The Canon Photomarathon 2009, Tagaytay City

This is a super delayed post but the memories are still fresh in my mind. Now this is what they call "photographic memory," literally.

Canon Photomarathon 2009 was held last November 14, Saturday, in Tagaytay City. It was my first time to attend such big photo event and being an amateur photographer, I was so excited and nervous at the same time.

The program started at 9am. It was a good thing I live just a town away so I didn't have to travel for hours to be there. After waiting for the bloggers' group led by Dani Salasalan, we proceeded to the registration booths. We were to roam around Tagaytay and look for good shots to fit the event's themes. Here are my sample shots for the three consecutive theme.

Theme 1: "Envy thy eagles for they can fly the open sky; Everything so huge would seem to grow smaller as they recede from the eye; A wider perspective would be a breath-taking experience; Especially if it's captured through our magnificent lenses."
Theme 2: "Filipinos no matter where they go, be likely to leave a mark of his hard work and merit. The challenge is to capture his great effort; impart his message through narrating photos. It can be the fruit or the remarkable deed; for it will surely receive an overwhelming remark on your spirit." Theme 3: "Tagaytay is known to be a city of character qualities. Look up and search for these moral traits. Lay it on a frame and take pleasure in the wonderful practices."All sample photos were taken by Foxy, my Canon Powershot SX110 IS. If you are looking for my official entries, I won't be publishing those three until the management announces the winners. I have read from a co-participant's blog that posting the official entries publicly shall invalidate such.

(This photo: Source)

There were booths for photography magazines, free cleaning of DSLR lenses, sale exhibit, and unlimited supply of Bacchus the Energy Drink, Nescafe Fit, Relax and Lingzhi, and Julie's Bakeshop products all for free. Our lunch was sponsored by Outbox and the dinner was catered, I just didn't get the caterer's name.

It was a tiring yet fun event! One thing I realized while physically and mentally doing the activity was that "Before, I thought I was pretty good in taking photos. Then I learned that I don't have to be content with my shots. That I still have to know more about photography. That I should check great photographers' works for me to be a good clicker, too. That this is not all about "clicks," "flashes," "smiles," and "cameras" only, but also the need to have the heart that can express the message of the scene being taken. That I won't stop here, just like ABCs and 123s, learning how to get excellent photos takes a lot of time and effort.