We were this close to the stage but, I don’t know, Italians are kind of crabby about their space. It’s weird. I don’t want to generalize and call them rude, but they really were kind of bitchy about it. It was not cool. I really was about to pull the race card, but then that would also be uncool, so we just looked for a different place.

I know it looks congested, but there was plenty of space around us and people were setting mats down as flat as they could and would fully recline. We were perfectly fine with standing around for the remaining four-hour wait, but they would make us leave because they “couldn’t see the stage.”

I talk about the race card, because as you can see, there are people who are standing around here, but we were the only ones they would ask to leave. Seriously. I’m 5″ tall, give me a break. ANYWAY.

We decided to move further back, look at merch (scored a great shirt, woohoo!), and buy water. Here we are with the awesome, laid back people, yay. <3

There was a bunch of dance tunes playing on a mobile while people were setting up/getting everything ready. Caribou opened for Radiohead. Here’s the set list. I will post a different entry on the concert itself, since I’m absolutely swamped currently. I hope you enjoy the pictures.

The post Film Diary: Radiohead in Firenze appeared first on Nothing Spaces.

So, my mom casually commented on my lack of updates here which confirms two things: a) I have been away for a longer time than is healthy for someone who keeps a blog, and b) my mom reads this (hi, mama!). In any case, I was going to make an update, when there was a server error here (that I did not appreciate), and then the moment passed and I wrote on my beauty blog, Softly Sometimes, instead.

My mom pointed out that I hadn’t even finished posting about Europe yet, and now I have begrudgingly put together a photo post of Belgium. Now, Belgium wasn’t a major destination in terms of our itinerary. We took a day trip there because we were in between places (Amsterdam & London) and we figured it would be worth our while to make a stop over.

Because we were going to be walking around, I stashed the digital camera I brought along with me in one of the train lockers. These are the only pictures (aside from a few shots on my Diana Baby/110 camera) you will see of Brussels. The wider angle photos were taken with an LC-A+ (with a wide lens attachment & loaded with Kodak Ektar 100) and the more close-cropped ones were taken with a Nikon FM2 (loaded with Lomo CN 400). I hope you enjoy!

Fun Fact: Tintin is of Belgian descent, apparently!

We tried döner in as many places as we could. This was alright, but not that excellent.

I think we were there on a Sunday, so tons of locals were hanging out in the public squares. Some groups looked like they were on field trips.

Again, construction!

BIG GIANT DOG.

The post Belgium on Film appeared first on Nothing Spaces.

Some pictures from various train rides. During the course of the month, I believe we’ve had at least thirteen major transfers when we were trying to get from city to city. This doesn’t include day trips to Château Versailles or Schloss Neuschwanstein. The novelty of train rides quickly wore off, when we had to haul all of our luggage, stow them in easily-accessible places, and then run to the next far-away platform for a transfer to our final destination.

Not that I’m complaining, though. Sometimes, train rides can still be magical. See for yourself.

(I don’t understand my title segregation and formats anymore, but I think they are pretty descriptive anyway, so whatever you need to find should be easy to find.)

St. Pancras Station, London
Nikon FM-2
Kodak Elitechrome 200

France
Nikon FM-2
Kodak Elitechrome 200

Gare du Nord, Paris, France
Lomography LC-A+
Kodak Portra 400NC

Germany
Nikon FM-2
Kodak Elitechrome 160T

Germany
Nikon FM-2
Kodak Elitechrome 160T

Munich Hauptbanhopf, Germany
Nikon FM-2
Kodak Elitechrome 160T

France to Germany
Lomography LC-A+
Ferrania Solaris 400

France to Germany
Lomography LC-A+
Ferrania Solaris 400

Florence, Italy
Lomography LC-A+
Fuji Natura 1000

Munich, Germany
Lomography LC-A+
Kodak Ektar 100

Brussels, Belgium
Lomography LC-A+
Kodak Ektar 100

Germany to Amsterdam
Lomography LC-A+
Kodak Ektar 100

En route to London
Lomography LC-A+
Kodak Ektar 100

The post Film Diary: Trains & Stations (Europe, 2012) appeared first on Nothing Spaces.

