the photo because it exudes a sense of “busyness” at the quiet blue hour; She goes deeper by saying that “the irony of the motion and moment, the implicit story and the way the slow shutter made it look like the scene happened in fast way but in a captured slow-mo effect”. In closing, Arlene shares that “it took a deliberate effort on her part to make intended deviations on rule of thirds and rule of odds without sacrificing on the implied story.”

#2 “Untitled” by Jeff Dytuco

ISO 400, f/11, 1/200

running late for the fellowship night, the three of them just couldn’t leave the beautiful sunset colors that day. He also shares that there was luck involved as they were able to shoot a lot of interesting subjects like joggers, bikers and kids playing in the lake.

For Jeff, the shot was quite challenging because he could no longer crouch or bend that low of an angle. Instead, he placed the camera on the ground, took a few burst shots without looking at viewfinder and hoped that he captured a good one. Luckily, there were a few came out nice. Jeff also shares that he credits Master Willie for conceptualizing the shot.

In order to adhere to the theme, Jeff intentionally put the main subject in the center of outside the “rule of thirds”. Jeff, closes by saying – “It was such a challenging theme” and adds that he was “just lucky to have scored well.”

#1 “Morning joggers” by David Lim POTM

David reveals that this was a spur of the moment set-up. He initially tried using his Nikon D850 wide angle to capture the split moment jump, but could not get down far enough to shoot literally at the ground level. This prompted him to try using the wide angle option that the iPhone offers which he says was “so much easier and effective“. Several continuous shots later using this setup, he got this winning image.