Sons of a Beach (and daughter)

This is Sons of a Beach Episode 4 and how I spent my 22nd Birthday in Crystal Beach, Zambales last Nov 09′. I knew this is going to be one of the best trips of my life so I packed my bags brought my Minolta XG-9 and Ricohflex Model VII. Poseidon, Alcohol, and the elements did the rest to make it the best.

It’s called Episode 4 because my HS best buddy, James, has been going to these surf trips with his father but when his father passed away he vowed to continue surfing because it was one of the best thing he and his father did and he wants to share it with his friends. This is the fourth month he organized it and for the first time I was able to come.

I also got to know some new awesome people.

The girl on the left is Atche (that was why there is daughter on the title of this one!) and the guy on the left is MikiBay (it’s best if you say it in one breathing hehe) awesome people them that I got to share this trip with. Apologies for the blurred picture. I was a bit tipsy/drunk when I took the photo… haha Drunk in the afternoon but hey we are on paradise so who cares!

My skullz boys Eric and Chino with MikiBay and James waxing up the boards. They’ll probably be mad because their beer bellies are perfectly highlighted.

Here’s MikiBay with some of their Ateneo HS batchamtes. I really like how my TLR shots turned out although I screwed the exposure on that one.

And screwed this one too. I should write the Ricoflex article soon. It has an awesome lens but the I always get the accidental double exposure. Nyargh.

I’m not the only one using film on that beach! That’s a Nikon FM2. Even if an apocalypse occurs, that camera will still survive I’m sure of that.

You’ll always see a lot of wierd stuff on the road. If you watched HBO’s6 feet under there is a character there that the car is a hearse. I wouldn’t believe that I actually would see one. Darn.

That dude on the left was my surf instructor. I suck because I forgot his name. Shit. But he is an awesome instructor. Lucky if you got him if you hit crystal beach.

Other peeps waiting for the instructor’s during lunch time.

Atch was also waiting

They also have body boards you can rent but this board grabbed my attention.

Erman looks so Happy, Dunno why heheh For some wierd reason he kept saying “Grover” the entire trip. Happy with his work perhaps.

Notice all of them are wearing shirts except the surfer. The surfer’s all have surfer bodies while the those beer drinkers have beer bellies. Oh well.

Here’s a good look of the waves. It was really a beginner level wave but nontheless, I will accept what Poseidon will give.

I like the fact that the little girl on the right was staring at Atche. I do hope that little girl grabs a board in the future and be inspired because she saw that the waves doesn’t belong to just the guys. Even girls can catch the wave.

MikiBay ready to conquer the waves!

The best part of the trip for me was the entire 2nd day. It started wierd because it was another memorable adventure with James. We have a bunch of those from getting lost to a subdivision for three hours to looking for a place which the adress is named Sa Dulo ng langit (On the edge of heaven). I always kept telling him that I wanted to see the sun rise. So after a night of drinking, being the good friend that he is, he woke me up 4:00am from our cottage (Awesomely named the House of Luke) told me to bring the beer while he brought the blankets, the alarm clock, and more beer. We walked towards the beach area, talked for awhile and slept. Come 6:00am, I heard a bunch of people whispering and murmuring around. Fishermen was all around and staring at us. I wouldn’t be surprised if they thought we were a gay couple. Darn.

Since I was already awake, I decided to grab my camera loaded with Ektar. I’ve always seen nature shots with Ektar turns out great. With awesome light that I have during that time, I just went ahead and shot stuff. I also got my Ricohflex with Fuji Pro 160C to get some square shots.

I’m really not a fan of nature shots. It was always my father’s forte but I am a fan of street.  Probably because I don’t know what to say with them but it really is strikingly beautiful. I thank God for his blessings.

Apparently, i’m not the only riser in the beach.

Amazing that the beach has some pine trees. My father told me that it was due to the Pinatubo Explosion in the 90′s. The Lahar flow brought the pine tree seeds near the water and voila. I should’ve asked the owner for that.

Speaking of the owner, I was able to catch him reading a book. Awesome guy him. Very Zen and loves nature very much. Asked if I was professional because I was wielding 2 cameras. He was really cool and told me to enjoy the place.

I assume they are the grandkids of the owner. He was with them so I guess they are.

Good thing I have a 28mm although if I have extra cash I’d probably look for a 24mm or a 17mm

Another pine tree shot. The light was hitting them right. I feel I kinda screwed this shot though.

There’s also some sort of team building area.

I need to move away from cliche shots. I see a bunch of this type of shot on tumblr. Oh well. Just have to restrain myself from shots like those.

All in all, it was one of the most enjoyable birthdays I had (Even though it was one week early ). Surfing in a great place with good people and a little bit of alcohol makes life a little more tolerable. Taking pictures of those moments turns it from tolerable to enjoyable.

Thanks Much
-selloutboy

PS
Crystal Beach is located in San Narciso Zambales around 3-4 hours away from Manila.
Their website can be acessed through here