Nikon FM-2, Lomography CN 400

Lomography LC-A+, Kodak Ektar 100

The post Film Diary: Venice appeared first on Nothing Spaces.

(To get to our accommodations, you have to pass by a small doorway that leads into a bigger alley, which goes into the Jewish ghetto. Outside that doorway, though, is a canal and some sort of fish market, which I only see in the morning.)

I think it’s no secret that we, for some reason, have a strange fondness for feeding pigeons. One sunny day in Venice, we decided to stop by the Rialto (of course) and the Piazza San Marco, also known as the Pigeon Capital of the World. I mean, I would guess.

I loved going around Venice. It has a sort of labyrinthine feel to it, with a lot of narrow streets and ominous passageways that lead up to a beautiful piazza or a bridge to take you to another part of Venice. It’s a little difficult to get around, but you get to see a lot of wonderful things. Like this row of pretty-colored houses, for instance.

It’s quite nice to shop and look around, too. However, you kind of need to scout for the best price. A lot of Italian stores, especially the ones located near tourist attractions, sell the same things for varying prices, so if you spot a great deal, you should go for it.

We took a water bus or vaporetto to save time, and also to see some of the buildings from a view on the water. This, for example, is the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, with a great Calder piece (it’s a dog!) visible from the canal. When my parents were last in Venice, people could disembark from water-based vehicles onto this side of Peggy Guggenheim, but I don’t think they do that now, since it leads right into the building, bypassing the ticketing office.

Santa Maria della Salute. We didn’t get to visit this gorgeous place, but I read more about it here.

The Piazetta, which connects to Piazza San Marco

Piazza San Marco, or St. Mark’s Square, is often called “the Piazza,” and aside from the Rialto bridge, this is where tourists flock to. According to Wikipedia (lol), “it is one of the few great urban spaces in Europe where human voices prevail over the sounds of motorized traffic.”

The thing I love about Italy is that they take their piazzas (and their pizzas, hehe!) very seriously. I had a hard time leaving Italy because I knew there would be no public spaces and squares—at least no pleasant ones—waiting for me in Manila. I remember filching a shirt from my sister, which was designed by Team Manila, with a slogan emblazoned on the front: We need more parks. Indeed-y, we do.

Like I said, we love feeding pigeons. It reminded me of a strip by a softer world, where a devious plan to feed pigeons some uncooked rice (they expand when wet), for a pigeon explosion. I did not try it out to see if it’s an accurate hypothesis.

St. Mark’s Basilica takes up most of the Piazza. I love this place. It’s a hodge-podge of aesthetic and cultural styles (Byzantine mosaics, holla!), and I LOVE IT. I know some people think it’s atrocious, but I am of the belief that it is wonderful. Because it totally is.

Sassy green pigeon, gnawing on a normal-colored pigeon.

Pigeon bath! We witnessed the assertion of territorial superiority. It was quite fascinating, but mostly it was funny.

P.S. I colored these photos quite a bit. As you can see.

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On our first afternoon in Venice, we walked around the Jewish ghetto and the surrounding areas. Cut short by the rain, our exploration ended at a quaint coffee shop (which turned out to be a chain), where I had the most amazing lemon meringue. The rain let up, and instead going back to the hotel, we decided to venture out near the city center. We were met with the most amazing sunset.

Slowly, the sky changed from a brilliant orange into a vivid sort of purple. It wasn’t a bruised-up sky, but a bright, tinted purple. Somehow, as we found ourselves at the edge of Venice, as we chased the sun down. It was thrilling and somewhat romantic. Our sprint was cut short by the water, and the scene unfolded like something I would have liked to read about in a story or to watch in a film.

Taken with my iPhone 4 & Instagram

I know that people often consider Paris as the City of Love and Romance, but I truthfully felt this buzzing, swelling feeling in Venice. Crazy, right? Maybe it’s all the American tourists aboard the gondoliers at every turn, or something in the air (love?). But perhaps it’s sunsets like this, introduced by heavy rains and a rainbow, coloring everything with a wash of warmth. Or witnessing a man’s proposal to a beautiful woman on a random street corner, accompanied by “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” on an accordion.

Sometimes, I witness something remarkably, undeniably magical, and I wonder how these things fall into place. I wonder about the possibility and the likelihood that I be a piece of these puzzles, and I think about how lucky I am to have been a part of this one little pocket of magic—in Venice, no less!—that afternoon.

The post A Venetian Sunset appeared first on Nothing Spaces.

My sister is nuts.

From our second European morning, she had been bugging me to go jogging with her. She had coerced my dad to go jogging with her one morning in Paris, and another morning in Rome, where they did a Rocky in St. Peter’s Square, aka the Pope’s front yard. I, for one, value the little time I get to be sedentary.

Waking up at the crack of dawn to jog is absolutely nuts to me because a) we already spend the whole day walking around until our toes are numb from the tired and also, shoe friction, and well, b) that is the only reason.

Of course, when I had spent the previous day admiring the Florentine sunset, I figured I might as well see a Florentine sunrise for myself.

We crossed the Ponte Vecchio to the other side of the river. The sun was still low, by this point. We intended to follow the river, up to a certain bridge (I forget which one), but we had been jogging for quite a while before we decided to head back, since the bridge was farther than we anticipated.

Thank you to all my supporters and everyone who believed that I could rouse myself from sleep before seven in the morning, on a European vacation. Which is to say, nobody. Because nobody thought I would actually do this. So, thanks to no one for believing in me.

Just for the record, again, Florence is beautiful. I’m so glad I got to see it at all times of the day. It really stirs up something in you that inspires you to create something beautiful, just because you’re present in some place beautiful. While I was here, my hand rushed to finish scenes of a young adult novel I had been meaning to write for years. I think I actually have a plot line now.

I wish it weren’t such a tourist trap, because I honestly loved this city a lot.

All photographs were taken with a Lomography LC-A+ loaded with Kodak Ektar 100, aka my new love.

The post Waking Up to Florence appeared first on Nothing Spaces.

First of all, I had no idea that that was how you said “Firenze.” I had to learn from The Jersey Shore. Every time Firenze’s name would pop up in Harry Potter, I’d just pretend it didn’t exist. Because that is how mature people roll.

It was around this time that I began feeling really tired of taking photographs. I know that’s a little sacrilege, but as much as it pains me to admit it, I began wondering if I’d overpacked cameras (I brought along a Nikon D7000 with a 35mm lens, a Nikon FM-2 with a 50mm lens; mostly because I forgot to bring the 35mm, and a Lomography LC-A+ with a wide lens attachment I borrowed from Shine). From here on out, I would bring a maximum of two cameras every time I stepped out into whichever city we would be in.

It took about four hours to get to Florence from Rome, and when we got there, we were famished! Because we traveled in a group of five with one bag each, we do not usually like hailing cabs (they fit only four people) so if there is no public transport like a bus or a tram, we usually just walk it. Which is not a pleasant experience if the roads are cobblestones (which they are).

We rented an apartment that was about twenty steps away from Piazza della Signoria. Seriously. It was awesome. There were also a cluster of pizzerias down one side, so we ended up grabbing a bite to eat.

I’ve probably mentioned it already, but I’ll say it again: In Italy, they usually serve each person their own whole pizza.

I had porcini (mushroom) risotto because I missed rice, and because I hadn’t had any yet in Italy. They actually sell “instant risotto,” kind of like instant noodles here, but they took about twenty minutes to cook, so I don’t really know what’s so instant about that. Also, the instant stuff smells really good, but tastes kind of like nothing.

Mama, trying to fit us all in one picture, hehe.

As you can probably tell, Florence is beautiful. My parents said that most people who visit Florence are only there for the day, opting to spend the bulk of their vacations in bigger cities like Rome or Milan. Of course, my mind played with the idea of maybe living there one day or something. It was really picturesque, although my brother pointed out that it seemed like it was comprised of 90% tourists.

Mercato Nuovo

I rather love the markets, too. They have a lot of stalls that sold leather (smelled so good!) and other unique, handcrafted items. One seller showed us how to tell the difference between “plastic leather” and real Italian leather. Frankly, I was horrified that they would even sell artificial leather along with the real kind.

Venetian masks.

Il Porcellino, the Florentine Boar by Pietro Tacca

Here are some tourists rubbing the snout of Il Porcellino for good luck. According to tradition, you put a coin in the boar’s mouth, allowing it to fall into the grate below (around its feet). Then, you rub its snout for good luck and also, of course, for a return trip to Florence. There is a marble copy of the Florentine Boar in the Louvre, among other places, and there was a florentine boar in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows II, apparently! I have yet to check it out, although I do remember seeing a boar when I went on the Studio Tour in London, further down this trip.

Ponte Vecchio

From here on out, I used: Lomography LC-A+, Kodak Ektar 100

Because of a tip from two friends (thank you Armando & Lora!), we decided to catch the sunset at Piazalle Michelangelo, which has a panoramic view of Florence. I should have anticipated a high climb (duh, Carina), but it’s okay because it was worth it.

Be-a-utiful! For a minute, I wished I had brought my Sprocket Rocket (imagine!) but I know it’s severely impractical. Still though, that would have been a lovely view caught on film.

(I was hoping to catch this smoking! trashcan, but alas. The smoke was not meant to be captured by my plastic lens.)

Thank everyone and their mother that David has a bunch of replicas strewn all over Florence, because we were NOT able to see the original. It’s a long, sad story, but enough of that! We were still all smiles here:

The post First look at Florence appeared first on Nothing Spaces.

My first encounter with black-and-white was not during this love affair, but was, in fact, about a year and a half ago. I used a disposable Rollei Retro400. It was a decent set, with a stunning contact print I used for this piece, but I did not feel this kind of awe and wonder—the kind that I feel for the Ilford XP2 Super 400!

I bought a roll in HK to try out, but I used a roll that I forgot Tim gave me to try out, since I expressed interest in black-and-white. It’s processed with C-41 chemicals, so it’s easier to find labs that will develop your rolls. Anyway, I love it in the night-time. Look how awesome that street shot is. I was on the MRT Quezon Ave. station bridge.

Whenever I thread in a new roll of film, my sister is usually the test shot. :)

Route 196. Agh, it’s so amazing and moody. I just used a Lomography LC-A+ on these shots. Surprising result for a truly dark and lightless environment.

Selena of Slow Hello.

My brother in his room. Such a great mood, I love it.

Iniko!

Babysitting totem pole with Isabel and Iniko.

First shot, and last shot! For some reason, I love how the negative looks like crinkled. Now my problem is—WHERE DO I GET MORE ROLLS?

The post In love with black-and-white appeared first on Nothing Spaces.

I shot a few photographs when I was at the shoot for Chalk Magazine’s August feature, Bright Young Manila! Weirdly enough, it has taken me this long before dipping my toes into my black-and-white film, not counting my disposable Rollei. Anyway, it was a positively gloomy day, but I like my pictures more dour than sunny, so it was pretty much perfect.

Joseph, our awesome photographer! Toff said he was part of last year’s list, and I completely get it. I’ve been a long-time fan of Joseph’s. Check out his blog, which is filled with so many beautiful things.

Me! I showed him how my LC-A+ worked. He got the focus right on the first try, plus managed to create a lovely vignetting. Because he is amazing.

We were (unsuccessfully) playing with multiple exposures, though. I can never remember which to take a photo of first—the pattern or the subject?—so this is what happened.

Hannah and Steph, filling out these questionnaires the Chalk team made for us. You can read them at the Chalk tumblr, but they’re uploading them in trickles over the duration of August.

The hairstylist wore mismatched sneakers! Obviously, I have a sucky sense of focus, but I think it’s still a pretty good picture.

All of us, plus the team, hanging around Arturo Luz’ paper clip. :) Except, I guess, I’m not in the frame.

I am Bright Young Manila! Hehe. The issue is in stands now, so get a copy if you can :D

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